The Children’s Friend was a wooden hulled motor drifter. Her specific details are not recorded but, based on similar vessel specifications, she probably had two single pole masts, an engine space at the stern, a crew space at the bow and a main hold centrally located. The vessel was owned in Eyemouth by Mr Henry Dougal. It is believed she was registered in the nearby town of Berwick. The owner, his crew, and his family had sailed their drifter to the west coast and were based in Rothesay for the forthcoming herring season over the winter months.
Motor drifters returning to port, Firth of Forth 1933.
Late on Christmas Day 1928 the herring fleet was sheltering from high winds and rough conditions in Loch Striven. It is believed The Children’s Friend struck some debris and later sprang a leak slowly beginning to settle. Finally the ingress of water stopped the engine. Her crew of four signalled the crew of the Irish boat Ocean Star that was fishing close by who picked them up just before The Children’s Friend foundered in deep water.
There are two wrecks located in the middle of Loch Striven between Brackley Point and Inverchaolain lying in 67-70 metres on a seabed of thick mud. They were both surveyed by sidescan as part of the project Operation Highball in 2017 undertaken by East Cheshire Sub Aqua Club, the University of Dundee and the Royal Navy.
Broken scan of seabed around the wreck 2012.
This wreck, the southerly of the two, has been dived twice to our knowledge both in 2012 and 2018. It is reported to be a timber hulled fishing vessel consistent with The Children’s Friend. The sidescan measured length for this wreck is around 20 metres which would correspond to a Fifie type fishing vessel. This wreck lies in position 55° 55.579’N 05° 04.207’W and is oriented 135/315° with bow south.
