Edwin Forrest (pilot boat)

The Edwin Forrest was a 19th-century pilot boat first built in 1855, as a New York pilot-boat. She was named in honor of the American actor, Edwin Forrest. The second Edwin Forrest was built for the Boston Pilots in 1865 to replace the New York Edwin Forrest, No. 14, that was lost in 1862. She attained celebrity for her speed and stability.

Pilot Boat Edwin Forrest No. 4., photograph by William Pierce Stubbs.
History
US
Name: Edwin Forrest
Namesake: Edwin Forrest, American Shakespearean actor
Owner:
  • N. Y. Pilots (New York Pilot Boat)
  • A. Nash & Co. (Boston Pilot Boat)
Operator:
  • Henry Harbinson (New York Pilot Boat)
  • J. H. Jeffreys (Boston Pilot Boat)
Builder:
Laid down:
  • 1862 (New York Pilot Boat)
  • 1882 (Boston Pilot Boat)
Launched:
  • 1855 (New York Pilot Boat)
  • 1865 (Boston Pilot Boat)
Fate:
  • Lost on Long Island (New York Pilot Boat)
  • Sold (Boston Pilot Boat)
General characteristics
Class and type: schooner
Tonnage:
  • 100-tons TM (New York Pilot Boat)[1]
  • 36-tons TM (Boston Pilot Boat)[2]
Length:
  • 75 ft 0 in (22.86 m) (New York Pilot Boat)
  • 66 ft 6 in (20.27 m) (Boston Pilot Boat)
Beam:
  • 20 ft 3 in (6.17 m) (New York Pilot Boat)
  • 19 ft 3 in (5.87 m) (Boston Pilot Boat)
Depth:
  • 8 ft 0 in (2.44 m) (New York Pilot Boat)
  • 7 ft 0 in (2.13 m) (Boston Pilot Boat)
Propulsion: Sail

Construction and service

Edwin Forest, No. 14

The New York pilot-boat Edwin Forrest No. 14, was built by Jacob A. Westervelt's Sons & Co. and designed by Aaron J. Westervelt. Pilot Henry Harbinson was the captain. She was launched on 27 March 1855, from the Westervelt shipyard at the foot of Houston Street for a company of New York and Sandy Hook pilots. She was named in honor of the great American Shakespearean actor Edwin Forrest. He was also a guest at the launch and gave a speech and toast complimentary to the pilots.[1] The Forrest model was the same as for the pilot-boat Jacob A. Westervelt and was by the same Westervelt builders.[3]

On 2 April 1855, a successful trial trip of the Pilot-Boat Edwin Forrest was made from the Battery and proceeded down the bay, with quests on board, as far as the Sandy Hook Lightship. On her return, the pilots were able to test her speed and strength against the pilot-boat Christian Bergh, No. 16. Captain Henry Harbinson was in command of the Forrest during her cruise.[4][5]

The Edwin Forest No. 14, was one of only twenty-one New York pilot boats in 1860.[6] On October 10, 1860, New York Sandy Hook Pilot Henry Harbinson, of the pilot boat Edwin Forrest, No. 1, signed a statement along with other pilots, that he was satisfied with the representation he had received from the New York Board of Commissioners of Pilots.[7]

The Edwin Forest was lost on Long Island in 1862.[8]

Edwin Forest No. 4

The new Boston pilot-boat Edwin Forrest was launched in 1865 from the Dennison J. Lawlor's stone-lined slip at Buck's Wharf in Chelsea, Massachusetts. Lawlor designed and built the Edwin Forrest to replace the Edwin Forest, No. 14, of New York, that was lost on Long Island in 1862.[8] The schooner Sylph was built and designed by Lawlor that same year.[9][10]:p122–123

The Edwin Forrest, was built to the order of Captain John Low. Her speed was the talk of the town in the 1870s. She was a consistent winner of races in the July 4th Regatta races conducted by city of Boston.[11]:p82

The Forrest was built from a block half-model of the pilot boat. She attained celebrity for her speed and stability. The model has a long, sharp bow, was 69 feet in length, her beam 18 was feet 6 inches, and her depth was 8 feet.[12][10]

The Edwin Forrest was registered with the Record of American and Foreign Shipping from 1881 to 1898 to Captain J. H. Jeffreys as master and to A. Nash & Co. as her owners. She belonged to the port of Boston.[2]

End of service

After being in the Boston pilot service for many years, on 8 Aug 1882, the pilot boat Edwin Forrest, No. 4, of Boston, was sold to the Pensacola, Florida parties for $5,500.[13]

George H. Warren
Pilot Boat George Warren, No. 4.

Boston pilot-boat George H. Warren, No. 4, was built by Porter Keene at Weymouth, Massachusetts, in 1882 to replace the Edwin Forrest, No. 4, which was sold to the Pensacola pilots. She was launched on December 31, 1882 from the N. P. Keen shipyard at North Weymouth.[14]

The Warren went on her first cruise on February 14, 1883. She was a two-masted schooner-rigged boat of 52-tons, 78 feet in length and a breadth of her beam is 20 feet 2 inches. She was owned by Captain Jno. Harry Jeffries and others.[15][16]

On 07 Jun 1889, the Warren was sold for $9,250 to Captain J. O'Sullivan and the owners of the pilot-boat Charlotte Webb.[17]

On February 7, 1895, the Warren went missing just before a great storm. She had six pilots on board. They were, William Murphy, Frank Kelly, Thomas F. Pennea, Patrick Walsh, George D. Samson, and Walter Berry; that chiefly owned her.[18]

See also

References
  1. "Launch of the Pilot Boat Edwin Forrest". New York Daily Herald. New York, New York. 27 Mar 1855. p. 1. Retrieved 2020-12-10 – via Newspapers.com.
  2. "Record of American and Foreign Shipping 1881". Mystic Seaport Museum. New York. Retrieved 2020-10-11.
  3. "The Monthly Nautical Magazine, and Quarterly Review". Griffiths, Bates. New York, New York. 2: 1. 1855. Retrieved 2020-12-10.
  4. "Trial Trip of the Pilot Boat Edwin Forrest". New York Daily Herald. New York, New York. 2 Apr 1855. p. 8. Retrieved 2020-12-10 – via Newspapers.com.
  5. "Pilot Boat Race". New York Daily Herald. New York, New York. 3 Apr 1855. p. 10. Retrieved 2020-12-10.
  6. Russell, Charles Edward (1929). From Sandy Hook to 62°. New York: Century Co. OCLC 3804485.
  7. "The New York Pilots. To The Editor Of The Herald". New York Daily Herald. New York, New York. 10 Oct 1860. p. 2. Retrieved 2021-01-28.
  8. "Bulletin". U.S. Government Printing Office. Washington. V 218–219: 1. 1859. Retrieved 2020-12-10.
  9. Dunne, W. M. P.; Patrick, William Matthew (1934). Thomas F. McManus and the American fishing schooners: an Irish-American success story. Mystic, Conn., Mystic Seaport Museum.
  10. Cunliffe, Tom (2001). Pilots, The World Of Pilotage Under Sail and Oar. Brooklin, Maine: WoodenBoat. ISBN 9780937822692.
  11. Eastman, Ralph M. (1956). Pilots and pilot boats of Boston Harbor. Boston, Massachusetts: Second Bank-State Street Trust Company.
  12. Mitman, Carl Weaver (1923). Catalogue of the Watercraft Collection in the United States National Museum, Block model of pilot boat. Illinois: U.S. Government Printing Office.
  13. "Pensacola Buys a Boat". The Montgomery Advertiser. Montgomery, Alabama. 8 Aug 1882. p. 1. Retrieved 2020-12-11 – via Newspapers.com.
  14. "A New Pilot-Boat Launched". New-York Tribune. New York, New York. 1 Jan 1883. p. 1. Retrieved 2020-12-17 – via Newspapers.com.
  15. "Record of American and Foreign Shipping 1884". Retrieved 2020-12-17.
  16. "A New Pilot Boat". The Boston Globe. Boston, Massachusetts. 16 Feb 1883. p. 4. Retrieved 2020-12-17 – via Newspapers.com.
  17. "Pilot Boat George H. Warren, No. 4, Gets a New Owner". The Boston Globe. Boston, Massachusetts. 7 Jun 1889. p. age 6. Retrieved 2020-12-17 – via Newspapers.com.
  18. "Pilot Boat Missing". Star-Gazette. Elmira, New York. 28 Feb 1895. p. 1. Retrieved 15 Dec 2020 – via Newspapers.com.
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