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Randolph R. Purinton
    10/30/08
  #1
Hello shipwreck enthusiasts:

I'm researching the last month of a New London family of three that drowned off the Turk islands in 1856 - I assume in a shipwreck: Capt. John Seeley, his wife Cordelia and son Mughill. Their monument stands in a cemetery in Groton, CT. They drowned on Oct. 23, 1856.

Based on a minimum of written evidence (which I won't relate here) I theorize that John contracted to trade salt between Turk and New England and that his fully-loaded ship - perhaps a schooner - went down in the Mouchoir Shoals. I'm looking for evidence to tell their story. I'll be looking at the Encyclopedia of North Atlantic Shipwrecks in the UMass library and I will go to the CT State Library to read New London newspapers after Oct. 23, 1856 to see if there's an obituary.

I'm looking for the boat's name, type, date of departure, destination and fate. Are there shipping lists from this era extant that might tell me when the boat left New London, for instance. I could use some good advice. Thank you, all. Randy
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