The Colborne Shipwreck of the Gaspe Coast
It was the night of October 15th, 1838, and the Colborne, a British merchant ship, was on its way to Quebec City from England. It had been built and launched just months earlier in Montreal.
It left London on August 30 and was carrying a heavy load of merchandise including spices, wine, spirits, silks and palm oil. It had a valuable collection of religious objects that were to be delivered to some of the churches in Lower Canada. There was also 40,000 pounds of currency in boxes containing one thousand sovereigns each, and a valuable collection of silver plate. Its crew of 17, were under the command of Captain Kent and they were travelling with 38 passengers. Despite it being a smaller vessel, it contained one of the most valuable cargoes ever shipped out of London.
This is a collection of stories and published newspaper articles from the past about its fascinating story.
This story is also available in a printed format in the Shipwrecks of the Gaspe Coast book, which you will find in the Gift Shop.