On December 5, 1664, a ship sank in the Menai Strait off the coast of Wales. Of its 81 passengers, the sole survivor was a lucky fellow named Hugh Williams.
On December 5, 1785, 121 years later, another ship sank in the Menai Strait. All 60 souls aboard perished… except one. His name was Hugh Williams.
On December August 5, 1820, 35 years later, yet another ship, a small 25-passenger vessel, sank in the Menai Strait. Once again, there was only one survivor. And once again, his name was Hugh Williams.
So if you’re ever going sailing in Wales on December 5, I won’t be offended if you forget to invite me.
Bibliography
- Cliffe, Charles Frederick. The Book of North Wales, p. 155. London: Hamilton, Adams & Co., 1851.
- Coghlan, Francis. Guide to North Wales, p. 69. London: Simpkin, Marshall & Co., 1860.
NB: There are many versions of this story in circulation that have all three events taking place on December 5; I only recently found the source material that dates the third event in August, not December.
Update: apparently there is another story about a trawler going down on July 10, 1940 with two survivors… both named Hugh Williams.
An English grammar book dates the last sinking on 24 December
Thanks for the interesting reading – I’m married to a Hugh Williams who whilst born in Australia has a Welsh father (who didn’t think the name Hugh Williams would be very common) – possibly not the case ?!!
Hi,
My name is Hugh Williams. My grandfather was Welsh and emigrated to Australia in 1901 with my great grandfather who was a Methodist Minister. I first heard of the story about Hugh Williams and the amazing survival coincidences a number of years ago. I dont think I ‘d like to try putting it to the test by taking a cruise on the 5 December in any year…