It was a fine morning of February 5th, 1941. The Second world war had been raging for a couple of years and no crossing of the Atlantic was without risk. Captain Worthington, gave the order and The SS Politician left Liverpool full to the gunnels, bound for Jamaica and then on to New Orleans. The ship’s manifest was carrying some special cargo, some 260,000 bottles of scotch whiskey going to feed the American thirst for high grade spirit.
As she sailed past the Isle of Man towards the Outer Hebrides, winds gusted to gale force. The ship, laden with goods including the scotch, was listing hard and was carried onto the rocky shores of Eriskay.
As the same time, a young man was beachcombing, saw the vessel listing to one side. He knew she was in trouble. As he watched in horror, the SS Politician lurched back and forth as she ran aground and began taking on water. Unknown to the crew at the time, the ship had veered off course and the lifeboat crew was given incorrect coordinates.
By now, word had spread of the disaster and locals set forth to offer assistance. Thankfully, the entire crew was rescued.
Whiskey in these parts of the British Empire was scarce due to wartime rationing. When the locals learned of the shipwrecked casks of whiskey onboard, a series of illegal salvage operations ensued before the customs and excise officials arrived.
Boats came from as far away as Lewis as news of the whisky travelled across the Outer Hebrides. The islanders considered this a salvage operation and not theft. This of course was not the view of the local customs officer, Charles McColl, who was incensed at the blatant thievery that was going on.
As investigations continued, villages were raided, and locals interrogated. Bottles were hidden or sometimes drunk to hide the evidence. Ultimately, a group of local men pleaded guilty to theft and were charged between three and five pounds, with some sentenced to six weeks in prison.
Back at sea, the official salvage attempts were not going too well, and it was eventually decided to let the Politician remain where she was. It was estimated that the islanders had stolen 24,000 bottles of whiskey.
To ensure there would be no more temptation, The ship was blown up, along with the remaining cargo. One islander lamented “Dynamiting whisky. You wouldn’t think there’d be men in the world so crazy as that!”
In 1987 Donald MacPhee, a local man, found eight bottles of whisky in the wreck. He sold them at auction for £4,000.
The wreck of the SS Politician still lies off the coast of Eriskay. In 1988 the island got its own ‘legitimate’ pub, named ‘Am Politician’.