During a violent storm two days before Christmas 1876, the 120 ton schooner Emelie of Wolfgast, laden with coal from Sunderland, was driven north past Wick, coming ashore two miles from Ackergill, near Ackergill Tower. The Rocket Apparatus Team were called out, but in rapidly worsening conditions it took some considerable time before a line could be fired out to the six men on board the schooner, who had taken refuge in the rigging, huge seas repeatedly sweeping over the stranded ship. Because it was taking so long to get a line fired out to the wreck, a salmon cobble was taken overland from Ackergill, to a position directly opposite the wreck. Captain John Cormack took charge of this boat and called for volunteers to go out with him. There was no shortage of willing men, in fact when the boat was launched there were nine men on board and some experienced onlookers said that she was already overloaded, with very little room left to take any more survivors on board. By hard work at the oars and also by pulling on a rocket line which had by then been fired over the wreck, the small boat reached the Emelie. Three men were taken on board and Captain Cormack then realised that the small boat was grossly overloaded and so he turned backed towards the shore. As the cobble left the Emelie the rocket line got under her keel and she capsized. The three men from the schooner had been totally exhausted and they quickly disappeared, only five of the crew of the salmon boat surviving. of the Emelie's crew of six only one, a seventeen year old youth survived. A total of nine men lost their lives that day.
Following a Public Enquiry into this disaster, an approach was made to the RNLI to improve lifeboat cover in the area and at a meeting of the Committee of Management on Thursday 5 June 1877 it was decided to form a lifeboat station at Ackergill. Subsequently a new lifeboat named the George and Isabella was launched at Ackergill on 14 March 1878.
Following a Public Enquiry into this disaster, an approach was made to the RNLI to improve lifeboat cover in the area and at a meeting of the Committee of Management on Thursday 5 June 1877 it was decided to form a lifeboat station at Ackergill. Subsequently a new lifeboat named the George and Isabella was launched at Ackergill on 14 March 1878.