New biographical entries for:

• James Edward Bain
• James Darrough
• David Yates

Immigration Records - Buffey/Chapman Families

The Buffey/Chapman family emigrated to Australia in 1863 aboard the Montmerency.

The Buffy/Chapman family departed Liverpool on 15th April 1863, arrived in either Moreton Bay or Maryborough on 17th July 1863.
Ref PL M1696 AND CL M1710 (col/12)

NB Elizabeth and John's surnames are actually Chapman - Thomas BUFFEY was her mother's second husband

Montmerency

The Montmerency was a 668 ton ship registered at Liverpool, built at Quebec in 1855. It was commissioned by the Black Ball line especially to convey immigrants, and was the first official immigrant ship to the new state of Queensland in 1860. Commanded by Captain Josiah Hudson Mackenzie, between 1860 and 1865 she made four voyages to Queensland, bringing nearly 1400 people (thought to more than any other British ship). It was destroyed by fire in the Hawkes Bay, Napier, New Zealand on the morning of Thursday, March 28th,

The following are transcripts and summaries describing the events.

Hawke's Bay Weekly Times
Monday March 25th 1867 page 3

The ship Montmorency, arrived in Napier 24 March 1867. She burnt in port four nights latter.

Arrival of the Montmorency

Arrived March 24 - Montmorency, full rigged ship, 668 tons, McKenzie, from London.
Passengers - Saloon: Miss H.H. Herbert, Miss J. Ogilvie, Miss R. Starkey, Miss Cleary.
Second Cabin:
Mr and Mrs Orr and family, Miss Spears.
Steerage: 49 single women, 22 single men, 63 children, 7 infants and 138 adults, being in all equal to 169½ statute adults. John Stuart and Co. agents. Passenger list. Passenger list transcription from the Hawke's Bay Herald 26 March 1867

This splendid ship left the East India Docks, at 12.30 p.m. on the 7th Dec. for Gravesend, at which place she lay for two days. Brought up at the Nore on the 9th, blowing a gale from the W.S.W. On the 11th proceed to sea under charge of pilot...On the 18th the pilot left the ship off Plymouth.. On the 6th March, in lat. 45º 6 min S. long. 128º 58 min. E at daylight saw 17 icebergs, of various sizes, some very large, off the coast of Tasmania. On the 7th, saw three very large icebergs, making in all 20. From the meridian of the Cape till rounding Tasmania, the time occupied was only 25 days. At 4 p.m. on the 16th sighted Cape Farewell, NZ, at which the passengers seem very happy. On Cook's Strait, on Sunday, at 1 p.m., wind veered from W. to S.E., and increased to a furious gale with terrific squalls, the gale continued without intermission, from the eleventh to the twenty-first, when it fell light, and the wind continued from S.E. to S. Entered Cook's Strait on the 16th and remained there for six days. From Cook's Strait to Hawke's Bay had light winds and moderate weather. The passage, from pilot to pilot, occupied 96 days. From port to port (Plymouth to Nelson) was 88 days, being one of the most rapid we have known and bore out her well-earned fame as a first-class Black Ball liner. She was built by T.C. Lee in Quebec for James Baines & Co. of Liverpool and launched in 1854. Registered at Liverpool. The Montmorency dropped anchor at about 3.45 p.m. yesterday. She has been comparatively free from seasickness - two only of her passengers arriving in ill health while the deaths have been but four these being infants and entirely from a deficiency of maternal nourishment. There has been one birth, so the number that she arrives but three short of her original number.

The Montmorency, for her age and tonnage, has carried more passengers than any other vessel from Great Britain to this colony. Voyage of 104 days. We heartily welcome the new comers to the land of their adoption and trust that a prosperous career is before them.

Hawke's Bay Welcome to Her Emigrants

Come, welcome to my sunny shores.
Britannia's hardy son's of toil,
And with abundance crown your stores,
The produce of my fruitful soil.

England's fair youth with arts and arms,
Your gardens leave, - come; till the field:
Come and develop all these charms
Which I do each fair science yield.

Yes, hardy son's of Erin's isle,
Come leave your native shamrock shore,
Another land as green as cloth doth smile
Beyond the South Pacific's roar.

Come, Caledonia's children free,
And leave your sterile mountain homes;
Your matchless plough shall break no lea,
Where now the savage Hauhau roams.

Then, eloped by a race so brave,
From Countries of immortal fame:
My commerce well may stem the wave
That rolls across the western main.

Te Wairoa, March 21, 1867. E.M.

Hawke's Bay Weekly Times
Monday April 1st 1867 page 3
Burning of the Montmorency
(Hawke's Bay Times, 28th March)

While preparing for the issue of this morning's paper we were suddenly interrupted by an alarm of fire, and on proceeding to the beach we discovered the good ship Montmorency, but so recently arrived from England, was on fire between her main and fore-masts. The flames were rushing up though her forward hatchway to the height of 30 or 40 feet. This occurred at 1 a.m. It was known at least one of the ship's boats was on shore, and the captain also (we believe this being the first night he had been away from the vessel since her arrival). Several boats put off as quickly as possible but because against a strong flood tide and head winds the Captain was unable to undergo passage to the ship. At half-past 2, the mizen-mast being burnt through at the foot, and the main mast at the main-top, both gave way the same instant, the former falling clean over the stern into the sea. At about 2.45 a boat was seen making for shore, and speedily the welcome news was told, and received amidst loud cheers, - all hands were saved.

The watch had discovered smoke coming up the fore hatchway about midnight, and the alarm immediately alarmed the first officer and the remainder of the crew; that every practicable measure was taken to extinguish, but in vain, for being overcome by the effects of suffocating vapours, they were at length compelled to desist, and fasten down the hatches. They took to the boats at about 1.30 a.m. but remained in proximity to the burning ship until she had become an entire wreck. At 4.am the foremast, being burnt off at the foot, fell backwards on the deck. Nothing now remains of the ship that but yesterday looked so fair, and that had done her duty so far and so well, but a flaming hull, with some remnant of the bowsprit. At daylight she had burnt nearly to the water's edge. In addition to a very valuable cargo for this port, none of which had been landed, and all of which is destroyed, a large amount of valuable property is lost by the passengers, who of course, are totally deprived of their properties, we have one particular instance where deeds, plate, and heirlooms of generations past are, by this sad mishap, totally and irrecoverably lost, and Captain McKenzie has lost all his earthly goods, which were in his cabin and uninsured.

On Friday morning she was towed over to the Spit where she was left aground. During the whole of Thursday, the night following, and the greater part of the next day, the vessel continued to burn more or less fiercely, until, being run into by the steamer, the sea effected an entrance, and, coming in contact with the incandescent iron, produced an explosion so loud as to cause a a general rush to the Spit, when she as to be seen envolved in an immense body of steam. A quantity of empty iron tanks floated off her and were safely landed on the Spit to the number of twenty-four.

On Saturday an auction sale was held by Mr John Stuart.
Lot 1. The hull and all belongings to the ship at the time in her, £110
Lot 2. The residue cargo as it then lay in her hold 105
Lot 3
Anchors and cable, as it lay at the Government moorings £10
Lot 4 Life boat £18
Lot 8 Captain's gig £12 10
Lot 9 Pinnace £5
Lot 11 Life boat £19
24 iron tanks, from £1 to £4 each
Total proceeds of the sale at about £350.

Monday April 8th 1867
Hawke's Bay Weekly Times.
An Inquiry

Josiah Hudson Mackenzie
Appointed master by the managing owner, Mr John Brodie, of Mark-Lane, London. I left England on 11th December. I brought out 205 passengers. The copy of the manifest was burnt. The cargo principally of salt, tar, drapery, spirits, beer, and ale, fencing wire, agricultural implements, turpentine and hardware. I believe the vessel was insured and expired 30 days after arrival in port. I do not think there was any kerosene on board. On Tuesday all the bedding of the passengers was sent ashore. On Wednesday all the luggage belonging to the passengers was sent ashore.

Joshua Lewis Fawkes - first mate of the Montmorency. I ordered the carpenter to scuttle the ship if possible, impossible due to the swell. I threw the powder magazine overboard. I ordered the hatch to be closed again. I ordered one part of the crew to clear away the boats. I fired a set of rockets without any answer from shore. Three sets fired and burnt blue lights. Tried to unshackle the chain. I superintended the lading of the vessel in England. In the forehold, where the fire originated, there were casks of Stockholm tar, coal tar, oil, turpentine, pitch, resin, 200 or 300 boxes of candles, 10 or 12 casks of cook's slush, and about fifty boxes of pipes. Nearly all there was inflammable. The spirits were not kept in the forehold. The forehold hatch was on when I went to bed.

Charles Broberg, second mate.
William Henry Fordham - tide-waiter. Heard "Mr Fawkes, the ship is on fire!"
James Parker -third mate
Charles Prince - boatswain
James Anderson - carpenter
Timothy Ryan and William Beaumont, able seaman

Summary of Events - from Various Sources
Burning of the Montmorency

At 1am on the morning of Thursday, March 28th, 1867 Lieutenant Britten, patrolling Barrack Hill, noticed flames against the black night sky. He looked towards where he knew the ship Montmorency was moored out in the Roadstead, and realised that he was witnessing a most awful catastrophe.

The 668 ton Black Ball ship Montmorency had arrived at Napier on March 24th 1867 having departed London on November 10th 1866. After anchoring, all of her passengers and most of her crew had come ashore. It had been intended to unload her cargo and the passengers belongings stored in the hold as soon as possible, however, as described by Sir Henry Brett, those ...were leisurely times, and the facilities at the Port were somewhat primitive. Now this noble ship was a sea of flame and little could be done to save her as there was no fire-fighting gear available. Nonetheless, the sentry sounded the alarm and boats were sent out to the burning ship to see what could be done and to ensure the safety of the small crew on board.

The fire itself had been discovered by the man on watch at about a quarter to midnight on the 27th when smoke was seen issuing from the fore hatchway. He immediately raised the alarm and the Chief Officer and crew were on deck within seconds. As the Captain was on shore at the time, the Chief Officer took charge and investigated the scene where he found dense smoke issuing from the hold. He ordered both fire engines (manual pumps) to be rigged and the hose passed down the hatchway. When the hatch of the lower hold was removed the flames could be seen on the port side of the vessel. The Chief Officer, Boatswain and Sailmaker went down between decks and aimed the hose at what seemed to be the seat of the fire. They were very soon forced to give up their efforts because of the density of the smoke and the fact that the deck beneath their feet was becoming very hot. They closed the hatch to contain the fire, albeit temporarily, and ordered the boats prepared should they be needed.

The Chief Officer went aft to signal for help by sending up rockets and burning blue light signals but it seems that there was no one on shore to see this. By this time the flames were gathering strength and threatening to burn through the forehatch to the upper deck. The crew made another attempt to keep the fire at bay by working the engines and directing both hoses through the main hatch. It was found impossible to continue this for long owing to the heat and smoke of the fire. Soon the spare spars and other goods stored on the deck ignited and all hope of saving the ship was lost. Again a number of rockets were sent aloft to sound the alarm and to obtain assistance from the shore but when it was evident that this would not be immediately forthcoming, part of the crew were ordered to gather their personal effects and take to the boats. Very few, however, were able to save anything owing to the ferocity of the fire.

The ships Carpenter was ordered to scuttle the ship as this, if anything, would snuff out the flames. A swell had risen and the ensuing motion of the ship prevented the Carpenter from carrying out the task. By half an hour past midnight the flames had taken such a serious and fatal hold on the vessel that the situation became hopeless. More rockets were fired and again there was no obvious sign of them being seen from shore. The rest of the crew were ordered into the boats and were instructed to row themselves clear of the burning ship. Meanwhile the Chief and Second Officers and the Customhouse Officer, Mr Fordham, remained on board a little longer but a ship containing spirits, oil, turpentine and cloth in her holds would not remain safe for long. Soon the vessel was left to burn herself to the waterline when the Chief Officer and his companions dropped over the stern into the boats.

After the last crew members left the Montmorency, one of the boats was pulled to the bow of the vessel where another unsuccessful attempt was made to scuttle her as again the ocean swell was significantly large. Two attempts were made to unshackle the vessel from her moorings and let her float free. The first proved fruitless and the second was only partially successful as she remained attached to her anchor. The boats lay off the ship until 4:00am. When they left the fire had been roaring out of the sides and bow of the ship and was burning the length of the bowsprit.

When first seen from shore, flames were rushing up through the forward hatch to a height of 30 or 40 feet. There was not a breath of wind to disturb this vertical fiery torrent and the sight must have been spectacular. A horse- man was sent down to the Spit to warn the township and to organise help to be sent out to the remaining sailors. Captain Josiah Hudson McKenzie, master of the Montmorency and only recently on shore, was roused by these alarms and he and almost all the inhabitants of the Spit assembled on the beach to watch the progress of the flames and anxiously await the return of the boats with news of the crew. By this time, too, reporters from the local papers (the Hawkes Bay Times and the Hawkes Bay Herald) were on the scene, so later reports published by them were certain eye witness accounts. The use of a powerful telescope enabled the reporters to see these distant events as if they were mere yards away.

While the fire was initially confined to mid-ships, it was not long before the flames spread upwards into the rigging, spars and sails. First the main mast and then the mizzen (stern) mast caught fire. As the flames burnt through the small rope gaskets holding the sails furled they were released in a series of incandescent showers, scattering burning fragments into the gentle breeze that had then sprung up. At 2:30am the mizzen mast caved in and fell overboard. At the same time the main-top part of the main mast collapsed and fell to the deck. The flames were soon devouring the ship from one end to the other and it was now well known by those watching on shore that the vessel was doomed.

Shortly after 2:45am a boat was seen making for the shore. Amid loud cheers from those waiting on the beach the news soon spread that some of the remaining members of the crew had been spotted safe and nearly ashore. Every valiant attempt had been made by the First Officer and his men to stem the flow of the fire and to prevent it taking hold. At last they realised the futility of their efforts and took to the ships boat, remaining in proximity to the burning ship until it became obvious that she would not survive. At 4:00am the foremast fell backward onto the deck bringing down the remainder of the mainmast.

On board, the Montmorency there had been nearly 400 tons of cargo consigned to, amongst others, Messrs: Stuart & Co., Watt Brothers, Newton and Irvine & Co. To a country that still depended very much on products imported from overseas the loss was great and in a fledgling community such as Napier whose shopkeepers and merchants relied on selling those products, the loss was devastating. In addition the tragedy caused a huge loss for passengers and crew alike. The Captain's loss was estimated at £200 (everything he owned) and although the Chief Officer managed to save some of his clothes, he lost the remainder and a sum of money. All of the immigrants luggage had been saved but anything that was stored in the hold and consigned as freight was lost to the fire. One passenger, Mr Orr, was arguably the biggest loser of all. On board and uninsured he had a large amount of agricultural equipment and seed. His loss was estimated at £1,000.

In the morning the Montmorency was a smoking hulk. She had burnt nearly to the waterline and floated in the water a charred and blackened wreck. All her masts had been felled and her bowsprit was but a brief remnant of what it had been. Nothing was left of this once proud ship that had challenged the seas for half a world and won. Fire had taken her when she was peacefully resting and destroyed her soul. The complete cargo and all of the luggage brought out by the passengers, including some very valuable items and family heirlooms was also destroyed and the crew, too, lost everything they had. The much respected Captain McKenzie, whose entire earthly belongings had been lost in the fire and were un-insured, was left destitute.

The ship continued to smoulder throughout the following day and was, with difficulty, beached between the Spit and the Bluff by the ship Star of the South. Afterwards a claim for salvage was lodged by Captain Bendall of the Star of the South and a Mr Warnes who assisted in the beaching. The claim was turned down as there was no evidence that the Montmorency had been abandoned. An award of £50.00 was, however, awarded to them for their trouble. The charred hulk was later sold at auction for £110, the residue of her cargo for £105 and the anchors and boats etc were also sold to bring the total recovered to £350 and still, the cause of the fire remained a mystery.

An official inquiry was held at Napier on Saturday March 30th 1867 in the Council Chambers. Presiding were Edward Catchpool, JP and the Napier Collector of Customs and John Curling the Resident Magistrate. The whole of the crew and Mr Fordham the Customhouse Officer or "Tidewaiter"had been summoned to give evidence. Commencing with Captain Josiah Hudson McKenzie the story of the last hours of the Montmorency, which only days before had walked the waters like a thing of life, was told. Captain McKenzie told of events in London before the departure of the vessel and in detail of events as he experienced them following her arrival at Napier. He informed the inquiry that he believed the ship was fully insured, even though he had not seen the insurance papers, and that the policy was due to expire 30 days after her arrival in New Zealand. The Chief Officer, Joshua Fawkes, took the stand next and related his experiences and his attempts at saving the ship.

The evidence given by of these two was followed by that of Charles Broberg the Second Mate who merely confirmed the statements given by the Captain and Chief Officer without adding anything new to the evidence. Several more witnesses were examined but they were unable to throw any more light on the reason for the tragedy and the final paragraph printed in the Wellington Independent of Saturday April 6th 1867 read The Court came to the conclusion that there was nothing in the evidence to show how or in what manner the fire occurred. Elsewhere, though, it had been suggested that a liaison between a female passenger and one of the crew who desired to remain in New Zealand with her may have been a possible cause.

References:
White Wings - Sir Henry Brett
Hawkes Bay Times March 28th 1867
Wellington Independent April 4th & 6th 1867