Home / Disasters and Accidents / 150 Years Ago: Daring Rescue From Horrid Gulch Storm
150 Years Ago: Daring Rescue From Horrid Gulch Storm
29 Nov
Summary
- The Waterwitch sank during a fierce storm 150 years ago.
- A daring rescue operation saved thirteen men from cliffs.
- The tragedy spurred calls for a lighthouse at Cape St. Francis.
One hundred fifty years ago, on November 29, 1875, the schooner Waterwitch met a tragic end. Sailing from St. John's into a severe storm, the vessel was driven onto the rocks in the aptly named Horrid Gulch. Despite the immediate peril, a remarkable rescue ensued as survivors clung to cliff faces, and the community of Pouch Cove mounted a heroic effort to save them.
Through immense bravery and ingenuity, Pouch Cove residents orchestrated a dangerous rescue operation. Men were lowered down sheer cliffs by rope, forming a human chain to pull thirteen survivors to safety. This harrowing ordeal claimed twelve lives, including all four women on board, and deeply affected the community of Cupids, which mourned six family members lost.
The dual loss of the Waterwitch and another schooner, Hopewell, in the same storm intensified pleas for maritime safety. Consequently, the Cape St. Francis lighthouse and fog alarm were constructed a year later, a lasting monument to the lives lost and a vital safeguard for sailors navigating those treacherous waters to this day.
