AH-WR-1179

Coloma

Barkentine · United States · Lost 1906 · The British Columbia Coast

A lumber-laden American barkentine broke up off Cape Beale in a December 1906 gale, but all hands were saved thanks to lightkeeper Minnie Paterson's night trek for help.

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Artistic recreation based on recorded historical documents. See the documented evidence.

Interpretive Reconstruction, drawn to convey the vessel's era, type and general form. See the documented evidence.

The Vessel and Her Loss

The American barkentine Coloma, carrying lumber from Puget Sound toward Australia, sprang a leak in a heavy gale off Cape Flattery in early December 1906 and drifted disabled onto the reefs off Cape Beale, Vancouver Island. Cape Beale lightkeeper Tom Paterson spotted the wreck, and his wife Minnie Paterson made a hazardous overnight trek on foot to Bamfield to summon the lighthouse tender Quadra. Captain Charles Hackett and the Quadra's crew reached the barkentine just as she was breaking up and rescued everyone aboard. It was the second major rescue of the year for the Patersons, who had also aided survivors of the Valencia disaster that January.

Vessel

Built: Not established
Builder: Not established
Yard: Not established
Material: Wood
Length: Not established
Beam: Not established
Tonnage: Not established
Propulsion: Sail
Owners: Not established

Loss

Date: December 6, 1906
Cause: Storm
Location: Off Cape Beale, near Bamfield, west coast of Vancouver Island, British Columbia
Water: Pacific Ocean
Voyage: Puget Sound → Australia
Cargo: Lumber
Aboard: Not established
Lives lost: 0
Master: Not established