Of Seasickness and Sea Biscuits: The Culbert Family's Voyage to Canada

The Culbert family's journey to Canada from Ireland in 1840 couldn't have been a pleasant one. Their voyage is said to have lasted six weeks.

The Culbert family (John Culbert, his wife, Mary Ward and their children) left Ireland five years before the devastating potato famine. I don't know if conditions on board were as bad as the "coffin ships" that set sail for North America during the famine years.

Irish "coffin ship"

Nonetheless, living conditions on board would have been primitive. Passengers probably slept below deck (known as "steerage") in cramped quarters with no privacy and inadequate sanitary conditions.

Seasickness was common and many people spent the voyage in bed with nausea and vomiting. Illnesses such as typhus, cholera and dysentery spread through immigrant ships. Two members of the Culbert family succumbed to cholera and were buried at sea: John and Mary's baby daughter, Emma and Mary's elderly father.

I have in my possession a questionnaire that was filled out many years ago by an unidentified Culbert ancestor. He was asked, "What were they fed on the ship?" He replied, "What they brought with them and ship biscuits." 

Ship's biscuits were large, sturdy, hard crackers made only of flour and water. They were manufactured for use on ships because they didn't spoil, although they were frequently full of weevils.

Ship's biscuit. Image: Paul A. Cziko

What did the Culbert family bring with them on the ship from the old country? John & Mary's granddaughter, Ethel (Culbert) Gras was told that they brought some furniture with them and a spinning wheel. She also says, "It is said that they brought with them a cow to provide fresh milk."[1]

I'd never known what to make of Ethel's statement about the cow. I wondered if that was just a bit of malarkey her elders told Ethel to amuse themselves. However, I stand corrected.

"The early settlers in the 1830s came to Canada from England, Scotland, and Ireland. Some of these people brought an ox or a cow with them."[2]

No, the voyage couldn't have been a pleasant one for the Culbert family. As mentioned previously, they lost a baby and an elderly family member to cholera during the voyage. And how Mary (Ward) Culbert managed to care for her young children and her elderly family members in such difficult conditions is remarkable. 

Culbert ancestors, we salute you.


Which Culbert family members made the voyage to Canada? 
Accounts differ. We know for certain that John & Mary Culbert were on board with their five children (later, six more children would be born in Canada.) Also on board was Mary's brother, William Ward, and Mary's mother, Susannah Ward. It's said that Mary's father was on board but died of cholera during the voyage. In addition, there may have been a cousin or brother of either John or Mary and another elderly relative. And what of a couple named Richard Culbert & Ann (Harlton) Culbert? Richard & Ann purchased property in Canada next door to John & Mary at the same time as John & Mary. I believe that Richard may have been John's brother, and that Richard and Ann may have been on board that same ship.

Do we know the name of the ship?
I don't yet know the name of the ship. On the back of an old family photograph, a relative wrote what looks like "The Brunswick" but it's not completely legible so we're just guessing. If anyone knows the name of the ship or is willing to do the research, please let me know.

[1] "Stories From Life" by Ethel Gertrude Culbert Gras, page 49.
[2]  "Pioneers to the Present: Biddulph Township Sesquicentennial History Book" page 38.