In Episode 386 Jeff Belanger and Ray Auger row out to Thatcher’s Island off the coast of Rockport, Massachusetts, to find the site of a horrific maritime tragedy that took place in August of 1635 during the Great New England Hurricane. 23 passengers and crew were sailing aboard the Watch and Wait when the storm hit. There were two large families on board. Of the 23, only two people survived.
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Produced and hosted by: Jeff Belanger and Ray Auger
Edited by: Ray Auger
Theme Music by: John Judd
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EPISODE TRANSCRIPT:
*A note on the text: Please forgive punctuation, spelling, and grammar mistakes. Like us, the transcripts ain’t perfect.
[OCEAN SOUNDS/SEAGULLS]
RAY: Not a bad day to be here by the ocean here in Rockport, Massachusetts. It’s not quite spring yet, but it’s coming.
JEFF: Yup, just a few more months and these beaches are going to start getting crowded.
RAY: For those who don’t quite know the geography, Rockport is that peninsula on Cape Ann that juts out to the furthest eastern point north of Boston Harbor.
JEFF: Right—if we were to set sail due east, we’d eventually hit Europe.
RAY: It looks to me like we’d hit that island first.
JEFF: Right. That we would. That island is the reason we’re here, Ray. It sits about three-quarters of a mile off shore, and we’re going to row out there.
RAY: Another row boat ride in the ocean… Perfect.
JEFF: That island features twin lighthouses on the northern and eastern shores.
RAY: TWO lighthouses for one small island seems like a lot.
JEFF: I get it, but this island warrants the extra beacon. A lot of sailors have perished in and around it. Though today it’s called Thatcher’s Island, originally it was called Thatcher’s Woe.
[INTRO]
JEFF: I’m Jeff Belanger.
RAY: And I’m Ray Auger. Welcome to Episode 386 of the New England Legends podcast. Thanks for joining us on our mission to chronicle every legend in New England one story at a time. Did you know most of our story leads come from you? This one did. Thanks to Daniel LaShomb who emailed us. We’re always on the hunt for odd history, ghosts, monsters, UFOs, aliens, and all the wicked strange weirdness that makes New England like no other place. You can reach out to us anytime through our website.
JEFF: We’ll row out to this dark island right after this word from our sponsor.
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[SEA SOUNDS ROWING BOAT]
JEFF: Okay, it shouldn’t take us too long to row out the island.
RAY: This group of islands was sighted by Sameul de Champlain in 1605, and again by Captain John Smith in 1614. Thatcher is the most prominent island, but there’s also Straitsmouth Island to the north and Milk Island to the south. There’s one other on the map, but it’s slightly submerged and is technically a reef. That one is called Londoner. And I found out it’s called Londoner because that reef sank many ships bound for England. Clearly this is a dangerous region of water.
JEFF: No doubt. A region worthy of multiple lighthouses. (BEAT) Okay, we’ll pull our boat in here near the Cape Ann light station.
RAY: Today there are some paths around the 52-acre island. There’s a wildlife refuge here, there’s a campground, and some buildings related to the Thatcher’s Island Association. Plus, the most obvious landmarks here, the twin lighthouses.
JEFF: Yeah, you can’t miss those.
RAY: These lighthouses were the final lighthouses built by the British government back in 1771 when Massachusetts was still under England’s control. The twin lighthouses we see here now were completed in 1861. They’re 124 feet high with 156 steps to reach the top. From the southern light you can see the skyline of Boston on a clear day.
JEFF: It’s a pretty island. No doubt. It’s easy to imagine a time when this was a busy place for ships coming and going from Europe into Salem and Boston Harbors. As the American colonies grew, so did the shipping traffic, and that meant more accidents. To find out how this island got its initial name of Thatcher’s Woe, let’s head back to 1635.
[TRANSITION]
RAY: It’s August of 1635 here in Ipswich, Massachusetts. It’s an exciting time of growth as new villages and towns are popping up as colonists from Europe continue to flock here for new opportunities.
JEFF: One of those newcomers is Anthony Thatcher, his wife Elizabeth, and their six children. They’re in Ipswich because of Thatcher’s cousin, Reverand Avery and his family. Reverend Avery is helping the Thatchers get settled. Buit it turns out they won’t be able to settle in Ipswich.
RAY: Why’s that?
JEFF: Because Reverend Avery has recently been asked to travel to Marblehead, Massachusetts. Marblehead being a fishing village, there’s concern those salty men of the sea need a shepherd to keep them on the right spiritual path.
RAY: There’s two problems with Marblehead, though.
JEFF: What’s that?
RAY: First, Reverend Avery preferred a different town. One more established for his wife and children. And second, Marblehead doesn’t even have a church yet. It would need to be built.
JEFF: Those are two big problems.
RAY: But the magistrates and other ministers insist that Marblehead is where Reverend Avery is needed.
JEFF: Reverend Avery and his cousin Anthony Thatcher are close. And Thatcher claims that if Avery has to move to Marblehead, he and his family will also. They’ll have each other.
[OCEAN SOUNDS SWELL UP]
JEFF: It’s August 11th when Reverend Avery, his wife, and their eight children, join Anthony Thatcher and his family, a Mr. William Elliot is also making the voyage, and four mariners who will pilot their vessel called the Watch and Wait. 23 souls in total.
[SAILING]
RAY: The voyage to Marblehead is off to a fine start. The plan is to sail along the coast, round Cape Ann, then head south toward Marblehead’s harbor.
JEFF: Spirits are bright. Afterall, they’re being called to God’s work.
RAY: The first few days of the voyage are slow going. There’s a stubborn headwind, and the seas are growing a little choppy. Nothing to be concerned with, but still, it’s slow.
[WIND SLOWLY BUILDS]
RAY: It’s now the 14th of August. About 10PM at night. The wind has been building in intensity.
[RIPPING FABRIC]
JEFF: Oh man! The sails of the Watch and Wait have just split from the strain. The crew are pulling them down.
RAY: Though the Watch and Wait has a spare sail on board, the crew thinks the winds are too fierce. The decision is made to drop anchor and wait for morning.
[WIND AND STORM BUILDING UP INTOP HURRICANE]
JEFF: As hours pass the storm is only getting worse. The wind and rain are unlike anything any of the 23 souls on board has ever seen before. The seas are swelling so high that the anchor is becoming a problem.
RAY: The crew of the Watch and Wait are letting out more rope on the anchor so the rope doesn’t break or pull the ship[ under a swell. But soon, they’ve given all the slack they can.
[CRASHING WAVES / ROARING WINDS]
RAY/JEFF: Oh no!
JEFF: The rope and anchor are gone!
RAY: We’re drifting!
JEFF: This is bad. In a storm like this we’re completely at the mercy of a very angry sea.
[PRAYING/MUMBLING]
JEFF: With nowhere left to put their faith, Reverend Avery and Anthony Thatcher gather their families and pray.
RAY: By now it’s clear to everyone that we’re caught in a hurricane. The waves are crashing, the wind and seas are pushing the ship all over the place. With each pounding wave the crew and passengers have to wonder if this is their end.
[WOOD BREAKING]
JEFF: The ship just crashed on some rocks! We must be near the shore, but I can’t see much of anything in the darkness and storm.
RAY: The ship is breaking up and flooding! Some of the children are being sucked under into the water.
JEFF: This is terrible! I can see crates of provisions from the cargo are floating away or getting dashed on the rocks.
RAY: The ship’s masts are broken. The captain of the vessel can see all is lost. Their only hope is to escape the pounding surf or get crushed on the rocks all around the ship.
JEFF: Anthony and his cousin Reverend Avery have locked hands and vowed to perish together so that they may meet their God as family.
[WOOD BREAKING]
JEFF: That last wave just tossed Anthony and his daughter Mary overboard. They’re now clinging to the rocks and calling out to those left on board.
RAY: This ship is breaking up. Everyone is going to be at the sea’s mercy any minute!
JEFF: Anthony was just thrown back into the water. He’s grabbing a broken section of the ship’s mast.
RAY: This is awful. I can hardly see anything!
JEFF: Anthony is now in chest high water and frantically trying to get himself to shore.
RAY: I can see Thatcher’s wife, Elizabeth is not too far behind him.
[WAVES]
RAY: Elizabeth and Anthony have made it to land. They’re huddled up near the bank. They take only a minute to rest before heading for higher ground.
JEFF: They’re taking shelter near a fallen cedar tree. Shivering. Exhausted. Battered. Bruised. The couple huddle together and pray.
[STORM SLOWLY FADES]
JEFF: By morning, the seas are still rough, but the wind and rain have moved on.
RAY: Anthony and Elizabeth Thatcher are marooned. They walk the shores looking for any sign of their children, their cousins, or any survivors.
JEFF: Anthony is pulling some of the provisions and crates from the ship that are floating in the surf. Thatcher is haunted by the last image he saw of his young children huddled together as he was dragged into the surf.
RAY: As the storm continues to clear, the Thatchers discover the lifeless body of one of Reverend Avery’s eight children. They pull the child’s body up onto land where they bury her.
JEFF: With the storm gone, the Thatchers explore their island only to find it uninhabited. They managed to pull enough provisions from their wreckage that they have some food, but there isn’t much by way of shelter. For days the couple survives until finally a rescue ship approaches to take them back to the mainland.
RAY: 21 of the 23 passengers and crew perished in the storm. Since Anthony Thatcher was the first to live on the island, if for only a few days, he’s given the honor of naming it. Anthony sighs, and dubs this wretched place: Thatcher’s Woe. And that brings us back to today.
[TRANASITION]
JEFF: That storm became known as the Great New England Hurricane. No colonist, and no Native person had ever experienced a storm like that in their lifetime. It was believed to have been the worst hurricane to every hit New England, and Thatcher and his family were caught in the middle of it.
RAY: As the harbors of Salem, Marblehead, and Boston grew in shipping traffic and population, these shipping lanes became critical to not just America, but also England. Lighthouses were needed, and eventually England decided to build on Thatcher’s Island.
JEFF: Today you can still visit the island, you can even camp here. And as we stand on the shores I can only imagine what it would be like to be on a wooden ship when a hurricane swells up all around you. Unable to pull into shore, you would truly be at the mercy of nature. They say there’s no atheists in a foxhole. I can imagine there weren’t any on the Watch and Wait either.
[OUTTRO]
RAY: And that takes us to After the Legend where we take a deeper dive into this week’s story and sometimes sail off course.
JEFF: After the Legend is brought to you by our patreon patrons! These folks are our lifeblood. They financially support this podcast and everything we do. They help with our hosting and production costs, with travel, and all the other things it takes to bring you two stories each week. All we ask is $3 bucks per month, though some choose to give more. And for that you get early ad-free access to new episodes plus bonus episodes an content that no one else gets to hear. Just head over to patreon.com/newenglandlegends to sign up.
To see some pictures of Thatcher’s Island, click on the link in our episode description, or go to our website and click on Episode 386.
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We’d like to thank our sponsors, thank you to our patreon patrons, and our theme music is by John Judd.
Until net time remember… the bizarre is closer than you think!
