Thought to be a tug, this vessel was lost after putting out to assist another vessel in distress. (2)

'Nothing has been seen or heard of the steam tug NAPOLEON, of London, William Houghton master, since Friday afternoon, the 14th inst., when she went to the assistance of the ship ALLANSHAW, 10 or 15 miles off the North Foreland, in answer to a signal of distress from the ship. The NAPOLEON is supposed to have foundered in the gale with all hands, nine in number.' (4)

14-OCT-1881: While assisting sailing vessel Allanshaw in distress in hurricane force storm off North Foreland, was overwhelmed and sank with loss of Captain W Houghton and eight crew. One victim, James William Carter, aged 28, is remembered on the headstone of the Carter family grave in Chalk Churchyard, near Gravesend, although no record of his burial here can be found in the parish records. (5)

'In 1857 the carvel-built paddler NAPOLEON was purchased, having been built at Southampton. It was the first tug on the Thames with two engines, each driving a paddle wheel independently. Its wooden hull was not quite the match for such power and required constant attention until the ship foundered at sea in 1881.' (6)

Built: 1857 (2)
Builder: Money Wigram & Sons (5)
Where Built: Northam (2) Northam, Southampton (5)
Propulsion: Screw (2) 2 cylinder side lever steam engine (5)
Machinery: J Stewart, London (5)
Crew: 9 (2)
Crew Lost: 9 (2)
Owner: William Watkins, London (5)
Master: William Houghton (4)

Date of Loss Qualifier: Actual date of loss

Additional sources cited in United Kingdom Shipwreck Index.
LR 1879-80 No.42(N)

Nick Robins, 2012, The Coming of the Comet: The Rise and Fall of the Paddle Steamer (Monograph). SKE56080.

<1> United Kingdom shipwreck index, Page Nos. N/a (Bibliographic reference). SKE6340.

<2> Larn, Richard and Bridget, 1995, Shipwreck index of the British Isles, volume 2 : Hampshire, Isle of Wight, Sussex, Kent (Mainland), Kent (Downs), Goodwin Sands, Thames (Bibliographic reference). SKE31910.

<3> Goodwin Sands Shipwrecks (Monograph). SKE6709.

<4> 1881, Morning Post (Newspaper). SKE56078.

<5> Peter Higginbotham, 2000, The Workhouse (Website). SKE56079.