One of the Greatest Maritime Mysteries of All Time

[SarasotaYacht]

The Mystery of the “Mary Celeste” « Yachting Prose

Happy Halloween Everyone!

[MikeTurner]

Always a great story!

My personal "maritime mystery": years ago I owned an O'day Daysailor II. It had access plates installed in the cockpit sole, one on each side of the centerboard trunk. After I bought the boat I took off the plate covers to pump out the bilges - and found CHICKEN BONES!! At least, what I think were chicken bones... How did they get there? Or more appropriately, I'm pretty sure HOW they got there... but, WHY???

[JanetGroene]

My favorite marine mystery is the lost Franklin Expedition, although the story is pretty clear that the men died one by one as they straggled south on the ice after being frozen in at Beechey Island and their ships began to break up. I had the privilege of visiting Beechey Island on board an ice breaker and saw the graves of a few men who died early on when their mates still had the wherewithal to dress the bodies, make coffins, dig graves and make grave markers. I believe the Canadian government exhumed those bodies and found the men had died of lead poisoning from solder in tinned food. Fascinating story and the beach is still strewn with junk left by rescue parties dispatched by Lady Franklin for several years before all hope was gone.