Historic Pelham

Presenting the rich history of Pelham, NY in Westchester County: current historical research, descriptions of how to research Pelham history online and genealogy discussions of Pelham families.

Thursday, September 27, 2018

The Fate of the First Three-Masted Schooner Ever Built in a Pelham Shipyard


On February 29, 1884, a local newspaper made a brief reference to the "first three masted schooner ever built on City Island" in the Town of Pelham.  Although the reference indicates that the schooner, christened the John K. Shaw, was built at Carll's shipyard in about 1869, it actually was built at the shipyard and delivered to its initial owner, A. S. Hatch, in 1872.  

I have written extensively about David Carll and Carll's Shipyard before.  See, e.g., Mon., Nov. 16, 2015:  David Carll's Shipyard in the Town of Pelham on City Island; Fri., Jun. 16, 2017:  Origins of Ship Repair and Shipbuilding on City Island in the Town of Pelham; Thu., Dec. 31, 2009:  Obituary of David Carll, Master Shipbuilder on City Island in the Town of Pelham.

Schooners are a class of sailing vessels that have fore-and-aft sails on two or more masts. The most common type has two masts, the foremast being shorter than the main.  Although other schooners had been built at Carll's Shipyard prior to construction of the John K. Shaw in 1872, it would appear that the earlier ones were the more common two-masted version of the vessel, if the brief newspaper reference published in 1884 is to be believed.  

The newspaper reference is fascinating because it revealed the fate of the three-masted schooner John K. Shaw.  It stated:

"About fifteen years ago, the first three masted schooner ever built on City Island, the John K. Shaw, was built at Carll's shipyard. During these fifteen years, the vessel never met with any serious mishaps until Friday last, when she was wrecked off Woodlands on the New Jersey Coast."

Source:  PELHAM AND CITY ISLANDThe Chronicle [Mount Vernon, NY], Feb. 29, 1884, Vol. XV, No. 754, p. 3, col. 4.  

The tragic wreck of the John K. Shaw off the Woodlands on the New Jersey coast with the loss of its entire crew of Manasquan, New Jersey men on about Friday, February 22, 1884 captured national attention.  Many believe the schooner was involved in a rare instance of a maritime "hit and run" and was sunk by a vessel that fled the scene after a terrible collision. 

The 158-foot, 379 ton schooner John K. Shaw left Newport News between 12:00 noon and 1:00 p.m. on Thursday, February 21.  The vessel carried nearly nineteen tons of iron ingots on its deck as well as Captain Lucien Osborn and his crew of six men from the borough of Manasquan in Monmouth County, New Jersey.  Three days later on the afternoon of February 24, observers near Deal Beach, New Jersey spotted the spars of a wreck in the waters off the beach.  The pilot of a local tugboat named the Maggie Moran traveled out to the wreck.  He found the afterpart of the deck afloat, and took off a bell having the name "John K. Shaw" on it.  For a time thereafter, other parts of the wreck washed ashore (or were brought ashore) and were identified as belonging to the John K. Shaw.  

There was no certain proof as to how the schooner was lost.  However, the appearance of the remnants of the wreck suggested that a terrible collision had occurred.  The broken planks on one side of the deck suggested that a collision sank the vessel.  No other vessel (or remnants of any vessel) were on the scene.

Within a short time, the owners of the John K. Shaw began an investigation.  Soon they learned that a steamship named the Newport was bound from New York to Havana on the evening of Saturday, February 23, 1884 and that, while off Deal Beach, had a collision with an unidentified three-masted schooner.  The owners of the John K. Shaw filed a maritime action in libel against the owners of the Newport in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York.   The libelants (i.e., plaintiffs) alleged that the steamship Newport collided with and sank their vessel and sought $21,062 in damages (about $735,000 in today's dollars).

The owners of the Newport admitted that their steamship collided with an unknown three-masted schooner off the coast of Deal Beach.  They alleged, however, that the schooner was not the John K. Shaw and the collision was a "slight one, her starboard bow grazing the schooner's starboard quarter without injury to either vessel."  

The Court dismissed the action, holding that the libelants had failed to establish that the steamship Newport had collided with the John K. Shaw.  That did not, however, end the matter.  The owners appealed, but were unsuccessful.  See The Newport, 36 F. 910 (2d Cir. 1888).  Instead, the owners of the John K. Shaw and the insurer of the ship's cargo subsequently filed a lawsuit against the Master of the steamship Newport at the time of the collision.  That case made it to the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit where the Court ruled that because the owners of the Newport were parties to the first lawsuit, they could not re-litigate the question of whether the Master of the steamship Newport was responsible.  The insurer that was not a party to the earlier lawsuit, however, was permitted to proceed.  See Bailey v. Sundberg, 1 F. 101 (2nd Cir. 1892).  

The location of the remnants of the John K. Shaw is well known.  Indeed, the vessel seems to have been run down and virtually split in half with the two halves settling near each other in two adjacent locations off the New Jersey shore.  The two locations of the wreckage of the vessel have become popular with recreational divers in the last few years.    

Though proceedings continued in the related litigations involving the owners and the insurer of the John K. Shaw for years, the mystery remained.  Indeed, the mystery of what happened to the John K. Shaw more than 134 years ago remains unsolved to this day.  The mystery of who sank the first three-masted schooner ever built in the little Town of Pelham likely will never be solved.



"View of City Island" by Frederick Rondel, 1872. Oil on Canvas
Painting, 20.25 inches x 30 inches. This Painting Depicts the Marine
Railway at David Carll's Shipyard in 1872, the Year the John K.
Shaw was Built at the Shipyard.  NOTE: Click on Image to Enlarge.

*          *          *          *          *

"PELHAM AND CITY ISLAND. 

Mr. George O. Hawes is erecting a neat cottage at Bartow, for a gentleman of New York City. 

A pound party was held at Grace Church parsonage on Monday evening last. It was a very social and pleasant affair. 

Mr. Dudley R. Horton will occupy the handsome dwelling adjoining the M. E. Church, owned by Mr. Horton Sr., this spring. 

The pigeon match at Secord's Bartow, on Washingtons Birthday, between Will. Pell and Ben. May, for $25 a side, was won by Pell killing eight straight birds. 

Mr. Hawes the carpenter and builder, is at work rebuilding the summer residence of Mr. Wm. Belden. We understand the alterations are to be very extensive. 

Through the persistancy [sic] of the Board of Town Officers, City Island bridge has been temporarily repaired, so that it is at least safe. Cannot something be done to put the road between City Island and Bartow in a passable condition? 

The talk about that scheme to build a horse railroad from City Island to Bartow is all gas. Such an enterprise would doubtless be a grand thing for City Island but a good macadamized road between the two points would be quite as advantageous as a horse railroad. 

Mr. J. F. Horton, representing the Hell Gate pilots, before the Committee on Commerce and Navigation of the Assembly, on Tuesday of last week, made such forcible arguments against the bill to further reduce the fees of pilots, that the committee reported unanimously adverse to the bill. 

About fifteen years ago, the first three masted schooner ever built on City Island, the John K. Shaw, was built at Carll's shipyard. During these fifteen years, the vessel never met with any serious mishaps until Friday last, when she was wrecked off Woodlands on the New Jersey Coast. 

On Wednesday morning last, about seven o'clock, Andrew Anderson, a sailor on board the schooner J. H. Leeds, fell from the masthead to the deck when the vessel was nearing [illegible] and was instantly killed. The schooner put in at City Island and Coroner Tice held an inquest, when a verdict of accidental death was rendered. Anderson was a Swede, about 32 years old, and was unmarried. 

On Saturday last, John Cochran and Hugh Ryan went out in the bay to get some drift wood. After they had gotten their wood and towed it where they wanted it, they rowed around the Island to the cove, and just before landing, their skiff was capsized. Cochran swam ashore, but before Ryan could be rescued he came very near drowning. He was carried to his home in an insensible condition and it was nearly an hour before he was recusitated [sic]. 

The last will of Samuel P. Billar, an oysterman of this place, was a short time ago, admitted to probate by the Surrogate without opposition. It provided that his estate, about $30,000, should be enjoyed by his two children and widow as long as she remained single. In case of her re-marriage, the estate should be divided into thirds and each given their share. Application was recently made to the Surrogat to decide whether she was entitled to the personal estate, the executor having some doubts on the legal construction of the will. The Surrogate has decided that she is so entitled."

Source:  PELHAM AND CITY ISLAND, The Chronicle [Mount Vernon, NY], Feb. 29, 1884, Vol. XV, No. 754, p. 3, col. 4.  

"NO TIDINGS OF THE CREW.

The tug Maggie Moran, the schooner C. Hawsahan, and the revenue steamer Grant, all reported yesterday having passed a wreck off Woodlands, N. J.  The wreck provides to have been the three-masted schooner John K. Shaw, which left Newport News for New-Haven on Feb. 20.  Two of her spars and a portion of her stern were sticking above water.  The Moran's crew wrenched off a small brass bell, which bore the name of the schooner, and which established her identity.  Nothing whatever has been heard of her crew.  they were six men, under the command of Capt. Lucien Osborn.  The vessel was valued at about $12,000, and is said to have been uninsured.

A. S. Hatch & Co., of the Chesapeake and Ohio Railway, were part owners of the lost vessel, and Capt. Osborn owned a share of her.  Mr. H. P. Havens, of No. 107 South-street, the agent of the vessel, received a letter on Saturday from the wife of Capt. Osborn asking if he had yet arrived in port.  She resides at Manasquan, N.J.  It is feared that the whole crew have perished, for if they had been rescued so near this port some tidings of the fact would have reached the agent.  The cargo consisted of about 350 tons of coal and 150 tons of pig-iron.  The vessel was built at City Island in 1872 and measured 379 tons.  Her agent thinks that perhaps she was run down by some steamer."

Source:  NO TIDINGS OF THE CREW, N.Y. Times, Feb. 26, 1884.  

"Wreckage on the Jersey Coast.

LONG BRANCH, March 3. -- The search continues for the bodies of the crew of the schooner John K. Shaw, which was sunk off Woodsland several days ago.  The sunken vessel now lies bottom up, and is supposed to be intact.  Parts of another vessel were washed ashore yesterday at Asbury Park.  The body which washed ashore near Bear island yesterday was buried to-day alongside of the other victims of the British bark Elmina.  The life saving crews will keep up the watch for bodies of the Shaw's crew.  The wife of Captain Osborn has offered a reward for the recovery of her husband's body."

Source:  Wreckage on the Jersey Coast, The Evening Bulletin [Maysville, KY], Mar. 3, 1884, p. 4, col. 1 (Note:  Subscription required to access via this link).

"The Newport.1 
[Footnote 1 reads:  "1 Reported by Edward G. Benedict, Esq., of the New York bar."]

Hatch and others v. The Newport. 

(District Court, S. D. New York. September 17, 1886.) 

Collision — Steamer And Schooner — Identity Of Colliding Vessel — Circumstantial Evidence—Witnesses Discredited—Costs Not Given. Libelants' three-masted schooner the S., which sailed on the twenty-first of February, 1884, from Newport News for New Haven, was sunk off the New Jersey coast, and all on board perished. The appearance of the wreck, discovered on the 24th, indicated collision as the cause of the loss. The steamer Newport, on the evening of the 23d, was in collision in the same neighborhood with a three-masted schooner. Libelants, claiming that the vessel struck by the Newport was the schooner S., and that she was sunk by the steamer's fault, brought this suit against the steam-ship for their loss. Held, on the evidence, some of the libelants' witnesses being discredited, that libelants had not established the identity of the Newport with the vessel that had sunk the S., and that the libel should be dismissed; but, considering the libelants' misfortune and probable case, without costs. 

In Admiralty. 
L. E. Chittenden and Geo. A. Black, for libelants. 
Goodrich, Deady & Goodrich, and R. D. Benedict, for claimants. 

Brown, J. In February, 1884, the libelants' three-masted schooner John K. Shaw, while on a voyage from Newport News to New Haven, and when some four or five miles off the Jersey coast, and about opposite Deal beach, was sunk, and all on board perished. She left Newport News between 12 and 1 o'clock P.M. of Thursday the 21st. In the afternoon of the 24th the spars of a wreck were seen projecting above water off Deal beach. The pilot of the tug-boat Maggie Moran, upon going near, found the afterpart of the deck afloat, and [Page 658 / Page 659] took off a bell having the name John K. Shaw upon it. Other parts of the wreck which came ashore, or were brought ashore afterwards, were identified as belonging to the John K. Shaw. 

There is no certain proof how the schooner was lost. She was deeply loaded, and had 19 tons of iron on deck. The wind on the night of the 23d was high from N.W., blowing about 50 miles per hour, with a considerable lumpy sea; and the weather during the afternoon previous was snowy. But the schooner is proved to have been staunch and sound, and her captain an experienced and capable officer, well acquainted with the coast; and the appearance of the wreck, from the breaking of the planks on the sides of the deck, indicated collision as the cause of the loss. 

The steamer Newport, bound from New York to Havana, when about opposite Deal beach, and at about 7 P.M. on the evening of the 23d, had a collision with a three-masted schooner. The libel charged that this schooner was the John K. Shaw, and that she was sunk by the steamer's fault, and claims $21,062 damages. The answer avers that the schooner with which the steamer collided was not the John K. Shaw, but some other schooner unknown to the claimants; and that the steamer's collision was a slight one, her starboard bow grazing the schooner's starboard quarter without injury to either vessel. 

Assuming that the John K. Shaw was sunk by a collision, the principal question in the case is whether the identity of these collisions has been satisfactorily established; in other words, whether, during the 24 hours preceding the afternoon of the 24th, when the wreck of the Shaw was first discovered, there were two collisions in that vicinity, or but one. 

As there is no direct proof identifying the John K. Shaw as the schooner with which the steamer collided, the evidence on the libelants' part is necessarily circumstantial only. The chief circumstances relied on to show that the schooners were one and the same are the following: (1) Both were three-masted schooners bound up the coast; (2) the John K. Shaw, from the time she left Newport News, might easily have been off Deal beach at the time of the Newport's collision, since only an average speed of four and one-half miles would have been requisite to bring her there at 7 P.M. of the 23d; (3) the site of the wreck when discovered in the afternoon of the 24th, was not far—certainly not over two or three miles—from the admitted place of the Newport's collision, and the latter place is but approximately fixed by estimates only; (4) one witness, the mess-boy of the Newport, testifies that he saw the schooner list and sink a few minutes after the collision, and when from a quarter to a half mile distant; and two others of her seamen, who watched the schooner from the steamer's port side, though they do not swear to seeing the schooner sink or capsize, think she must have sunk, because she vanished or disappeared suddenly when a half mile or thereabouts distant; (5) [Page 660 / Page 661] there was no other known wreck of a schooner at that time and place; (6) if the two schooners were not the same, then there were two collisions at about the same time and place, and hence two other colliding vessels to be accounted for; but there is no evidence of any other collision,—no other was reported, and no other vessel colliding with the Newport is proved. The Newport has not shown what other vessel it was, if any other, that collided with her or with the John K. Shaw. 

These circumstances present a pretty strong prima facie presumption and probability that it was the John K. Shaw with which the Newport collided. But the most important circumstance of all, if true, is that the schooner that collided with the Newport sank shortly after. If that could be deemed proved, it would have great weight in discrediting the opposing testimony; for, if another three-masted schooner had been sunk and lost there on the 23d, that fact would in all probability have become known and reported; although this, even, would not be certain, since it might be a schooner returning from a long voyage, and her wreck might have wholly disappeared. But one of the weakest parts of the libelants' testimony is the alleged sinking of the schooner with which the Newport collided. If, on the other hand, that schooner did not sink at the time, or is not known to have sunk; and, still more, if the direction and the kind of the colliding blow were not such as were likely to cause a schooner to sink; and if the schooner, after passing the steamer, showed no signs of sinking, and gave no signal for assistance, though means of doing so were at hand,—then the other circumstances relied on by the libelants are obviously wholly inconclusive. 

Careful consideration of the particulars, as regards each of the circumstances relied on by the libelants, has satisfied me not only that they are insufficient to establish their case by a preponderance of proof; but that, notwithstanding my first impressions to the contrary, the probabilities, upon the facts and circumstances proved by the claimants, are that, however the John K. Shaw may have been sunk, it was not through the Newport, but that the schooner colliding with the latter was another vessel. I shall state some of the chief reasons only for this conclusion, without going into all the details of the testimony. 

(1) There is no satisfactory proof that the schooner that collided with the Newport was substantially injured. The weight of direct proof, and the probabilities of the case, are to the contrary. The mess-boy is not supported by Murphy, who stood by him watching the schooner. The latter says she sailed away into the darkness, as usual, apparently uninjured. The testimony of the other two seamen for the libelants, that they thought she sank, is based upon her disappearing suddenly some five or ten minutes after the collision, and a half mile or so distant, whereas they thought she should have been seen longer; but their credibility and good judgment are cer- [Page 660 / 661] tainly not sustained by their further testimony that a schooner on that night could be seen, as the one says, seven miles, the other twenty miles, off. Four other witnesses who were watching the schooner from a better post of observation say that she gradually disappeared, sailing away, as usual, into the darkness, without apparent injury. The night was dark, being still clouded and thick to the south and east from the previous snow, but clearing to the westward. 

(2) Most of the witnesses say that the schooner, before the collision, was sailing close-hauled, and therefore heading about N. by E.; that her sails at the collision were shaking from an apparent luff to avoid the Newport; and all say that after raking past the steamer she sailed away, or filled away, upon her previous course, until she disappeared from sight. This would not be natural or probable if she had been seriously injured as to sink within 10 or 15 minutes after the collision. 

(3) The schooner gave no call for help, nor signal of any kind indicating disaster or need of assistance. As she passed the steamer, several of the witnesses heard something said from the quarter deck. Two witnesses say it was in substance, 'Where in h—l are you going;' an exclamation certainly not indicative of serious injury or impending disaster. After she had passed, a light like that of a lantern was seen on board; but it was not swung, nor was any other signal for help displayed. It is scarcely credible that the vessel should have filled away on her course, and exhibited no signal for help, if so damaged as to sink shortly after. 

(4) The libel alleges that the colliding blow was given on the schooner's starboard bow, forward of the foremast,—the lookout of the steamer so testifies; and, if this had been true, doubtless the schooner would have been cut in two or capsized. But all of the other witnesses of the collision disprove the lookout's account in this respect. The blow was clearly a glancing blow upon the schooner's starboard quarter, given when the schooner, having luffed somewhat, was heading either N. or a little W. of N., while the steamer was heading about S. 1-2 W.; and the schooner's quarter raked along the steamer's side, as shown by the mark on the latter, for some 50 or 60 feet, beginning about 25 feet from the steamer's stem. Such a blow was not one that would necessarily do much damage to either vessel. It did none to the steamer, and the subsequent conduct of the schooner would indicate that none was done to her. If so, that furnishes all the explanation called for to account for the absence of proof of the name of the schooner collided with. The collision, in this view, was not one that required reporting, and accordingly was not reported; and hence the schooner was unknown. The steamer, for the same reason, made no official report of her collision, as she would have done had it been accompanied by damage. 

(5) There is no certain proof that the Shaw was sunk by collision. [Page 661 / Page 662] The breaking of the sides of her deck might have occurred in foundering, and from the great weight of iron on deck. So far as the appearances indicate a collision, however, they would indicate a different kind of collision from that with the Newport, viz., a collision on the port side, instead of one on the starboard side; and in the waist, cutting her in two, instead of a glancing blow along the starboard quarter. The wreck of the Shaw showed the taffrail mainly in place, and the rail and stanchions for a considerable distance still standing on the starboard quarter much further than along the port quarter. A sideling blow from the Newport on the schooner's starboard quarter could only have caused her to sink from crushing in that part of her; and it is hardly conceivable that a blow sufficient to crush in her quarter could have left her rail and stanchions standing; and the Shaw's wreck indicated a blow, if any, upon the opposite side. 

(6) A moment or two before the collision, the steamer's wheel was hard a-starboard, and her engines were stopped for five minutes. Her previous speed, aided by the wind, was about 15 knots. Under her starboard wheel she swung to port till she headed due north, when she went ahead under one bell at 'half speed,' being about nine knots. In swinging round to due north she would have gone due east from the meridian of the collision at least a third of a mile. She continued going north about 10 or 15 minutes, without seeing any signs of the schooner, and then swung around again to the southward, and continued on her course. As the schooner was probably going at the rate of six to seven knots, if she continued on her course without injury she would not have been overtaken by the steamer, on this return of about two miles to the northward, after the five-minutes stop of her engines. But, if the schooner had been seriously damaged, she would not have been likely to continue under full sail to the northward; and she would probably have been seen, or at least some boats or signals for help would probably have come into view, since there was clearly ample time, while the schooner was in sight, and before the steamer had got headed to the northward, to have launched her small boats. 

(7) The weight of testimony leaves no doubt that on board the Newport there was not, at the time, any belief or thought that the schooner had been sunk or materially injured; and such is the entry in her log. All the circumstances point to this belief on their part; and the testimony of one or two of the discharged seamen to the contrary is not sustained. Every probability is otherwise. 

(8) It is not wholly insignificant that out of the seven witnesses that looked down upon the deck of the schooner as she passed the steamer, illuminated to some extent by the steamer's lights, not one noticed any deck cargo; while the Shaw's large deck-load of iron must have been easily distinguishable. 

(9) The evidence all tends to show that the place of the Newport's collision was some two or three miles from the place where the wreck [Page 662 / Page 663] of the Shaw was found the next afternoon. This conclusion depends, to some extent, on estimates; but by no means wholly so. The place of the wreck is fixed, by its bearings from the stations Nos. 5 and 6, as less than five miles off Deal beach. The officer at station No. 5 testified at the trial that it bore from his station S. E. He afterwards made affidavit that he should have said E. S. E.; and as it bore E. by N. from station No. 6, the former would make the wreck less than three miles from shore; the latter, four and a half miles. 

All the witnesses from the Newport, however, as well as three for the libelant, estimate the place of the collision as from seven to eight miles off shore. The master went out further than usual to avoid the many coasters that had gathered near shore during the thick and snowy weather previous. It is scarcely probable that all on board should have misjudged the distance from shore in the same way, by making it one-third greater than it was. 

The distance and course run by the steamer after passing Sandy Hook and Scotland lightship, and the bearing of the Highland lights, after the Newport had got headed north, confirm the estimates given by the witnesses of their distance from shore at nearly seven miles. Upon heading north, the Highland lights, as the pilot testifies, bore 'about N. N. W.;' the two lights being in range and showing as one. The master says that the Scotland lightship at the same time bore N. by W. westerly. By passing from half a mile to a mile to the eastward of the latter at 5:50 and running 40 minutes S. by E., and then 10 minutes S. 1/2 W., as the master testifies she did run, the steamer would have reached, at 6:40 P.M., when the engine was stopped, about 12£ miles from the Scotland light-ship, and would be bearing, when headed to the northward, within half a point of S. S. E. from the Highland lights, which the pilot says bore 'about N. N. W.;' and this would also bring the Scotland light-ship N. by W. westerly, as the master testifies. This would make the steamer about seven miles from shore. The mate's statement that the Highland lights bore N. N. W. from the steamer after she got headed south again, I consider a mistake, as it is not reconcilable with anything else in the case, nor with the libelants' theory. 

The witnesses upon whom the libelants rely for proof that the schooner struck by the Newport was seen to sink, not only testify under somewhat suspicious influences, but the force of their testimony is greatly weakened by the manifest mistakes and improbabilities that attend it. One of the witnesses, Anderson, who says the schooner disappeared suddenly when about half a mile distant, also says 'it was a clear night at the time;' that the steamer was 'under full speed;' that it was moonlight; and that without moonlight the schooner could not be seen a half mile off, but thinks it could have been seen a quarter of a mile. Now, the proof is certain that the steamer was not then under full speed, but that her engines were either stopped or going slow; that it was not then a clear night; and, [Page 663 / Page 664] as the moon fulled on the evening of February 11th, there was no moon above the horizon at 7 P.M. of the 23d. From this it is manifest that not only can no value be attached to the witness' inference that the schooner sank when half a mile off because she suddenly disappeared, but the false circumstances stated discredit him altogether. There are other circumstances that compel me to withhold confidence from the statements of the other witnesses that testify that they saw the schooner sink. 

These circumstances altogether are sufficient, as it seems to me, to explain and to outweigh the apparent probabilities against the Newport at first presented. Her narrative is not attended, so far as I can perceive, by any serious inconsistencies, or by any difficulties or improbabilities. I cannot regard the case of the libelants, therefore, as established by any such preponderance of proof as to warrant a decree against the Newport, and the libel must be dismissed. The Grace Girdler, 7 Wall. 196; The Albert Mason, 2 Fed. Rep. 821; S. C. 8 Fed. Rep. 768; The City of Chester, 18 Fed. Rep. 603. But, considering the misfortune of the libelants, and their apparent probable case, the dismissal may be without costs."

Source:  The Newport, 28 F. 658 (S.D.N.Y., 1886) (Federal Reporter).


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Friday, February 02, 2018

The Launch of the Schooner Yacht Katrina, Built in Pelham, on Tuesday, May 29, 1888


It was a magnificent yacht designed by famed marine architect A. Carey Smith for a pair of brothers:  Edgar Stirling Auchincloss and Hugh Dudley Auchincloss.  It was built in 1888 in the Pelham shipyard of Henrich Carl Christian "Henry" Piepgras once located at the eastern end of Pilot Avenue (today's Pilot Street) on City Island.  It was named "Katrina."  The grand yacht launched from the rails of the Piepgras shipyard into the waters of Long Island Sound on May 29, 1888.

I have written extensively about the Piepgras Shipyard that once operated on City Island in the Town of Pelham.  For one example of such articles, see:  Tue., Dec. 08, 2015:  Heinrich Carl Christian "Henry" Piepgras and His Shipyard in the Town of Pelham on City Island.  

The launch of any large ship from rails on City Island during the 19th and early 20th centuries was a grand spectacle.  Spectators crowded the shores and lined the gunwales of yachts and ships that crowded the nearby waters for the event.  Shipyard owners hosted celebrations in their yards for the workers and even served kegs of beer and gave the workers time off for their jobs well done.  Sometimes yacht owners and their families and friends would crowd onto their new vessels before the launch and ride the vessels down the rails for the monumental splash as the large ships plunged into the waters of the Sound.  Nearly always, the new owner (or a member of the owner's family) would smash a bottle of champagne or wine against the bow of the ship as the ship is named aloud and launched, a tradition intended to invite good luck on the vessel and its future crew and passengers.

On May 29, 1888, about fifty members of the Auchincloss families and their friends were on board the steamboat Laura M. Starin to watch the launch.  Among those on board with them for the celebration were Albert Bierstadt and Mr. John Hyslop, the measurer of the New York Yacht Club.

A daughter of one of the owners cracked a bottle of wine over the bow of the sloop to begin its slide down the rails.  As the Katrina struck the water amid cheers from spectators and vessel passengers.  A host of steamship and sailing yachts gathered for the celebration with steamships blowing their whistles as the yacht slid effortlessly into the water.  According to one account, "all the steam whistles and cannon in the neighborhood echoed their approval." Many spectators witnessed the grand event, including famed American painter of the Hudson River School Albert Bierstadt.  Henry Piepgras gave his shipyard workers a half-day holiday that day and provided them with kegs of beer at the shipyard to celebrate the launch of the Katrina.  

Work on the Katrina began with the laying of the keel shortly after the Great Blizzard of 1888 that occurred March 12-13, 1888.  That storm was so massive that, as one account of the launch of the Katrina put it, "all dates are now B.B. [Before Blizzard] and A.B. [After Blizzard] in Westchester."  By the time of the launch, the schooner was nearly complete.  A little work still needed to be done including rigging the spars of Oregon pine and fitting the interior with white pine and mahogany facing.  

Construction of the yacht cost about $15,000 (the amount budgeted for the work).  This would be about  $505,000 in today's dollars.   

An image of the Katrina is included below.  Her dimensions reportedly were about 84 feet over all; 69 feet 6 inches length of water line, 20 feet 4 inches beam, 12 feet 7-1/2 inches depth of hold and draught 9 feet 3 inches aft.  

Immediately the yachting world began calling for a race between the Katrina and the recently launched Titania also built at the Piepgras Shipyard.  Pelham, for a time, was the center of the yacht-building world.

 

 Katrina, A Sloop Built for Edgar Stirling Auchincloss and
Hugh Dudley Auchincloss in 1888 at the Piepgras Shipyard
in the Town of Pelham.  Source:  Wikimedia Commons.
NOTE:  Click Image to Enlarge.

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"HAIL!  KATRINA!
-----
LAUNCH OF THE NEW SLOOP OF MESSRS. AUCHINCLOSS AT CITY ISLAND.

With the broad bosomed Sound nodding her white caps in welcome, the new yacht Katrina, iron hull and sloop rig, was launched yesterday at Piepgras' ship yard on City Island.

Her keel was laid shortly after the blizzard (all dates are now B.B. and A.B. in Westchester) and in a week or two, or perhaps a little longer, she will be sparred and rigged ready for service.

'It was a won'erful fine launch!' said . . . one old [fellow] who has lived on City Island sixty years.

'I never saw a finer launch!' remarked Captain Herman Golden of the Lurline, Mr. J. M. Waterbury's fleet winged craft.

The verdict among the fifty persons who composed the party on board the new born offspring of the lathe, chisel and mallet was that she went off 'very slippery,' and the local genius in water lore had hopes that 'she'll be a terrible smart boat.'

Not a mishap occurred to mar the event.  The owners, Messrs. Edgar S. and Hugh D. Auchincloss, were present, accompanied by half a hundred friends, on the steamboat Laura M. Starin, among whom were Mr. John Hyslop, the measurer of the New York Yacht Club, and Albert Bierstadt, the artist.  A daughter of one of the owners cracked a bottle of wine over the bow of the sloop as she struck the water, and all the steam whistles and cannon in the neighborhood echoed their approval.  The workmen in the shipyard were given a half-holiday and beer was provided for them by the keg.

The Katrina's contract specified a cost of $15,000.  She was designed by A. Cary Smith.  Her dimensions are about 84 feet over all; 69 feet 6 inches length of water line, 20 feet 4 inches beam, 12 feet 7-1/2 inches depth of hold and draught 9 feet 3 inches aft.  She is to be rigged with spars of Oregon pine and fitted with white pine and mahogany facing.

A yachting expert alleged that the bow of the Katrina resembles the Thistle.  The stern is fashioned somewhat after that of the Priscilla, although much lighter than the latter.

Among the yachts about the launch were Mr. Augustus Mott's Puzzle, a roomy and elegantly fitted steam vessel; the Priscilla, which, under the ownership of Mr. R. Lenox Belknap, is being transformed into a schooner; the Bo-Peep, and the Mischief.

The Mischief is the property of Messrs. Auchincloss, and her captain and crew will man the Katrina.  

A hope was expressed yesterday that the Katrina, when ready, and the Titania should be matched for a race to test the relative merits of the respective designers -- Smith and Burgess."

Source:  HAIL!  KATRINA! -- LAUNCH OF THE NEW SLOOP OF MESSRS. AUCHINCLOSS AT CITY ISLAND, N.Y. Herald, May 30, 1888, No. 18,909, p. 8, col. 6

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Wednesday, December 13, 2017

Henry Piepgras Made Improvements to His Pelham Shipyard in 1888 and 1889


Heinrich Carl Christian "Henry" Piepgras purchased the David Carll Shipyard at the eastern end of Pilot Avenue (today's "Pilot Street") on City Island in the Town of Pelham in about 1885.  (To read more about the origins and history of the David Carll Shipyard, see Mon., Nov. 16, 2015: David Carll's Shipyard in the Town of Pelham on City Island.)  Henry Piepgras was a talented and masterful shipbuilder and ship architect.  He brought the art of iron and steel ship construction to Pelham after having become an expert in crafting lead keels (and building hollow masts for such ships) while working as a shipbuilder in Germany and, later, in Greenpoint, Brooklyn. 

Previous Historic Pelham articles have dealt with Henry Piepgras and his Pelham shipyard.  See, e.g.:

Mon., Nov. 27, 2006:  The 19th Century Ejectment of Henry Piepgras from Land Beneath the Waters Surrounding City Island.

Mon., Sep. 7, 2009:  More on the Ejectment of Henry Piepgras from Land Beneath the Waters Surrounding City Island.

Tue., Dec. 08, 2015:  Heinrich Carl Christian "Henry" Piepgras and His Shipyard in the Town of Pelham on City Island.

Thu., May 19, 2016:  Descriptions And Rare Drawings of Shipyards in 1892 on City Island in the Town of Pelham.

Wed., May 10, 2017:  More on 19th Century Efforts To Eject City Island Businesses from Land Beneath Waters Surrounding the Island.

Thu., Aug. 03, 2017:  Brief 1894 Account Shows Devastating Impact on City Island from Ejectment Action Pursued by Elizabeth De Lancey.

By 1889, Henry Piepgras had converted the old Carll Shipyard into a modern marvel.  That year it was described as "[o]ne of the principal features of City Island" with "better facilities than any other ship builder in the State of New York; in fact, with a few more improvements, would no doubt have the best of any on this continent."

When busy, as it was in 1889, the Piepgras Shipyard employed up to one hundred men -- the largest employer in Pelham.  The shipbuilding industry at the time likely was the second largest industry in Pelham, led only by the oystering industry that involved hundreds of small family-owned vessels.  

The economic impact of shipbuilders such as Henry Piepgras on such a small community as Pelham, of course, was substantial.  According to the same account quoted above, "[t]he benefits to be derived from this establishment to the store keepers and other men of business on this island can hardly be estimated."

By 1889, the Piepgras shipyard machinery alone was valued at $90,000 (about $3.1 million in today's dollars).  Piepgras had been engaged in extensive improvements to the yard calculated to expand the business.  For example, at about this time he used a steam dredger around the dock of the shipyard so that at low tide there still would be eleven feet of water allowing enough clearance for yachts of virtually any size of the day.  He also extended the shipyard one hundred feet further down the sloping "basin" that led to the water at that location to provide room for "more facilities for building purposes."  In addition, Piepgras had solidified all abutments at the water (and in the water) by building "crib work" around each abutment and filling that crib work with stone to secure the abutment.

At the very beginning of 1889, the Piepgras Shipyard was extremely busy.  A local newspaper reported on February 1 as follows:

"At present there are the keels of three yachts laid, one of which is all plated up.  The work is progressing as rapidly as workmen can be obtained.  There are now employed at this yard 82 men, and Mr. Piepgras expects shortly to have work enough for over 100 men.  Preparations are going on for the laying of two more keels, which will make five down at once.  All will be steel plated vessels and it is hoped that they will be all finished in time to take part in the coming spring races."  

Significantly, Piepgras clearly envisioned further expansion of the shipyard.  On November 1, 1889, Piepgras published notice that he intended, on December 24, 1889, to apply to the Commissioners of the Land Office of the State of New York in Albany "for a grant in perpetuity of certain lands under the waters of the Long Island Sound on the east shore of and adjacent to the upland now owned and occupied by said applicant."

Sadly, the application and the subsequent grant of such rights to Piepgras set into motion a series of events that virtually broke Piepgras and his shipyard.  Elizabeth De Lancey and other members of her family eventually sued Piepgras Shipyard and other City Island businesses, successfully obtaining court orders ejecting them from such land beneath the waters of Long Island Sound.  See the numerous articles cited and linked in the list above for more information about the extensive ejectment dispute that lasted throughout a large portion of the 1890s.

For a shining moment in the late 1880s, however, the Piepgras Shipyard on City Island in the Town of Pelham was a shining example of the best of the shipbuilding industry.



Henry Piepgras in an Undated Photograph (Detail from Advertising
Brochure for his Shipyard). Source: Ancestry.com Genealogical
Data for Heinrich Carl Christian Piepgras (Paid Subscription Required).
NOTE: Click Image to Enlarge.

*          *          *          *          *

"City Island.

Scarlet fever is quite prevalent here at present.  Mr. Robert Newman lost two children with that dreaded disease inside of two weeks, and fears are entertained by the people that it will spread all over the island.  Diphtheria is also raging here.

The Ben Franklin, an oyster sloop, was wrecked on the Sound during Sunday's gale.  The crew are supposed to be lost.  This fact was reported by Mr. Horton, a City Island pilot.

Those wanting summer homes on the Sound will do well to call on Mr. Reynolds, at his pharmacy, City Island.

A sociable was held at Mr. S. D. Horton's last night and a good time was spent by all present.

One of the principal features of City Island is Mr. Piepgras's ship yard.  At present there are the keels of three yachts laid, one of which is all plated up.  The work is progressing as rapidly as workmen can be obtained.  There are now employed at this yard 82 men, and Mr. Piepgras expects shortly to have work enough for over 100 men.  Preparations are going on for the laying of two more keels, which will make five down at once.  All will be steel plated vessels and it is hoped that they will be all finished in time to take part in the coming spring races.  Mr. P. has been using the steam dredger around the dock so that at low water, there will be 11 feet, and yachts of any size can lay up.  The yard has been extended 100 feet down into the basin, giving more facilities for building purposes.  The yard has been made perfectly solid at abuttments [sic] by building crib work and filling in with stone to properly secure it, and the earth taken from the basin has been used to fill in the 100 foot extension above mentioned.

It is said by those well posted in ship building, that Mr. Piepgras has better facilities than any other ship builder in the State of New York; in fact, with a few more improvements, would no doubt have the best of any on this continent.  The machinery alone in this yard has cost in the neighborhood of $90,000, not speaking of many other improvements that have been made since Mr. Piepgras took possession, about three years ago.

The benefits to be derived from this establishment to the store keepers and other men of business on this island can hardly be estimated.  It is well worth the while of those who have never seen a place of this kind to pay it a visit, and from the genial disposition of Mr. Piepgras, plenty of useful information can be obtained.

Quite a little interest is being manifested on City Island and in the neighborhood, over a case that is going through the Court here.  It is a case of cruelty to children.  The victim is a child only seven months old.  The grandmother of the infant testified on oath that the mother had brought the child to her and shown her its body covered with black and blue marks and had said that the father, Jonathan Bean had given it a severe whipping.  At the trial, however, Mrs. Bean claims that she did not say anything of the kind, and that she had never seen the father whip the child.  She had told the grandmother previously that she was afraid to have the father arrested for fear of the people.  The case was to come on again yesterday, but too late for us to repost it in this issue.  We hope, however, to have full particulars by our next."

Source:   City Island, The Chronicle [Mount Vernon, NY], Feb. 1, 1889, Vol. XX, No. 1,164, p. 3, col. 4.  

"NOTICE is hereby given that the undersigned applicant will apply to the Commissioners of the Land Office of the State of New York, at their office in the City of Albany, in said State, on the twenty-fourth day of December, A. D., 1889, at ten o'clock in the forenoon or as soon thereafter as said Commissioners may meet, for a grant in perpetuity of certain lands under the waters of the Long Island Sound on the east shore of and adjacent to the upland now owned and occupied by said applicant, and described as follows, viz:  All that certain piece or parcel of land under the waters of Long Island Sound, in front of and adjacent to uplands owned by Henry Piepgras situated on the easterly shore of City Island, in the Town of Pelham, County of Westchester, State of New York, described as follows:  Beginning at the most easterly corner of a grant to David Carll of December 3rd, 1863; the said point being distant three hundred feet north eighty-six degrees and forty-five minutes, east (true) from high water mark where the same is intersected by the southerly line of the upland of the said Henry Piepgras, and running thence north three degrees and fifty minutes west, (true) four hundred and forty three feet along the most easterly line of the said grant of December 3rd, 1863, and a grant to David Carll dated October 21st, 1875; thence north eighty-six degrees and forty-five minutes east, (true) two hundred and twenty-five feet; thence south three degrees and fifty minutes, east, (true) four hundred and forty-three feet; thence south eighty six degrees and forty-five minutes west, (true) two hundred and twenty-five feet to the place of beginning; containing two acres and twenty-nine one hundredths of an acre of land under water.  The upland adjacent thereto is owned and occupied by said applicant and is bounded as follows:  North by lands of the Duryea Estate, east by the Long Island Sound; south by lands of Benjamin F. Wood, and west by lands of George Horton and lands now or late of David Carll.  The soundings taken once in every fifty feet on the whole exterior water line of the land under water above described commencing at the most easterly corner of grant to David Carll above mentioned, are as follows:  eight and a half feet, ten feet, twelve and a half feet, thirteen feet, thirteen and a half feet, fourteen and a half feet, fifteen feet, fourteen and a half feet, fourteen and a half feet, fourteen feet, thirteen and a half feet, twelve and a half feet, twelve and a half feet, eleven feet, nine and a half feet, eight and a half feet, eight and a half feet, eight feet.  The mean rise of the tide is seven and a half feet.

Dated November 1st, 1880.

HENRY PIEPGRAS, Applicant.

A. B. CHALMERS,
Attorney for Applicant, 117 Nassau street, New York City."

Source:  NOTICE [Legal Notice], The Chronicle [Mount Vernon, NY], Nov. 15, 1889, Vol. XXI, No. 1,246, p. 1, col. 4.


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Thursday, August 03, 2017

Brief 1894 Account Shows Devastating Impact on City Island from Ejectment Action Pursued by Elizabeth De Lancey


During the early and mid-1890s, members of the Hunter family pursued an ejectment action alleging that they owned underwater lands all the way around City Island.  They sought to "eject" one of the largest shipyards on City Island -- that of Henry Piepgras -- from the land.  They asserted that the marine railways that extended into the waters, the shipyard docks, and other associated equipment that extended into the water trespassed upon their underwater land.

The lawsuit was a so-called "test case."  There were a host of such shipyards, as well as many other businesses that relied upon docks, etc.  All would be ruined if the underwater land rights were affirmed in favor of the Hunter family.  

In the mid-1890s, following lengthy litigation to have Henry Piepgras “ejected” from the land beneath the waters surrounding City Island, the Courts finally held that he could be excluded from such land beneath the water.  Elizabeth De Lancey erected a structure to shelter employees to guard against use of the land beneath the water. Piepgras made violent threats, then removed De Lancey’s structure, throwing it into Long Island Sound.  De Lancey brought a new lawsuit against Piepgras and the court ordered Piepgras to restore possession of the land beneath the water to De Lancey and to cease and desist from interfering with her enforcement of the execution of the judgment in the earlier action allowing her to take possession of the land beneath the water.  An appellate court affirmed the decision.  

The test case was over.  The result of the decision was devastating.  I have written extensively about the Piepgras Shipyard and its extensive legal battle with Elizabeth De Lancey and members of the Hunter family.  See Tue., Dec. 08, 2015:  Heinrich Carl Christian "Henry" Piepgras and His Shipyard in the Town of Pelham on City Island.  

During the late summer of 1893, the shipyard shut down and several hundred men lost their jobs.  At the time, according to one account, Henry Piepgras had "a large number of orders for the construction of yachts and ships" at the time.  

The shipyard remained shut down for six months as Henry Piepgras and his attorneys scrambled to reach some form of settlement with Elizabeth De Lancey and members of the Hunter family.  Hundreds of unemployed men waited in anticipation, hoping against hope that the matter could be resolved.  Hundreds of others feared for their jobs, knowing what likely would happen next:  enforcement of the underwater land rights against their own employers.  

Finally, on February 7, 1894, Piepgras and his attorneys reached a settlement with De Lancey.  The settlement was announced publicly the following day.  According to one brief account:  "When the settlement was announced today, the residents of City Island expressed much joy, as most of the men living on 'the island' are dependent upon the works for their living.  The yards have been shut down for six months on account of the legal controversy.  To-day the workmen celebrated the event."

Work at the shipyard restarted immediately.  Indeed, it took "several hundred men" to fulfill the backlog of orders for the construction of new yachts and other vessels by the following spring.



Henry Piepgras in an Undated Photograph
(Detail from Advertising Brochure for his Shipyard).
Subscription Required).  NOTE:  Click Image to Enlarge.

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"City Island.

For several months past the shipyard property of Henry Piepgras, at City Island, has been in litigation and recently the case was decided against Piepgras.  The plaintiff was Mrs. Delancey Hunter, who claimed that she had a right to the property under land grants dating back 200 years.  Yesterday Piepgras effected a settlement with the claimant.  Piepgras is one of the most prominent ship and yacht-builders in the vicinity.  When the settlement was announced today, the residents of City Island expressed much joy, as most of the men living on 'the island' are dependent upon the works for their living.  The yards have been shut down for six months on account of the legal controversy.  To-day the workmen celebrated the event.  Piepgras has a large number of orders for the construction of yachts and ships, and will at once proceed to put men to work in building them.  This will give employment to several hundred men, in order to get the yachts cut by spring."

Source:  City Island, The Evening Post [NY, NY], Feb. 8, 1894, p. 4, cols. 1-2.


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Friday, June 16, 2017

Origins of Ship Repair and Shipbuilding on City Island in the Town of Pelham


Even before the Revolutionary War, people such as Benjamin Palmer recognized that the island known today as City Island was ideally situated to attract and service vessels sailing to and from nearby New York City.  Indeed, Palmer devised a grandiose plan to rename the island (then known as Minneford Island) as "City Island" and to develop it as a deep water harbor town intended to rival, and compete with, New York City's port of New York Harbor.  That plan, of course, ended ignominiously with the onset of the Revolutionary War.

Nevertheless, during the nineteenth century, City Island became an important ship repair, shipbuilding, and yachting center.  Famed City Island resident George Washington Horton seems to have played an instrumental role in the birth of the ship repair and shipbuilding industry on the island.

During the mid-1850s, George Washington Horton and members of his family owned a large swath of City Island including a tract at the foot of the eastern end of what is known today as "Pilot Street."  Horton was a maritime entrepreneur, of sorts, involved in a host of money-making ventures on the island.  

In 1856, Horton or members of his family apparently sensed an entrepreneurial opportunity to repair and service the many local sloops, skiffs, ships, boats, and all manner of local vessels that frequented the island not far from the notoriously-treacherous rocks of Hell Gate.  They arranged for a New Rochelle man named Underhill, under the supervision of George Washington Horton, Jr., to construct and oversee a short marine railway at the east foot of what was known then as Pilot Avenue (today's Pilot Street). Typically, at the time, a "marine railway" was a railway with a rolling cradle for hauling ships out of water onto land and returning them into the water. 

The marine railway was intended to permit short-hauling, servicing, and maintenance of local water craft -- or vessels from elsewhere that suffered distress locally. Underhill, however, seems to have operated this early shipyard (or simple marine railway) for only a brief time since a man named Samuel Hart replaced Underhill within a short time. Significantly, it now seems, Samuel Hart was from Northport, Long Island, New York. 

According to City Island shipyard specialist Tom Nye of UK Sailmakers LLC at 175 City Island Avenue in City Island, Bronx, New York: 

"Hart at that time operated a shipyard in the Northport area and was in the middle of a lease dispute with the town of Huntington and during the long litigation found the opportunity to take over the railway at City Island. Sam Hart along with another Northport shipbuilder James Ketcham ran a small business advertising for the repairing, painting, cleaning, caulking, and building of vessels of a limited size on their railway." 

Source:  Nye, Tom, Subject Re: RONDEL PAINTING: City Island, email from Tom Nye to Jorge Santiago, Oct. 23, 2013, 9:48:37 A.M. Eastern Daylight Time (copy in files of the author). 

Thereafter, Samuel Hart (according to an account published in 1900) began to do a "large business in repairing vessels injured by striking the rocks in Hell Gate or getting ashore around Hart's Island."  

At about this time, or at least by 1859, David Carll and his brother, Jesse, were operating a shipyard in Northport. (According to a letter written by David Carll in 1875, he began working as a shipbuilder in 1854, although it is not yet known by this author if he began his work at that time with his brother in Northport.)  Be it sibling rivalry, business differences or something else, in 1859 David Carll decided to leave the shipyard in Northport and explore an opportunity with two friends on City Island: Samuel Hart and Northport shipbuilder James Ketcham who were operating the marine railway and tiny shipyard at the foot of Pilot Avenue. Id. 

That year, David Carll built the 37-foot sloop Bell for James Sackett using the Pilot Street railway on City Island. Shortly afterward, Carll bought the business and established David Carll's Shipyard. Id. David Carll remained partners with his brother, Jesse, in the Northport shipyard venture until the pair settled on a buyout of David's interest in 1865. Id.  For more about the early success of the David Carll shipyard, see Mon., Nov. 16, 2015:  David Carll's Shipyard in the Town of Pelham on City Island.



"View of City Island" by Frederick Rondel, 1872. Oil on Canvas
Painting, 20.25 inches x 30 inches. This Painting Depicts the
Marine Railway at David Carll's Shipyard in 1872. NOTE:  Click
on Image to Enlarge.

Given City Island's strategic location, it should come as no surprise that the island was used for ship repair many years before the first marine railway was established on the island in the 1850s.  Indeed, as early as 1821, a sloop from Newport, Rhode Island was hauled out at City Island for repairs.  So far, this is the earliest reference to City Island ship repair or shipbuilding research has revealed to this author.  The brief reference is quoted in full immediately below:

"MARINE LIST. . . .

The sloop Agent, Blisen, from Newport, hauled ashore yesterday at City Island, to stop a leak. . . ."

Source:  MARINE LIST, The Evening Post [NY, NY], Feb. 14, 1821, No. 5818, p. 3, col. 1 (Note:  Paid subscription required to access via this link). 

In short, Pelham's long tradition of ship repair and shipbuilding is nearly two centuries old -- at least!

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