The soft rain stopped just as the cairn to the dead was unveiled. The graves of 248 Irish emigrants were finally marked yesterday 150 years after their journey to the New World ended in tragedy. On a sea-whipped beach on the west coast of Islay, the lives of those escaping the Famine were remembered.

Yesterday's ceremony was not just in remembrance of the past. It was attended by people from Derry, Scottish politicians and the Irish Consul-General, Mr Dan Mulhall, and it is hoped new and positive links will be forged between Scotland and Ireland.

When the Exmouth of Newcastle set sail from Derry on April 24th, 1847, it carried 248 men, women and children.

For two years the Famine had withered their chances of making a decent life. They were heading for Quebec carrying nervous hopes for a better future.

As they left the Irish coast they hit the worst storm in living memory. The hurricane ripped their sails and rigging, and the ship was blown off course. Three days after leaving port the Exmouth struck rocks on the north-west coast of Islay.

The vessel was forced on to the jagged stone three times. On the fourth its mast broke, and the ship was sucked into the water. The passengers had no chance.

Only three seamen survived. They watched as the Exmouth was smashed into splinters and disappeared, reporting that they heard not a single cry for help.

The alarm was raised, but the islanders could not put to sea, as the swell was too high. Instead they lowered men down the cliffs to rescue the bodies washed ashore.

Eventually 108 were recovered and given decent burials, some in coffins, by the people of Islay. Most of those recovered were women.

A series of coincidences three years ago renewed interest in the tragedy. A distant relative in Derry who was studying history at Magee College and wanted to know about the coffin boat contacted Joe Wiggins.

At the same time Sara McCaffrey from Creeslough in Donegal was trying to trace her great-great-grandparents who had sailed on the Exmouth. And separately, Michael McGuinness of Derry Museum learned of the tragedy and began to research the families that had drowned.

The inquiries led Mr Wiggins to set up a memorial fund which paid for the cairn and will sponsor a cultural exchange between pupils from Islay and Northern Ireland.

"The aim is that we have started something here which will encourage understanding between these communities for years to come," said Mr Wiggins.

Mr McGuinness sailed to Islay with five Derry musicians. "We wanted to show how close Derry and Islay are. It only took us seven hours to make the journey. We really think there's the potential for an annual pilgrimage, bringing together all the families that lost relatives in the Exmouth," he said.

Ms McCaffrey was delighted that recognition had finally come for her relatives. "I didn't think I'd live to see this day. I'm thrilled. People of all religions died in the Exmouth and the hope is we can use it to bring people together," she said.

The Consul-General said: "This development comes at an opportune time. The coming of Scottish devolution and the establishment of the British-Irish Council have given a fresh political impetus to Scottish-Irish relations. The Exmouth disaster serves as a reminder of the age-old ties between Ireland and Scotland."

The cairn was built by Packie Gillespie, from Donegal, known on the western isles of Scotland for repairing stone walls.

"I was honoured to be asked to do this," he said. "You know, on a clear day you can see the mouth of the Foyle from the beach here. I would look up when working and see home."

One hundred and fifty years later, the passengers on the Exmouth have finally been reclaimed by their descendants.