This painting by Joseph Witham(1832-1901) has been owned by my family for over a century. It is currently in my brother's possession and I have a print from which I took this photograph. The story goes thus:

On 8th February 1881, during a heavy gale from the NW, a fleet of 12 vessels arrived at the entrance to the River Mersey, but there was insufficient depth of water to cross the bar. The Master of Liverpool pilot boat No2, the schooner Leader, instructed them to heave-to and established an order of precedence according to their draughts. As the tide turned he ordered them to 'Follow me' and led them over the bar, into the relative safety of the Mersey.

Witham shows the fleet as it is crossing the bar and entering 'Queen's Channel'. The entrance to the channel is marked on the starboard by the red buoy 'Q1'. Its companion black cone can be seen in the right middle distance. The schooner is rigged for the conditions with a special storm sail on the main and a storm jib. She flies the pilot jack at the top of the main and has hoisted the signal flags LWC; the code for 'Follow me'.

The painting came into my Great grandfather Hugh Smith's possession in 1900. Joseph Witham was in debt to Hugh Smith and could not meet the obligation. He offered the picture as compensation and it was accepted. My Grand father, another Hugh Smith, was a mariner and the painting always had pride of place in his home.

Gillian

Oh!! fabulous Gillian!! and what a wonderful family story attached to it, thanks for sharing it.

I wonder if this Joseph Witham did a lot of Liverpool/Mersey maritime paintings, and if there's a collection of them somewhere? Do you know anything else about him? If not, I'll do a search for more about him some time.

See you later,

Carole

Hi Carole!
I believe he may have done others but I don't think he is one of the best. There is another rather similar painting of a similar incident in, I think, 1866 by another artist and I guess he may be better known. I shall have to get better organised so that I keep tabs on all these bits of knowledge!
Cheers Gillian

And just for fun.... Joseph Witham's neice married my grt grandfather George John Smith from Bristol in 1885

Wow John! What a coincidence! I wonder whether we have any other Smith connections? Gillian

Well Gillian he may not be one of the best
But his picture of the White Star Steamship "Germanic" sold for £24,000 in April 1998 at Sotheby's. :-))

John! My Great Grandfather obviously knew what he was doing when he accepted the picture in lieu of the debt! Gillian.