THE ROAMER
A NUMBER of readers have commented on last week’s shipwreck story told by Valerie Beattie, and they thanked her for sharing such a moving, personal tragedy with them.
More than a few tears were shed while Valerie told us about her father Andy McGurk’s last letter to her mother Betsy, written from his ship MV Maystone shortly before it sank off the Farne Islands on the Northumberland coastline on October 18, 1949. There were only four survivors from the doomed vessel. Tragically, 19 died - five from Northern Ireland - and chief steward Andy McGurk’s body was never recovered. Considering that we’re a small island community, Valerie shares what was a consensus of readers’ opinions that we should more actively mark and commemorate our sea-going past. Ulster boasts a hugely unique nautical legacy. Down the centuries nearly 4,000 vessels were launched on the Lagan, and in Carrickfergus and Londonderry too. Countless local men and women shared triumph, danger, sadness and death, whether at sea or in the shipyards. But only RMS Titanic seems to be remembered or commemorated! Today in 1942 HMS Eagle’s vast keel was laid down on a Queen’s Island slipway. Eagle was just one of no less than five famous aircraft carriers built here; mostly forgotten. On October 18, 1872, exactly 77 years to the day before Andy McGurk’s MV Maystone took Valerie’s father to his stormy grave, the brand new Belfast-built SS Celtic ran aground on Belfast Lough within a few hours of being handed over to her owners, the White Star Line. Celtic embarked on her maiden voyage today in 1872! In 1880 a young officer called Edward Smith joined Celtic, he was later to become skipper of Titanic, and in 1887 Celtic was involved in a collision which caused the death of 12 passengers - six bodies were never recovered.
And today in Australia in 1938 the South Steyne ferry, powered by Belfast-built engines, entered into service crossing between Sydney and Manly. For an astonishing 36 years Harland and Wolff’s mighty twin turbine engines trundled over 92 million passengers across the waters, a total of 100,000 journeys - making the ferry one of Australia’s most historic seaborne icons. Another is Melbourne’s Polly Woodside, a majestic fully rigged vessel built by Belfast’s ‘wee yard’ Workman Clark in 1885. Polly safely rounded the infamous Cape Horn an astounding 16 times, she survived attacks in two world wars, and now the old ship attracts thousands of visitors every day as one of Melbourne’s most popular and multi award-winning tourist attractions! These few vessels are a mere fraction of Belfast ships and sea-farers that deserve to be remembered daily, with pride or joy or sadness, but they’re relegated to history’s dank back-waters, and it is our loss. Returning to Valerie Beattie’s account of her father Andy’s last days on the MV Maystone, and his last letter to her mother - a number of readers were moved to tears by the sad ending to his letter.
“Give my best regards to everyone. I love you. Yours for ever. Andy.” Valerie explained: “The letter ends with a whole load of kisses.” There were two lines of them, all X’s. She started counting them, and paused. “There are 18 Xs,” she exclaimed.
“That’s uncanny. The ship went down on the 18th!” But some sharp-eyed News Letter readers noticed something else. The first line of kisses contained 12 Xs. Andy wrote the letter on October 12. And the second line contained six kisses. Andy and his ship were lost six days after he wrote the letter. The sea holds many secrets!