October 2008 MAINE COASTAL NEWS Page 27.
Maritime History: Dec. 1907 and Jan. 1908
By Jon B. Johansen Valley barge BLACK TOM had been at
The early 1900s was a time of tremen- Mack’s Point about a month awaiting a tow.
dous change along the coast of Maine. Ship- With all their free time the captain and crew
building was nearly gone; yachts were be- had been digging clams at Sears Island and
ginning to be constructed and enjoyed dur- catching smelts off the dock. Captain Smith
ing the pleasant summer months; sailing said that these were the best clams he had
vessels were slowly being replaced by steam- ever had.
ers; and tourists were beginning to come in Technology was slowly being added to
droves looking to enjoy cooler temperatures. ships to assist in making passages safer and
The commercial fishing industry was doing communications easier. It was announced
well, but commercial shipping was dull. that wireless telegraph equipment and the
The following is a compilation of the submarine bell signal systems would be
maritime news from the Republican Journal added to the steamers of the American Ha-
of Belfast for part of December 1907 and waiian Steam Ship Co.
January 1908. For the curious some of the For the past couple of years the iron
information contained will spark a desire to steamer BENAFACTOR has been an extra
search out additional knowledge of certain boat employed by the Eastern Steamship Co.
vessels, companies and the people who made on the Bangor run. It was announced that she
it all happen. had been sold to a Baltimore party and will be
What I am thankful for is that the journal- converted into a coal barge. Previous to
The 203-foot steamer LINCOLN, which was built at the New England Shipbuilding Co. in
ists of that time were documenting the coastal running as a steamer for the Eastern Steam-
1897. She only operated in Maine for several years before being sold to the westward.
history, which if they had not would be lost. ship Co. she had been a Clyde liner running
sea running she pounded until she filled with
been thrown over to lighten the schooner
In the late 1800s obituaries were flowery between Philadelphia and New York for over
water. As two of the crew went to lower one
and this was gathered by numerous local
write-ups on all the person’s civic involve- 30 years.
of the boats, a frozen block caused one end
boats. However during the night, when the
ment and little to nothing on what he had Another vessel with an interesting his-
not to move and the other to drop. Fortu-
crew was ashore, more of this cargo was
accomplished during his life. This fortunately tory was the steamer HECTOR, which was
nately the crew was able to cling to the
removed from the deck by the local boats.
changes after the turn of the century. I am the former Spanish steamer PEDRO, the first
rigging and get rescued. Once the boat was
This was high grade lumber and many made
also pleased that these writers covered yacht- prize captured by the Americans in the Span-
freed the captain and crew rowed to Islesford
an excellent haul.
ing. Little has been documented any where ish American War. She was now carrying
where the captain made calls to find a tug.
We knew more about the vessels that
on this aspect of our maritime history and sulfur from Sabine Pass, PA to Mack’s Point,
The Bath tug PEJEPSCOT was towing a
plied the coast, but little of the ones plying
from the little snippets in these papers I have which was used by the Great Northern Paper
barge loaded with pulp wood for Bath when
the lakes. The former steam yacht
identified boatbuilders, who had not been Co.
she sighted the wrecked schooner. With no
GUENEVERE, which was owned by Mr.
listed previously, and learned about the People along all the coasts world-wide
one on board they figured to float her at high
Groeschner, a summer resident of Northport,
yachts themselves. Even if you do not have hoped for a ship to come to grief close by so
tide. He came in and anchored the barge and
was sold the Coomb Brothers of Islesboro.
the desire for learning history, this is still that they could benefit and this happened
went back out. In the meantime the crew had
She was converted to carrying passengers
great reading. here and there along this coast. In early
returned and the tug BETSY ROSS had ar-
and freight between Belfast, Northport and
19 December: Three days previous, it December the Bourne schooner GOLDEN
rived to lend assistance. They tried to free the
Islesboro and renamed the EDNA. She had
was announced that 16 first class battleships BALL, Captain Shanklin, was making a pas-
schooner, but to no avail. The captain then
now been sold to Moosehead Lake interests
of the U. S. Navy, under the command of Rear sage from St. John, New Brunswick to New
asked the PEJEPSCOT to try, since she was
and was hauled out at Belfast and waited to
Admiral Robley D. Evans sailed from Old Bedford, MA with a cargo of shingles, laths
larger and more powerful. She succeeded
be moved by rail to her new home.
Point Comfort, Virginia for the Pacific. and clapboards. She tried to make Southwest
and towed her into Bass Harbor. It was noted
Continued on Page 28.
The captain and crew of the Lehigh Harbor, but hit Bunker’s Ledge. With a large
that half of the deck load was gone. Some had
Page 22. MAINE COASTAL NEWS February 2008
I n t e r n a t i o n a l M a r i t i m e L i b r a r y
Help Save All Facets of Maritime History
The International Maritime Library (IML) is a non-profit tax-deductible organization dedicated to the collection and
preservation of all maritime information, such as books, periodicals, documents, personal papers and photographs and then
computerizing it for ease of reference. Those interested will have access to the reference materials and the databases created from
them, either on-site at IML or via the website.
Presently, there is no facility dedicated to collecting and researching all the written maritime works, past and present,
published around the globe. IML will fill this immense void by collecting published and personal works, and computerizing it.
IML’s collections and computerized works will assist maritime academic institutions, businesses and the public allowing
them quick access to information with the touch of a button. With the technological advances in today’s world, the maritime
industry is well behind in what is available via computers. There have been thousands of maritime books and periodicals
published throughout history, which presently cannot be referenced. Those looking for current or historical information spend
hundreds hours, and may never locate that obscure piece of information. IML will change this by creating a single source for all
maritime information.
ON-GOING PROJECTS INCLUDE:
Transcribing maritime articles from: Maine Industrial Journal (1880 to 1918);
Bangor Whig & Courier (1836-1899); Republican Journal (1829 to present);
and various others including Eastern Argus (Portland), Bath Daily Times,
Eastport Sentiniel, Ellsworth American, New Bedford Mercury, Salem
I want to join
Gazette and Boston Evening Transcript.
Databasing - List of Merchant Vessels, 1867 to 1990s. Sail completed, Steamers
Admiral of the Fleet$1,000.00
Captain $100.00
(1867 to 1903) will be finished end of 2009
Admiral $500.00
Lieutenant $50.00
Transcribing Appleby's Ship Records for Maine and the WPA Ship Documents,
Commodore $250.00
Midshipman $25.00
especially ones not published. Passamaquoddy Complete and presently
working on Bath.
Name:
Also, there are over 800 periodicals published in the maritime world and not one
library holds a quarter of them. IML will bridge this problem by collecting and comput-
Address:
erizing them for future use by researchers and the general public.
There is a massive amount of work to be done to accomplish these goals, which
City: State: Zip:
should have been started 150 years ago!
Send to:
To make this happen we need financial support, please help us do more! For more
The International Maritime Library, P.O. Box 710, Winterport, Maine 04496
information please call (207) 223-8846.
Dedicated to the Preservation of Maritime Writings
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