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Marine Heritage Database
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Typical Profile
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Tonnage
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245
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Length(ft)
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70
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Breadth(ft)
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Depth(ft)
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Masts
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Decks
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Hull
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Shipwreck Details
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Description
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AUGUSTE was a merchant ship, a French privateer captured by the British. She was hired after the British conquest on the Plains of Abraham to deport soldiers and officials from Quebec back to France. Her passengers ranged from high-ranking and wealthy officials to lower-ranked non-commissioned officers. Allegedly being returned home, most were born in Quebec and had never seen France.
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Story
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It would be difficult to do justice to the horror of the situation: the cries of those who remained in the vessel; the futile efforts of those who, hoping to save their lives, threw themselves into the sea; the cold drenching rain the certainty that I had lost my children. We were prostrate from exhaustion on an unknown shore. M. Sainte-Luc de la Corne, survivor of the wreck AUGUSTE. Weeks of contrary winds blew the ship and her exhausted crew on to the coast of Cape Breton. Only 7 made it to shore alive. Among the dead was Louis Joseph La Varendrye, a famous explorer who, together with his brother, became the first Europeans to sight the Rocky Mountains in 1743. The survivors were rescued from starvation by a local band of Mi'kmaq who took them to Louisbourg. One of the survivors was Sainte-Luc de la Corne. He lost his entire family and wrote a moving account of the sinking and subsequent ordeal. He was eager to avoid deportation and continued travelling overland all the way back to Quebec! Both treasure hunters and archaeologists from Parks Canada have explored the wreck site. AUGUSTE is an example of a savings hoard which are diverse, high quality coins saved over many years, in this case the life savings of the wealthy officials being exiled from New France.
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Vessel Type
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Ship
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Type of Event
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Loss
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Nature of Event
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Wrecked
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Cause of Event
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Unknown
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Date of Wreck
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1761-11-15
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Location
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Aspy Bay
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Cargo
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Lives Lost
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Voyage from
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Quebec, Quebec , Canada
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Voyage to
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France
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Remarks
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Ship Construction
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Built at
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France
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Date
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Registered at
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United Kingdom
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Date
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Propulsion
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Sail
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Rig
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Ship
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Details
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