Paisley canal disaster facts for kids
The Paisley Canal Disaster was a terrible accident that happened on November 10, 1810. It took place on the Glasgow, Paisley and Johnstone Canal in Scotland. This canal connected the towns of Glasgow, Paisley, and Johnstone. Many people were hurt or lost their lives when a boat called the Countess of Eglinton capsized.
A Fun Day Out Turns Tragic
The Countess of Eglinton was a canal boat about 59.5 feet (18.1 meters) long. It was built for fun day trips between Paisley and Johnstone. The boat started its trips from a dock in Paisley. It had only been running for about a week, but it was already very popular. Many local families enjoyed taking a ride on their days off. A trip cost only 8 pence, which was a small amount of money. On November 10, 1810, the weather was unusually good, so many people wanted to go for a ride.
The Crowd Pushes Forward
At 1:00 PM on November 10, the Countess of Eglinton returned to the dock. A very large crowd was waiting, hoping to get on board. As the passengers from the last trip got off, the crowd on the dock became very eager. People started to push forward. This pushing quickly grew worse. Those at the back of the crowd pushed hard to get a spot on the boat. Because of this, many people fell into the canal. Some of them drowned because they could not swim.
Panic and the Boat Capsizes
The worst part of the disaster happened on the Countess of Eglinton itself. Too many people rushed onto one end of the boat. At the same time, the passengers who were already on board panicked and tried to get off quickly at the other end. This made the boat capsize completely, meaning it flipped over. Over 60 people were trapped inside the narrow passage of the boat. They had no way to escape.
People tried desperately to rescue those in the water. Three people were pulled out from inside the boat. However, most of those trapped inside could not be saved. The boat was finally turned upright a week later. The total number of people who died was 84. Sadly, 66 of them were under 20 years old, and 18 were under 10.
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