Maximum amount +2 (M).
A very large volume. (GR).
At Ferryland, harbour frozen Feb 2nd, drift ice coming in and filling up all the harbours until the 20th. From then on, ice offshore and all out of sight by Apr 1. (JW/GR).
The “Abondance” rounded the ice in 43N between Apr 30 and May 4. (Ice evidently extends to Virgin Rocks). (GR).
Toulinguet and Fogo jammed very early. Several reports. Jan 1st, heavy ice in Bonavista Bay. Feb 14th, SS “Adriatic” was damaged in the ice, Cape Race. May 21st, SS “Wolf” sent north to relieve vessels beset in Notre Dame and White Bay. Large bodies of ice on the coast. Ice into Bonavista Bay, Jun 15th. French vessels did not reach their ports until in June and July 2nd. (GR).
The vessels of the east coast were prevented from reaching their harbours until the 29th of June and July 2nd. (CH in GR).
Was a bad year of seal and cod fishery, in fact the 60’s were the hardest years Newfoundland ever knew. (#866).
January/February
Jan 23 SS “Columbia” at Boston from Galway was detained by ice on her passage from Newfoundland. (LL).
Feb — Ship “John Barbour” from Liverpool to St. John, NB was 3 days in the ice and leaking badly, and had lost head, sails and boats and bulwarks stove; also bad weather. (LL).
Feb 1 SS “Hibernia” from Galway to New York put into Halifax, was 4 days in the ice off Newfoundland, in consequence of which she could not stop at St. John’s. (LL).
Feb 2 SS “Hibernian” reports four days in ice off C. Spear. (GR).
Feb 4 Tel. from Halifax announcing arrival of the SS “Hibernia” on 1st having been in ice (off St. John’s) for 4 days before passing on to the westwards. (Newf.).
Feb 5 SS “Olympus” sighted a large field of ice and ran along it for 150m in a SW course, and found the southern extremity in 42N 50W. (LL).
Feb 7-9 “Marianne Nottebohm” from Liverpool to New York 43N 49W was surrounded by field ice, during a dense fog; next day got into more ice; on the 9th no ice visible. (LL).
Feb 11 SS “Nova Scotian” from Portland, 6th, to Liverpool, 18th, passed through thin slop ice. (LL).
Feb 16 Issue: SS “Adriatic” sustained serious damage, having lost her rudder-post and otherwise injured in the ice on this coast last month whilst endeavouring on her homeward passage to make the port of St. John’s (from Newfoundlander & Day Book). (PL).
Feb 24 Issue: SS “Britannia” reports having passed on the southern edge of the Banks of Newfoundland the ship “T.F. Parker” of Quebec in the ice and abandoned. (SCL).
Feb 28 “Howard” from Liverpool to New York 46N 48W fell in with a great quantity of drift ice. (LL).
March
Mar 3 “Java” from Clyde to Halifax 47N 48W ran into field ice and knocked off part of cutwater. (LL).
Mar 10 “Anzico” arrived St. John’s in tow of the “Dimond”, having been dismasted in the ice shortly after leaving Hearts Content. (PL).
Mar 18 “Excelsior” at Liverpool from New York 41N 50W met with large fields of ice for 3 days together. (LL).
Mar 18 “Margaret Evans” at Liverpool from New York was detained 4 days among the ice. (LL).
Mar 21 “E.W. Stetson” at New York from London 44N 49W met with a quantity of field ice, ran through some of it, but was obliged to run 120m SSE to clear the remainder. (LL).
Mar 28 100 vessels off Twillingate Harbour in ice from 6 to 10m distance from the shore. ( #492).
Mar 29 150 sail of vessels from 2 to 12m off the harbour all without any seals (#492).
April
Apr 2 An unnamed brig, Joyce, Master, crushed off Long Point, Twillingate. (The source for this is very difficult reading and though it covers winters and springs from 1864 to 1872, it does not appear to give a good overall picture though it may help locally.) (#491).
Apr 2 Halifax: The heavy easterly gales have driven the ice from North Bay and scattered it along the south coast. This harbour has been blocked up for 2 days by a heavy field which extends east and west as far as the eye can reach. SS “Arabia” had her paddle boxes damaged by ice since her arrival. (LL).
Apr 6 New York: Accounts from St. John’s of yesterday sate that vessels arrived from England reported no ice to the eastward. (LL).
Apr 9 “Rosselas” ? lost at St. Mary’s. (#511).
Apr 11 “Six Brothers” lost at the seal fishery. (#511).
Apr 11 “Able Seaman”, iron ship, was lost in the ice off Anticosti. (LL).
Apr 17 “Theodore” from Cardiff to New York 44N 49W saw 2 large bergs. (LL).
Apr 18 “Aurora” lost at the seal fishery. (#511).
Apr 19 “Morning Star” lost at the seal fishery. (#511).
Apr 20 “Secret” lost at the seal fishery. (#511).
Apr 20 “Wexford” from Cadiz and “St. Kilda” from Porto Rico for Harbour Grace arrived St. John’s being unable to proceed owing to a large quantity of ice i Conception Bay. (LL).
Apr 24 “Mary” lost at the seal fishery. (#511).
Apr 25 “Dorothy” lost at the seal fishery. (#511). Apr~25 St. John’s: 16 vessels are reported lost at the seal fishery and 100 vessels jammed in the ice in Green and White Bays. (LL).
Apr 27 First vessel back from the seal fishery, catch off St. Anthony. (HGS).
Apr 28 None of St. John’s sealing vessels back yet. Reports of very boisterous weather in which 16 vessels were lost and that the greater part of the sealing fleet were jammed in Green and White Bays. However, a fair fishery expected. The winds prevail here from the N and eastward which leave vessels packed in the ice and no chance of clearing it. (Newf.).
Apr 29-30 “Prinz Albert” from Hamburg to New York 46N 47W saw a great deal of ice and was surrounded by it. (LL).
Apr 30 The Norwegian barque “Nor”, from Tonsberg, to Quebec was wrecked in the ice off the Banks of Newfoundland. All but two drowned. (PL).
May 1-11 SS “United Kingdom” from the Clyde to Quebec sighted a field of ice in 49N 48W; 2nd, ice very heavy; 4th, entered a line in it; from that time until the 11th encountered very large quantities with much fog. (LL).
May 2 First of the sealers back, reports the loss of the “Evanthes” on Apr 29. “Orator” also lost. The SS “Ospray” and “Rever’s? Bride” are reported in the ice off this harbour. Unfavourable winds and weather for the last 5 or 6 weeks. Within a day or two the unrelenting north-easter has brought the ice to our harbour’s mouth completely blocking it up. (Newf.).
May 3 Narrows blocked up and ice as far as can be seen under NE winds. (PL).
26 vessels crushed in the ice and another 140 were jammed for several weeks at the mouth of Green Bay in spring. The crews from these were all landed at Twillingate and Fogo. (JEC/ FGMM).
May 3 St. John’s: The coast is jammed and seal fishing is beyond doubt a failure. the port is blockaded with ice. (LL).
May 3 SS “Peruvian” from Portland to Lough Foyle 46N 46W passed several icebergs and a large field of very heavy ice. (LL).
May 3-8 “E.A. Souder” from Cardiff to New York in 46N 44W to 43N 50W was among a large number of bergs and quantities of drift ice; lost cutwater by contact with drift ice. (LL).
May 4 Issue: Easterly winds packing in ice and fear for fishing vessels many of which are caught. (HGS).
May 5 St. John’s: The wind is strong from the westward, the ice is clearing off the port, and the vessels are now able to enter and depart. (LL).
May 5 “Harriett Mc Beath” from St. John, NB to Liverpool 46N 41W passed through 2 broad belts of field ice, interspersed with several large bergs, extending N and S as far as could be seen from the masthead, the distance between the belts being ~40m; counted 23 square rigged vessels amongst the ice, all under short sail and apparently trying to work to the westward; barque “Lord Byron” was one of them; several disabled. (LL).
May 5 “Constantine” from Liverpool to New York 42N 48W was in contact with a large berg during a dense fog and had bowsprit carried away, larboard bow stove, with other damage. (LL).
May 7 St. John’s: “Scotia” from Trapani to Harbour Grace put in here with part of cutwater carried away and stem started, having passed through large quantities of ice. (LL).
May 7 Barque “C.Columbus” struck a piece of ice on the Banks of Newfoundland which started her outward planking and 2 timbers on her starboard side. (LL).
May 9 Ports were clear for a while, now closed up again. Poor returns from fishery. (Newf.).
May 10 “Haidee” from Liverpool and “Marksman” from Hamburg, both for Harbour Grace unable to proceed, Conception Bay being full of ice, and put into St. John’s. (LL).
May 12 Letter from Greenspond dated Apr 23: 140 vessels in the Green Bay i fact, nearly all of the vessels out of the country are along the coast from Twillingate to this, and not one trip of seals among them. Bay jammed with ice. 140 sail in precarious position. Lost so far, “Helen Lavinia”, “Barradong”, “Shannon”, “Avalon”, “Evanthes”, “Brothers”, “Elizabeth”, “Packet”, “Superior”, “Liladale” and “H.Ridley”. (Newf.).
May 12 “Peerless” from Cadiz arrived at Aquaforte with her stem and copper injured. List of 67 sealers jammed [Jun 7 issue] near Twillingate this spring. Also, list of 11 sealing vessels reported to be lost in and near Green Bay, spring [cf. May 12 – Newf], some of them were mentioned as jammed in the earlier list. (LL).
May 14 Perce: A large body of ice was seen in the offing SW from this place. (LL).
May 15 “Daniel Webster” at New York from London 45N to 40N fell in with large quantities of ice and lost foretopgallant mast and part of cutwater. (LL).
\May 17 SS “Merlin” from Halifax struck a pan of ice in entering St. John’s and carried away stem plate and slightly injured the stem. “Constance” arrived Cape Broyle with cutwater carried away. (LL).
May 18 “Caroline” from Hamburg to St. John’s put into Caplin Bay (near Ferryland) after being 3 weeks outside the ice. (LL).
May 18 St.John’s: The “Runnymede” hence to Pernambuco was driven into Cape Broyle by the ice, she struck the rocks several times and it is feared her keel and copper are much injured. (LL).
May 18-19 SS “Belgian” from Quebec to Lough Foyle passed a large berg and several small pieces of drift ice and a large berg next day. (LL).
May 19 Schooner “Clara” seen off Cape Race surrounded by large ice fields, by the SS “Bavaria”. (LL). May 23 St. John’s: SS “Wolf” which sailed hence 21st for Green Bay with provisions for distressed sealers put back today with damage after having struck a rock near Cape Freels. (LL).
May 25 Issue: Some vessels evidently lost and others clean. Evidently one of the worst (fisheries) on record. (HGS).
May 28 Ship “Protector” from New York Feb 27 to Corunna wrecked on iceberg [23rd – LL]. Crew picked up by SS “North America” . (SCL).
May 30 The most disastrous sealing voyage in memory. The numbers fitted out this year were small but 30 lost and many returned clean. Unusually moderate weather with south-west and westerly winds in early spring, unfavourable change set in on 24 or 25th March with north-east winds packing in the ice in northern bays. Lots of seals but vessels could not move. (Newf.).
Jun 1 Issue: Vessels still jammed in Green Bay. (HGS).
Jun 10 The “Margaret” from Quebec to Liverpool was entangled in a field of ice ~250m off Cape Race, had one or more bowports burst in and became waterlogged; grounded at Liverpool ~23rd. (LL).
Jun 14-16 SS “Nova Scotia” for Lough Foyle passed bergs on 14th and 15th and a very large one in 49N 44W. (LL).
Jun 27 “Maria” lost at the Labrador. (#511).
Sailing sealers “Helen Lavinia”, “Barrondony”, “Charming Lass”, “Dolphin”, “Elizabeth”, “Mary Jane”, and “Superior” lost at seal fishery. (NW).