I read a book that suggested the alcohol they were transporting might have been industrial solvents or similar. If they leaked and people were being overcome by the fumes, they might have gotten in a lifeboat to let the ship air out, and then their tow rope broke. I feel sorry for the captain's baby, who must have died with the rest of the family and crew.
Must have been to a point of being toxic/deadly if they were willing to take their chances on the open ocean in lifeboats vs the relative safety of the ship!
@@mikezerker6925 deadly in terms of potential fuel/air explosion? yeah... that's possible. this kind of alcohol was strong enough to be used as fuel. also if it evaporates the proof rating doesn't really matter anyways. The question is how much is in the air. And to be sure, a fuel/air blast crippling a ship like this doesn't need to be powerful enough to blow it up... it might just set it on fire. But... if you're on board... now you're on a burning ship and it's panic time.
@@kw7378a1 Ah, but we're talking about FEAR of such a thing, and it's entirely possible that what they feared.... didn't happen. IE they got in the lifeboat to wait for fumes to disperse when it was found that they were dangerously dense. Well, the fumes dispersed safely... but the boat got lost and they all died.
One of the best theories put out was that the alcohol they were shipping sprung a leak and had a vapor fire, thus causing a seemingly scary fire without damaging the ship itself. They tested and reenacted it and everything, so that's the one I subscribe to.
Yeah, they were afraid the ship would explode because of the cargo, but it never did. Once the tow rope presumably keeping the lifeboat attached to the ship came loose, it was all over. They could never get back to the ship. They all died in that lifeboat after never being found, and the Mary Celeste just drifted away with nobody on board. That's the explanation that makes the most sense to me.
Reasonable, but I still find it strange that they would decide that it would be safer to take their chances on lifeboats in the open ocean rather than try to mitigate the problem at hand.
@@mikezerker6925 When I say "seemingly scary fire", I mean "pressurized fiery explosion that didn't singed much". That happening in the middle of the night would terrify anyone not aware of context. That's why 9 barrels of the 1701 caskets were empty: They were burnt out.
An actual FIRE? It's the first time I've heard that. But here's the thing: if one of them had stayed on board, we would have never learned about that ship.
I thought this had been pretty much solved? It was carrying a cargo of alcohol, 1,700 barrels, which apparently had to be vented every so often to prevent a build up of fumes, and apparently there was a bad weather which could have prevented them from venting it in a timely manner. And once it got past a certain point it could have been too risky to vent it. Then it would make sense for either everyone to abandon ship, or for one person to stay behind and vent it, and that person could have been injured or blown overboard. I mean, if you thought 1,700 barrels of alcohol were going to explode, you would probably be running for the lifeboat too!
They didn’t find any evidence of an explosion. So some of that could’ve happened, but I don’t think anyone was “blown overboard“. Plus the barrels were not on the deck they were below.
@@Saffron-sugar I think it was more about venting the compartment/hull, as opposed to venting the barrels themselves, because some of the barrels had leaked and there was a build up of gas/pressure below the deck. And often when something like this explodes it doesn't leave any signs of an explosion. It would be more like those lab experiments where you put a flame into a test tube with a gas in it, and it makes a loud _pop_ for a second. But obviously on a much larger scale. For the crew it would probably have been that they had bad weather, and they could smell the alcohol fumes and they knew the danger of it, especially if there was lightning and static electricity in the air. This could have been enough to scare them off the ship, and if they just abandoned the ship in the bad weather it could explain why they never got back onboard. And it could be that the fumes never even exploded at all.
The ship was full of barrels of alcohol. They knew of the danger when the barrels began to leak. They got in lifeboats and tethered then got separated.
We more or less know the likely causes for the panic nowadays (industrial solvent leak, waterspout, etc.), but the lack of a clear definitive explanation is an itch that will never be scratched. It also leaves open the possibility for supernatural occurrences which writers, storytellers, and content creators absoluteley love.
AcTUaLLy, the Mary Celeste was built in Nova Scotia, Canada and launched under British registration in 1861 (thus, the flag on the boat in the 1st painting you show). The boat was transferred to American registration in 1868. Please do a full length version of this ?
A lot of myths sprang up about the Mary Celeste, most of them made up by Arthur Conan Doyle. One of the biggest myths was that the table had been set for a meal.
and THIS is why this channel is so beloved and respected - no hour long 'investigation' - repeating the same info over & over again - off on spurious tangents (to fill time), endless baseless 'what ifs'. *thank you*
The some of the most haunting photos I ever saw were ones of Titanic LIFEBOATS that had somehow not been recovered when rescuers first got to the site accident, right when it happened…. Separately, a few lifeboats turned up with skeletons, & sometimes notes from them, from people who survived the icy water only to slowly starve or die from exposure. I think I would rather have died with the others in the ice water.
For the whole story on the Mary Celeste and her long life, Part-time Explorer covers her story on his channel. ruclips.net/video/dew4ZrTnMeE/видео.html
' mary celest was found alone, the fate of her crew is still unknown ; whether murder, fraud, or acts bizarre, no one can say but chances are ; they're down, down and drowned, downed and drowned and never found.' "downed and drowned" by the longest johns
The 2007 documentary “The True Story of the Mary Celeste” was able to offer no definite conclusion, but did suggest a scenario in which a faulty chronometer, rough seas and a clogged onboard pump could have led Briggs to order the ship abandoned
It was brought back to port by the crew of the Dei Gratia, the vessel that discovered it. After an investigation and alleged foul play, the crew of the Dei Gratia received a relatively low salvage award as punishment for misdeeds, which couldn't be proven. Then the ship changed ownership several times until it was deliberately wrecked at Haiti with a nearly worthless cargo of rubber boots and cat food in an attempt to commit insurance fraud.
imagine being lost in the sea and then a empty boat comes to you
@@Alfasauses.2nd.Account *guitar riff*
I read a book that suggested the alcohol they were transporting might have been industrial solvents or similar. If they leaked and people were being overcome by the fumes, they might have gotten in a lifeboat to let the ship air out, and then their tow rope broke. I feel sorry for the captain's baby, who must have died with the rest of the family and crew.
Yeah it was recorded that several barrels were fully empty when the ship got to port, so the leak was quite substantial.
Must have been to a point of being toxic/deadly if they were willing to take their chances on the open ocean in lifeboats vs the relative safety of the ship!
@@mikezerker6925 deadly in terms of potential fuel/air explosion? yeah... that's possible. this kind of alcohol was strong enough to be used as fuel. also if it evaporates the proof rating doesn't really matter anyways. The question is how much is in the air.
And to be sure, a fuel/air blast crippling a ship like this doesn't need to be powerful enough to blow it up... it might just set it on fire. But... if you're on board... now you're on a burning ship and it's panic time.
@@marhawkman303 but surely the salvage crew would have seen evidence of a fire? The book I read was talking about fumes only, not fire.
@@kw7378a1 Ah, but we're talking about FEAR of such a thing, and it's entirely possible that what they feared.... didn't happen.
IE they got in the lifeboat to wait for fumes to disperse when it was found that they were dangerously dense.
Well, the fumes dispersed safely... but the boat got lost and they all died.
One of the best theories put out was that the alcohol they were shipping sprung a leak and had a vapor fire, thus causing a seemingly scary fire without damaging the ship itself.
They tested and reenacted it and everything, so that's the one I subscribe to.
Yeah, they were afraid the ship would explode because of the cargo, but it never did. Once the tow rope presumably keeping the lifeboat attached to the ship came loose, it was all over. They could never get back to the ship. They all died in that lifeboat after never being found, and the Mary Celeste just drifted away with nobody on board. That's the explanation that makes the most sense to me.
Me too
Reasonable, but I still find it strange that they would decide that it would be safer to take their chances on lifeboats in the open ocean rather than try to mitigate the problem at hand.
@@mikezerker6925 When I say "seemingly scary fire", I mean "pressurized fiery explosion that didn't singed much". That happening in the middle of the night would terrify anyone not aware of context.
That's why 9 barrels of the 1701 caskets were empty: They were burnt out.
An actual FIRE? It's the first time I've heard that. But here's the thing: if one of them had stayed on board, we would have never learned about that ship.
I thought this had been pretty much solved?
It was carrying a cargo of alcohol, 1,700 barrels, which apparently had to be vented every so often to prevent a build up of fumes, and apparently there was a bad weather which could have prevented them from venting it in a timely manner.
And once it got past a certain point it could have been too risky to vent it. Then it would make sense for either everyone to abandon ship, or for one person to stay behind and vent it, and that person could have been injured or blown overboard.
I mean, if you thought 1,700 barrels of alcohol were going to explode, you would probably be running for the lifeboat too!
They didn’t find any evidence of an explosion. So some of that could’ve happened, but I don’t think anyone was “blown overboard“. Plus the barrels were not on the deck they were below.
@@Saffron-sugar I think it was more about venting the compartment/hull, as opposed to venting the barrels themselves, because some of the barrels had leaked and there was a build up of gas/pressure below the deck. And often when something like this explodes it doesn't leave any signs of an explosion.
It would be more like those lab experiments where you put a flame into a test tube with a gas in it, and it makes a loud _pop_ for a second. But obviously on a much larger scale.
For the crew it would probably have been that they had bad weather, and they could smell the alcohol fumes and they knew the danger of it, especially if there was lightning and static electricity in the air. This could have been enough to scare them off the ship, and if they just abandoned the ship in the bad weather it could explain why they never got back onboard. And it could be that the fumes never even exploded at all.
The ship was full of barrels of alcohol. They knew of the danger when the barrels began to leak. They got in lifeboats and tethered then got separated.
We more or less know the likely causes for the panic nowadays (industrial solvent leak, waterspout, etc.), but the lack of a clear definitive explanation is an itch that will never be scratched. It also leaves open the possibility for supernatural occurrences which writers, storytellers, and content creators absoluteley love.
AcTUaLLy, the Mary Celeste was built in Nova Scotia, Canada and launched under British registration in 1861 (thus, the flag on the boat in the 1st painting you show). The boat was transferred to American registration in 1868.
Please do a full length version of this ?
Even this comment section with people all certain about what happened keeps offering different versions of the barrels of alcohol story.
Theory of alcohol vapors exploding seems quite plausible, as it apparently has been reproduced in experiment.
A lot of myths sprang up about the Mary Celeste, most of them made up by Arthur Conan Doyle. One of the biggest myths was that the table had been set for a meal.
I was wondering if that were true or not.
and THIS is why this channel is so beloved and respected - no hour long 'investigation' - repeating the same info over & over again - off on spurious tangents (to fill time), endless baseless 'what ifs'. *thank you*
The some of the most haunting photos I ever saw were ones of Titanic LIFEBOATS that had somehow not been recovered when rescuers first got to the site accident, right when it happened….
Separately, a few lifeboats turned up with skeletons, & sometimes notes from them, from people who survived the icy water only to slowly starve or die from exposure. I think I would rather have died with the others in the ice water.
For the whole story on the Mary Celeste and her long life, Part-time Explorer covers her story on his channel.
ruclips.net/video/dew4ZrTnMeE/видео.html
' mary celest was found alone, the fate of her crew is still unknown ; whether murder, fraud, or acts bizarre, no one can say but chances are ; they're down, down and drowned, downed and drowned and never found.'
"downed and drowned" by the longest johns
Renegade barbary pirates who captured slaves but weren't interested in alcohol or a stolen ship that would attract attention from European navies?
Fascinating stuff. I absolutely love your channel. Keep up the amazing work. 😁😁😁
The 2007 documentary “The True Story of the Mary Celeste” was able to offer no definite conclusion, but did suggest a scenario in which a faulty chronometer, rough seas and a clogged onboard pump could have led Briggs to order the ship abandoned
Nein
One of my favorite mysteries
One of my first mysteries that captured me
they were kidnapped by the Decepticons according to Michael Bay.
Love your videos!
It was them CIA bigfoots what done it
Ooo, my favorite marine mystery!!
It is like the Ourang Medan which is a forever mystery to me.
The ourang medan never existed. No proof of it at all as far as anyone knows
But WHERE was it found??
I like more details- now I have to google it... 😡
My favorite ghost ship story.
They (quite reasonably) abandoned ship after the Dalek time machine landed aboard in pursuit of the TARDIS.
Aliens. Has to be aliens.
Beat me to it. :)
Never will be solved? Heard of 'Cold case'?
The folks that “found it” killed all the crew hoping to get salvage rights.
I am curious as to what was done with the ship after it was discovered abandoned. Guess I should look it up.
It was brought back to port by the crew of the Dei Gratia, the vessel that discovered it. After an investigation and alleged foul play, the crew of the Dei Gratia received a relatively low salvage award as punishment for misdeeds, which couldn't be proven. Then the ship changed ownership several times until it was deliberately wrecked at Haiti with a nearly worthless cargo of rubber boots and cat food in an attempt to commit insurance fraud.
It's the Obra Dinn!
maybe there was a fire drill
Thanks, FH.
not enough people konw of your channel, it's making me mad
It was probably a spider in the bathroom
Follow the money.
A fate that’s known, to God alone.
Pirates?
Fish took over
Clearly this was the fault of Daleks... ;)
I can neither confirm nor deny
Exterminate!
Damm
Aliens took 'em. 😉
maybe they saw a spooky ghost
Pirates
Pirates would’ve stolen the ship too or at least it’s cargo. Why would they just take the crew and documents?
It seems like a better strategy would have been to use the ship as the lifeboat, but I'm a landlubber, what do I know?
Maybe they just ran out of gas? :o
Kraken, duh! Ever heard of it?
Spooky 😳
It was the Daleks...
Now the aka for Old Trafford ☘️👍
👽👽👽
I think they just disappeared.
I bet it was the loch ness monster! (disclaimer: this is sarcasm)
It was ghosts, duh.
it was da kraken
jack Sparrow did it
Oh, that ship from that Weetabix advert?
Captained by the King of Limbo
"You know what? Every gift tells a story."
- Jesus, probably. I wasn't really listening.
Oh god....
The on board fortune teller informed them who would run America in the future. They all drowned themselves. 😪
Mango Man bad... 😂
Mango Mussolini 😅😅
@@Alfasauses.2nd.Account diaper don is president though... So you get what you deserve
American merchant ships don't fly British colors.