Sea Tragedy Near Oderin
I have a book titled “Home of Wooden Boats and Iron Men”, compiled in 1970 by the Dunville Women’s Institute. On page 19, there’s a very short story about the schooner Madonna lost in 1915. Reading it, I remembered hearing my father speak about it many years ago and knew that his cousin John Joe Pomroy was involved in rescuing the only survivor. With some research, here’s the story mainly from that book with some additional information from other sources.
On Friday, November 11, 1915, the schooner Madonna, owned by Richard Tobin of Dunville, under the command of Captain Robert Sparrow of Ship Harbour with a crew of two, James Darmody and his 18 year old son Michael of Dunville, left St. John’s bound for Placentia loaded with puncheons of molasses, barrels of sugar, tubs of butter, barrels of pork, beef, etc. By Saturday morning they passed Cape St. Mary's in heavy winds and high seas.
On entering Placentia Bay, the high winds forced them to sail to the Western side of the bay, reaching Jude Island around 4 o'clock in the afternoon. In attempting a tack to the windward of Gull Rock, she mis-stayed and went right in on top of it. While attempting to launch the dory, it was smashed to pieces by a big sea. They swung the main boom from the schooner in across Little Gull Rock and the three men climbed onto the rock. Those three shipwrecked men clung to the rock, from Saturday until the lone survivor was rescued on Tuesday, without food and the only water they had to drink was rainwater caught in a lincoln (an oil skin hat).
The wreck was only two miles from Oderin harbour and would normally have been visible but the fog obscured the locality and stormy weather prevented boats from being on the fishing grounds. On Sunday morning, James Darmody died from exposure and slid off the rock into the sea. On Sunday evening, Captain Robert Sparrow was washed off the rock by a wave.
As the weather cleared on Tuesday, Pat Abbott of Oderin spied a man on the rock and tried to find help. At the same time, John Joe Pomroy of Merasheen was heading to Oderin, saw Michael Darmody on the rock, rescued him and took him to the home of Magistrate RJ McGrath at Oderin. The rescued man’s nails were worn to the quick where he had tried to cling to the rock and had held the body of his deceased father.
The body of James Darmody was retrieved, coffined and waked. The steamer Argyle carried Michael and his father’s body home to Placentia where he was buried on Dixon’s Hill. The body of Captain Robert Sparrow was never recovered. Michael Darmody survived and lived to 70 years, passing away in the USA in 1968.
References:
Home of Wooden Boats and Iron Men, 1970
The Evening Telegram, 1915-11-10
St. John’s Daily Star, 1915-11-11
Harbour Grace Standard, 1915-11-19
Western Star, 1915-11-17
The Barrelman, October 1939
