*SAMPLE* | The Shipwreck of 1884 & The Heroic Wampanoag of Martha's Vineyard (Bonus Episode #104)

0:00 [SPEAKER_01]: Welcome to another bonus episode of Calm History, an extra treat for my soap-poss members. [SPEAKER_01]: This is another episode about the Wampanok, the indigenous people who interacted with the pilgrims of Plometh colony. [SPEAKER_01]: In bonus episode number 103, I shared the rich history about the Wampenag from 12,000 years ago to present day.

0:34 [SPEAKER_01]: In this episode, I'll add two more key events to that timeline, and both have been done the island of Martha's Vineyard. [SPEAKER_01]: The first event is a shipwreck, which happens off the coast of the island in 1884, and it involves many heroic Wompanag. [SPEAKER_01]: This dramatic and uplifting story of bravery will be most of this episode.

1:07 [SPEAKER_01]: But at the very end, I'll share a second historical event that happens on the island in 1997, and this one involves many happy and victorious Wampanag. [SPEAKER_01]: In the near future, I'll stitch together all of these episodes about the Lumpen Ox, so you can enjoy an extended episode all about these indigenous people.

1:38 [SPEAKER_01]: But for now, lean back, put up your feet, and allow some calm history to distract and [SPEAKER_01]: the shipwreck of 1884 and the heroic Womponog. [SPEAKER_01]: If you've been huffing glue, since my prior episode about the Lopinog, then you may need two quick reminders. [SPEAKER_01]: Reminder number one, the Lopinog were the indigenous people who helped the pilgrims of Plymouth colony, and then joined them for the event that we call, the first Thanksgiving.

2:31 [SPEAKER_01]: Huffing glue, spray paint, cheeseways, or any other substance, is really bad for your health. [SPEAKER_01]: Quit doing that. [SPEAKER_01]: Now, as I explained in my prior episode, the Wampenag didn't only help the pilgrims. [SPEAKER_01]: They also helped many other English settlers, visitors, and explorers.

2:59 [SPEAKER_01]: In this episode, I'll highlight another moment in history, in which the Wampanag came to the aid of others. [SPEAKER_01]: In 1884, several Wampanag will risk their lives to rescue many individuals from a tragic shipwreck. [SPEAKER_01]: It occurred on Martha's Vineyard, in Ireland, off the coast of Cape Cod, Massachusetts.

3:32 [SPEAKER_01]: For the past 10,000 years, or maybe even more, members of the Womponog Nation have lived on this scenic island. [SPEAKER_01]: They initially named this island, no pay, because in their language that meant land amid [SPEAKER_01]: But in 1602, the English explorer, Bartholomew Gaw's note, decided to give the island an English name.

4:05 [SPEAKER_01]: Yeah, he calls it Martha's Vineyard. [SPEAKER_01]: After his daughter Martha, as well as, the great vineyards that he observed on the island. [SPEAKER_01]: By the mid-1600s, several English families begin living on the island. [SPEAKER_01]: By 1700, the name Martha's Vineyard is adopted by Massachusetts as the official English name of the island.

4:41 [SPEAKER_01]: Now, the upcoming shipwreck will occur off the coast of this island, and it happens at the southwestern tip. [SPEAKER_01]: This coastal area of the island is a very popular tourist spot today, due to its scenic and colorful clay cliffs. [SPEAKER_01]: many thousands of years ago, the Woppanag named these beautiful cliffs, Akwana, which means land under the hill.

5:18 [SPEAKER_01]: Luckily though, the English settlers arriving in the 1600s didn't replace [SPEAKER_01]: Oh, wait. [SPEAKER_01]: Yes, they did. [SPEAKER_01]: The English settlers immediately started calling these colorful cliffs. [SPEAKER_01]: Gayhead. [SPEAKER_01]: Why? [SPEAKER_01]: Gayhead? [SPEAKER_01]: Well, like the Lampanag, they were also impressed by the multi-colored cliffs.

5:52 [SPEAKER_01]: And at that time, the word gay was a common term that meant bright, cheerful, or colorful. [SPEAKER_01]: And the word head was short for, headland, a term that meant a cliff, which juts out into the water. [SPEAKER_01]: By the late 1600s, Gayhead became the dominant name for these cliffs due to the rising population of English settlers.

6:30 [SPEAKER_01]: And although it took about 200 years, in 1870, the cliffs of Aquina would be completely stripped [SPEAKER_01]: what does this mean for our upcoming shipwreck that happens about 14 years later in 1884? [SPEAKER_01]: Well, it means I won't be saying that the shipwreck occurred in front of the colorful cliffs of Aquina, which is on no pay island.

7:12 [SPEAKER_01]: But rather, I'll be saying that they ship record in front of the colorful cliffs of gay head, which is on Martha's Vineyard Island. [SPEAKER_01]: If that bombs you out, then make sure you listen to this entire episode, because something happens in the late 1900s, which may put a smile on your face.

7:41 [SPEAKER_01]: But right now, let me tell you why shipwrecks were a constant problem in front of the cliffs of Aquina. [SPEAKER_01]: Oops. [SPEAKER_01]: I mean, gay head. [SPEAKER_01]: The waters around these multi-colored cliffs were as dangerous as those cliffs were beautiful. [SPEAKER_01]: Ships often failed to see hidden dangers that lurked under [SPEAKER_01]: This problem was not unique to the waters off the coast of Martha's Vineyard.

8:18 [SPEAKER_01]: The entire coast of Massachusetts was considered one of the most perilous areas in the world. [SPEAKER_01]: This was due to extreme weather under water sand bars and coral reefs. [SPEAKER_01]: But it won't be a sandbar, a coal reef, or even the crack and monster that causes our upcoming shipwreck.

8:52 [SPEAKER_01]: At gay head, it will be an underwater rock formation. [SPEAKER_01]: This hidden mass of rock was so large and so feared that local sailors called it, the Devil's Bridge, and at the start of 1884, the Devil's Bridge sat quietly under the water, waiting [SPEAKER_01]: On January 18, 1884, a large ship smashed into this hidden rock formation, where I didn't front of the colorful cliffs of gay head.

9:40 [SPEAKER_01]: This was not a wooden sailing ship, but rather an iron steamer ship named the city of Columbus. [SPEAKER_01]: This is a very confusing name for a ship. [SPEAKER_01]: It's like naming your dog, skateboard, ice cream, or dirty sock. [SPEAKER_01]: When I say this city of Columbus for the rest of this episode, are you going to remember [SPEAKER_01]: probably not.

10:20 [SPEAKER_01]: So instead, I'm just going to call it the steamer ship, or simply this steamer. [SPEAKER_01]: This steamer ship had departed from Boston on the prior day, and was now sneaking past Martha's Vineyard on its way to Georgia. [SPEAKER_01]: Unfortunately, severe hurricane force winds and below freezing temperatures probably contributed to the shipwreck and will definitely hamper the rescue efforts.

11:14 [SPEAKER_01]: Around 345 AM, this ship approaches the underwater rock formation known as the Devil's Bridge. [SPEAKER_01]: to help ships navigate around this danger, a warning buoy marks the location. [SPEAKER_01]: But that morning, the lookout of the ship realizes that they are slightly off-course, and their ship is on the wrong side of the buoy.

11:49 [SPEAKER_01]: Within seconds, the steamer smashed into the underwater rocks, and the hull was ripped open. [SPEAKER_01]: The vessel takes on water and tips to one side. [SPEAKER_01]: Several passengers and crew, which scrambled onto the decks, were swept into the water, due to the massive and violent waves.

12:16 [SPEAKER_01]: as quickly as was possible to lifeboats with women and children were launched into the water. [SPEAKER_01]: Due to the high winds and large waves, only about five of the occupants in these boats made it to shore. [SPEAKER_01]: Another life raft is launched with seven individuals inside, but it's never heard from [SPEAKER_01]: Around 430am, about 45 minutes after taking on water, no more light boats are launched.

12:55 [SPEAKER_01]: As the steamer settles deeper into the water, the remaining 40 men on the steamer take to the higher parts of the ship or climb up into the rigging. [SPEAKER_01]: One of these remaining men is the captain of the ship, who will be rescued. [SPEAKER_01]: His name was Captain Wright. [SPEAKER_01]: A few days later, the local newspaper, the vineyard Gazette, publishes his version of the events.

13:27 [SPEAKER_01]: Here is how Captain Wright describes what happened to a ship. [SPEAKER_01]: that was just a tasty nipple of a silk plus bonus episode to hear the full version and over 130 more episodes of calm history then just become a silk plus member. [SPEAKER_01]: None of the silk plus episodes have any ads, promos or breaks and some of them are super long.

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