Centennial (pilot boat)

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Centennial pilot boat.jpg
File:Painting of the Centennial pilot boat No. 7, by Elisha Taylor Baker.
History
US flag 37 stars.svgUnited States
NameCentennial
Owner
  • Beebe & Hopkins of New York (1876)
  • N. J. Pilots (1877–1899)
Operator
  • John Hopkins (1877–1879)
  • John I. Godby (1881–1884)
  • Beebe (1885–1899)
Builder
Cost$10,000 [1]
LaunchedFebruary 22, 1876
Out of serviceSeptember 16, 1898
FateSold
General characteristics
Class and type schooner
Tonnage60-tons TM [2]
Length76 ft 0 in (23.16 m)
Beam20 ft 6 in (6.25 m)
Draft0 ft 0 in (0 m)
Depth8 ft 6 in (2.59 m)
PropulsionSail
NotesCabins were ash finish, with black walnut trimmings, fitted with modern amenities.

The Centennial was a 19th-century wood pilot boat built in 1876 by Robert Crosbie and designed by Boston designer Dennison J. Lawlor for New York and New Jersey pilots. She was one of the pilot-boats that survived the Great Blizzard of 1888. By 1898, in the age of steam, she was the last pilot boat left in the fleet; then sold in 1898 to a group in Montego Bay, Jamaica.

Contents

Construction and service

On February 22, 1876, prominent naval architect Dennison J. Lawlor of Chelsea, Massachusetts, contracted Robert Crosbie to build the pilot-boat Centennial, for New York and New Jersey pilots [3]

On June 24, 1876, the trail trip of the Pilot Boat Centennial, was witnessed by a party of gentlemen. The tug boat J. C. Neattie, towed her down the Boston Harbor and passed the Narrows. Harbor master, Captain Francis C. Cates, took the helm. Robert Crosbie of East Boston, the builder, was on board. The pilot-boat Lillie, was sited and a race began between the two boats. The course of nine miles was from Boston Light to Minot's Ledge Light. The raced was cut short after six miles, when the Lillie, sighted the steamship China and took off for the ship. The boat was owned by Beebe & Hopkins of New York. [3]

The Centennial was registered with the Record of American and Foreign Shipping, from 1877–1879, to John Hopkins as master. Her owners were the N. J. Pilots; her hailing port was Jersey City and she was listed as being built in East Boston, Massachusetts. Her dimensions were 76 ft. length on deck; 20.6 ft. breadth of beam; 8.6 ft. depth of hold; and 60-tons burthen. From 1881–1884, she was registered with John I. Godby as master; N. J. Pilots as owners, and New York was her hailing port. From 1885–1899, Beebe was the master, N. J. Pilots as owners, and New York was her hailing port. [2]

On November 8, 1885, the pilot boat Centennial, No. 7, which was the fastest boat in the fleet, tested her speed with the pilot boat David Carll as she went on her trail trip down the bay. This time, the David Carll, beat the Centennial. [4]

On August 7, 1887, Sandy Hook pilot boat Centennial, No. 7, was on a cruise when it picked up a yawl that was from the pilot boat Phantom, No. 11, two years ago. It was washed overboard during a storm and had been drifting at the ocean bottom. The pilots were able to refurbish the yawl and place it back on the Phantom. [5]

During the Great Blizzard of 1888, the Centennial, No. 13, got caught in ice near the Sandy Hook bar. Along with other pilot boats, the men took cover at a house near the Sandy Hook Lighthouse. Mrs. W. W. Stewart fed the men and allowed them to stay the night. [6] [7]

On June 15, 1889, the pilot boat Centennial, was put up for sale for 25 percent ownership. [8]

On January 29, 1890, pilot Beebe, of New Jersey pilot boat Centennial, No. 7, reported that the seaman Jacob Housen, fell from the bowsprit overboard and was lost off Shinnecook. [9]

The pilot-boat Centennial was listed as a New Jersey pilot boat in 1895, along with the eight New Jersey pilot boats: Thomas S. Negus , No. 1; Elbrige T. Gerry, No. 2; Thomas D. Harrison, No. 3; Friend, No. 4; David T. Leahy, No. 5; James Gordon Bennett, No. 6; Centennial, No. 7; and Edward E. Barrett, No. 8. [6] : p380 

End of service

By April 1898, in the age of steam, the Centennial, was the last pilot boat left in the fleet. [10] Then, on September 16, 1898, the pilot boat Centennial, was sold to parties in Montego Bay, Jamaica. [11]

See also

Related Research Articles

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<i>Columbia</i> (pilot boat) Sandy Hook Pilot boat

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<i>Moses H. Grinnell</i> (pilot boat) Sandy Hook Pilot boat

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<i>Richard K. Fox</i> (pilot boat) Sandy Hook Pilot boat

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<i>Phantom</i> (pilot boat) Sandy Hook Pilot boat

The Phantom was a 19th-century Sandy Hook pilot boat built in 1867 from the designs by Dennison J. Lawlor. The schooner was considered a model for her type with a reputation for being very fast. She helped rescue the passengers on the steamship SS Oregon when it sank in 1886. She was one of the pilot-boats that was lost in the Great Blizzard of 1888. The Phantom was replaced by the pilot-boat William H. Bateman.

<i>Francis Perkins</i> (pilot boat) New York Pilot boat

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<i>Edward F. Williams</i> (pilot boat) New York Pilot boat

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Mary A. Williams New York Pilot boat

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Jesse Carll New York Pilot boat

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<i>Trenton</i> (pilot boat) New Jersey Pilot boat

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<i>James M. Waterbury</i> (pilot boat) New York Pilot boat

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Edward E. Barrett Sandy Hook Pilot boat

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<i>Caprice</i> (pilot boat) Sandy Hook pilot boat built in 1871

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<i>David Carll</i> (pilot boat) New York Pilot boat

The David Carll was a 19th-century pilot boat, built in 1885 at the David Carll shipyard in City Island, New York. She was named in honor of David Carll, a well-known City Island shipbuilder. The David Carll was considered to be among the fastest schooners in the fleet. She was built to replace the Mary E. Fish that was run down and sank by the schooner Frank Harrington in 1885. She was one of the pilot boats that survived the Great Blizzard of 1888. The David Carll was lost at sea in 1893.

<i>Actaea</i> (pilot boat) New York Pilot boat

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<i>Hermann Oelrichs</i> (pilot boat) New York Pilot Boat

The Hermann Oelrichs was a 19th-century Sandy Hook Pilot boat, built in 1894 by Moses Adams at Essex, Massachusetts for a group of New York Pilots. She helped transport New York City maritime pilots between inbound or outbound ships coming into the New York Harbor. The Herman Oelrichs was said to be the fastest of the New York pilot fleet. She was built to replace the pilot boat Hope, that was wrecked in 1890.

Mary E. Fish Boston Pilot boat

The Mary E. Fish was a 19th-century Sandy Hook pilot boat, built at the Edward F. Williams shipyard of Greenpoint, Brooklyn in 1861 for Richard Brown and the New York Pilots. She was built to replace the Mary Taylor. The Fish was hit and sank by the schooner Frank Harrington in 1885 and replaced by the David Carll.

Charlotte Webb New York Pilot boat

Charlotte Webb was a 19th-century New York City pilot boat built in 1865 at the Webb & Bell shipyard to take the place of the James Funk, that was destroyed by the rebel Tallahassee during the Civil War. She survived the Great Blizzard of 1888, but was run down by the French steamship La Normandie in 1889. She was replaced by the pilot boat George H. Warren.

The James Gordon Bennett was a 19th-century two-masted pilot boat, built in 1870 at the Lawrence & Foulks shipyard. She was named in honor of James Gordon Bennett, Jr., publisher of the New York Herald. She went ashore in 1893 and was rebuilt at the C. & R. Poillon shipyard. In 1897, the James Gordon Bennett was bought by Miller J. Morse of the Atlantic Yacht Club and made into a yacht. He changed her name to Hermit. The New Jersey pilots purchased her in 1901, to replace the David T. Leahy, that was run down by the steamship Alene. The Hermit sank in 1906, when the steamship Monterey ran into her.

<i>Enchantress</i> (pilot boat) Sandy Hook Pilot boat

The Enchantress was a 19th-century Sandy Hook pilot boat built in 1851 by John Maginn who named her after one of the cast in the opera The Enchantress. She was launched from the Westervelt & McKay shipyard. The Enchantress was one of the oldest pilot-boats in the service. She was Cornelius Vanderbilt's favorite pilot boat. The Enchantress went down with all hands in the Great Blizzard of 1888. The pilot boat James Stafford was built to replace her.

References

  1. ↑ "Shipwreck Data Base". New Jersey Maritime Museum. New Jersey. Retrieved 11 May 2021.
  2. 1 2 "Record of American and Foreign Shipping 1877". Mystic Seaport Museum. New York. Retrieved 2020-10-28.
  3. 1 2 "A Pleasant Sail. Trial Trip of the New Pilot Boat Centennial". The Boston Globe. Boston, Massachusetts. 26 Jun 1876. p. 5. Retrieved 2021-02-01.
  4. ↑ "A New Pilot Boat. Which is Outside Sandy Hook With Six Brave Brooklyn Men on Board". The Brooklyn Daily Eagle. Brooklyn, New York. 8 Nov 1885. p. 1. Retrieved 6 Feb 2021.
  5. ↑ "A Yawl Drifts Two Years on the Ocean". The Sun. New York, New York. 7 Aug 1887. p. 7. Retrieved 2021-02-01.
  6. 1 2 Russell, Charles Edward (1929). From Sandy Hook to 62°. New York: Century Co. p. 206. OCLC   3804485.
  7. ↑ "Pilot Boats Ashore". Buffalo Morning Express and Illustrated Buffalo Express. Buffalo, New York. 18 Mar 1888. p. 17. Retrieved 2021-02-01.
  8. ↑ "Splendid Investment One Share". The Brooklyn Daily Eagle. Brooklyn, New York. 21 Nov 1889. p. 3. Retrieved 2021-02-01.
  9. ↑ "Plunged Headforeman Overboard". The Boston Globe. Boston, Massachusetts. 29 Jan 1890. p. 5. Retrieved 2021-02-01.
  10. ↑ "One Pilot Boat Left. The Centennial Is the Sole Representative of the Old Fleet". The Brooklyn Daily Eagle. Brooklyn, New York. 9 Apr 1898. p. 3. Retrieved 2021-02-01.
  11. ↑ "Plunged Headforeman Overboard". Portland Daily Press. Portland, Maine. 16 Sep 1898. p. 7. Retrieved 2021-02-01.
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