AH-WR-1245

Elizabeth and Mary

Barque · Massachusetts Bay Colony · Lost Lost during the retreat of Phips' fleet from Quebec in the autumn of 1690 · The Gulf of St Lawrence

A 45-ton barque from Sir William Phips' failed 1690 assault on Quebec, wrecked during the fleet's retreat and rediscovered three centuries later.

Become Captain of Record

Artistic recreation based on recorded historical documents.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

Elizabeth and Mary was one of the vessels in Sir William Phips' fleet that besieged Quebec City in 1690 during King William's War. When the siege failed, the fleet retreated toward New England and several ships, including this one, were lost along the Quebec North Shore. Discovered by a diver in 1994 at Anse aux Bouleaux, the wreck yielded more than 4,000 artifacts documenting the lives of the Dorchester militiamen aboard and 17th-century North American shipbuilding.

Vessel

Built: Not established
Builder: Not established
Yard: Not established
Material: Wood
Length: Not established
Beam: Not established
Tonnage: 45
Propulsion: Sail
Owners: Not established

Loss

Date: Lost during the retreat of Phips' fleet from Quebec in the autumn of 1690
Cause: Storm
Location: Anse aux Bouleaux, Baie-Trinité, Quebec (Côte-Nord)
Water: St. Lawrence River
Voyage: Quebec City → Boston, Massachusetts Bay
Cargo: Provisions and a company of Dorchester militiamen
Aboard: Not established
Lives lost: Not established
Master: Not established

The Wreck Today

Depth: Not established
Condition: A hull section survives with more than 4,000 associated artifacts recovered
Orientation: Not established
Discovered: 1994
Protection: Wreck of the Elizabeth and Mary National Historic Site of Canada

Position

Coordinates: Not established
Accuracy: Position withheld to protect the site
Nearest: Baie-Trinité, Quebec
Region: The Gulf of St Lawrence

Parks Canada does not publish precise coordinates for this protected archaeological site.

Evidence

Overall confidence: Documented (80/100)

The vessel's precise builder and length are not established in the sources reviewed; identification as Elizabeth and Mary is considered highly probable but not certain by Parks Canada.

Parks Canada
Discovery, designation, tonnage, historical context of loss.
BEADS: Journal of the Society of Bead Researchers (Bradley & Karklins)
Archaeological context and artifact findings.