Frank
A. Palmer and Louise B. Crary
The
multi-masted coal schooners Frank A. Palmer and Louise
B. Crary collided on 17 December 1902 and their connected
remains lie in the deep waters of the sanctuary. The two Maine-built
vessels represent some of the largest 19th century coastal trading
vessels. Each vessel is still loaded with 3000 tons of coal shipped
from Virginia. In 2002, the sanctuary and the National Undersea
Research Center at the University of Connecticut (NURC-UConn),
located Frank A. Palmer and Louise B. Crary with
side scan sonar using information provided by shipwreck researchers
Arnold Carr and John Fish.
Side scan sonar image of the Frank A. Palmer and Louise
B.Crary. Courtesy of NOAA/SBNMS and NURC-UConn.
The 4-masted schooner Frank A. Palmer was built by Nathaniel
Palmer in Bath, Maine in 1897 to carry coal between the Chesapeake
Bay and New England. The wooden-hulled vessel measured 274 feet
long by 43 feet wide with a 21-foot depth of hold. Historians
believe that it was the longest 4-masted schooner ever built.
Frank A. Palmer had an eventful career, surviving several
collisions and grounding before its loss.
Historical photograph of Frank A. Palmer.
Courtesy of the Maine Maritime Museum.
Three
years after Frank A. Palmer slid into Maine's Kennebec
River, the New England Shipbuilding Company of Bath, Maine launched
the 267-foot long Louise B. Crary. It too was designed
to carry coal between the Chesapeake Bay and New England.
Historical photograph of Louise B. Crary.
Courtesy of the Maine Maritime Museum.
The
two schooners collided on 17 December 1902 in Massachusetts Bay
enroute from Newport News, Virginia to Boston, Massachusetts.
Within minutes of the collision, 6 of the 21 sailors lost their
lives when the schooners plummeted to the bottom. The remaining
15 sailors made it into Frank A. Palmer's lifeboat. During
the following 4 nights, 5 more men perished from exposure in the
open boat before being rescued 60 miles off Cape Cod, MA.
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The
schooners sit upright in the sanctuary's deep water. The
vessels' are in an excellent state of preservation, providing
researchers a unique opportunity to explore two similar
vessels at one location.
The
sanctuary visited the site in 2003, 2004, and 2005 with
an ROV to gather imagery and assess its condition.
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Frank
A. Palmer's hull is covered with frilled anemones. Courtesy
of NOAA/SBNMS and NURC-UConn.
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These
expeditions explored Louise B. Crary's portside and bow
with its partially intact bowsprit and Frank A. Palmer's
stern cabin. The sanctuary will continue to investigate this site
to learn more about the great coal schooners and their part in
the New England coal trade at start of the twentieth century.
Frank A. Palmer's helm is still mostly intact.
Courtesy of NOAA/SBNMS and NURC-UConn.
Frank A. Palmer's stern with bitts used to tie the vessel
up
in port. Courtesy of NOAA/SBNMS and NURC-UConn.
Louise B. Crary's bow is intact including portions of the
bowsprit. NOAA/SBNMS, NURC-UConn, and the Science Channel.
The top of one of Louise B. Crary's main masts lies on
the
seafloor next to the schooner. NOAA/SBNMS,
NURC-UConn, and the Science Channel.
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