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Coral Queen - a general history

Official No; 1159: Code Letters HGTF.

Owners: 1846 H. McTear & Co, Liverpool; 1853 Miller & Thompson, Liverpool; 1857 Pearson & Coleman, Grimsby; 1858 J. Lever, Manchester; 1861 Atlantic Royal Mail Steam Navigation Co., Liverpool; 1864 A.N.W. Ludders, Germany-renamed Coral Queen; 1864 West Hartlepool Steam Navigation Co. (William S. Leng & W.H. Curtis) West Hartlepool; 1865 West Hartlepool Steam Navigation Co. (Pile Spence & Co.) West Hartlepool; 1867 West Hartlepool Steam Navigation Co. (Christopher M. Webster, Sunderland) West Hartlepool.

Masters: 1856 C. Keen; 1867 Verrill; 1875 Cooper; 1873-1881 William Whisson Flaxman (b. 1829 Wells); 1885-89 Heywood; 1890-91 G. Moorsam.

South Durham & Cleveland Mercury 30 October 1885:
The SS Coral Queen, whose arrival at West Hartlepool from Gothenburg we reported yesterday, sustained the full fury of the late gale. Captain Haywood reports that at 11.45am on Sunday last part of the machinery connected with the discharge pipe gave way allowing water to come into the vessel. Temporary repairs were effected, which allowed the vessel to proceed, but she was only able to make about 4 knots an hour with the aid of sails. On the 27th another gale came on and the vessel had to heave to and found she had damaged her bulwarks and lost part of her deck cargo. Great credit is due to the chief engineer, Mr Stokoe, for the very prompt and effective way in which he made the repairs which brought the vessel home. If the repairs had not been done quickly, the vessel, in the opinion of nautical men, could hardly have weathered the storm.

February 18th, 1890:
Bound from Gothenburg to West Hartlepool with a cargo of iron and wood props and a crew of 19, she sank after a collision seven miles east of Hartlepool (midway between the Tees & Hartlepool) with the Dutch steamer Brinio, bound from Middlesbrough for Rotterdam. Two of the crew of Coral Queen managed to jump aboard the Brinio and 11 others left in the jollyboat and were picked up by the vessel Earl of Dumfries and landed at Sunderland. Unfortunately there was not room in the jollyboat for the six remaining crew and they were lost when the ship sank.

Lives lost February 1890;

Beverage, Alexander, West Hartlepool

Garry, Sunderland

Kendie, William, West Hartlepool

Simpson, R, West Hartlepool

Usher, Charles, West Hartlepool

Vixon, Christopher, West Hartlepool

Survivors February 1890;

Anderson, Charles, 2nd engineer, West Hartlepool

Durant, George, fireman

Handles/Randles, Thomas chief engineer, W Hartlepool

Heywood, Charles, steward, W Hartlepool

Hudson, Thomas, fireman, W Hartlepool

Johnson, -, 1st mate, W Hartlepool

Johnson, Nicholas, able seaman, Shields

Lewis, Robert, 2nd mate, Havelock St, Middlesbrough

Moorson/Moorsom, master, W Hartlepool

Robson, George, able seaman, Blyth

Smithson, -, able seaman

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