Caldwell H. Colt (pilot boat)
The Caldwell H. Colt was a 19th-century Sandy Hook pilot boat, built in 1887 for New York Pilots. She was one of the pilot-boats that was in the Great Blizzard of 1888, that was one of the most severe blizzards in American history. In 1903, she was sold to Pensacola, Florida pilots.
 New York pilot boat Caldwell H. Colt, No. 13. | |
| History | |
|---|---|
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| Name: | Caldwell H. Colt |
| Namesake: | Caldwell Hart Colt, inventor and yachtsman |
| Owner: | New York Pilots |
| Operator: | Thomas Dougherty |
| Builder: | Hathorne & Steers shipyard |
| Cost: | $14,000 |
| Launched: | September 13, 1887 |
| Christened: | September 13, 1887 by Elizabeth Colt Beach |
| Out of service: | June 30, 1903 |
| Fate: | Sold on June 30, 1903 |
| General characteristics | |
| Class and type: | schooner |
| Tonnage: | TM |
| Length: | 75 ft 0 in (22.86 m) |
| Beam: | 21 ft 6 in (6.55 m) |
| Depth: | 8 ft 10 in (2.69 m) |
| Propulsion: | Sail |
Construction and service
New York pilot boat Caldwell H. Colt, was built in 1887 at the Samuel H. Pine's shipyard, on Kent Street in Greenpoint, Brooklyn. She had 13 letters in her name, was launched on the 13th, and had 13 members of The Thirteen Club on board during her launch. She had 13 berths in her hold and a crew of 13 men. Elizabeth Colt Beach, age 13, christened the boat. She was 75 feet in length, 21 feet 6 inches beam, and depth of hold 8 feet 10 inches. Her cabin was finished in maple and satin wood.[1] The boat number "13" was painted as a large number on her mainsail, that identified the boat as belonging to the Sandy Hook Pilots. Captain Thomas Dougherty was one of her pilots.[2] She was named in honor of Caldwell Hart Colt, an inventor, yachtsman, and owner of the schooner Dauntless.[3]
On March 12, 1888, in the Great Blizzard of 1888, the pilot-boat Caldwell H. Colt, No. 13 along with other pilot-bats, was caught up in one of the most severe blizzards in American history. Newspaper reporter William O. Inglis of The New York World, was on the Colt during the storm near Long Island, to write a story about the life of on a pilot-boat in the winter. Inglis describes his experience when great waves poured icy water into the cabin, burned out the stove, and left her with water filled bunks. When the winds subsided, senior pilot James Fairgreaves was able to pump the water from her cabin and sail her into port.[4][5]
End of service
On June 30, 1903, the pilot-boat Caldwell H. Colt was sold to Captain Frank Dunn, of the Pensacola pilots for $6,000. He sailed the Colt out from New York to Florida.[6]
References
- "Pilot Boat Number Thirteeen". The Standard Union. Brooklyn, New York. 13 Sep 1887. p. 2. Retrieved 8 September 2020 – via Newspapers.com.
- "On the Story". Harper's Weekly, Volume 54. 2 July 1910. Retrieved 28 Nov 2020. Cite journal requires
|journal=(help) - "Yachting Ripples". The Boston Globe. Boston, Massachusetts. 31 Jul 1887. p. 8. Retrieved 2020-12-05 – via Newspapers.com.
- Russell, Charles Edward (1929). From Sandy Hook to 62°. New York: Century Co. pp. 216–222. OCLC 3804485.
- "Blizzard At Sea". The Brooklyn Daily Eagle. Brooklyn, New York. 10 Mar 1946. p. 21. Retrieved 2020-12-05.
- "What Transpired Today With Pilots. What was Paid For The New Arrival". The Pensacola News. Pensacola, Florida. 30 Jan 1903. p. 1. Retrieved 2020-12-05 – via Newspapers.com.