On This Day in Wembury — 6 December 1895
On this day the hull of the Norwegian barque August Smith was sold by auction on Wembury Beach. The sale was carried out by Skardon and Sons of Plymouth at low tide. In addition to the wreck itself, cables, anchors, boats and spars were offered in lots. The vendors reserved the right to salvage the cargo and to use some spars and tackle while that work was underway. A special conveyance was arranged from Plymouth to bring prospective buyers to the auction site.
The August Smith had been wrecked on the Wembury coast only days earlier. In the nineteenth century such sales were common after strandings, with local people gathering to watch as vessels were stripped, sold and broken up. The cargo and materials were valuable, and salvage law allowed recovery while also permitting sales of hulls and fittings. The auction at Wembury reflected the practical and sometimes dramatic aftermath of shipwrecks on the South Devon coast.
Source Western Morning News, 6 December 1895
