1893 — Oct 3, schnr. Mary Brown leaves Sand Point, AK for SF CA; wreck found ~Kennedy Isl., BC~14

— 14 Alaskashipwreck.com. Alaska Shipwrecks. “Alaska Shipwrecks 1800-1899.”
— 14 Alaskashipwreck.com. Alaska Shipwrecks. “Alaska Shipwreck A – Z.” “M”
— 14 Good and Burwell. Alaska Shipwrecks 1750-2015. 2018, p.616.
— 14 The Daily Telegram, Nanaimo, B.C. “Their Fate Will Never Be Known.” 1-31-1894, p. 1.
–>13 The Daily Californian, Bakersfield. “A Total Wreck.” 3-13-1894, p. 1.
(Ambiguous. Notes Capt. Brown and John L. O’Brien, and their passengers, 13 in number.)
–>12 Victoria Daily Colonist, BC. “The Lost ‘Mary Brown.’” 1-4-1894, p. 2.
— 6 crew
–>6 passengers
— 11 Brush Creek News, IA. “Foreign.” 11-9-1893, p. 14.
— 11 Morning Call, San Francisco. “After the Mary Brown.” 1-19-1894, p. 10.
— 9 Victoria Daily Colonist, BC. “The Missing ‘Mary Brown.’” 11-18-1893, p. 5.

Narrative Information

Alaskashipwreck.com: “1893…Mary Brown…U [unknown location]…65 foot…Schooner 14 [lost].” (Alaska Shipwrecks. “Alaska Shipwrecks 1800-1899.”)

Alaskashipwreck.com: “Mary Brown (1893). The 43.6 ton 65 foot wooden schooner Mary Brown departed Sand Point October 3, 1893 bound for San Francisco and disappeared. She was carrying a cargo of miscellany and had a crew consisting of captain and owner Marzonia Brown, four seamen and two Eskimo crewmen (a man and a boy). There were eight passengers including captain Frank N Gafney of Lynde and Hough Company, James L. O’Brien and six of his men who had been engaged in conducting a store or station at Sand Point for the Lynde and Hough Company. They were all headed south for the winter. Many months after the Mary Brown went missing, Mrs. R. H. Hazelton, the sister of James O’Brien went north from San Francisco searching for tidings of her brother. With the help of Reverend Fred L. Stephenson, a missionary among the Alaskan Natives, the British authorities and two Native guides, Mrs. Hazelton was able to locate wreckage and the capsized hull of the Mary Brown near Banks Island, British Columbia. Captain O’Brien’s bloody clothing was found with the wreckage which indicated the possibility that foul play had been involved in the loss of the vessel. No bodies were ever found to help determine whether the vessel was lost to shipwreck, mutiny or attack by outsiders.

“Mapping and Location: Unknown.

“Comment: There are a number of differing accounts of who was aboard the Mary Brown. Some do not mention the six men of James O’Brien and others mention three miners that were being transported back to British Columbia. Most report the loss of nine men.

“Additional Information: Tonnage 45.89 Gross 43.6 Net, Length 65, Breadth 20.1, Depth 6.7, Built 1892 at San Francisco, Owner and captain Marzonia Brown, ON 92399.

“Sources: 1. San Francisco Chronicle (April 28, 1894) “A Mystery of the Sea” Pg 11, 2. Merchant Vessels of the U S (1893) Pg 191, 3. San Francisco Chronicle (November 16, 1893) “Where is the Mary Brown?” Pg 12, 4. San Francisco Call (December 15, 1893) “Nine Lives Lost” Pg 7, 5. San Francisco Call Bulletin (March 14, 1894) “Fate of the Mary Brown Not Known” Pg 3.” (Alaskashipwreck.com. Alaska Shipwrecks. “Alaska Shipwrecks A – Z.”)

Good and Burwell: “1893…Mary Brown…U [unknown location]…65 Foot…Schooner…14 [lost].” (Good and Burwell. Alaska Shipwrecks 1750-2015. 2018, p. 616.)

Newspapers

Nov 9, 1893: “….The schooner Mary Brown was lost off Banks Island, B.C., and eleven persons were drowned.” (Brush Creek News, IA. “Foreign.” 11-9-1893, p. 14.)

Nov 17, 1893: “Fears are entertained for the safety of the Alaska sealing schooner Mary Brown, which sailed from Sand Point for this port forty-five days ago. The Brown, Capt. Brown owner and master, discharged her season’s catch of sealskins here and returned to her northern home about three months ago. She took supplies north, and was to return with a cargo of salmon and furs. The succession of northerly gales may have compelled her to make some intermediate harbor for shelter; it is hoped this will be fund to be the correct solution of the mystery concerning her non-appearance.” (Victoria Daily Colonist, BC, Canada. “Where is the ‘Mary Brown?’” 11-17-1893, p. 5.)

Nov 18, 1893: “It is said that the sealing schooner Mary Brown, which, as stated in yesterday’s Colonist, left Sand Point for Victoria 44 days ago, had two passengers on board, these being James L. O’Brien, secretary of the Lynde-Hough company, and manager of the Union Fish Company, and Capt. Wm. Gaffney, in the employ of the same company. Capt. Marsovia Brown, who is master and owner of the forty-five ton schooner, is well known in the city, as elsewhere on the coast, having been many years in the sealing business. He had six of a crew on leaving Sand Point.” (Victoria Daily Colonist, BC. “The Missing ‘Mary Brown.’” 11-18-1893, p. 5.)

Jan 4, 1894: “….The Mary Brown sailed from Sand Point, Alaska, about seventy days ago, and has not been heard from since. She had six passengers among whom were Captain Gaffney, Captain Brown and Edward O’Brien, of the Lynde & Hough Co. There were also a number of Indians on board….” (Victoria Daily Colonist, BC. “The Lost ‘Mary Brown.’” 1-4-1894, p. 2.)

Jan 12, 1894: “Port Townsend, Jan. 12. – Among the crew of the sealing schooner Mary Brown, which sailed from Unalaska last September for Victoria, are Dick Flynn and Fred Hill, of this city, who went north in the schooner Fisher Maid. They left the latter vessel at Sand Point and took passage on the Brown. The general opinion prevails that the Mary Brown is lost, although some people profess to believe that she was lost on some uninhabited island near the coast of Alaska.” (Seattle Post Intelligencer, WA. “Sealer Mary Brown Probably Lost.” 1-13-1894, p. 1.)

Jan 19, 1894: “The revenue cutter Wolcott, now stationed at Port Townsend, was ordered yesterday to start in search of the missing schooner Mary Brown. Captain Healey of the cutter Bear received a dispatch from Washington apprising him of the order. ‘I suppose it is done to satisfy friends of the men who were on the schooner,’ he said last night, ‘but I fear there is little use in making the search. The schooner left Unga on October 3 with eleven men on board. She was a trading and seal-fishing boat among the islands, and people have an idea that she was lost somewhere up in the straits above Vancouver Island. I believe she was lost in the ocean, if lost at all.” (Morning Call, San Francisco. “After the Mary Brown.” 1-19-1894, p. 10.)

Jan 20: “Port Townsend, Jan. 20. – The United States revenue cutter Oliver Wolcott sailed today to cruise along Vancouver Island in a search for the sealing schooner Mary Brown, which sailed from Unalaska for San Francisco last October.” (The Morning Call, San Francisco. “Searching for a Missing Sealer.” 1-21-1894, p. 9.)

Jan 30: “Port Townsend, Jan. 30. – The United States revenue cutter Wolcott returned this morning from a cruise along the west coast of Vancouver Island, as far north as Clayoquot Sound, after an unsuccessful search for the wreck of the sealing schooner Mary Brown, which sailed from Sand Point, Alaska, for San Francisco, last October.

“Clayoquot Sound is the general headquarters of the northern Indians, who congregate there from all points of Southeast Alaska and Vancouver Island, preparatory to going on the sailing vessels. None of the Indians had any news of recent wrecks of vessels. The belief prevails among the revenue officials that the Mary Brown was lost above Sitka, as it is now certain that the disaster did not occur this side of that point.” (The Record-Union, Sacramento, CA. “Searched in Vain.” 1-31-1894, p. 1.)

Jan 30, 1894: “Port Townsend, Wash., Jan. 30. – The United States steamer Oliver Wolcott, which was sent out over a week ago to search for the survivors of the wrecked sealing schooner, Mary Brown, returned this morning without finding a trace of the unfortunate fourteen persons who sailed for home from Sitka last October….” (The Daily Telegram, Nanaimo, British Columbia. “Their Fate Will Never Be Known.” 1-31-1894, p. 1.)

March 13, 1894: “Victoria, B.C., March 13. – The fate of the schooner Mary Brown, which the United States government sent the steamer Wolcott to search for, has at last been explained. A party of Indians reached Claxton on the Skeena river a week ago from Gilkatla, and reported the schooner on the rocks of that island. Her bow and masts were gone and her boats smashed. On the deck that found three rifles, three watches, some money and a small pennant with the name Brown on it. Captain Brown and John L. O’Brien, of the Lynde-Hough Commercial company of San Francisco, and their late passengers, thirteen in number, are unquestionably drowned. The schooner was fifty tons burden and left Sand Point last fall for Victoria.” (The Daily Californian, Bakersfield. “A Total Wreck.” 3-13-1894, p. 1.)

Sources

Alaskashipwreck.com. Alaska Shipwrecks. “Alaska Shipwrecks 1800-1899.” Accessed 11-9-2021 at: https://alaskashipwreck.com/alaska-shipwrecks-1729-2012/alaska-shipwrecks-1800-1899/

Alaskashipwreck.com. Alaska Shipwrecks. “Alaska Shipwrecks A – Z.” Accessed 11-9-2021 at: https://alaskashipwreck.com/shipwrecks-a-z/alaska-shipwrecks-m/

Brush Creek News, IA. “Foreign.” 11-9-1893, p. 14. Accessed 11-9-2021 at: https://newspaperarchive.com/brush-creek-news-nov-09-1893-p-14/

Good, Captain Warren and Michael Burwell. Alaska Shipwrecks 1750-2015. Published by Warren Good, 2018. Accessed 11-9-2021 at: https://books.google.com/books?id=ArpqDwAAQBAJ&printsec=frontcover#v=onepage&q&f=true

Seattle Post Intelligencer, WA. “Sealer Mary Brown Probably Lost.” 1-13-1894, p. 1. Accessed 11-9-2021 at: https://newspaperarchive.com/seattle-post-intelligencer-jan-13-1894-p-1/

The Daily Californian, Bakersfield. “A Total Wreck.” 3-13-1894, p. 1. Accessed 11-10-2021 at: https://newspaperarchive.com/bakersfield-daily-californian-mar-13-1894-p-1/

The Daily Telegram, Nanaimo, British Columbia. “Their Fate Will Never Be Known.” 1-31-1894, p. 1. Accessed 11-10-2021 at: https://newspaperarchive.com/nanaimo-daily-telegram-jan-31-1894-p-1/

The Morning Call, San Francisco. “After the Mary Brown.” 1-19-1894, p. 10. Accessed 11-9-2021 at: https://newspaperarchive.com/san-francisco-morning-call-jan-19-1894-p-10/

The Morning Call, San Francisco. “Searching for a Missing Sealer.” 1-21-1894, p. 9. Accessed 11-10-2021 at: https://newspaperarchive.com/san-francisco-morning-call-jan-21-1894-p-9/

The Record-Union, Sacramento, CA. “Searched in Vain.” 1-31-1894, p. 1. Accessed 11-10-2021 at: https://newspaperarchive.com/sacramento-record-union-jan-31-1894-p-1/

Victoria Daily Colonist, BC. “The Lost ‘Mary Brown.’” 1-4-1894, p. 2. Accessed 11-9-2021 at: https://newspaperarchive.com/victoria-daily-british-colonist-jan-04-1894-p-2/

Victoria Daily Colonist, BC. “The Missing ‘Mary Brown.’” 11-18-1893, p. 5. Accessed 11-9-2021 at: https://newspaperarchive.com/victoria-daily-colonist-nov-18-1893-p-5/

Victoria Daily Colonist, BC, Canada. “Where is the ‘Mary Brown?’” 11-17-1893, p. 5. Accessed 11-9-2021 at: https://newspaperarchive.com/victoria-daily-british-colonist-nov-17-1893-p-5/