The famous Barnegat Inlet shipwreck — This day in Jersey history

On December 20th, 1856, the passenger ship New York ran aground 150 yards from land two miles north of Barnegat Inlet. No big deal, right? Well, most of the passengers, the majority of whom were Irish immigrants, were successfully ferried to shore by local fishermen, but the crew was a different matter.

According to the book, On This Day in New Jersey History, some members of the crew staged a mini-mutiny, getting drunk and attacking some of the officers of the ship. The mutiny was eventually quelled by gunpoint and the guilty parties were forced to spend the winter night on the beach. One of the mutineers died of exposure and was buried right there on the beach, but the rest of the crew, both loyal and not, as well as the passengers survived the ordeal.

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