From Dinas to the Ship of Gold

In 2022,  images from almost 150 years ago were shared online having been recovered from the wreck of the S.S. Central America which sank in 1857.  The images were glass plate portraits (Daguerreotypes)  which had survived in the depths of the wreck unlike their owners, most of whom tragically lost their lives in what was at that time, the biggest loss of life at sea – of the 578 passengers and crew on board, 425 of them drowned.

The ship was en route for New York loaded with almost 10 tons of gold from the Californian gold fields. It was estimated that the value of the gold together with the wealth of the passengers amounted to approximately $2,000,000 and its loss contributed to the financial panic which hit the United States later that year.

On the night of the 9th September 1857, just off Cape Hatteras,  the  S.S Central America was hit by a hurricane and although it bravely battled for the next three days, the efforts of both crew and passengers were insufficient to save the ship and it sank on the 12th September. It was said that neither stars or sun were visible for the whole three days.

But what of the connection to Dinas?

Well, on board that tragic journey was a man by the name of David Re(a)ymond, who was one of the ship’s Quartermasters. David had been born in Dinas in 1826 to Benjamin and Mary Reymond who farmed on Dinas Island.
Like many young lads from Dinas, he first went to sea at the age of 13 when he joined the vessel “Ant” which was taking materials out for the building of the South Bishop Lighthouse.  In 1851 having gained his Mate’s certificate, he served on board the steamer Pacific which sailed between New York and Liverpool.  By 1857 he found himself serving as Quartermaster on board the SS Central America and in September 1857 this turned out to be her final journey.

David Raymond proved to be a hero that fateful night and was credited with helping to save over 100 lives – mostly women and children. His Captain, realising that his ship’s sinking was inevitable, ordered David Raymond to organise the getting of as many women and children as possible, into the lifeboats for transfer to a Norwegian Barque, the Eloise,  which had sailed as close as it dared, to aid the stricken vessel.  Contemporary newspaper reports record how he co ordinated the rescue and made numerous trips back and forth between the two ships. Very few crew members survived although it was reported that most of the women and children aboard were saved.

He was subsequently awarded a silver medal for his bravery by the Central America Fund Committee. He didn’t return to sea after his close encounter with drowning and instead settled in San Francisco and was employed at the Docks.   He continued to live in the city with his wife and five children until his death in 1888.

Am fwy o wybodaeth am y llongddrylliad gwasgwch yma.

For more information about the shipwreck press here.