Bohemian (ship, 1859)
 Outline of the identical sister ship, the Hungarian
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The Bohemian was a passenger ship of the Canadian - British shipping company Allan Line that was put into service in 1859 and carried passengers , freight and mail from England to the USA and Canada . On February 22, 1864, the Bohemian crashed into the rocks on the coast at Cape Elizabeth on the Maine coast in the dark and sank. 20 passengers were killed.
The ship
The steel- built, 2190 GRT passenger ship was launched on February 8, 1859 at the William Denny and Brothers shipyard in Dumbarton on the Clyde, Scotland . The Bohemian was the sister ship of the 2187 GRT Hungarian , which was built at the same shipyard and finished a little earlier. She had a chimney , three masts with the rigging of a barque, and a single propeller and could reach speeds of up to 13 knots . The hull was divided into six watertight compartments.
Lloyd's Register of Shipping categorized her as a Class 1A ship. The Bohemian ran on the route from Liverpool ( England ) to Portland (USA) in winter and between Liverpool and Québec and Montreal (Canada) in summer. The maiden voyage took place on November 11, 1859.
Downfall
On February 4, 1864, the Bohemian ran from Liverpool under the command of Captain Robert Borland for another crossing to Portland / Maine. On board were about 100 crew members, 19 first class passengers (“cabin”) and 199 second class passengers (“tween deck”). On the evening of February 22nd at around 9 p.m., the steamer was on the coast of the US state of Maine when it hit the rocks of Alden's Rock on the outside of Richmond Island about four nautical miles from Cape Elizabeth .
The ship was about four miles off course. The current haze could have thrown the liner off course. Before landing, Captain Borland had looked for the pilot and had signal rockets fired for about half an hour .
The steamer ran over the rocks and back into the water before the ship's command even recognized the accident . The hull tore open, the engine room quickly filled up and the fires were put out. The Bohemian sank in an upright position in relatively calm weather but choppy seas.
All lifeboats could be lowered into the water, but one of them capsized and 20 occupants drowned. Captain Borland stayed on board with a small crew until the next morning, until the entire mail could be saved.