Ayrshire
Emigrant Ship · United States · Lost 1850 · The New Jersey Coast
A grounded emigrant ship off Squan Beach that became the site of the first successful life-car rescue in American history, saving over 200 people.
Become Captain of Record
The Vessel and Her Loss
Ayrshire ran aground on a sandbar off Squan Beach, New Jersey during a violent winter storm in January 1850 while carrying more than 200 Scottish and Irish emigrants. Rescuers ashore used a newly designed Francis metallic life-car, hauled back and forth on a line through the surf, to bring passengers off the wreck one load at a time. All but one of those aboard were saved, making it the first documented successful rescue using the device. The event became a foundational case in the history of American maritime lifesaving.
Vessel
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- Wood
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- Sail
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Loss
- January 12, 1850
- Storm
- Off Squan Beach (Manasquan), New Jersey
- Atlantic Ocean
- Glasgow, Scotland → New York
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- 202
- 1
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The Wreck Today
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Position
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- Squan Beach (Manasquan), New Jersey
Evidence
Overall confidence: Documented (78/100)
United States Coast Guard Historian's Office
Account of the life-car rescue and vessel loss.
