THE CATHERINE WATSON STORY
On Saturday 27 July 1889, Catherine Watson was dressing after swimming in the sea off North Berwick’s East Beach when she saw two boys and a girl being swept away by the tide. Kate, as she was known to her family and friends, immediately ran back to the water’s edge:
“Without hesitation, and simply with the clothes she had on, she hastened into the water. I saw her, quietly but determinedly, making her way through what was really an angry sea towards the boy who was nearest the shore. Having satisfied herself of his safety, she boldly struck out for the lad who, at a considerable distance out, was evidently in the greatest danger. I saw her as on the crest of a wave she got close to the object of her search, and then she seemed as if giving help, for the faces of both were distinctly turned towards the shore, and quite close to each other. This lasted, however, but for a short time, and then I was persuaded the two were separated, and I never saw them both again. It seems to me that this bold, generous-hearted, noble girl felt at the moment that her brave deed was done, that her strength was giving way, and that, at the moment many of us thought that all was well, she was yielding to the merciless waves.”
Eye Witness, Haddingtonshire Courier, 2 August 1889
A town in shock
Kate’s body was discovered 11 days later by fishermen near North Berwick Harbour. Her death shocked the local community and the tourist population of North Berwick. A collection for a memorial was established by Sir Walter Hamilton-Dalrymple. By 14 August, £122 had been raised (£12,884 in 2023) and a carved Iona cross was commissioned. It was designed and made by Stewart McGlashen and Company of Edinburgh from red unpolished Peterhead granite and placed on Anchor Green in her memory. The inscription reads “Erected by public subscription in memory of Catherine Watson of Glasgow, aged 19, who was drowned in the East Bay, 27th July 1889, while rescuing a drowning boy. The child was saved. The brave girl was taken.”
Catherine Watson Memorial Cross, Anchor Green, North Berwick © ELMS.
Following the tragedy, temporary safety measures including jackets hung with corks were placed along the edge of the East Beach. The Provost, John Macintyre suggested that if a properly enclosed bathing pool were constructed, it would be a more appropriate memorial and would make bathing safer in future. In 1899 after undertaking feasibility studies, a circular was issued by the Provost to visitors and residents explaining the scheme and inviting subscriptions. The sum required was estimated at £250 and by September 1899 over £256 had been raised. The new Safety Swimming Pond opened in North Berwick Harbour in August 1900.
© DC Thompson & Co Ltd
© East Lothian Council Archives
What happened to the three children?
After checking the nearest two children, Kate managed to reach Gerald who was furthest out to sea. Her assistance undoubtedly helped him stay afloat until help arrived. Gerald and his brother were rescued by two members of the coastguard, Thomas Dinnick and William Hyland and Mr Keir, a bystander. His sister (who had the presence of mind to float on her back) was picked up by a fishing boat manned by local fishermen named Brown, Kelly, Marr, Russell and Thompson. Gerald had ten siblings and we don’t know the names of his brother and sister who were with him. He died in 1893 due to complications from measles.
A touching tribute?
One of Kate’s closest brothers in age was Henry Allan Watson, who became a physician and surgeon. When his wife Kathleen gave birth to their first child, a daughter on 28 July 1902 almost exactly 13 years after the tragedy, they named her Catherine.
Typical bathing costumes for women in the late 19th century.
© Wiki Commons.
Sea Swimming in North Berwick in the 19th century
The location of the incident in the East Bay was known to be dangerous to bathers and there had been fatal accidents there before. Fourteen drownings occurred between 1873 and 1904 in and around North Berwick. Sixteen years before Kate’s tragic accident, a local resident was urging that swimming was more widely taught in North Berwick for safety reasons:
“Swimming should be taught among all classes. In North Berwick there are one or two capital swimmers among the fishermen, but the rest cannot swim a stroke. I feel sure that if a small prize were offered to every North Berwick school-boy who was able to swim 50 yards this state of matters would soon be altered.... I can see no reason why women, who are naturally better swimmers than men, should not learn to swim; and I am sure that worthy fathers of families, when they engage swimming masters to teach their daughters, would be glad, did they only think of it, to retain the master to give a lesson to their servant girls. Were this done, the foolish, ugly and dangerous bathing-gowns still generally worn would be given up, and a safer and more suitable costume adopted.”
James Blaikie, The Scotsman, Thursday 11 September 1873
Kate was a strong and confident swimmer, however that was not always the case. Bathing in the sea in Scotland was strictly segregated. Women and children were permitted to bathe when men were not swimming and from different beaches:
“Here, when a woman swimmer is the exception, not the rule, no boatman is appointed to look after the bathers; and men who could render assistance are discreetly banished to such a distance as to render their help futile. On the other hand, at Continental bathing places, where (thanks to men and women bathing together) the majority of the women swim excellently, there is always a boatman stationed at a convenient distance. One can but hope that Catherine Watson’s brave deed may initiate the reformation of bathing arrangements throughout Scotland. I am, &c A WOMAN”
The Glasgow Herald, 30 July 1889
“Sir,– Many of your readers will be glad to hear that the visitors at the east end of this favourite watering-place have raised a subscription among themselves to defray the expenses of a boat and boatman to be stationed in the East Bay from 10 A.M. to 1.30 P.M. daily during the remainder of the bathing season, thus securing themselves against a probable recurrence of the sad accidents so frequent there.”
The Scotsman, Friday 18 July 1890
Sea safety in the present day
North Berwick Outdoor Pool closed in 1995 after a hard fought local campaign to keep it open. Increasing numbers are swimming in the sea and tides can always be treacherous. East Lothian Council, volunteers from RNLI North Berwick, and other local groups endeavour to educate the public about sea safety and share Kate’s story, 134 years after the tragic event.
Royal Humane Society Certificate, 21 August 1889 © Dr Chris Bennett
A posthumous certificate of bravery from the Royal Humane Society was awarded to Miss Kate Watson for her assistance in saving Gerald Curle from drowning. Bravery medals were awarded to Charles Jarvis and James Keir and testimonials were awarded to Thomas Dunnick and W J Hyland (Members of the local Coastguard). If Kate had survived, she would also have been entitled to the Royal Humane Society’s medal.
Read about Catherine’s artistic works here.