Tag Archives: 1954

The fishing boat tragedy that rocked a community

Nine fishermen left Peterhead on the boat Quiet Waters in March 1954. None of them came home. The boat sank and their deaths devastated their families and shocked the north-east fishing community. Among those on board was my grandfather Billy Buchan, who was 29 when he died. My mum was just a baby when she lost him. On the 70th anniversary of the tragedy she was given flowers, evidence that our community still remembers an event which shook my town and left that little girl without her dad. Fishing trawler Quiet Waters was only a few months old when she left Peterhead, bound for North Sea herring grounds nearly 200 miles (322km) away. Photos, more, >>click to read<< 07:40

The Birds Eye Fleet

In 1954, General Foods Birdseye Division was a big part of Rockland’s waterfront. In addition to a fish processing operation on Tillson Avenue, the company had a shipyard on Mechanic Street that maintained a fleet of nine fishing boats. On the morning of Wednesday, Oct. 13, 1954, the Surf went aground on the ledges of Devil’s Limb off Seal Island, to the west of Nova Scotia. The Surf was built in 1937 and was registered at 309 tons. Her length was 132 feet with a 25-foot beam, powered by a 750-horsepower diesel. Captain Douglas Schwartz of Rockland was taking the trawler and his crew of 10 men to the Grand Banks, having left the day before at 4 p.m. It is believed the trawler’s compass was off. Men who have sailed the area observe the Surf was 15 to 20 miles off course when she ran aground. >click to read< 11:53