Page 24. MAINE COASTAL NEWS October 2016 HISTORY FROM THE PAST - Bangor Daily Commercial - Early 1900s 27 November 1903 New of the Shipping. The new boat to take the place of the


MOUNT DESERT will be launched at East Boston next month. She will be named after an offi cial of the company. Schooner JOHN A. BECKERMAN of


New Bedford has been sold to Stonington, Maine parties for $6,500. The schooner BELLE O’NEIL, Capt.


Hall of Rockland, finished discharging a cargo of pine at Kelley, Spear Co.’s yard, Bath, Monday, and will sail light for Philadelphia for a cargo of coal for Cardenas. She will be employed in the gulf trade this winter.


28 November 1903 Wreck of the BEN SEWALL Damariscotta, November 28. A letter received Saturday from Mrs.


A. J. Hoelstad, wife of Cape Heals and of the ship BEN SEWALL, wrecked Formosa channel, partially confi rms the report that a boatload including Wat Morris, the fi rst mate, 12 men and a woman were killed on Botel Tobago, an island inhabited by savages. The letter says fi ve men, including a


Russian, Japanese and Filipino, were found and seven men and a Japanese woman, wife of Mate Morris, are missing. No further reference being made to them it is supposed the bodies were found. After the worst typhoon known for years


the ship was abandoned October 5. With the captain’s party were Mrs. Hoelstad, and her niece, Miss Helen Piper of this town. They had plenty of food, but no water, and at the end of a four days’ cruise were completely exhausted. The landing of the boat in charge of the mate on Botel Tobago was contrary to the captain’s wishes, Capt. Hoelstad kept on to the south cape of Formosa where his party was kindly treated by the Japanese. Mrs. Hoelstad expected to reach Shanghai October 25 and start soon after for their home here. The ship was a complete wreck.


5 December 1903 Many Vessels Have Launched in Penobscot


Stories of the Days When Craft of All Kinds Were Built in the Yards on the


Bangor and Brewer Shores – Some Accidents


The recent launching of the schooner


HORACE A. STONE from Brewer yard of E. & I. K. Stetson, has set the old ship owners and captains talking about the good old days when Bangor was noted for the vessels built here and when several large square-riggers were launched nearly every year. There were many diff erent shipyards


here then, three on this side, and many ships, barks and brigs were turned out and helped to swell the then enormous American merchant fl eet.


The yards included the Gibbs &


Phillips, McGilvery, Oakes & Holyoke of Brewer and the Crosby, Bryant and Dunning yard s on this side.


The last square-rigged vessel launched


in Bangor was the brig TELOS. She was built just 20 years ago in the old Crosby yard, down by High Head and was of 390 tons burthen. She has since been lost at sea. In the year ’77 there were two vessels launched here, the ship LLEWELLYN J. MORSE, built in the Oakes yard and of 1,392 tons and the brig HAVILAH in the Crosby yard, of 533 tons. About the only old square rigger now


afl oat with the same rig, which was built in Bangor is the brig HARRY SMITH. She was here in ’75 by the Crosby people and was 520 tons. She was commanded for a long time by Capt. John H. Weeks of Brewer, now Maine Central wharfi nger in this city. The SMITH has just arrived in New Bedford from Fayal with a cargo of whale oil. She had an unusually long passage and was given up for lost by many people. The schooner CORA GREEN, now


plying between this and other ports, was originally a brig and was built at the Crosby yard in 1875, being of 247 tons. She has just left Bangor for New Bedford with lumber by the Sterns Co.


Built Many Ships Then. Many good old ships had their birth in


Bangor yards and at the time of their building there were few vessels afl oat which were better. The ship BESPHORUS and the ship GOLD ROCKET in which many Bangor people went around the Horn to California at the time of the gold fever, ’49. Other ships built in Bangor were the SARAH MARCH, in ’56, by Jewett &


The MDI Lions Club would like to thank the sponsors of their annual "Lobster Feed" at the Somesville Fire House, held in August.


Dealers: F. W. Thurston (Mike) H. R. Beals (Stu)


Fishermen: Chris Moore - F/V Lauri/Tammy David Graves - F/V Midnite Joel Harper - F/V Nite Prowler Brandon Bunker - F/V Silver Fox John Stanley - F/V Linda Sea Charlie Dillon - F/V Jana D.


March in Brewer. She was 582 tons, 131 feet long, a double decker and 29 feet broad. The DUMBARTON was built in Brewer by Tewsksbury in ’63. She was 940 tons, 170 feet long and 35 feet broad. The ship NEVADA, 781 tons, was turned out by Nickerson in Brewer in ‘63 and the ship F. CARVER of Searsport was constructed in Brewer under Head Carpenter Williams in 1863 and in ’64 the ship DAVID BROWN, 834 tons, was the product of the same people. The ship JENNIE HIGHT of 1,146 tons


built under supervision of Tewksbury in Bangor in ’65, is well remembered. She was lost on a fi ne moonlight night. The band was playing and a large party was aboard when she grounded on the Florida reefs. The ship PHINEAS PENDLETON was built at the Gibbs yards in Brewer in ’66 and was one of the largest built here, being 1,330 tons. Many Queer Accidents.


While the old sea captains do not


remember any fatalities in connection with launchings, it is recalled that the bark CHARLOTTE A. LITTLEFIELD, 525 tons, and launched by Oakes in Brewer in ’64 tipped over when sliding down the ways. Although there was a large crowd aboard no one was injured. Another peculiar thing occurred at


the launching of the bark CHARLES D. BRYANT from the Bryant yard. A sailor thought it would be quite a stunt to be launched from the top of the mainmast. When the bark started, the ways sprung slightly shaking the vessel so that the man’s hold was loosened and he dropped, catching luckily on the stay which runs from that mast to the end of the boom. He clung there until after the vessel was in the water when he slid down.


But one vessel was ever built above the


place where the toll bridge now is. There was one constructed there, however, in 1835. Among the earlier craft constructed in this section was the steamboat TARRATINE, built in Isaac Dunning’s yard for Capt. Smith of Frankfort. She was not much of a success, however, as the machinery which was also built in Bangor did not work as well as it might have. The old bark CARMELITA and


schooner HATTIE W. JENKINS were also built here and the brig VERNON for Capt. Ephraim Kent was turned out at the Holyoke yard, just below the bridge in Brewer. At Winterport.


Winterport was a great shipbuilding


town at one time and fi ve vessels were being constructed there at the same time, one year previous to 1855 after which the shipbuilding declined. Among other large vessels constructed


at Bangor was the bark JULIA COBB, 444 tons, in ’56, a three-masted, 139 ton vessel of 29 foot breadth. The bark JAMES E. BRETT, 530 tons was built in the Crosby yard in ’63 and the bark AMANDA of 598 tons, was built in the same yard in 1861. The ship LUCY A. NICKELS, built


in Brewer by Perkins, head carpenter, in 1875, was about as large a vessel as was ever constructed in these parts being 1,395 tons. He 1,328 ton ship, HARRIET H. MCGILVERY, was built the year before the NICKELS, also in Brewer, and was among the larger craft built in the Bangor yards. Shortly after these crafts, the barkentine FORMOSS, one of the few barkentines ever constructed in Bangor, was built in the Oakes yard, Brewer. She was of 585 tons burthen.


Had a Murder. The ship DELFTHAVEN was built in


Bangor. While on a foreign voyage a murder occurred on her. Two boys of her crew, one from Bangor and the other from Bath, were in prison in Spain for quite a long while in consequence. The aff air created a good deal of talk at the time. The bark CITY OF BREWER, is


well remembered here, having been built by Stetson & Co. in Bangor and for years was commanded by Capt. Mengee of this city. Among the oldest vessels sailing from Bangor was the bark MINNESOTA. She was not built here but was bought by Bangor men and for years sailed out of this port in the whaling trade. The sea captains tell many strange tales


of Bangor vessels which were once to be found in practically all parts of the world. One story is told of a vessel which after being launched here went to St. John after lumber and was never after heard of. Another of a Bangor vessel which sailed from Norfolk, Virginia, with cotton for Europe and failed to ever put into a port and give an account of herself.


21 December 1903 With the Ships


Continued on Page 26.


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