Maiden Voyage The Barbara MacDonald was soon to have her maiden voyage. The schooner was loaded with a general cargo of farm produce. She was bound for St. John's, Newfoundland . Mr. MacDonald decided to accompany the "Barbara" on her maiden voyage. He was in need of a rest and his love of the sea was combined with a business side; he could supervise the marketing of his cargo. Vessel Sails December 3,1919 was clear and bright although a light blanket of snow had settled over the province. Early that morning the anchor was raised and the Barbara MacDonald set sail. That night the boat rested in Georgetown Harbour . On Sat., Dec. 6, she continued on her trip. The weather stayed clear and fair and by evening she sailed through the Strait of Canso. About two days out, the ship encountered strong headwinds and slow progress resulted. Without much warning, on Dec. 9, a hurricane struck in all its fury and almost instantly what had been a peaceful voyage was turned into a living nightmare. The worst storm to sweep the in 26 years had struck with a vengeance and the vessel was still a good distance from St. John's. They believed they were off , Newfoundland . The coastline there was treacherous and although they could see no land there was always a danger of going on the rocks. The violent northwest winds did not let up for three long days. The hurricane struck at midnight and the crew of the Barbara MacDonald had expected to reach their destination the next evening. However, Old Father Neptune had something to say about this. No less than 36 vessels went to the bottom during the terrible storm and about 360 sailors were sent to a watery grave. For some time after there were daily accounts of ships being long overdue and almost every 24 hours the wreckage of a ship would be washed up on the shores of Newfoundland . When the gale struck, the crew at once went into action and took off all the sails with the exception of the foresail. When the storm became intense, it was taken down as well and before it reached the deck it was blown to pieces by the wind. Now nothing could be done and the vessel was forced to buffet the fierce gale with bare poles. She was out of control and wallowed around in the big seas with every wave going clean over the deck. Captain Lost Then a great tragedy took place. Captain Whittle , who was racing about the deck shouting orders and attempting to do something to save the ship, was caught by one of these waves and washed over¬ board. He was never seen again. This was December 10. The mate, who was a brother of the captain, then took charge of the ship. But he had assumed charge of what was a doomed ship. 19