Sinking of Pilot Boat Edward Cooper, 25 Dec 1892.
History
United States
NameEdward Cooper
NamesakeEdward Cooper, mayor of New York City
OwnerNew York Pilots: Jacob Heath, J. B. Lockman, Thomas F. Murphy, J. J. Russell, George Waldie, James Rowan[1]
Operator
  • Jacob E. Lockman (1879-1880)
  • George Waldie (1881-1883)
  • Jacob Heath, John Taylor, James Smith (1884-1893)
BuilderSamuel Pine shipyard
LaunchedApril 8, 1879
ChristenedApril 8, 1879
Out of serviceFebruary 27, 1892
FateSank (1892)
General characteristics
Class and typeschooner
Tonnage58-tons TM
Length78 ft 8 in (23.98 m)
Beam21 ft 6 in (6.55 m)
Depth8 ft 2 in (2.49 m)
PropulsionSail

The Edward Cooper was a 19th-century Sandy Hook pilot boat, built in 1879 for New York Pilots at Greenpoint, Brooklyn. She was named in honor of the Mayor of New York City. The Edward Cooper helped transport New York City maritime pilots between inbound or outbound ships coming into the New York Harbor. She survived the Great Blizzard of 1888. In 1892, the Cooper sank in a snowstorm and was replaced by the Joseph Pulitzer in 1894.

Construction and service

On April 8, 1879, the Edward Cooper, was launched from the Samuel Pine shipyard in Greenpoint, Brooklyn at the foot of Kent Street. A large number of guests attended and a photograph of the boat was taken. During the Ceremonial ship launching, Sadie W. Heath christened the boat by breaking a sacrificial bottle of champagne over the bow. The Edward Cooper, was named in honor of the Mayor of New York City (1879–1880). The boat number "20" was painted as a large number on her mainsail, that identified her as belonging to Sandy Hook pilot No. 20. Captain Jacob E. Lockman was in command.[1][2]

The Edward Cooper, was registered as a Pilot Schooner with the Record of American and Foreign Shipping, from 1881 to 1893. Her ship master was George Waldie (1881-1883) and Captain Jacob Heath (1884-1893); her owners were N. Y. Pilots; built in 1879 at the Greenpoint, New York; and her hailing port was the Port of New York. Her dimensions were 78.8 ft. in length; 21.6 ft. breadth of beam; 8.2 ft. depth of hold; and 58-tons Tonnage.[3]

In 1885, the Edward Cooper, No. 20, was on a cruise to Sable Island and came across the Thingvalla ocean liner Island off the Grand Banks of Newfoundland, that had broken her rudder. The Cooper saved her by attaching steel cables to the liner, which were used as a drag and rudder.[4]

In the Great Blizzard of 1888, Edward Cooper, No. 20, was one was one of 17 vessels out on pilot duty at the time of the storm. She went ashore on the Long Island coast. The pilot and crew took cover at a house near the Sandy Hook Lighthouse. Mrs. W. W. Stewart fed the men and allowed them to stay the night. The men from the pilot boats Edward F. Williams, and the Centennial, joined them.[5][4]: p108  John Taylor was attached to the Edward Cooper, in 1889.[6][7]

On February 27, 1892, Pilot James Smith fell overboard and drowned off Barnegat Light, New Jersey, while trying to board the steamer Van Dyck from the pilot-boat Edward Cooper, No. 20.[8]

End of service

On Christmas Day, December 25, 1892, the Cooper fell victim of a snowstorm when waves crashed into the boat causing her to sink. The crew were rescued by the Wilson Line S. S. Marengo. Thomas Marks and John Hammer were pilots on the Cooper.[9][10] The Edward Cooper was replaced by the Joseph Pulitzer, No. 20, on February 21, 1894, at Essex, Massachusetts for the New York Captain Jacob M. Heath.[11]

See also

References

  1. ^ a b "A New Pilot Boat". Times Union. Brooklyn, New York. 7 Apr 1879. p. 3. Retrieved 2021-03-02.
  2. ^ "Launch of a Pilot Boat". Times Union. Brooklyn, New York. 8 Apr 1879. p. 1. Retrieved 2021-03-02.
  3. ^ "Index to Ship Registers". research.mysticseaport.org. Mystic seaport. Retrieved 2 Mar 2021.
  4. ^ a b Cunliffe, Tom (2001). Pilots, The World Of Pilotage Under Sail and Oar. Brooklin, Maine: Wooden Boat Publications. p. 100. ISBN 9780937822692.
  5. ^ Russell, Charles Edward (1929). From Sandy Hook to 62°. New York: Century Co. pp. 205, 271. OCLC 3804485.
  6. ^ "Talk Of The Capitol". Camden Daily Telegram. Camden, New Jersey. 20 Sep 1889. p. 4. Retrieved 2021-01-29.
  7. ^ "Up In The Pilot House. Veterans Who Pass a Life of Hairbreadth Scapes". The Des Moines Register. Des Moines, Iowa. 12 Sep 1886. p. 6. Retrieved 2021-04-21.
  8. ^ "Pilot James Smith drowned". Times Union. Brooklyn, New York. 29 Feb 1892. p. 1. Retrieved 2021-03-02.
  9. ^ Allen, Edward L. (1922). Pilot Lore From sail to Steam. New York: The United New York and New Jersey Sandy Hook Pilots Benevolent Associations. pp. 18, 51.
  10. ^ "Left Her A Sinking Hulk. Pilot Boat Edward Cooper Dismasted in Midocean" (PDF). New York Times. New York, New York. January 8, 1893. Retrieved 2021-09-07.
  11. ^ "This Is Her Maiden Cruise. The Handsome New Pilot-Boat Joseph Pulitzer". The Evening World. New York, New York. 26 Mar 1894. p. 1. Retrieved 4 Dec 2020 – via Newspapers.com.


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