Laurentic Memorial
Don McNeil of the Ulster-Canada Initiative is hoping to put a permanent memorial in place to the 354 people lost at sea off the mouth of Lough Swilly in the Laurentic disaster in January 1917.
The memorial will be erected along an elevated coastal path at Fort Dunree along the Wild Atlantic Way overlooking the area where the ship sank.
SS Laurentic was a British ocean liner of the White Star Line. She was converted to an armed merchant cruiser at the onset of World War I, and sank after striking two mines north of Ireland on 25 January 1917, with the loss of 354 lives. She was carrying about 43 tons of gold ingots at the time of her loss, and as of 2017, 22 bars of gold are yet to be recovered …. read more
One hundred years ago, the armed merchant cruiser 'Laurentic' sank in Lough Swilly with the loss of over 350 lives and more than 3,000 gold bars. On this day in 1917, the survivors were treated to lunch by the Mayor of Derry – that event was re-created today with descendants of the men who served on the ship.
Posted by RTÉ News on Friday, January 27, 2017
