Post by Ginny on Feb 20, 2010 19:19:21 GMT -5
I meant to start this thread a while ago because this is probably the most well-known ghost story/legend from PEI, besides the story I already told about the tolling of the bell.
The body of water that separates PEI from New Brunswick is called the Northumberland Strait (part of the Gulf of St. Lawrence). For years, a legend has circulated that a phantom ship can be seen on the waters. I've heard different variations of this legend. Based on the stories however, it seems that Western PEI is the most likely place to see this ship. Sightings are most common during certain times of the year, usually the fall I believe. Nearly every account describes a burning ship. Usually one can see the crew members frantically running around the deck trying to escape. Then, before the witness's very eyes, the ship disappears.
I have never seen this ship, nor do I personally know anybody who has. However, I have heard accounts from acquaintances about people they know who have supposedly seen it. I am taking a class in Folklore at the moment, and my professor said that his parents claimed to have seen it once. As with many legends however, every account seems to vary a bit, so it's hard to tell for sure whether such a phenomenon could actually be real.
If you search "The Phantom Ship, PEI" on google, there are different sites with different accounts of this story. One of PEI's finest singer/songwriters, Lennie Gallant, wrote a song about the ship. He explains the different accounts of the legend. The link below includes the first verse and chorus of the song.
Tales of the Phantom Ship (Lennie Gallant)
On a night as black as a raven's feather,
Thunder cracks like a snap of leather,
And the wind whips through the black spruce on the shore;
Waves are pounding the beaches harder,
As the last of the fishermen reach safe harbour,
And the wind turns cold, cuts to the core.
Out on the wide Northumberland Strait,
A ball of fire skips over the waves,
And those who've seen it can't believe their eyes;
There's a burst of flame and a flash of light,
And there on the tide is a frightening sight,
As a tall ship all aflame lights up the sky.
Tales of the phantom ship, from truck to keel in flames;
She sails the wide Northumberland Strait,
No one knows her name.
Tales of the phantom ship, it's a ship of fire they cry;
Hard against the wind she sails,
No one can say why.
They say she's a three-masted square-rigger,
Four hundred tons or maybe bigger,
With fire on every rope and spar and sail.
Out of the east though the wind blows west,
She ploughs the Strait on an unknown quest,
Cutting through the waves with the strength of a full force gale.
Of why she appears there's none who know,
Some say it's nothing but a moonlight glow,
But those who've seen her swear they tell no lies;
They tell how her bow suddenly drops down,
And into the depths of the Strait she's bound,
And the wind goes wild with wailing chilling cries.
Tales of the phantom ship, from truck to keel in flames;
She sails the wide Northumberland Strait,
No one knows her name.
Tales of the phantom ship, it's a ship of fire they cry;
Hard against the wind she sails,
No one can say why.
Some say she's an immigrant ship of old,
Highland Scots whose land was stole,
Lost at sea while seeking the new land;
Or a ghostly American privateer,
Who plundered innocent harbours here,
Cursed to sail the Strait, forever [censored]ed.
But an old-timer sang a song to me,
Six hundred Acadians drowned at sea,
Deported long ago from St. John's Isle;
He says they sail this choppy Strait,
Through time and tide they navigate,
Searching for the means to end their long exile.
Tales of the phantom ship,
From truck to keel in flames,
She sails the wide Northumberland Strait;
No one knows her name,
She sails the wide Northumberland Strait,
When will she sail again?
www.youtube.com/watch?v=D4ezjyoIvHY
Cheers,
Ginny
The body of water that separates PEI from New Brunswick is called the Northumberland Strait (part of the Gulf of St. Lawrence). For years, a legend has circulated that a phantom ship can be seen on the waters. I've heard different variations of this legend. Based on the stories however, it seems that Western PEI is the most likely place to see this ship. Sightings are most common during certain times of the year, usually the fall I believe. Nearly every account describes a burning ship. Usually one can see the crew members frantically running around the deck trying to escape. Then, before the witness's very eyes, the ship disappears.
I have never seen this ship, nor do I personally know anybody who has. However, I have heard accounts from acquaintances about people they know who have supposedly seen it. I am taking a class in Folklore at the moment, and my professor said that his parents claimed to have seen it once. As with many legends however, every account seems to vary a bit, so it's hard to tell for sure whether such a phenomenon could actually be real.
If you search "The Phantom Ship, PEI" on google, there are different sites with different accounts of this story. One of PEI's finest singer/songwriters, Lennie Gallant, wrote a song about the ship. He explains the different accounts of the legend. The link below includes the first verse and chorus of the song.
Tales of the Phantom Ship (Lennie Gallant)
On a night as black as a raven's feather,
Thunder cracks like a snap of leather,
And the wind whips through the black spruce on the shore;
Waves are pounding the beaches harder,
As the last of the fishermen reach safe harbour,
And the wind turns cold, cuts to the core.
Out on the wide Northumberland Strait,
A ball of fire skips over the waves,
And those who've seen it can't believe their eyes;
There's a burst of flame and a flash of light,
And there on the tide is a frightening sight,
As a tall ship all aflame lights up the sky.
Tales of the phantom ship, from truck to keel in flames;
She sails the wide Northumberland Strait,
No one knows her name.
Tales of the phantom ship, it's a ship of fire they cry;
Hard against the wind she sails,
No one can say why.
They say she's a three-masted square-rigger,
Four hundred tons or maybe bigger,
With fire on every rope and spar and sail.
Out of the east though the wind blows west,
She ploughs the Strait on an unknown quest,
Cutting through the waves with the strength of a full force gale.
Of why she appears there's none who know,
Some say it's nothing but a moonlight glow,
But those who've seen her swear they tell no lies;
They tell how her bow suddenly drops down,
And into the depths of the Strait she's bound,
And the wind goes wild with wailing chilling cries.
Tales of the phantom ship, from truck to keel in flames;
She sails the wide Northumberland Strait,
No one knows her name.
Tales of the phantom ship, it's a ship of fire they cry;
Hard against the wind she sails,
No one can say why.
Some say she's an immigrant ship of old,
Highland Scots whose land was stole,
Lost at sea while seeking the new land;
Or a ghostly American privateer,
Who plundered innocent harbours here,
Cursed to sail the Strait, forever [censored]ed.
But an old-timer sang a song to me,
Six hundred Acadians drowned at sea,
Deported long ago from St. John's Isle;
He says they sail this choppy Strait,
Through time and tide they navigate,
Searching for the means to end their long exile.
Tales of the phantom ship,
From truck to keel in flames,
She sails the wide Northumberland Strait;
No one knows her name,
She sails the wide Northumberland Strait,
When will she sail again?
www.youtube.com/watch?v=D4ezjyoIvHY
Cheers,
Ginny
