 | This article includes a list of general references, but it lacks sufficient corresponding inline citations. (January 2018) |
| History | |
|---|---|
&sq=&lang=&file=File:White_Ensign_of_Great_Britain_(1707%E2%80%931800).svg){kind=small} Great Britain | |
| Name | HMS Speedy |
| Builder | Kingston Royal Naval Dockyard, Kingston |
| Commissioned | 1798 |
| Fate | Sank on 8 October 1804 |
| Notes | Provincial Marine vessel |
| General characteristics | |
| Length | Roughly 80 feet (24 m) |
| Sail plan | 2 masts |
| Complement | 6 |
The schooner or gunboat HMS Speedy sank in a snowstorm in Lake Ontario south of the future site of Brighton, Ontario, and west of Prince Edward County, on 8 October 1804, with the loss of all hands. The sinking changed the course of Canadian history because of the prominence of the citizens of the tiny colony of Upper Canada lost in the disastrous event.
The ship was built for the Provincial Marine in 1798 at the Point Frederick Navy Depot and was used to transport government officials and supplies.