On Tuesday 26th June 1873 A dreadful boat accident took the lives of five men within hailing distance of the end of the pier. Having finished work and wishing for an adventure on that long summer evening of long ago seven bottle makers John Jefferson, Ralph Hush, James Coyle, Robert Miller, Joseph Hall, Benjamin Turns and Andrew Davison engaged a coble and placed themselves under the charge of Morley Scott junior, an experienced junior pilot. The boat was brand new, the skipper an accomplished seaman, the seven passengers were mature and sober men and the weather was very calm so there should have been little possibility of a mishap. Morley Scott rowed the coble out of the harbour and then raised the mast to catch what little breeze there was.
When they were about three hundred yards out from the old north pier something happened which was to hasten the tragedy. Morley Scott's brace button snapped and he was in danger of his trousers falling down, being equipped with a needle, thread and a spare button. While he repaired his button he handed charge of the sail to James Coyle, who he believed was an experienced sailor.
A slight wind then hit the sail, James lost his grip and the sail fell into the water. The situation was still not a dangerous one and Morley, seeing the slight problem, forgot his trousers and moved towards the side of the boat to pull the mast back upright again. Unfortunately the other men in the boat, being inexperienced, all moved instinctively to help him. The boat overbalanced and tipped over throwing all eight into the water. Benjamin Turns, Andrew Davison and Morley Scott survived and were able to walk home unassisted, the other five drowned.
