In December 1872, the American brigantine 'Mary Celeste' was found drifting hundreds of miles off the coast of Portugal - with not a living soul aboard, and no sign whatsoever of what had caused her crew and passengers to abandon ship. On this episode, we cover Mary Celeste's history of bad vibes all the way from her maiden voyage (where the captain died) to her final sinking (where the captain was convicted of insurance fraud). We'll also talk about who was aboard in 1872, what they were carrying, and the High Court of Gibraltar's investigation into the incident. And along the way we'll get into sea monsters, pirates, salvage law, Arthur Conan Doyle, and why you should never keep your explosive liquids in red oak barrels. 

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Sources for this episode include:

"Mary Celeste: What Actually Happened Aboard The Notorious Ghost Ship" by J. Kuroski, All That's Interesting, 2021

"Abandoned Ship: The Mary Celeste", by J. Blumberg, Smithsonian Magazine, 2007

 MaryCeleste.Net

"Solved: The Mystery of the Mary Celeste", by A. Lee, The Express, 2006

"The Mary Celeste", by Brian Freemantle, 1999 (fiction)