The Mary Celeste

On November 7, 1872, the Mary Celeste set sail from

New York Harbour on its way Italy. On board were the
ship’s captain, Benjamin S. Briggs, his wife, Sarah, and
their 2-year-old daughter, Sophia, with eight
crewmembers. A month later, on December 5, a
passing British ship called Dei Gratia spotted the Mary
Celeste, with no sign of the captain, his family or any of
the crew. Aside from several feet of water in the hold
and a missing lifeboat, the ship was undamaged and
loaded with six months’ worth of food and water.

What happened to it?

Many theories over the years have been made,
ranging from pirate attacks to assault by giant
octopus or sea monster, while the more
scientifically minded proposed an explosion
caused by fumes from the 1,700 barrels of crude
alcohol in the ship’s hold. No one really knows
what happened and is still a mystery to this day.

Fun fact
It was given a new name after
a series of mishaps eg. The
sudden illness and death of its
first captain.
Where is it now?
The wreck of the Mary Celeste, has been
discovered off Haiti by a team of marine
archaeologists. In 1872, the Mary Celeste,
sailing from New York to Europe with a
cargo of alcohol, was found by another
vessel, sailing off the Azores with no one
aboard. All things considered, it certainly
looked like the crew of the Dei Gratia had
murdered everyone on the Mary Celeste,
dumped their bodies at sea, and sailed the
stolen ship and its cargo to Gibraltar