Russian ship Dmitry

The vessel had been travelling from Antwerp, Belgium, to Newcastle-upon-Tyne, England, when she sought safe harbour in Whitby during a gale on 24 October.

The wreck came to the attention of author Bram Stoker during a visit to the town in 1890 and served as the inspiration for the Demeter in his gothic horror novel Dracula.

[2] Dmitry was in danger of being driven onto rocks by the wind but her master, named Sikki, demonstrated excellent seamanship and navigated her along a safe route known as the sledway.

[2] The seven-man crew failed to relaunch Dmitry and she was left on the sands overnight, with the hope that she would refloat on the next high tide.

[2] The Dmitry was the inspiration for the Demeter, the vessel by which the vampiric title character arrives in England, in Bram Stoker's 1897 novel Dracula.

[8] In the published version of Dracula Stoker describes the wreck as arising from a wind that "rushed at headlong speed, swept the strange schooner before the blast, with all sail set, and gained the safety of the harbour".