# The Mystery of Mary Celeste **URL:** \ **Category:** Cecil's Columns/Staff Reports\ **Created:** [May 20, 2010, 3:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-mystery-of-mary-celeste/540096 "2010-05-20T03:07:10Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 18\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![sollyflood](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/35a633/32.png) [@sollyflood](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sollyflood)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2010, 3:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-mystery-of-mary-celeste/540096/1 "2010-05-20T03:07:10Z")
I enjoyed reading your article on the Mary Celeste. There is a lot less bunk in this article than most of the theories bandied around cyberspace these days. At the risk of offending the forum moderators, I would like to post what I feel to be a pertinent external link, even though it is in fact an advertisement for my father’s book : _Solved! The Mystery of Mary Celeste_. This book fully debunks all of the wild theories out there, and I will give you a hint as to part of the solution - Mary Celeste sailed into a “perfect hurricane”, and this is extremely well researched and documented. It would not surprise me at all if the author of this article here re-wrote it completely after reading this book. You can find out more at [www.maryceleste.com](http://www.maryceleste.com). I apologize to the forum moderators if they feel this message is spam, I feel that it is pertinent to the article posted here, and the information my father’s book possesses furthers understanding of this fascinating subject. One thing is for sure, this book has **much** more research and fact than all previous books on the subject combined, and that is no overstatement. It is a very appropriate publication for the readers of this site, since it steers completely away from speculation and fantasy, and is, well, “The Straight Dope” on the mystery of Mary Celeste. Regards, Jamie Campbell ---
**Author:** ![SCSimmons](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e495f1/32.png) [@SCSimmons](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SCSimmons)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2010, 3:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-mystery-of-mary-celeste/540096/2 "2010-05-20T03:16:49Z")
I assume that you’re referring to [this column](http://www.straightdope.com/columns/read/1962/what-really-happened-to-the-em-mary-celeste-em) … 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Fear\_Itself](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fear_itself/32/19637_2.png) [@Fear\_Itself](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fear_Itself)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2010, 3:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-mystery-of-mary-celeste/540096/3 "2010-05-20T03:26:00Z")
> [@sollyflood](#): > > I enjoyed reading your article on the Mary Celeste. There is a lot less bunk in this article than most of the theories bandied around cyberspace these days. That’s our new motto: _Now with Less Bunk!!_ ---
**Author:** ![njtt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/ecd19e/32.png) [@njtt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/njtt)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2010, 3:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-mystery-of-mary-celeste/540096/4 "2010-05-20T03:59:43Z")
That is a very pretty web page, but you might want to have a good copy editor go over the text (or at the least, run it through a spell checker) if you want people to have confidence in the book. (I hope this was done for the book too.) ---
**Author:** ![njtt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/ecd19e/32.png) [@njtt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/njtt)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2010, 4:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-mystery-of-mary-celeste/540096/5 "2010-05-20T04:08:38Z")
PS: I favor the\* literate kraken\* theory myself. ---
**Author:** ![ianzin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/ed655f/32.png) [@ianzin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ianzin)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2010, 5:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-mystery-of-mary-celeste/540096/6 "2010-05-20T05:22:37Z")
I like the promise that the book "includes ‘The Missing Chapter’ ". Perhaps it could be re-named the ‘not quite as missing as it used to be’ chapter. ---
**Author:** ![Irishman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/b487fb/32.png) [@Irishman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Irishman)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2010, 3:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-mystery-of-mary-celeste/540096/7 "2010-05-20T15:30:28Z")
> [@](#): > > A comprehensive bibliography and a maritime-line Is this a joke? Someone needs to look up the definition of “maritime”. Hint: it has nothing to do with _time_. :smack: ---
**Author:** ![jjimm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba8739/32.png) [@jjimm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jjimm)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2010, 3:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-mystery-of-mary-celeste/540096/8 "2010-05-20T15:44:42Z")
> [@Irishman](#): > > Is this a joke? Someone needs to look up the definition of “maritime”. Hint: it has nothing to do with _time_. :smack: Isn’t that just a clever pun? ---
**Author:** ![Sampiro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/2acd7d/32.png) [@Sampiro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sampiro)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2010, 10:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-mystery-of-mary-celeste/540096/9 "2010-05-20T22:43:47Z")
I still think it was time traveling Jewish she-pirates. They’re still a problem in some waters; last time I was in Biloxi they nabbed a dinner cruise of senior citizens. ---
**Author:** ![sollyflood](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/35a633/32.png) [@sollyflood](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sollyflood)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2010, 10:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-mystery-of-mary-celeste/540096/10 "2010-05-20T22:45:47Z")
😃 Yes, it’s just a pun. If there are typos on the page, it’s because we hired a web developer… I will look into that. Thanks for the comment on the picture. That is original art by my grandfather, George F. Campbell M.R.I.N.A., who was a well known naval architect and historian. Among his accomplishments are creating the restoration plans for _Wavetree, Cutty Sark, and H.M.S. Wavetree._ His drawings and knowledge of clipper ships is unsurpassed to this day. He has written a book on clipper ships _China Tea Clippers_ which was published in 15 languages, as well as _The Neophyte Ship Modelers Jackstay_ still considered a “must-read” for amateur and professional ship modelers. This book has lots of drawings and technical diagrams of Mary Celeste done by my grandfather, and these pictures and the math behind them have never been published. I can’t spill the beans, but I can tell you that the understanding of the ships architecture, its payload, and the weather conditions are all factors in the true fate of _Mary Celeste_. We just started a discussion board on our site dedicated to the ship, and we are looking for passionate people to both debate and possibly assist with further research. Thank you for your comments. Jamie Campbell ---
**Author:** ![sollyflood](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/35a633/32.png) [@sollyflood](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sollyflood)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2010, 10:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-mystery-of-mary-celeste/540096/11 "2010-05-20T22:51:01Z")
Oh, I see that she misspelled incident. I will have the web devel. fix that ASAP. I can assure you that as a master printer of over 30 years, my father has included no such mistakes in the book! Thanks for pointing that out. The website is brand new and still under development. Jamie Campbell ---
**Author:** ![Irishman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/b487fb/32.png) [@Irishman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Irishman)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2010, 4:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-mystery-of-mary-celeste/540096/12 "2010-05-21T16:10:52Z")
\*\*sollyflood \*\* said: > [@](#): > > 😃 Yes, it’s just a pun. Oh. Fair enough, just didn’t read that way to me. _shrug_ I did see the discussion board, and how empty it was. 😃 Question: What does “M.R.I.N.A.” mean? ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2010, 4:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-mystery-of-mary-celeste/540096/13 "2010-05-21T16:18:15Z")
> [@Irishman](#): > > Question: What does “M.R.I.N.A.” mean? Member of the Royal Institute of Naval Architects. ---
**Author:** ![Happy\_Poster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/c89c15/32.png) [@Happy\_Poster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Happy_Poster)\ **Post date:** [May 25, 2010, 9:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-mystery-of-mary-celeste/540096/14 "2010-05-25T21:17:17Z")
Looks interesting, please come along and bump this thread when it’s released ---
**Author:** ![ivan\_astikov](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/58f4c7/32.png) [@ivan\_astikov](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ivan_astikov)\ **Post date:** [May 27, 2010, 12:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-mystery-of-mary-celeste/540096/15 "2010-05-27T12:53:55Z")
So, the Mystery Of The Mary Celeste is that there is no mystery? Wow, that was anti-climactic. ---
**Author:** ![C\_K\_Dexter\_Haven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/b2d939/32.png) [@C\_K\_Dexter\_Haven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/C_K_Dexter_Haven)\ **Post date:** [May 27, 2010, 1:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-mystery-of-mary-celeste/540096/16 "2010-05-27T13:55:43Z")
> [@ivan\_astikov](#): > > So, the Mystery Of The Mary Celeste is that there is no mystery? Wow, that was anti-climactic. I guess I don’t follow. We’ve got lots of situations where there’s a mysterious set of circumstances, and then the detective reveals the explanation in the last chapter (or Cecil explains how it works, or whatever.) The fact that a mystery is explained doesn’t take away the interest, IMHO. I guess that YMMV. ---
**Author:** ![Qwakkeddup](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/90ced4/32.png) [@Qwakkeddup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qwakkeddup)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2010, 1:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-mystery-of-mary-celeste/540096/17 "2010-05-28T01:26:50Z")
IIRC, The Mary Celeste was abandoned and salvaged twice, then disappeared permanently. It may be a different ship, but it was one of those Bermuda triangle shows on television. They also mentioned the Cyclops, Edmund Fitzgerald, and a host of others not all centered in the triangle. ---
**Author:** ![KneadToKnow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kneadtoknow/32/3999_2.png) [@KneadToKnow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KneadToKnow)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2010, 2:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-mystery-of-mary-celeste/540096/18 "2010-05-28T14:24:26Z")
> [@Fear\_Itself](#): > > That’s our new motto: > > _Now with Less Bunk!!_ With all the people who’ll _be in their bunk_ around here, I don’t know if that’s really the direction we need to be heading.