The ''Abraham Leggett'' was a 19th-century

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

pilot boat A pilot boat is a type of boat used to transport maritime pilots between land and the inbound or outbound ships that they are piloting. Pilot boats were once sailing boats that had to be fast because the first pilot to reach the incoming ship ...

built by Daniel Westervelt at the Westervelt & Co. shipyard. She helped transport

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

maritime pilot A maritime pilot, marine pilot, harbor pilot, port pilot, ship pilot, or simply pilot, is a mariner who maneuvers ships through dangerous or congested waters, such as harbors or river mouths. Maritime pilots are regarded as skilled professionals ...

s between inbound or outbound ships coming into the

New York Harbor New York Harbor is at the mouth of the Hudson River where it empties into New York Bay near the East River tidal estuary, and then into the Atlantic Ocean on the east coast of the United States. It is one of the largest natural harbors in t ...

. In 1866, Pilot

Michael Murphy Michael, Mick, or Mike Murphy may refer to: Artists and entertainers * Michael Murphy (actor) (born 1938), American actor * Mike Murphy (musician) (1946–2006), American drummer for the Bee Gees and Chicago * Michael Bryan Murphy, lead singer o ...

was on the ''Abraham Leggett'' when the

bark Bark may refer to: * Bark (botany), an outer layer of a woody plant such as a tree or stick * Bark (sound), a vocalization of some animals (which is commonly the dog) Places * Bark, Germany * Bark, Warmian-Masurian Voivodeship, Poland Arts, ...

''Emilie'' ran into the pilot boat. In 1879, the ''Abraham Leggett'' was hit and sank by the steamship ''Naples'' from

Liverpool Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the 10th largest English district by population and its metropolitan area is the fifth largest in the United Kingdom, with a popul ...

. She was replaced by the pilot boat '' Alexander M. Lawrence''.

Construction and service

New York pilot-boat ''Abraham Leggett'', No. 4, was built by Daniel Westervelt at the Westervelt & Co. shipyard at the

East River The East River is a saltwater tidal estuary in New York City. The waterway, which is actually not a river despite its name, connects Upper New York Bay on its south end to Long Island Sound on its north end. It separates the borough of Queens ...

. The ''Abraham Leggett'' was registered as a Pilot

Schooner A schooner () is a type of sailing vessel defined by its rig: fore-and-aft rigged on all of two or more masts and, in the case of a two-masted schooner, the foremast generally being shorter than the mainmast. A common variant, the topsail schoon ...

with the ''Record of American and Foreign Shipping'' from 1876 to 1879. Her ship master was Michael Murphy; her owners were the N. Y. Pilots; built in 1870 at New York; and her hailing port was the Port of New York. Her dimensions were 82 ft. length on deck; 20.8 ft. breadth of beam; 8.4 ft. depth of hold; and 55-tons

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. There are reports of the New York pilot boat ''Abraham Leggett'', No. 4, and her ship logs as early as March 1868 where she arrived in New York City after sailing on a cruise from February 23 to March 3 in bad weather. She had placed pilots on board the brigs ''Emma Ives''; ''George''; from

West Indies The West Indies is a subregion of North America, surrounded by the North Atlantic Ocean and the Caribbean Sea that includes 13 independent island countries and 18 dependencies and other territories in three major archipelagos: the Greater A ...

bound to

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; the steamship ''Gulf City''; and the ''Mary Louisa'' from

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, bound to Boston. On September 4, 1866, a collision took place off

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, at the

Quarantine A quarantine is a restriction on the movement of people, animals and goods which is intended to prevent the spread of disease or pests. It is often used in connection to disease and illness, preventing the movement of those who may have been ...

Station, between the schooner pilot boat ''Abraham Leggett'' and the

Bremen Bremen (Low German also: ''Breem'' or ''Bräm''), officially the City Municipality of Bremen (german: Stadtgemeinde Bremen, ), is the capital of the German state Free Hanseatic City of Bremen (''Freie Hansestadt Bremen''), a two-city-state consis ...

''Emilie''. The bark had come in from sea and was in tow by a tugboat. She passed too close to the pilot boat and ran into her. The case went to the US District Court (Michael Murphy vs. The Bark Emilie), where the judge concluded that the collision was caused by the fault of the ''Emilie''. On January 24, 1876, the ''Abram Leggett'', No. 4, was between Georgia and

Nantucket Nantucket () is an island about south from Cape Cod. Together with the small islands of Tuckernuck and Muskeget, it constitutes the Town and County of Nantucket, a combined county/town government that is part of the U.S. state of Massachuse ...

shoals, when she was caught up in a storm, which threw her on her side. When the boat up righted, she was able to stay afloat until the storm subsided.

End of service

On 26 January 1879, the ''Abraham Leggett'', No. 4, was hit by the steamship ''Naples'' from

when the pilot-boat came along the side of the steamer attempting to board her. The damage was so bad that the pilots abandon the pilot-boat and came on board the steamer. Captain Kennedy of the steamer, said that he did not take responsibility for the loss of the boat because he was in no need of a pilot and the weather was too bad to board. In 1879, the pilot boat '' Alexander M. Lawrence'', No. 4, was built to take the place of the ''Abraham Leggett'', No. 4. The ''Lawrence'' was launched on May 21, 1879.

References

{{Authority control Individual sailing vessels Service vessels of the United States 1870 ships Schooners of the United States Pilot boats Ships built in New York City

Construction and service

End of service

See also

References