Thomas Willett, celebrating July 4th, 1908.
History
Flag of the City of New YorkNew York City Fire Department
NameThomas Willett
NamesakeThomas Willett
Port of registryNew York City, United States
BuilderT. S. Marvel Shipbuilding, Newburgh, NY[1]
Yard number185
Completed1908
Out of service1959
Renamed
  • Engine 86
  • Engine 78
  • Marine 5
FateSold, converted to passenger vessel by Circle Line
United StatesUnited States
NameCircle Line XIV
OwnerCircle Line Sightseeing Cruises
Acquired1959
IdentificationUSCG Doc #: 204989
StatusFloating office in Morris Canal Basin, Jersey City
General characteristics
TypeFireboat
Displacement580 net tons
Length123 ft (37 m)
Beam27 ft (8.2 m)
Draft14 ft (4.3 m)
Speed14 knots
Capacity9000 gpm


Thomas Willett was a New York City Fire Department fireboat.[2] She was launched in 1908 and retired in 1959. She was built as a steam-engine powered vessel with coal-fired boilers. She was converted to oil-fired boilers in 1926.

Operational history

At 02:00 hrs on July 5, 1927, a fire was discovered among cotton bales in the number 6 cargo hold of RMS Ebro as she approached New York. She docked in the North River just before 10:00 hrs, disambarked her passengers, and then John Purroy Mitchel and Thomas Willett fought the fire. It was extinguished by 14:00 hrs.[3]

On August 14, 1927, a tugboat of the New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad, towing two barges of railway rolling stock, collided with a train of rock barges towed by Henry F. Wills.[4] Thomas Willett responded, when one barge was sunk and others damaged, saving their crew.

Circle Line XIV seen in September 2019.

The FDNY retired Thomas Willett in 1959 and put her up for public sale.[2] She was acquired by Circle Line Sightseeing Cruises, who converted here into a tour boat and renamed her Circle Line XIV. As of 2021 she survives in Morris Canal Basin, Jersey City, as a floating office for Statue Cruises.[5]

References

  1. ^ "T. S. Marvel Shipbuilding, Newburgh NY". Shipbuilding History. Retrieved 22 April 2021.
  2. ^ a b "Fireboat on block". The New York Times. 1959-11-14. p. B42. Retrieved 2017-03-24 – via Times Machine.
  3. ^ "Conceals ship fire from passengers". The New York Times. 1927-07-06. p. 11. Retrieved 2024-03-05 – via Times Machine.
  4. ^ "20 Saved as Barges are Rammed in Dark". The New York Times. 1927-08-15. p. 8. Retrieved 2017-03-24 – via Times Machine. The crew of the fireboat Thomas F. Willett rescued Captain John Webber, 50 years old, and his wife, Dorothy, from the sinking rock barge Moonstone, which was rammed off the Statue of Liberty early yesterday morning, and eighteen men and women, captains and their wives from eight other barges which were cut adrift but were undamaged.
  5. ^ "Circle Line XIV". ShipSpotting. Retrieved 22 April 2021.

40°42′40″N 74°03′02″W / 40.711020°N 74.050684°W / 40.711020; -74.050684

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