Most shipwrecks leave behind ghosts. This one left behind something stranger.

In 1912, the Mayflower, a wooden steamer built for the quiet lakes of eastern Ontario, set out on one final trip before winter. Aboard were a small crew, nine passengers, and a coffin carrying the body of a young man named Herman Brown, on his way home to be buried.

As a sudden snowstorm swept across Lake Kamaniskeg, the Mayflower vanished beneath the water in under a minute. Nine lives were lost. Three men survived…by clinging to the coffin.

In this episode, we retrace the events of that harrowing night. How a trusted vessel became a death trap. How an elderly woman gave away her only life jacket so someone younger might live. How three Ottawa salesmen drifted for hours through freezing darkness.

This is a true story of loss, sacrifice, and impossible survival.

Now streaming: The Coffin That Saved Three Men From Drowning

If you enjoyed this episode, you might also like:

Episode 208 – Halifax Explosion: Before the Blast
Episode 193 - The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald

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