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Attention all ye fishermen come listen unto me,
While I relate the dangers attending those at sea,
For every year some home is sad, we hear from day to day,
Some father or some loving son is quickly snatched away.
The Riseover left Northern Bay, with lumber she did sail,
For she being deeply laden and filled up to the rail,
For St. John's she was bound, b'ys, her anchors they did weigh,
And with a sweet and pleasant breeze this schooner sailed away.
But only when a few hours out a heavy breeze did blow,
That evening it got bitter cold with blinding sleet and snow,
And near the middle of the night an awful sea did rise,
It was a hard and trying time on those poor sailor b'ys.
To save their lives a raft was made and this was quickly manned
By those poor shipwrecked fishermen in hopes to make the land,
And as the raft got near the shore it quickly broke in two,
And carried off two fishermen of the Riseover's crew.
The fishermen who reached the shore, their hearts were filled with joy,
But turnèd into sadness when they heard their comrades cry,
And as they watched them drive the sea as they stood on the shore,
They saw them wave their fond adieu and they were seen no more.
The Fogota she was put to sea to search the coast all 'round,
But no sign of the missing men could anywhere be found,
John Pomeroy and poor Sparkes put up a noble fight,
And lost their lives like heroes, in a gale on Sunday night.
Collected in 1952 from Chris Cobb of Barred Island, NL, by Ken Peacock and published in Songs Of The Newfoundland Outports, Volume 3, pp.958-959, by the National Museum of Canada (1965) Crown Copyrights Reserved.
Kenneth Peacock noted that this was one of the few native songs Chris Cobb sang for him which he had not composed himself.
A variant was collected in 1951 from Ned Lee of St. Mary's, NL, and published as The Wreck Of The Riseover in MacEdward Leach And The Songs Of Atlantic Canada © 2004 Memorial University of Newfoundland Folklore and Language Archive (MUNFLA).
A variant was also collected in 1977 from Ernest Barter of Ramea, NL, by Genevieve Lehr and Anita Best and published as #94, The Wreck Of The Riseover in Come And I Will Sing You: A Newfoundland Songbook, p.163, edited by Genevieve Lehr (University of Toronto Press © 1985/2003).
Genevieve Lehr noted that the Riseover was wrecked near Musgrave Harbour on November 19, 1911, with a cargo of lumber. Captain Pomeroy, or Pomroy, as in command.
From When Was That In Newfoundland compiled by Frank Martin:
November 18, 1911 — The schooner Riseover sails from Horwood en route for St. John's with a load of lumber — on the way, the schooner runs into a storm and goes aground on Muddy Shags, off Musgrave Harbour - Captain Pumphrey from Brigus has the crew hastily build a raft from the lumber, but the raft comes apart in heavy seas - four men on the larger section of the raft are rescued while two others on the smaller section drift out to sea and are lost.
See also: Tales From The Kittiwake Coast, The Riseover, p.84.
