Myths

Peggy myths, checked

Things people say about the Peggy, and what the sources say.

The Peggy is a real boat, built in Castletown in the Isle of Man. Every fact is in our own words with its source linked beside it. Where good sources disagree, we show each version.

1. MythShe was a warship.

   FactQuayle commissioned her for pleasure, with novel changes for speed. MNH statement of significance, 2021 When she was built, war with France was coming again, and privateers haunted the seas round the Island. castletown.org.im

2. MythShe has been on show in Castletown all along.

   FactIn January 2015 she was lifted and taken to a dedicated conservation facility. Manx National Heritage, conservation In September 2025 the plans were put on hold after a funding bid failed. Manx.News, 2025

3. MythEveryone agrees she was built in 1789.

   FactShe was built locally in 1789, together with her own dock and boathouse. MNH statement of significance, 2021 In 1967 Dr Basil Greenhill, then Director of the National Maritime Museum, concluded that the surviving Peggy was the one built in 1791. National Historic Ships UK

4. MythThere was only ever one Peggy.

   FactShe was one of three similar boats built for the Quayle family between 1789 and 1793. National Historic Ships UK Two were named Peggy, one called the ‘new Peggy’, and the third was Neptune, which is why it was unclear which one survives. National Historic Ships UK

5. MythShe looks exactly as she did when new.

   FactEarly on she was heavily altered: a new strake and gunwale raised her sides, the six oar ports were plugged and the thwarts moved higher. National Historic Ships UK It also says she is really two boats in one: her 1802 form laid over the original of 1789. MNH statement of significance, 2021

6. MythSliding keels are a modern invention.

   FactA 1791 letter from Quayle’s brother Thomas describes meeting the sliding keel’s inventor, Captain (later Admiral) Shank. National Historic Ships UK She is the oldest surviving vessel known to have been fitted with sliding keels, an early form of dagger board. MNH Q&A, 2022

7. MythShe sat in a museum from the day she was laid up.

   FactThe same list says she was walled in with solid masonry in 1851 and forgotten. National Historic Ships UK She was found in 1935 in a walled-up cellar in Castletown, where she had lain for more than 150 years. National Historic Ships UK

8. MythShe was found empty.

   FactThe key dates on the same page put her rediscovery in 1941, ‘still with cargo on deck which included French brandy’. National Historic Ships UK

9. MythHer keel is original.

   FactHer present keel is a replacement, but the original, with its three slots, survives. National Historic Ships UK Only her keel, stern post and two planks, damaged where she lay on her starboard side, needed replacing. castletown.org.im

10. MythShe could carry plenty of cargo.

    FactBut it doubts how much cargo she could carry: the gear for three sliding keels would leave little room. National Historic Ships UK

Next: the quiz →