The ''Fannie'' was a 19th-century

Sandy Hook Sandy Hook is a barrier spit in Middletown Township, Monmouth County, New Jersey, United States. The barrier spit, approximately in length and varying from wide, is located at the north end of the Jersey Shore. It encloses the southern en ...

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 in 1860 by Edward F. Williams at his

shipyard A shipyard, also called a dockyard or boatyard, is a place where ships are built and repaired. These can be yachts, military vessels, cruise liners or other cargo or passenger ships. Dockyards are sometimes more associated with maintenance a ...

Greenpoint, Brooklyn Greenpoint is the northernmost neighborhood in the New York City borough of Brooklyn, in the U.S. state of New York. It is bordered on the southwest by Williamsburg at Bushwick Inlet Park and McCarren Park; on the southeast by the Brooklyn� ...

for

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 ...

pilots. She was in the pilot service during the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by states th ...

. In an age of steam, she was sold in 1896.

Construction and service

The pilot-boat ''Fannie,'' was built in 1860 and launched on July 12, 1860 at the Edward F. Williams

, in

, for the New York and Sandy Hook Pilots. She was owned by Captain Edward Mersenee of New York. When Captain Edward Mersenee died in January 1864, the pilot boats in the port of New York flew their flags at half-mast, as a token of respect to the late captain. On August 11, 1864, during the

, the pilots on the ''Fannie,'' No. 17 reported that they saw a vessel burning off

Montauk, New York Montauk ( ) is a hamlet and census-designated place (CDP) in the Town of East Hampton in Suffolk County, New York, on the eastern end of the South Shore of Long Island. As of the 2020 United States census, the CDP's population was 4,318. The ...

. The pilots believed that the

CSS Tallahassee The CSS ''Tallahassee'' was a twin-screw steamer and cruiser in the Confederate States Navy, purchased in 1864, and used for commerce raiding off the Atlantic coast. She later operated under the names CSS ''Olustee'' and CSS ''Chameleon''. His ...

was working her way toward the

Nantucket Shoals Nantucket Shoals is an area of dangerously shallow water in the Atlantic Ocean that extends from Nantucket Island, Massachusetts, eastward for and southeastward for ; in places water depth can be as shallow as . Depth soundings are unpredictable d ...

in the

Atlantic Ocean The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's five oceans, with an area of about . It covers approximately 20% of Earth's surface and about 29% of its water surface area. It is known to separate the " Old World" of Africa, Europe ...

. The ''Fannie'' was registered with the ''Record of American and Foreign Shipping'' from 1877 to 1885 to Captain C. H. Wolsey as Master and to the New York Pilots as owners. She belonged to the port of New York. John Hobbs was captain and half owner of the pilot-boat ''Fannie,'' No. 17. She was one of only twenty-one New York pilot-boats in 1860. On October 13, 1869, the pilot-boat ''Fannie,'' No. 17, was out at sea and reported a sunken

brig A brig is a type of sailing vessel defined by its rig: two masts which are both square rig, square-rigged. Brigs originated in the second half of the 18th century and were a common type of smaller merchant vessel or warship from then until the ...

laying south of the

Highlands, New Jersey :''See also New York–New Jersey Highlands for the northwestern part of the state.'' Highlands is a borough in Monmouth County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2010 United States census, its population was 5,005,

. Captain Wolsey was in command and reported that the brig is in the path of inward and outward bound vessels. On March 27, 1872, pilot-boat ''Fannie,'' No. 17 came across the schooner ''Franklin'', which had been in bad weather for twenty four days, coming from

Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...

. Captain Wolsey of the ''Fannie'' was able to tow her safely into the New York harbor. On November 25, 1881, the pilot-boat ''Fannie,'' No. 17, picked up the

Barque A barque, barc, or bark is a type of sailing ship, sailing vessel with three or more mast (sailing), masts having the fore- and mainmasts Square rig, rigged square and only the mizzen (the aftmost mast) Fore-and-aft rig, rigged fore and aft. Som ...

''Aberdeen,'' out at sea and had the tugboat ''Walcott'' tow her to

Staten Island Staten Island ( ) is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Richmond County, in the U.S. state of New York. Located in the city's southwest portion, the borough is separated from New Jersey by the Arthur Kill and the Kill Van Kull an ...

. The tugboat got $250 for efforts and the pilots got $4,000. On July 26, 1893, the pilot-boat ''Fannie'', ran into the side of the fruit steamship ''Banan,'' causing the pilot-boat's main rigging to be torn and twisted. The ''Fannie'' asked for $100 in damages. On April 13, 1894, Pilot Henry A. DeVere was lost while boarding the

Norwegian Norwegian, Norwayan, or Norsk may refer to: *Something of, from, or related to Norway, a country in northwestern Europe *Norwegians, both a nation and an ethnic group native to Norway *Demographics of Norway *The Norwegian language, including the ...

steamer ''Banan'' from the pilot-boat ''Fannie,'' No. 17, while off

Cape May Cape May consists of a peninsula and barrier island system in the U.S. state of New Jersey. It is roughly coterminous with Cape May County, New Jersey, Cape May County and runs southwards from the New Jersey mainland, separating Delaware Bay fro ...

. The weather was bad with gales and high seas, which capsized a yawl with DeVere and two other men. DeVere had been a pilot for ten years. His father had been a pilot for thirty years.

End of service

On February 1, 1896, the New York Pilots discarded sixteen sailboats and moved them to the Erie Basin in Brooklyn. They were replaced with steam pilot-boats. The ''Fannie,'' was sold for $4,000.

References

{{List of Northeastern U. S. Pilot Boats Individual sailing vessels Schooners of the United States Service vessels of the United States 1860 ships Pilot boats Ships built in Brooklyn