Carrier Pigeon (ship)
| Career (USA) | 100x35px |
|---|---|
| Name: | Carrier Pigeon |
| Builder: | Trufant, Drummond & Company |
| Launched: | 1852 |
| Fate: | Sold in 1853 after she was wrecked |
| General characteristics | |
| Type: | Medium Clipper Ship |
| Tonnage: | 843 |
| Length: | 175 ft 5 in (53.47 m) |
| Beam: | 34 ft 5 in (10.49 m) |
| Propulsion: | Sail |
The Carrier Pigeon was an American clipper ship that was launched in the fall of 1852 from Bath, Maine. Her value was estimated at $54,000. She was wrecked on her maiden voyage, off Santa Cruz, California.
History
On January 28th 1853, the Carrier Pigeon left Boston. The clipper was bound to San Francisco on her maiden voyage. As a commercial ship, she was to deliver general merchandise. The ship and her cargo were insured for $195,000.
In the mid 19th century, the Panama Canal had not yet been created, and thus the only way to reach the Pacific Ocean from the Atlantic Ocean was to sail around Cape Horn, an area infamous for its shipwrecks. The prevailing winds in the vicinity of Cape Horn and south, blow from west to east around the world almost uninterrupted by land, giving rise to the "roaring forties" and the even more wild "furious fifties" and "screaming sixties". Despite this, the Carrier Pigeon encountered no difficulties rounding the Cape.[1][2]
On June 6, 1853 the clipper was sighted at Santa Cruz, California. San Francisco is located only about seventy nautical miles north of Santa Cruz. The cool California Current offshore, enhanced by upwelling of cold sub-surface waters, often creates summer fog near the coast, and June 6, 1853 was no exception. As night approached, so did the fog. The Captain of the Carrier Pigeon, Azariah Doane, believed that the ship was far from shore, and so he gave the order to sail eastward toward the shore. In few minutes the clipper hit the rocky bottom. Heavy waves rocked the helpless clipper from side to side. The hull was opened to the incoming tide. After seven feet of cold Pacific water rushed into the ship, the captain and the crew had just a few moments to escape with their lives. Because the ship was wrecked only 500 feet (152 meters) from shore, all the members of the crew were able to reach the shore safely.[1][2]
The news about the wreck reached San Francisco by the evening of June 7th. The U.S. Coast Survey steamer Active was sent to the wreck. Later on sidewheel steamer Sea Bird joined the efforts in trying to save some cargo and whatever was left of the Carrier Pigeon. Soon the Sea Bird found herself in troubles on her own. Her two anchors were unable to withstand the heavy swells. The Sea Bird broke free and was drifting towards the very same rocks that just a day before had wrecked the Carrier Pigeon. The captain of the Sea Bird, Captain Wright, using all of his detailed knowledge of the area, was able to maneuver his ship so that it beached a few miles south, on the sandy shore of Point Año Nuevo. This saved the Sea Bird from being wrecked, and she was refloated a few months later, in October.
One more ship, the Goliah, was sent to help out to salvage as much merchandise as possible from the wreck. The Goliah first checked on the safety of the Sea Bird before coming to the Carrier Pigeon. The Goliah was able to transport both the crew of the Carrier Pigeon and 1,200 packages of her merchandise north to San Francisco. On June 10, 1853 The Daily Alta California reported about the Carrier Pigeon:
| “ | Her bows lay about 500 feet from the beach, and she rests amidships on a ledge of rocks, which have broken the ship's back. The tide ebbs and flows in her, and is up to her between-decks.[3] | ” |
The salvage operations continued for few more weeks, but by July, the Carrier Pigeon was breaking apart.
A few years later, in 1871, a lighthouse was built on a point near where the wreck occurred. To commemorate the Carrier Pigeon, the structure was named Pigeon Point Lighthouse. This lighthouse is still an active Coast Guard aid to navigation in the area.
References
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