The Pilots' Monument is a monument within the Green-Wood Cemetery in Brooklyn, New York City built to commemorate

Thomas Freeborn The Pilots' Monument is a monument within the Green-Wood Cemetery in Brooklyn, New York City built to commemorate Thomas Freeborn, pilot of the pilot boat ''Blossom'' who lost his life while on board the steamship '' John Minturn''. The monume ...

, pilot of the pilot boat ''Blossom'' who lost his life while on board the steamship ''

John Minturn ''John Minturn'' was a three-masted packet ship that was lost on February 14, 1846. The ship left New Orleans headed for New York carrying $80,000 in goods and crew and passengers totaling 51 individuals. Captain Dudley Stark was Master of the ...

''. The monument was built by the New York pilots in 1847 and is located at the top of Battle Hill at the Green-Wood Cemetery.

History

The Pilots' Monument is the tombstone for the pilot Thomas Freeborn (1808-1846), a New York Sandy Hook pilot. The monument was built in 1847 and is located at Battle Avenue standing upon one of the highest points, at the top of Battle Hill in the Green-Wood Cemetery. It was erected by the New York pilots.

Thomas Freeborn

On February 14, 1846, Freeborn was on the pilot boat ''

Blossom In botany, blossoms are the flowers of stone fruit trees (genus ''Prunus'') and of some other plants with a similar appearance that flower profusely for a period of time in spring. Colloquially, flowers of orange are referred to as such as wel ...

'', cruising at sea outside Mantoloking, New Jersey, when he sighted the packet ship ''

'' from New Orleans. Freeborn went on board the ''John Minturn'' to guide her safely to port but ran into trouble when trying to guide the ship in an icy hurricane. The ship was pushed toward the

Jersey Shore The Jersey Shore (known by locals simply as the Shore) is the coastal region of the U.S. state of New Jersey. Geographically, the term encompasses about of oceanfront bordering the Atlantic Ocean, from Perth Amboy in the north to Cape May Po ...

and ran ashore on

Squan Beach Squan Beach is the historic name of a barrier spit located on the Jersey Shore of the Atlantic Ocean in Ocean County, New Jersey, United States. Since the closing of Cranberry Inlet around 1812,State of New Jerse"Annual report of the State Geologi ...

. Thirty-eight out of fifty-one persons died including Freeborn. Freeborn's death was commemorated in two 1846 lithographs; one by James D. Smillie and another by

Nathaniel Currier Nathaniel Currier (March 27, 1813 – November 20, 1888) was an American lithographer. He headed the company Currier & Ives with James Ives. Early years Currier was born in Roxbury, Massachusetts, to Nathaniel and Hannah Currier. He attended ...

of Currier and Ives, which show visitors to Green-Wood paying respects at the monument.

Design

The Pilot's Monument consists of a marble shaft 40 feet in height, set on a solid massive square

sarcophagus A sarcophagus (plural sarcophagi or sarcophaguses) is a box-like funeral receptacle for a corpse, most commonly carved in stone, and usually displayed above ground, though it may also be buried. The word ''sarcophagus'' comes from the Greek ...

made of marble. The front of the sarcophagus is surrounded with a representative of the actual sea storm and shipwreck. Upon this rests a ship's capstan and cable coiled about it, which is severed at the end. A pillar rises from the capstan that depicts a cutoff mast and crowned with a figure of

Hope Hope is an optimistic state of mind that is based on an expectation of positive outcomes with respect to events and circumstances in one's life or the world at large. As a verb, its definitions include: "expect with confidence" and "to cherish ...

still holding on to her anchor and pointing to the heaven.

References

External links

* Official website
THE PILOT’S MONUMENT
{{DEFAULTSORT:Pilots' Monument Monuments and memorials in Brooklyn Burial monuments and structures Sculptures in New York City Stone monuments and memorials