In the 1884 rescue from SS William Hope in Aberdour Bay off the north coast of Aberdeenshire in Scotland Jane Whyte rescued fifteen sailors from their ship in conditions described as "blowing a hurricane".[1]
On 28 October 1884 SS William Hope was sailing from Fraserburgh to Burghead carrying only ballast. Caught off Troup Head by a shift in the wind in severe conditions the captain headed into Aberdour Bay where its steam engine failed and anchor chain broke.[2][3]
When the ship was drifting towards rocks on the shore Jane Whyte,[note 1] a 40-year-old mother of nine[note 2] and wife of a farm worker, was walking her dog along the beach. Whyte waded into the sea and caught a rope thrown towards her. Winding it round her waist, she pulled back to the shore and held it firmly while all fifteen sailors struggled to reach land one at a time. She then gave them shelter overnight until they were able to return to Dundee.[1][5][2]
Whyte was awarded the RNLI silver medal for outstanding bravery and a Board of Trade bronze medal of gallantry. With her £10 reward she was able to purchase her rented croft. The ship, an iron fishing trawler built in 1882, was wrecked and sold to be broken up.[1][5][6]
Notes edit
References edit
- ^ a b c d Banks, Ken (10 August 2018). "The woman who saved 15 sailors from drowning". BBC News. Archived from the original on 10 August 2018. Retrieved 10 August 2018.
- ^ a b MacFarlane, Jenna (7 August 2018). "Jane Whyte - Aberdeenshire's Own Grace Darling". The Scots Magazine. Archived from the original on 10 August 2018. Retrieved 10 August 2018.
- ^ "William Hope: Aberdour Bay, North Sea". canmore.org.uk. Archived from the original on 10 August 2018. Retrieved 10 August 2018.
- ^ McCall, Alison (29 September 2015). "Jane Whyte - Mapping Memorials to Women in Scotland". womenofscotland.org.uk. Archived from the original on 10 August 2018. Retrieved 10 August 2018.
- ^ a b Strachan, Graeme (18 April 2018). "Tribute to Aberdeenshire heroine who waded into North Sea to save sailors". Aberdeen Press and Journal. Archived from the original on 10 August 2018. Retrieved 10 August 2018.
- ^ "Screw Steamer WILLIAM HOPE built by Hawthorns & Co. in 1883 for John Wilson Hope, Leith, Fishing". www.clydeships.co.uk. Retrieved 10 August 2018.
Further reading edit
- "justjill" (28 December 2012). "Land of the Big Sky.: History in more ways than one". Land of the Big Sky. Retrieved 10 August 2018.