Page 24. MAINE COASTAL NEWS January 2015


to Kennebec with a cargo of coal. All went well until last Sunday when a storm came up and the STETSON was driven 50 miles off shore. Seams were started and the pumps were manned. After pumping 24 hours, the crew was obliged to take to a small boat and after 18 hours of hard work in an open sea, the crew managed to reach the Fletcher’s Neck Life Saving Station. The STETSON sunk soon after it was deserted.


HISTORY FROM THE PAST - Bangor Daily Commercial - Early 1900s The Crew Picked Up


Steamer ROCKLAND was Over Three Days to Boston and Return, Meeting Very Rough Weather.


Indications are that the Italian bark COLOMBO, which loaded shooks at Stockton Springs, the T. J. Stewart Co. being the shippers, has come to grief judging from the following Associated Press despatch received Monday noon:


In an interview one of the shipwrecked mariners described their experiences as follows: “We left South Amboy a week ago Friday and had good wind and weather until last Sunday when a storm set in. We were blown 50 miles or more off shore. The vessel began to leak so badly that we had to man the pumps and we had to keep constantly at them in order to keep it afl oat. By Monday night, the water had gained on us to such an extent that myself and the other members of the crew were nearly exhausted. Our wrists began to swell and there was nothing to do but to take to the boat. “We put supplies and a compass aboard and left the vessel. We had not much more than cleared the STETSON before it sank. The yawl boat was a small one and rather old and several times it seemed as if we would never reach the shore. We headed for land after 18 hours of the hardest kind of rowing came in sight of the life saving station at Fletcher’s Neck. The life crew saw us when we were about two miles from land and came out to our rescue, and towed us ashore. The SUSAN STETSON was an old craft having been built in 1867 at Damariscotta. It was owned by W. D. Emerson of Bucksport and was of 143 gross tonnage, 89 feet long, 21 feet beam and eight feet, two inches draught.


The COLBURN Ashore The schooner ALICE M. COLBURN bound from Philadelphia to this city with coal was driven ashore on West Chop near Vineyard Haven during Wednesday night’s storm and according to advices received here Thursday was resting in 17 feet of water and leaking slightly Several hundred tons of its cargo will be taken off and it is expected that will be suffi cient to bring it offshore. The COLBURN draws 24 feet of water. The COLBURN hails from Bath, where it was built in 1896. It is a vessel of 1,603 gross tonnage, 225.1 feet long, 43.3 feet in breath, and 20.4 feet deep. It carries a crew of ten men. Its cargo is consigned to the Hincks Coal Co.


8 November 1907


Sloops Damaged in Storm Small boat owners in Bangor and


Brewer, who had not got their craft into winter quarters, had narrow escapes from losing their property during Thursday’s storm. The high water and wind caused many small boats to drag their anchors and Friday they were found considerable distances away or on the shore. A sloop belonging to Fred G. Eaton was sunk at its mooring near Rollins’ and will be considerably damaged. Another sloop, the GOLDEN ROD, belonging to Frank W. Earle, dragged its moorings during the storm and was found Friday morning at the ferry slip.


As a result of the high water, lumber which had been placed on the shore out of reach of ordinary high water pitch was fl oated and the river was full of fl oating lumber Friday. Small craft had to proceed with caution owing to the fl oating stuff.


11 November 1907


Italian Bark Loaded at Stockton May Have Gone Down


Philadelphia, November 11. – The Austrian tank steamer ELELKA from Shields for this port passed in the Delaware capes Monday afternoon and showed signals, which it is supposed mean that the steamer has on board the crew of the Italian bark COLOMBO. The bark sailed from Stockton Springs, Maine, October 12, for Palermo. The report will be confi rmed when the ship reaches port.


The COLOMBO, while leaving Stockton October 12, did not get to sea until the 30th


or 31st as from Stockton she went


to Rockland, where she remained some weeks. The COLOMBO carried about 400 tons of scrap iron which she had purchased for ballast and while she was a staunch appearing craft would be likely to go down if she should get much water aboard. The cargo which consisted of the thin wood for 397,680 boxes was valued at a little less than $17,000 and was insured. The steamer CITY OF ROCKLAND, Capt. Curtis, of the Eastern Steamship Co. comes very near holding the record for slow time in making the Bangor-Boston run. She arrived in this city late Saturday afternoon after a trip to Boston that took three days seven hours and 25 minutes. It was no fault of the boat but rather of the elements the ROCKLAND did not make the run in the usual time.


She left her dock in this city Wednesday on schedule time but on reaching Rockland it found advisable to lay in over night on account of the gale that was raging outside. She laid at Rockland all night and as the gale showed no signs of abating she stayed there all Thursday and Thursday night leaving for Boston at 5 o’clock Friday morning. Foster’s wharf, Boston, was reached at 6:05 that evening.


She left Boston on her return trip to


Bangor at 11:20 the same evening and was at Rockland inside 12 hours but met some trouble and delay coming up the river. The water in the river is high for heavy rains and the big boat was delayed at landings. Bangor was reached in the dark and the steamer was immediately turned about and started back to Boston after a stop of little more than an hour. She struck another gale but went through to Boston all right.


21 November 1907 Aground Off Indian Point


Schooner PEMAQUID Had Narrow Escape from Injury on Way from Bucksport to Winterport.


Bucksport, November 21. The schooner PEMAQUID arrived here


Wednesday for another cargo of fl our and grain. The last trip she made she had quite a narrow escape from injury on the rocks when off Indian Point. It was quite calm and about half tide and Capt. Huntley was drifting but too near in when she grounded on the rocks. One of his men in a boat had a very narrow escape from drowning. The boat’s painter when one of the tannery men saw what had happened and managed to get the boat back to the vessel. In the meantime Capt. Huntley put up a fl ag of distress and expected help of the steamer TREMONT which passed within a few feet of the vessel, but failed to notice the signal. The cargo of 200 barrels of fl our and 2400 bushels of corn was quite


valuable. The vessel and cargo was owned by Charles A. McKenney of Winterport and when the tide came, she fl oated off all right. Mr. McKenney and Capt. Huntley desire to thank the man from Blodgett’s tannery for coming to their assistance in a very trying hour.


N. W. Ladd had secured the services of


A. W. Wood of Rockland as chef and baker in his lunch room and bakery. Mrs. H. H. Webster and Mrs. A. L. White were in Bangor Wednesday returning in the evening.


Mrs. Elizabeth F. Homer, wife of Frederick Homer of Bucksport Center, died at her home Tuesday, November 19, after a short illness. The funeral was held Thursday afternoon at 1 o’clock. Mrs. F. W. Ginn left on the Thursday morning train for Bangor. Miss Myra Williams returned from


Bangor Wednesday evening after a brief visit with friends.


Mrs. John Bridges and daughter arrived on the evening train Wednesday after a few days’ visit with her husband at Millinocket, where he is employed by the B. & A. R. R. Mrs. Edward Swazey returned


Wednesday and in a few days will go to Pittsfi eld for a visit to her son, John N. Swazey. Miss Alice Gardner was in Bangor


Wednesday. Miss Gertrude Russell returned


Wednesday from a visit to her parents at Bucksport Center. Montville Abbott, Esq., arrived on the


evening train Wednesday from Bangor. Mrs. Daniel Delano arrived on the


evening train Wednesday from Bangor after a brief visit.


Rodney Redman left on the train


Wednesday morning for Bangor. Mrs. Louise Worthley arrived on the Boston boat after a three weeks’ visit with friends in Boston and vicinity. Mrs. Alden Gilley of Rockland arrived


on the CITY OF ROCKLAND Wednesday from Rockland and is the guest of Mr. and Mrs. Frank Collins on Bridge Street.


25 November 1907 Bar Harbor Schooner EMMA W. DAY Libeled


The coasting schooner EMMA W. DAY


of Bar Harbor, which arrived in Portland, Friday afternoon, was seized Saturday by the United States marshal on a libel for personal damages in the sum of $500 brought by James Ferron through his attorney, Irving E. Vernon, Esq., but Capt. Bray, who is also part owner, furnished a bond and the vessel was released. Ferron, who wile employed about the schooner some time ago, was injured and taken to the hospital. He claims that with others he was engaged in taking a quantity of old iron from the vessel at Widgery’s wharf a part of the rigging gave way, allowing a block to fall, striking him on the head and knocking him into the hold and thereby he was considerably injured. Capt. Bray claims that all parts of the rigging used in the work of discharging were in sound condition and that nothing gave away, and that the carelessness of the man alone caused his fall into the hold.


* * * * * Many Ships Lost


Past Season Has Been Disastrous One for Clippers.


The Sewall Among Them. Shipping Men Give Reasons for the Loss of Many Fine Vessels During Past Season.


The disappearance of fi ve of the fi nest American-owned sailing ships from the face of the sea has provoked much discussion


among Bangor shipping men, to whom the histories of the ships in question are well known. Several of them, particularly the ship, ARTHUR SEWALL, and the wooden bark, ADOLPH OBRIG, are well-known here, for the reason that they are Maine-built craft.


The latest list of missing ships includes


the ARTHUR SEWALL, TRILLIE E. STARBUCK and SHENANDOAH and the barks PRUSSIA and ADOLPH OBRIG. The fate of some of these famous square-riggers will probably never be known, but shipping men all over the world will have their own versions of what cause their loss. The reasons for these unprecedented losses are to be found, say Bangor shipping men, not because the ships themselves may be old, but from causes which may be attributed to the cargo and the incompetence of the crews, owing to the scarcity of good seamen. Coal is a most dangerous cargo for a vessel to carry, owing to the danger of fi re and other causes and the risks are always large.


However, at the present time, most of the seamen employed in American bottoms are foreigners, very few American seamen being on deck at the present time, so that the loser for this reason should not be strictly laid to the incompetence of American sailors.


According to a United States shipping


offi cial, “the American seamen, as a type, has gradually died out and given place to German sailors from the Scandinavian peninsula. Norwegian seamen are as competent as any mariners but there is an insuffi cient number of them to go around and consequently many vessels have had to sail without their full quota of able-bodied men.”


The clipper ship ARTHUR SEWALL is believed in some circles to have been lost in the vicinity of Cape Horn while trying to make San Francisco. It sailed from Philadelphia April 3 with a cargo of about 5000 tons of coal and a crew of 30 nearly all foreigners. A few days ago a wreck was sighted near the Falkland Islands by a Norwegian sealing steamer. The four masts were protruding from the water and topsails were set. There was nothing by which the sealer could identify the vessel except that she had four masts like the ARTHUR SEWALL. “I don’t think there is a question but that she caught fi re and was abandoned,” said a Bangor shipping man, when asked his opinion of the derelict’s fate. “You notice the report from the sealer giver the ship’s four topsails set. Had she been lost in a gale the canvas would have been furled to shorten her spread. I believe Capt. Gaffney of the SEWALL, if the ship proves to be that craft, discovered fi re in the cargo and tried to get close to the land. “They fought hard to quench the fl ames, but the intense heat tore the hull asunder and she went to the bottom under their feet. If they escaped in the boats an equally quick fate may have overtaken them while trying to land in the breakers that foam around the base of the cliffs.”


Several sea captains in this vicinity, who have voyaged around the Horn, are fi rm in their belief that the disappearance of the fl eet of ships was due to coal cargoes. They point to the experience of the CLARENCE S. BENNETT, a comparatively new vessel that was abandoned near the Falkland Islands with coal cargo afi re. Then there was the KENNEBEC, a famous clipper bound for San Francisco with coal, that burned and sank like a stone after the offi cers and crew had fought valiantly to save the craft. Other seafaring men recall infrequent


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