# List of shipwrecks in May 1838

The list of shipwrecks in May 1838 includes ships sunk, foundered, wrecked, grounded, or otherwise lost during May 1838.

## 1 May

List of shipwrecks: 1 May 1838 :
| Ship | State | Description |
| Priscilla | United Kingdom | The ship was wrecked at Point-aux-Barques, Newfoundland, British North America. Her crew were rescued. She was on a voyage from London to Quebec City, Lower Canada, British North America. |

## 2 May

List of shipwrecks: 2 May 1838 :
| Ship | State | Description |
| Duke of Wellington | United Kingdom | The paddle steamer was run into by the schooner Fairy ( United Kingdom) and was beached in the Humber. She was later refloated. |

## 3 May

List of shipwrecks: 3 May 1838 :
| Ship | State | Description |
| Alexandria | United States | The ship was wrecked whilst on a voyage from New York to Jamaica. Her crew were rescued. |
| Salt Rock | United Kingdom | The brig ran aground on the Ridge Sand, in the North Sea off the coast of Kent. She was later refloated. |
| Zaanstrom | Belgium | The ship foundered off the Cape of Good Hope. Her crew were rescued. |

## 4 May

List of shipwrecks: 4 May 1838 :
| Ship | State | Description |
| Durham | United Kingdom | The ship was driven ashore at Weymouth, Dorset. She was later refloated and taken into Weymouth. |

## 5 May

List of shipwrecks: 5 May 1838 :
| Ship | State | Description |
| Horace | United States | The barque was wrecked on rocks off Kennebunkport, Maine and then came ashore. She was on a voyage from New Orleans, Louisiana to Liverpool, Lancashire, United Kingdom. |

## 6 May

List of shipwrecks: 6 May 1838 :
| Ship | State | Description |
| Constant | Belgium | The ship ran aground in the Scheldt. She was on a voyage from Antwerp to Liverpool, Lancashire, United Kingdom. |
| Hope | United Kingdom | The ship was beached in the River Great Ouse 4 nautical miles (7.4 km) from King's Lynn, Norfolk. |
| Wilhelmine | Stettin | The brig was driven ashore at Sunderland, County Durham, United Kingdom. She was on a voyage from Stettin to Sunderland. Wilhelmine was refloated the next day. |

## 7 May

List of shipwrecks: 7 May 1838 :
| Ship | State | Description |
| Maria | Bremen | The ship was driven ashore on the Sandwich Flats. She was on a voyage from Bremen to San Sebastián, Spain. Mariawas refloated on 8 May and resumed her voyage. |
| Mary | United Kingdom | The ship struck the Sizewell Bank, in the North Sea off the coast of Suffolk and was consequently beached at Orford, Suffolk. She was on a voyage from Newcastle upon Tyne, Northumberland to Ipswich, Suffolk. |
| Rebecca | United Kingdom | The ship was wrecked on the Millevache Shoal, off the coast of Labrador, British North America. She was on a voyage from Quebec City, Lower Canada to the Clyde. Rebecca was refloated in late July and taken into Quebec City. |

## 9 May

List of shipwrecks: 9 May 1838 :
| Ship | State | Description |
| Brother | United Kingdom | The ship was driven ashore at Montrose, Forfarshire She was refloated and put back to Montrose. |
| Minerva | United Kingdom | The ship was driven ashore and damaged at Montrose. She was later refloated and put back to Montrose. |
| Phœnix | United Kingdom | The ship capsized at Jersey, Channel Islands. |

## 10 May

List of shipwrecks: 10 May 1838 :
| Ship | State | Description |
| Johanna | Hamburg | The ship was driven ashore on Scharhörn, Hamburg. She was on a voyage from Hamburg to Genoa, Kingdom of Sardinia. |
| Pauline | Hamburg | The ship ran aground on the Vogel Sand, in the North Sea. She was on a voyage from Hamburg to a Baltic port. |
| Thomas and Elizabeth | United Kingdom | The ship ran aground on the Platters Sand, in the North Sea off the coast of Essex. She was on a voyage from London to Althorpe, Lincolnshire. Thomas and Elizabeth was refloated and put into Harwich, Essex. |

## 11 May

List of shipwrecks: 11 May 1838 :
| Ship | State | Description |
| Elizabeth | United Kingdom | The ship foundered in Carnarvon Bay north of Aberdovey, Merionethshire with the loss of all hands. |
| Felix | France | The ship was driven ashore near Calais. Her crew were rescued. She was on a voyage from Sunderland, County Durham, United Kingdom to Rouen, Seine-Inférieure. |
| Kent | United Kingdom | The ship sprang a leak and foundered in the Atlantic Ocean (47°22′N 27°16′W﻿ / ﻿47.367°N 27.267°W﻿ / 47.367; -27.267). Her crew were rescued by Demerara Packet and Hobart ( United Kingdom). |
| Salus | United Kingdom | The brig was driven into the New Cut Bridge, King's Lynn, Norfolk and sank. |
| Symmetry | United Kingdom | The schooner ran aground on the East Barrows Sand, in the North Sea off the coast of Essex. She was on a voyage from Newcastle upon Tyne, Northumberland to Bridport, Dorset. Symmetry was refloated the next day and put into Wivenhoe, Essex. |

## 12 May

List of shipwrecks: 12 May 1838 :
| Ship | State | Description |
| Commerce | United Kingdom | The ship was driven ashore and wrecked 10 nautical miles (19 km) south of Bridlington, Yorkshire. |
| Magnet | United Kingdom | The ship was sunk by ice off Riga, Russia. Her crew were rescued. She was on a voyage from Dundee, Forfarshire to Riga. |
| Mary Ann | United Kingdom | The schooner was wrecked on the Haisborough Sands, in the North Sea off the coast of Norfolk. She was on a voyage from Stockton-on-Tees, County Durham to Exmouth, Devon. |
| Monmouth | United Kingdom | The ship collided with Pomona and foundered off the Calf of Man, Isle of Man. Her crew were rescued. She was on a voyage from Whitehaven, Cumberland to Dublin. |

## 13 May

List of shipwrecks: 13 May 1838 :
| Ship | State | Description |
| Mary Ann | United Kingdom | The ship was driven ashore at Pictou, Nova Scotia, British North America. |
| Rebecca | United Kingdom | The ship was wrecked on the Millevaches Shoal. Her crew were rescued. She was on a voyage from Greenock, Renfrewshire to Quebec City, Lower Canada, British North America. |

## 15 May

List of shipwrecks: 15 May 1838 :
| Ship | State | Description |
| Diana | United Kingdom | The ship was wrecked on the Horn Reef, off Ringkøbing, Denmark. Her crew were rescued. She was on a voyage from Amsterdam, North Holland, Netherlands to Riga, Russia. |

## 19 May

List of shipwrecks: 19 May 1838 :
| Ship | State | Description |
| Agnes | Guernsey | The ship was driven ashore at Sidmouth, Devon. She was refloated on 22 May at towed into Starcross. |
| Clarence | United Kingdom | The ship was driven ashore at Sidmouth. |
| Eclair | Norway | The ship foundered in the North Sea 20 nautical miles (37 km) off Whitby, Yorkshire, United Kingdom. Her crew were rescued. She was on a voyage from Antwerp, Belgium to Bergen. |
| Hope | United Kingdom | The ship was driven ashore and wrecked near the Orfordness Lighthouse, Suffolk. Her crew were rescued. She was on a voyage from London to Bridlington, Yorkshire. |
| John Cook | United Kingdom | The schooner capsized off Ryhope, County Durham. She subsequently drove ashore and was wrecked. Her crew were rescued. |
| Sybil | United Kingdom | The ship was abandoned off Poorhead, County Cork. Her crew were rescued. |

## 20 May

List of shipwrecks: 20 May 1838 :
| Ship | State | Description |
| X. Y. Z. | United Kingdom | The ship was driven ashore at South Shields, County Durham. Her crew were rescued. She was refloated on 26 May and taken into South Shields. |

## 23 May

List of shipwrecks: 23 May 1838 :
| Ship | State | Description |
| Harriet | United Kingdom | The ship was driven ashore at Crygill, Anglesey. She was on a voyage from Antwerp, Belgium to Liverpool, Lancashire. Harriet was refloated the next day and resumed her voyage. |

## 24 May

List of shipwrecks: 24 May 1838 :
| Ship | State | Description |
| Edlina Henriette | Hamburg | The ship foundered 5 nautical miles (9.3 km) off Stavanger, Norway. Her crew were rescued. She was on a voyage from Hamburg to Bergen, Norway. |

## 27 May

List of shipwrecks: 27 May 1838 :
| Ship | State | Description |
| Amelia | United Kingdom | The ship was wrecked on rocks in the Black Sea off "Foultcha" or "Trultcha". Her crew were rescued. |
| Beauty | United Kingdom | The ship was wrecked on Green Island. She was on a voyage from Halifax, Nova Scotia, British North America to Saint John's, Newfoundland and Fortune Bay. |
| George | United Kingdom | The ship was wrecked on St. Paul Island, Nova Scotia. She was on a voyage from Newfoundland to Waterford. |
| John | United Kingdom | The ship was driven ashore at Seaton Sluice, Northumberland. She was on a voyage from Aberdeen to Sunderland, County Durham. John was later refloated and taken into Seaton Sluice. |

## 28 May

List of shipwrecks: 28 May 1838 :
| Ship | State | Description |
| Isabella | United Kingdom | The ship struck the Sheringham Shoal, in the North Sea off the coast of Norfolk and foundered. Her crew were rescued. She was on a voyage from Hartlepool, County Durham to London. |

## 29 May

List of shipwrecks: 29 May 1838 :
| Ship | State | Description |
| Flèche | Belgium | The ship foundered in the Mediterranean Sea off Almería, Spain. Her crew were rescued. She was on a voyage from Ostend, West Flanders to Algiers, Algeria. |
| Sir Robert Peel | United Kingdom | Patriot War, Rebellions of 1837–1838: The paddle steamer was set afire and destroyed by Patriotes in the Saint Lawrence River at Mullet Creek Bay, Lower Canada. Her crew were rescued by Oneida ( British North America). |

## 30 May

List of shipwrecks: 30 May 1838 :
| Ship | State | Description |
| Belzoni | United Kingdom | The ship was driven ashore on Saarenmaa, Russia. Her crew were rescued. She was on a voyage from Sunderland, County Durham to Cronstadt, Russia. |
| Bystro | Imperial Russian Navy | The tender was driven ashore at Tuapse. |
| Femistokl | Imperial Russian Navy | The brig was driven ashore at Tuapse with the loss of two of her 149 crew. |
| Frembengeren | Hamburg | The ship ran aground on the Oster Till with the loss of two of her crew. She was on a voyage from Livorno, Grand Duchy of Tuscany to Hamburg. Frembengeren was later refloated. |
| Gazelle | British North America | The steamship ran aground on a reef and consequently sank. Her crew survived. She was on a voyage from Saint John, New Brunswick to Windsor, Upper Canada. |
| Langeron | Imperial Russian Navy | The transport ship was driven ashore at Tuapse. Her crew survived. |
| Luch | Imperial Russian Navy | The tender was driven ashore at Tuapse with the loss of three of her 48 crew. |
| Oderin | United Kingdom | The schooner was wrecked 12 nautical miles (22 km) north of Figueira da Foz, Portugal. Her crew were rescued. She was on a voyage from Newfoundland to Figueira da Foz. |
| Yazon | Imperial Russian Navy | The steamship was driven ashore at Tuapse with the loss of 41 of her 61 crew. |
| Eight unnamed vessels | Russia | The ships were driven ashore at Tuapse. |

## 31 May

List of shipwrecks: 31 May 1838 :
| Ship | State | Description |
| Frank | United Kingdom | The ship departed from Morant Bay, Jamaica for Liverpool, Lancashire. No further trace, presumed foundered in the Atlantic Ocean with the loss of all hands. |
| Messemvriya | Imperial Russian Navy | The corvette was abandoned 2 versts (1.15 nautical miles (2.13 km) off Sochi with the loss of seven of her crew and six reported missing. She came ashore and was wrecked. |
| Nicholas I | Russia | The steamship caught fire and was beached at Gross Klütz, Prussia, where she was destroyed. Of her 33 crew and 132 passengers, three crew and two passengers were killed. Nicholas I was on a voyage from Saint Petersburgh, Russia to Travemünde, Lübeck. |
| Varna | Imperial Russian Navy | The Tenedos-class frigate was driven ashore and wrecked at Sochi with the loss of seventeen of her 334 crew. |
| Six unnamed vessels | Russia | The ships were driven ashore at Sochi. Their crews survived. |

## Unknown date

List of shipwrecks: Unknown date in May 1838 :
| Ship | State | Description |
| Ambassador | United Kingdom | The ship ran aground on the Cat Key. She was on a voyage from New Orleans, Louisiana, United States to Liverpool, Lancashire. Ambassador was later refloated and taken into Nassau, Bahamas. |
| Amedée | France | The ship foundered in the Atlantic Ocean. Her crew were rescued by Trois Monts Bouges Magnique ( France). Amedée was on a voyage from Laguna to Havre de Grâce, Seine-Inférieure. |
| Brilliant | United Kingdom | The full-rigged ship was driven ashore on Red Island, Newfoundland, British North America before 8 May. She was later refloated and towed into Quebec City, Lower Canada by British America ( British North America), arriving on 14 June. |
| Canadian | United Kingdom | The barque was wrecked at Bic, Lower Canada, British North America before 26 May. She was on a voyage from London to Quebec City. |
| Caroline | United Kingdom | The barque sprang a leak and was abandoned in the Atlantic Ocean off Cape Ann, Massachusetts, United States before 8 May. All on board were rescued by Heroine ( United Kingdom). |
| Cora | United Kingdom | The ship was abandoned in the Grand Banks of Newfoundland. |
| Frau Catharina | Denmark | The ship was wrecked near Ebeltoft. Her crew were rescued. She was on a voyage from Newcastle upon Tyne, Northumberland, United Kingdom to Horsens. |
| General Graham | United Kingdom | The full-rigged ship was driven ashore at Cape Ray, Newfoundland before 8 May. She was later refloated and taken into Quebec City for repairs. |
| James Seyre | British North America | The brig was abandoned in the Atlantic Ocean before 1 May. |
| Jean Bart | France | The whaler was burnt at Ocean Bay on Chatham Island in early May. Her crew were murdered by the local inhabitants. |
| Jonge Ranger | Netherlands | The ship was abandoned in the North Sea. She was subsequently taken into Mundesley, Norfolk, United Kingdom. |
| Lord Sidmouth | United Kingdom | The ship was driven ashore between Carrabas Point and Trinity Cove before 14 May. |
| Lord Wellington | United Kingdom | The brig was wrecked on Cape Breton Island, Nova Scotia, British North America. There were at least eleven survivors. |
| Mangerton | United Kingdom | The schooner ran aground on the Kentish Knock before 7 May. She was on a voyage from London to Archangelsk, Russia. Mangerton was later refloated and resumed her voyage. |
| Margaret and Graham | United Kingdom | The ship was driven ashore and damaged near Margate, Kent. She was later refloated and repaired. |
| Marquis Wellington | United Kingdom | The ship was sunk by ice. Her crew were rescued by Arabian. |
| Michael | United Kingdom | The ship was holed by ice and foundered before 14 May. She was on a voyage from Dundee, Forfarshire to Riga, Russia. |
| Providentia | United Kingdom | The ship ran aground and sank at Wells-next-the-Sea, Norfolk. |
| Ross | United Kingdom | The ship ran aground on a reef off Cape Ray and was damaged. |
| Syllerley | United Kingdom | The full-rigged ship was wrecked 6 nautical miles (11 km) east of Cape Ray. She was on a voyage from Liverpool to Quebec City. |
| Unity | British North America | The brig was abandoned in the Atlantic Ocean before 17 May. |