1864
An application was made to Anstruther Harbour Commission from Cellardyke Harbour committee for the use of their lighter for certain improvements contemplated to that harbour, which it was agreed to grant free of charge, but on the assurance she was brought back in good order.
1865
James Christie, a carter from Cellardyke was charged with having on the 10th February, assaulted Andrew Anderson, flesher, near Anstruther Easter with a walking stick, to the effusion of his blood, and serious injury of his person. The accused pled not guilty, but after proof had been led he was found guilty and sentenced to pay a fine of 30s or to go to prison for 20 days.
1866
Handsome donations – It has often of late been our pleasing duty to notice the splendid donations of Walter Hughes, Esq, to local institutions and charities. This week, however, so far at least as the public have had an opportunity of knowing, this noble minded gentleman has exceeded all his former benefactions. The recent boat disaster at Cellardyke having been brought under Mr Hughes’s notice, he visited that town the other day, with the special object of making himself acquainted with all the circumstances of the case. Having satisfied himself that the owner of the wrecked boat was worthy of his kindness, he, with a generosity which must challenge the admiration of all, agreed to present, at his own cost, the poor fisherman with a new boat of the largest size and to be constructed of the best materials. Mr Hughes also presented a number of poor persons in Cellardyke with handsome gratuities. Than this estimable gentleman, few have given with so liberal a hand to the relief of the poor and unfortunate, and many we feel well assured, are the blessings which grateful hearts here shower upon him for his numerable bounties.
(NB, the boat was built for Thomas Ritchie, it was built by Christopher Pottinger, the main boat builder in Anstruther. She was named the Pioneer, launched in July 1866, she was very different from the standard fifies, being ketch rigged, finer for’ard and fully decked, with a 20 inch high gunwale, the hope was she was to be faster and safer than the standard boats and that she would become the new standard model. There were exciting comparisons but she was sold after only a few seasons and the fishermen returned to their tried and tested Fifie)
1867
The late Burglaries in Cellardyke – On Monday last, Mr Morrison, one of the Procurators’ Fiscal for the county of Fife, visited Anstruther for the purpose of making a precognition in reference to the late burglaries in Cellardyke, for the alleged committal of which James Batchelor, a labourer belonging to Arbroath, was apprehended in that place, and conveyed to Cupar Jail on Wednesday week. After precognoscing eight or nine witnesses in the Commercial Inn here, the fiscal went to Cellardyke, where besides examining several other witnesses, he made a minute inspection of the two shops that had been broken into. The result of the inquiry has not of course transpired, but is generally understood to confirm the suspicion as to Batchelor being implicated in the burglaries, for which he will probably be brought to trial at the next Perth Circuit, as a previous conviction is said to be recorded against him. So far as we can gather, the charge against Batchelor rest on the following data – About the beginning of last week, a woman – said to be a near relative – brought to one of the pawn broker’s shops in Dundee a pair of boots which were found to answer the description of those taken from Mr Gilchrist’s shop in Cellardyke. The authorities appear to have been at once communicated with, when the woman accounted for having the boots in her possession by stating that she had received them as a present from Batchelor, who in the meantime had gone to Arbroath, when, as we have already said , he was traced out and taken into custody. In pour report at the time of the burglaries, we stated that their perpetrator must have had a thorough familiarity with the premises, both of Mr Gilchrist’s and of Messrs Sharp and Murray. The circumstance that Batchelor wrought for some months as a labourer at the Union Harbour Works – during which time he lodged with a widow in Cellardyke – gave him an opportunity of acquiring this familiarity. He had been discharged from the harbour works about the New Year, but on the day previous to the shops being broken in, which took place on the morning of the 19th March, he returned to this locality, and asked for employment at the harbour, which was refused. He called on his old landlady, but declined her offer for a bed for the night. At an early hour next morning, a man of Batchelor’s appearance asked and obtained a seat, in a hired machine which left one of our local inns for St Andrews. The very audacity and recklessness with which these burglaries have been gone about, appear to have thrown the authorities for nearly the last two months off the right scent as to the guilty party. An attempt is understood to have been made to implicate a party belonging to the locality in the case, but which has altogether failed. There can be no doubt, however that more than one was directly concerned, although no accomplice has as yet been taken into custody.
1868
This spring there are as many as forty four fine large boats engaged in the deep sea fishing from Cellardyke – the largest fleet ever fitted out for that enterprising fishing station, each of these boats is manned by a crew of 8 so that the number of able bodied fishermen belonging to Cellardyke must be upwards of 350. Besides these large boats about a score of yawls, manned generally by old men and boys prosecute the crab and lobster and hand line fishing from Anstruther and Cellardyke. The next station in importance is St Monans with 33 deep sea boats but these only have a crew of 6 or 7 men, and six smaller boats engaged in inshore fishing.. The fishing fleet of Pittenweem is 15 large boats and eight yawls.
According to all reports the storm or rather storms of last week in which most of the Firth of Forth fishing fleet was overtaken, when about sixty miles from the nearest land – was quite unparalled for severity and peril. Providentially all the boats have returned safe, but in many cases their escape is described as little else than a miracle, while in every other the utmost possible exertions had to be made, and no little privation endured, before the storm abated, or the friendlt port gave a timeous shelter to the tempest beaten and exhausted fishermen….. About dawn on Monday Morning the deep sea fleet numbering about 92 large boats from the various harbours of the Fife coast ( N.B 47 ft were the largest boats of the time but for the previous 5 years the new boats were being built at about 44ft as they were more versatile for several modes of fishing.) A gale sprang up about midnight from the NNW, which after blowing fresh for about 7 hours, the wind veered to the southward and then abated for during Tuesday, but on Tuesday night about 11pm a furious storm burst on the scene, at daylight – huge watery clowds swept like smoke athwart the murky sky, while all around the horizon the seething waters of the North sea – like a vast field of drifting snow – broke into foam and spray before the rushing tempest which nothing seemed able to withstand. Most of the boats not having completed the laying or drawing of their lines, and anxious about their safety, lay at anchor with soundings at 40 fathoms, but many under low reefed sails struggled hard to reach the land, which in many instances chanced to be the Moray Firth. Some of these crews however were fortunate to reach, Peterhead, Aberdeen, Stonehaven or even Auchmithie by Wednesday afternoon. They were able to find shelter during the height of the storm,, which occurred between 2 and 5 O clock in the afternoon, during which time it raged with a fury altogether unparalleled in the experience of the oldest fishermen. At that time there were no fewer than 50 boats at the distant ground, without the least shelter from the swoop of the hurricane. At that juncture everything depended upon the anchors, and ropes, so long as they remained secure the confidence of these resolute and daring seafarers remained unshaken, for although the spray might fall in drenching showers or an occasional billow break over the boats, yet these being now all decked and covered in the risk of swamping was much lessened.- indeed it is to this circumstance that the safety of many is to be attributed, for had the storm been encountered in open boats the consequences must have been deplorable in the extreme In the very middle of the gale several crews had to endure all the risk which followed on the breaking of their ropes, and had to make shift with their sails when it was scarcely possible for the smallest spread of canvas to stand against the resistless gale … battling and striving in this way for very life the fishermen continued at their arduous post until the abating of the storm towards dusk, when some of the boats farthest at sea experienced almost easy weather for about three hours or until midnight, when a strong breeze sprang up suddenly from WNW. It is worthy of remark however as an interesting meteorological fact that the boats nearest the land had a continuance of the gale right up to a few minutes of the change of the wind to the quarter just stated. Notwithstanding that the sea still continued to run very heavy, many of the boats availed themselves of the favourable change of wind to make for the firth of Forth, but others anxious to save their gear, remained at the fishing ground until the middle of the day when the weather so far moderated that they could resume the working of their lines.. The loss of fishing tackle, however has been very great, and must amount on the aggregate to a very large sum, as many of the boats have lost from four to 16 lines. Some of the boats reached ports in the north on Monday morning but many did not arrive from sea until Friday the last boat, that of John Gardner, only arriing at Anstruther on Sunday evening. In the case of the crews who reached Aberdeen &c, the anxiety of the relatives was soon allayed by telegrams, announcing their safety. The great bulk of the fleet being unaccounted for up to Thursday and Friday morning, caused the greatest uneasiness and distress amongst their families, and the last week will long be memorable amongst the fishing population for the agonising suspense and excitement which was everywhere exhibited on this painful occasion. We have been told of many incidents of the storm, showing the hairbreadth escapes and extreme suffering of the crews — while the storm was raging at its fiercest, Mr Robert Dickson’s boat of Cellardyke broke her rope, leaving the crew no other alternative but to make sail, to prevent her from drifting broadside on to the sea. Sail was accordingly made and answering to her helm, the gallant little bark sped bravely oe’r the crested billows, while the straining sheet was promptly heeded by right willing and experienced hands, and all seemed passing well, when, by an unlucky lurch, the boat was found to have broken up near the keel, and through the rent in the plank thus made the water was rushing in so fast that it would be impossible to keep her afloat for any time. Nothing could be more critical and appalling – a sinking boat in a furious storm – but brave men never despair, and so with all dispatch a boar was torn away from the lining of the cabin and secured above the rent, which was further tightened by a stuffing of clothes of one kind or another, which answered the purpose so well, that the leakage was kept under by the pumps… A very narrow escape was also made by a Pittenweem boat – one of the very few undecked boats still employed at the great lines on this coast.. while in full encounter with the storm a large sea broke on board, and nearly swamped the boat, which was only cleared of water by the desperate exertions of the crew, who in their extremity bailed out with their provision kits. The crew of this boat, which belonged to Fergus Heugh, also suffered much of their bread and necessaries being saturated with salt water, until they were fallen in with and relieved by a Cellardyke crew on the following day…. We are also called upon to mention the valuable help given by the officers and chief boatmen at the Auchmithie Coast Guard Station, to the Cellardyke boat belonging to Mr Andrew Stewart, which had her sail very much torn and damaged by the gale, and which they thoroughly repaired without any compensation for the time and trouble so bestowed. A most praise worthy regard for the wellbeing of our fishermen was likewise shown by those in command of a large screw steamer, who offered all the aid in their power to Skipper Alex Fowler and crew as they were riding at the fishing ground. Those on board the steamer as they felt their own vessel tossed about by the warring elements, must actually have looked with astonishment and alarm at a solitary fishing boat riding out in such fearful weather almost in the middle of the North Sea, and we have no doubt that these feelings would give place to unmixed admiration for her brave and self-reliant crew, when after being civilly thanked for their kindness, their offer was declined.