AH-WR-0638

Bristol

Packet Ship · United States · Lost 1836 · Long Island & the New York Approaches

An emigrant packet ship broken apart by surf off Far Rockaway in 1836, killing dozens of Irish and English passengers within sight of New York.

Become Captain of Record See Shipwreck on Map

Artistic recreation based on recorded historical documents.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

Bristol sailed from Liverpool with more than a hundred emigrant passengers and general cargo bound for New York. Arriving off the coast without a harbor pilot, she was caught by a violent overnight gale and driven onto the Rockaway shoals on November 21, 1836. Heavy seas broke over the hull and eventually crushed the hold where many passengers had sheltered. Captain Alexander McKown was widely credited with staying aboard to the end trying to save lives.

Vessel

Built: 1834
Builder: Not established
Yard: Not established
Material: Wood
Length: Not established
Beam: Not established
Tonnage: Not established
Propulsion: Sail
Owners: Not established

Loss

Date: November 21, 1836
Cause: Storm
Location: Off Far Rockaway / Rockaway Beach, Long Island
Water: Atlantic Ocean
Voyage: Liverpool, England → New York
Cargo: Coal, railroad iron, crockery, dry goods, and emigrant passengers
Aboard: Not established
Lives lost: 60
Master: Alexander McKown

The Wreck Today

Depth: Not established
Condition: Broken up in the surf; no coherent hull survives
Orientation: Not established
Discovered: Not established
Protection: Not established

Position

Coordinates: 40.61° N 73.76° W
Accuracy: General area only
Nearest: Far Rockaway, Long Island, New York
Region: Long Island & the New York Approaches

General area only: coordinate of Far Rockaway from the USGS Geographic Names Information System, marking the named place of loss recorded for this vessel, not a surveyed wreck position.