The Mary Celeste: A Maritime Mystery
The 150 Year Maritime Mystery
From the very beginning, the Mary Celeste was ridden with tragedy. But one mysterious voyage involving a vanishing crew of 11 people has left the world speculating for over 150 years.
The fate of the captain and crew remains one of the longest maritime mysteries in history.
From theories of giant octopuses to paranormal activity, find out what modern historians believe really happened to the Mary Celeste.
The Ship
The Mary Celeste was a Canadian-built 282-ton brigantine, constructed of locally felled timber. She was carvel-built—with the hull planted flush rather than overlapping.
Originally, she was named Amazon, and she had quite the adventures—and misadventures—from her maiden voyage to her final voyage, and even afterward.
Her Maiden Voyage
In June of 1861, the Amazon took her maiden voyage to Five Islands, Nova Scotia, to take on a cargo of timber for passage across the Atlantic to London. During the loading, the ship’s captain became ill. The Amazon returned to Spencer Island where Captain McLellan passed from his illness.
While his illness was unexpected, it was common for unwell people to pass from their ailments during that time, as medical advancements had not yet been made.
A new captain took over the ship, but the tragedy wasn’t over yet.
Misadventures
Captain John Nutting Parker took over and resumed the voyage to London. During its journey, the Amazon encountered further misadventures. Not only did she collide with fishing equipment off Eastport, Maine, but after leaving London, she also ran into and sanka brig in the English Channel.
And that was just her maiden voyage.
She Was A Work Of Art
The Amazon worked the next two years mainly in the West Indies trade, with Parker still in command. She crossed the Atlantic to France in 1861, and was the subject of a painting by Honoré de Pellegrin, a well-known maritime artist of the Marseilles School.
In 1863, Parker was succeeded by William Thompson, who remained in command until 1867. During that time, things were fairly quiet for the Amazon.
But then in October of 1867, a storm hit.
