Washington Irving (sidewheeler)

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Detroit Publishing Company photo of Str. Washington Irving.[1]
Career
Namesake: Washington Irving
Owner: Hudson River Day Line[2]
Route: Hudson river between New York City and Albany NY
Builder: New York Shipbuilding Company
Cost: $1,000,000[2]
Yard number: 126[3][4]
Laid down: May 23, 1912[3][4]
Launched: December 7, 1912[3][4]
Completed: 1912[3]
Maiden voyage: May 17, 1913[5]
Out of service: June 1, 1926[2]
Struck: June 1, 1926[2]
Fate: Collided with oil barge and sunk[2]
Notes: Biggest passenger-carrying riverboat ever built[3]
General characteristics
Tonnage: 4,000[2]
Length: 414 feet (126 m)[2]
Beam: 47 feet (14 m)[3][6]
Depth: 14.6 feet (4.5 m)[6]
Decks: Four[3]
Installed power: Steam via oil burners[2]
Propulsion: River side-wheel steamer[2]
Capacity: 6,000[3]

The Washington Irving was a 4,000 ton sidewheeler dayliner and flagship of the Hudson River Day Line which was struck in the fog a bit after 9:00am on June 1, 1926 on the North River by an oil barge. Helped by tug boats, it reached shore at the then under construction Pier 12, Jersey City and sunk five minutes later. Out of 200 passengers and 105 crew, three died as a result of the accident: Wylma Wood Hoag (wife to Lynne Arthur Hoag and mother to Arthur Allen Hoag), their three year old daughter Mary, and a Brooklyn resident B. Woods, a steward, who was trapped asleep in a cabin far down in the boat.[2][7][3][4][8][9][10]


Contents

[edit] Characteristics

Drawing of the Washington Irving that appeared as part of a display ad in The New York Times.
Drawing of the Washington Irving that appeared as part of a display ad in The New York Times.[11]

The quadruple-decker[3] Washington Irving was built in 1912 by the New York Shipbuilding Company for contract number 126[3] and measured 414[12] feet long and 86 feet at its widest point.[2] Together, Frank E. Kirby collaborated with J. W. Millard of New York City to design the Washington Irving.[13] At a capacity of 6,000 passengers,[14] it was the biggest passenger-carrying riverboat ever built.[3][12] Its beam engine was 6,200 horsepower with cylinders measuring 45 inches (110 cm) and 70 inches (180 cm) diameter with a 7-foot (2.1 m) stroke.[3][6] It was named after the author Washington Irving.[5] It was launched on December 7, 1912,[3] and its maiden voyage was Saturday May 17, 1913 from Desbrosses Street Pier, New York City to Albany.[5] When put into service it replaced the Robert Fulton on the New York to Albany run.[15]

The ship had three smoke stacks amidship for its boilers, in a line one in front of the other, however, the forward stack was a "dummy" one added for aesthetic purposes.[12]

The first pilot of the Washington Irving from 1913 through 1923 was Captain Van Woert.[16]

[edit] Sinking

The New York Times display advertisement for the inaugural cruise of the Washington Irving.
The New York Times display advertisement for the inaugural cruise of the Washington Irving.[17]

Soon after departing the Desbrosses Street Pier on June 1, 1926 on its way to Albany, it was struck by one of the two oil barges being pushed by the tug boat Thomas E. Moran. The collision was on its starboard side below the water line just aft of amidships, allowing water to rush into her engine rooms. The resulting hole measured 21 feet (6.4 m) long and 3 feet (0.91 m) wide.[8] It was valued at $1,000,000 but insured for much less, the barge suffered only $8,000 of damages.[8] The captain, David H. Deming, ordered all to put on their life preservers and whistled the "Ship's afire" signal of two long and three short blasts repeatedly. Chaos of shouts prevailed as the passenger's tried to don vests and locate their children in the fog. Unable to see any land increased the alarm of the passenger's despite the captains shouts that all would be safe. The captain ordered the jazz band to resume playing their music and maintain their post until rescue.[2] The accident was determined to be unavoidable due to "the unusual and unexpected strength of the tidal current, possibly below the surface"[18] after inquiry by the United States Steamship Inspection Board closed on June 9, 1926.[7]

[edit] Aftermath

Drawing of the upper deck.
Drawing of the upper deck.[5]

The ship sank on top of the New York-New Jersey vehicular tube complicating its removal.[10] The wreck became a menace to navigation and was struck at 3am on June 16 by a railroad car float.[19] The boat was raised on February 13, 1927 and towed to a dry dock to determine whether the boat's condition warranted repair.[20] In March, it was determined to be totaled and a bond was issued to refinance the companies debt and provide financing for its replacement, the Peter Stuyvesant. The Peter Stuyvesant was originally estimated to cost $700,000, but when the boat was completed in June, the final cost was closer to $1,000,000.[21][22]

[edit] References

  1. ^ Str. Washington Irving, Detroit Publishing Company Photograph Collection, Detroit Publishing Company (published Between 1913 and 1920), <http://popartmachine.com/item/pop_art/LOC+1208926>. Retrieved on 18 April 2008 
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l “Day Liner Is Sunk in Hudson by Barge; Two Are Missing”, The New York Times, Display Ad (New York): 1, June 2, 1926, ISSN 1558598, <http://select.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=FA0913FE355E1B7A93C0A9178DD85F428285F9>. Retrieved on 17 April 2008 
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n McDowell, Michael P., Passenger Liners of New York Shipbuilding Corporation, Camden, <http://yorkship.home.comcast.net/~yorkship/liners.htm> 
  4. ^ a b c d Colton, Tim, New York Shipbuilding, Camden NJ, Delray Beach, FL, <http://www.shipbuildinghistory.com/history/shipyards/1major/inactive/newyorkship.htm> 
  5. ^ a b c d “Hudson River By Daylight”, The New York Times, Display Ad (New York): 16, May 16, 1913, ISSN 1570391 
  6. ^ a b c Dayton, Fred Erving (1925), “Hudson River Steamboats”, Steamboat Days, Frederick A. Stokes company, p. 83, <http://sdr.lib.umich.edu/cgi/m/mdp/pt?seq=9&view=image&size=100&id=mdp.39015020219674&u=1&num=83> 
  7. ^ a b “Inquiry into Sinking of River Liner Ends”, The New York Times (New York): 9, June 10, 1926, ISSN 1558600, <http://select.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=F10E11FF355E1B7A93C2A8178DD85F428285F9>. Retrieved on 17 April 2008 
  8. ^ a b c “Two Still Missing from Sunken Ship”, The New York Times: 20, June 3, 1926, ISSN 1558599, <http://select.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=FA0E14FF355E1B7A93C1A9178DD85F428285F9>. Retrieved on 24 April 2008 
  9. ^ “Think Mrs. Hoag Sank Hunting for Children”, The New York Times: 23, June 4, 1926, ISSN 1569014, <http://select.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=F70B17FE34541A7A93C6A9178DD85F428285F9>. Retrieved on 24 April 2008 
  10. ^ a b “Divers Get $60,000 from Washington Irving; To Speed Removal of Liner, Now Over Tunnel”, The New York Times: 1, June 5, 1926, ISSN 1569015, <http://select.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=FB0915FE34541A7A93C4A9178DD85F428285F9>. Retrieved on 24 April 2008 
  11. ^ “Up the Hudson Columbus Day October 12th”, The New York Times, Display Ad (New York): 13, October 11, 1916, ISSN 1672099 
  12. ^ a b c Adams, Arthur G. (1996), The Hudson Through the Years, Fordham Univ Press, p. 154, 182, 187, 191, & 314, ISBN 0823212025, <http://books.google.com/books?id=As5tyLSVC5wC&pg=PA182&lpg=PA182&ots=43XDdCFmNN&sig=T8-rZrdCT4a3VYBTzc8m6t9iAgY&hl=en> 
  13. ^ “Bob-Lo Boats / Frank E. Kirby”, Passenger leaflet provided on a Port Huron cruise (boblosteamers.com), May 28, 1990, <http://boblosteamers.com/kirby.html>. Retrieved on 18 April 2008 
  14. ^ Ringwald, Donald C. (1990), Hudson River Day Line: The Story of a Great American Steamboat Company, Fordham University Press, p. 161, <http://books.google.com/books?id=_4JPAAAAMAAJ&dq=%22Hudson+River+Day+Line%3A+The+Story+of+a+Great+American+Steamboat+Company%22&q=6000&pgis=1#search> 
  15. ^ Ryder, F. Van Loon (July 8, 1965), Old Timers - Boats of the Hudson 1965, Greene County News, <http://www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~nygreen2/old_timers_-_boats_of_the_hudson_1965.htm>. Retrieved on 19 April 2008 
  16. ^ Sagafjord & Hunt, Tom (1968), Steamboat Bill: Official Journal of the Steamship Historical Society of America, Bar Harbor: Steamship Historical Society of America, p. 22, <http://books.google.com/books?id=c8g1uMhFmUoC&q=%22Washington+Irving%22+sidewheeler&dq=%22Washington+Irving%22+sidewheeler&pgis=1> 
  17. ^ “First Public Inspection Trip”, The New York Times, Display Ad (New York): 16, May 11, 1913, ISSN 1572353 
  18. ^ “Lay Ship Crashes to Tides”, The New York Times (New York): 25, June 18, 1926, ISSN 1559121 
  19. ^ “Sunken Liner Is Struck”, The New York Times (New York): 12, June 17, 1926, ISSN 1559106, <http://select.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=FB0A1EFC35591B7A93C5A8178DD85F428285F9>. Retrieved on 24 April 2008 
  20. ^ “Day Line Boat Floated”, The New York Times (New York): 12, February 14, 1927, ISSN 1558695, <http://select.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=F60C13FC3C591B7A93C6A81789D85F438285F9>. Retrieved on 17 April 2008 
  21. ^ “Hudson Day Line Issue”, The New York Times (New York): 32, March 7, 1927, ISSN 1554284, <http://select.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=FB0C11F93F5F147A93C5A91788D85F438285F9>. Retrieved on 17 April 2008 
  22. ^ “Entertains on New Ship”, The New York Times (New York): 43, June 8, 1927, ISSN 1670441, <http://select.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=F50613FB395B1B728DDDA10894DE405B878EF1D3>. Retrieved on 17 April 2008 

[edit] External links