Above normal +1. (M).
A large body in February, but scattered after. (GR).
Heavy ice off Conception Bay Feb 16th. Jun 4th, north of Fogo Island; no fishery to speak of; ice in. (GR).
Northern ice arrived St. John’s Feb 15th, departed Mar 16th. (GR).
At Ferryland, no drift ice to be seen up to Apr 10. (JW in GR).
January/February
Jan 14 Schooner “Charles Colgate” (whaler) at New London Apr 6 reports that she met with immense quantities of floating ice about the Shetlands, apparently caused by volcanic disturbance. Attempted 4 times without success to make the islands. Jan 14th, fell in with a berg three times the height of the mainmast and was 5 hours working around it. (NYMR).
Jan 25 The brig. barq. “Richard” arrived in St. John, N.B. from London via Sandy Hook lost jibboom on the 23rd, half the crew were frostbitten and disabled. (LL).
Feb 13 Halifax, N.S: The SS “Northern Light” is reported to still be fast in the ice, off Merigonish, Pictou country. (LL).
Feb 17 SS “Aurora” arrived from Dundee 13 days, some heavy ice was passed through about 100m of this coast. (PL).
Feb 20 SS “Arctic” arrived from Dundee passed through slob ice about 150m of this coast. (PL).
Feb 22 SS “Newfoundland” from Halifax unable to put in here because of ice and landed at Bay Bulls. (PL).
Feb 23 Ice in sight (at Harbour Grace). Narrows blocked. (#866).
Feb 24 Harbour blocked with slob and ice. (#866).
Feb 25 SS “Athambra” from New York and Halifax arrived sustaining considerable injury to her propeller in the ice and had to be assisted by SS “Hercules”. (PL).
Feb 26 4520’N 4920’W an iceberg and several small pieces. (NYMR).
Feb 26 The “Harvey Mills” at New York from Liverpool passed an iceberg and several small pieces of ice in 45N 49W.(LL).
March
Mar 2 4440’N 4925’W an iceberg. (NYMR).
Mar 2 Catalina reports no ice visible in Bonavista or Trinity Bays. (#866).
Mar 3 4340’N 4740’W an iceberg supposed to be in this vicinity. (NYMR).
Mar 5 Weather seems to be generally mild. (Newf.).
Mar 5 From Rose Blanche with respect to Gulf seal fishery – no ice seen yet. (PL).
Mar 5 Sailing sealers left St. John’s, steamers on Mar 10. (NYMR).
Mar 7 No ice to be seen from Cape Bonavista. (#866).
Mar 9 Ice off Bonavista 25m. (#866).
Mar 9 New York: An iceberg about a half a mile long, and 200 feet high, was passed at 48N, 47W by the SS “State of Georgia” arrived here from Glasgow. (LL).
Mar 10 51N 47W an iceberg about 2 miles long. (NYMR).
Mar 11 Heavy ice off Scatarie. (NYMR).
Mar 11 Steamers entered ice 1m off Cape Bonavista. (#866).
Mar 12 Issue: Ice in the bays too soft to walk on and too hard to get a boat through (reference to Fogo, Bett’s and Tilt Cove). (PL).
Mar 13 Brig “Glengarry” crushed in the ice and sank near Cape Bonavista. (HDR).
Mar 13 4 large bergs were passed 47N 45W. (NYMR).
Mar 13 The bark “Sophir” passed 12 large bergs in 4630’N 37W. (NYMR).
Mar 14 4730’N 45W 2 large bergs and some lump ice were passed. (NYMR).
Mar 14 SS “Bordasia”(?) 40N 56W passed close to a large quantity of ice. (NYMR).
Mar 15 SS “Fernwood” in 4430’N 5225’W saw a large iceberg and afterwards got fast in a field of drift ice. She steered 5 hours SE to get clear of the ice field and during the night passed 10 large bergs of which some were at least a hundred feet high. The vessel did not get entirely free from ice until reaching 4720’N 4720’W. (NYMR).
Mar 16 SS “Newfoundland” at Halifax, 14th Mar. from St. John’s Nfld reports:- on the 13th got in ice at 4520’N 5750’W, and got out of it at 459’N 69W. (LL).
Mar 18&19 In lat 4750’N to 4520’N, lon 45 to 51W numerous large bergs were seen. (NYMR).
Mar 20 Newfoundland coast reported blocked with ice. (NYMR).
Mar 20 Bremen: The master of the SS “Weser” at New York from this port telegraphs having passed several bergs on the voyage and warns vessels to go North of Nfld. (LL).
Mar 22 Brig “Eric” lost 2 crewmen on the ice; Apr 5, wrecked ashore near Catalina with some ice around. (FS).
Mar 23 4414’N 4834’W a large berg. (NYMR).
Mar 24 SS “Vindolania” passed a large berg and a quantity of drift ice on the Grand Banks. (NYMR).
Mar 27 Ship “J.S. Spinney” in 4720’N 4740’W saw an iceberg about 50′ high and 300′ long. (NYMR). Mar 28 Issue: First mails from Bett’s Cove since the beginning of the year. By Mar 4 no ice in the bay. Weather been mild. Ice off Cape St. George’s in the Gulf. (PL).
April
Apr 2 First sealers back with seals from the neighbourhood of the Exploits. Sailing vessel “Glengarry” was lost in the gale of the 11th near the Funks. (Newf.).
Apr 2 Issue: First sealers returned Mar 31. Scattered ice with seals was met off Cape Bonavista on Mar 12 and steamed through till off the mouth of Green Bay. Brig “Glengarry” is reported as being lost having struck a small island of ice whilst under sail, crew saved. The ice this year is reported to be very soft and too rotten to travel over; it was strung along the land pressed along the northern shore of Green Bay by the wind. (PL).
Apr 3 SS “Wolf” pinched by rafting ice near the Grey Islands, some damage. (apparently a predecessor was lost in the same place in a similar manner) (PL).
Apr 3 Ship ice bound near Arichat. (NYMR).
Apr 5 New York: The schooner “Mayflower” of Port-au-Basques was caught in the ice, and began to leak. The crew abandoned the vessel on the 6th, and sought refuge in the lighthouse at Heath Point, Anticosti, intending to return to the vessel but the ice moved during the night, and the next morning she was not to be seen. (LL).
Apr 6 SS “Northern Light” 3m off Cariboo, N.S., in a solid field of ice; report Gulf of St .Lawrence and Straits of Northumbria full of ice as far as they could see. (MWR).
Apr 6 The sealing schooner “John Nelson” of Carbonear, N.S.[?] was totally wreaked in the ice at Misco, Bay Chaleur.(LL).
Apr 8 SS “Hercules” returned getting no further than Greenspond, Green Bay being full of ice and seals. (PL).
Apr 8 St. John’s, Nfld: The “Erie” (Eric?), was lost off Bird Cove, whilst lying at anchor; the ice pressuring the vessel, she sank in deep water. (LL).
Apr 10 The bark “Wyre” passed a large berg 30m E of the Nfld banks. (NYMR).
Apr 11 St. John’s, Nfld: The brgtne. “Minnie” of this port was lost at the seal fishery, about 5 miles NE of Cape John, by ice, which thrusted her stern and keel, and the vessel foundered a few hours later. (LL).
Apr 15 Thick ice off Scaterie. (NYMR).
Apr 15 Sailing sealer “Stella” lost at Open Harbour, White Bay. (NW).
Apr 16 Bark “Mary S. Gibson 4645’N 4221’W passed a very large berg. (NYMR).
Apr 16 The “America” arrived from Rusoer passed a very large berg in 47N 42W. LL .
Apr 17 The SS “Valetta” from St. John, N.B., to Cow Bay, put into Arichat, 15th of April short of coal, on account of not being able to reach her destination on account of ice off Scatterie. (LL).
Apr 17 The “Archibald Murland” from Europe to Georgetown P.E.I. had been icebound near Arichat since the 3rd of April. (LL).
Apr 17 (Issue) SS “Leopard” and “Tiger” return to St. John’s from the Gulf seal fishery both well loaded. (NYMR).
Apr 17 Vessel from St.John’s at Halifax reports saw ice as far as eye could reach; whole of Cape Breton coast up to Canso blockaded. (MWR).
Apr 17 Sailing vessel “Micmac” stove and sank 8m NNE of the Horse Islands. (JF).
Apr 17 SS “Micmac” jammed in the ice about 8m NNE of the Horse Is., White Bay, not more than a mile from open water but with a heavy sea, was stove in by a pan of ice through her engine room and sank in about 2 hours. Crew taken up by the SS “Vanguard”. (PL).
Apr 18 The Micmac was lost in White Bay, Nfld. having been crushed in ice. (LL).
Apr 21 The “Wyre” arrived at Halifax, N.S. from Liverpool. A large iceberg was passed, 30 miles east of the Newfoundland banks. (LL).
Apr 23 Issue: Sealers detained by a jam of ice in Green and White Bays. SS “Hercules” succeeded in only getting within 15m of Tilt Cove. (PL).
(May seems open with resumption of northern voyages and whale fishery, and no mention of ice). (PL).
Apr 26 St. John’s, Nfld: “Stella” [‘knee’?] totally lost in sealing expedition. (LL).
Apr 27 Quebec: The “Eleanor Wood”, Williams, which arrived here yesterday from Maryport, reports that when off St. Pauls she experienced thick weather, and encountered a large amount of ice, and it was 2 days before she cleared it. From the appearence when the weather cleared the ice extended from St. Paul’s as far Northward as could be seen from aloft. The last ice extended far South within 8 miles of the Bird Rocks. (LL).
Apr 30 St. John’s, Nfld: The following sailing vessels have been lost: “Glengary”, “Glunare”[“Glenure”?], “Jessie”, “Brighton”, “Cyrus”, “Stella”, “Elizabeth”, “Silver Stream” other vessels are reported lost, but no definite news respecting them has been received. (LL).
Apr 30 “Flying Scud” struck an iceberg – leaking badly below the waterline. (LL).
May 1 SS “Faraday” reports several icebergs E & S of Cape Race. (NYMR).
May 1 Bark “Auguste” 43N 54W passed a berg 60′ high. (NYMR).
May 4 Vessels at Canso report they were obliged to abandon voyage to Magdalen Islands owing to ice. A large number of vessels stuck near Eastport, PEI. (NYMR). May 7 The SS “Circassian” which arrived here today from Liverpool reports that she encountered a considerable quantity of ice, and was detained 24 hours by fog. (LL).
May 10 The SS “Idaho” at New York from Liverpool passed an iceberg in 47N 50W. (LL).
May 14 Weather during April and till now has been cold with constant easterly winds [however, no mention of ice]. (Newf.).
May 16 The SS “Lake Champlain” arrived here from Liverpool passed a moderate sized iceberg in 48N 49W. (LL).