"Crissie Wright" Common
Grave
January 11, 1886
When the Crissie Wright went ashore
in the winter of
1886, the cold water was more than many of the sailors
could bear. Unfortunately, many of them froze to death.
Those who did perish in this tragedy are buried together
here in this common grave. To this day people in
Beaufort are still heard saying "Cold as the night the
'Crissie Wright' went ashore." Supposedly, the wreck of
this ship was the driving force behind the creation of the
Cape Lookout Lifesaving Station in
1887. A mural was
later commissioned to be painted in the Beaufort
Post
Office to not only remind people of this tragedy but to also to
remind people of the bravery of those serving the lifestations
up and down the coast.