The ''Thomas S. Negus'' was a 19th-century two-masted

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, built by C. & R. Poillon shipyard in

Brooklyn Brooklyn () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Kings County, in the U.S. state of New York. Kings County is the most populous county in the State of New York, and the second-most densely populated county in the United States, be ...

in 1873 for the

New Jersey New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delaware ...

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. She was built to replace the pilot boat ''Jane,'' No. 1, which sank in early 1873. She was the winner of a $1,000 prize at the Cape May

Regatta Boat racing is a sport in which boats, or other types of watercraft, race on water. Boat racing powered by oars is recorded as having occurred in ancient Egypt, and it is likely that people have engaged in races involving boats and other wate ...

in 1873. She was named for Thomas S. Negus, president of the N. J. Pilots'

Commissioner A commissioner (commonly abbreviated as Comm'r) is, in principle, a member of a commission or an individual who has been given a commission (official charge or authority to do something). In practice, the title of commissioner has evolved to in ...

s. In 1897, she left the pilot service to prospect for gold during the Klondike Gold Rush.

Construction and service

New Jersey pilot-boat ''Thomas S. Negus, No. 1,'' was launched on September 24, 1873 from the C. & R. Poillon

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 ...

at the foot of Bridge Street in

Brooklyn, New York Brooklyn () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Kings County, in the U.S. state of New York. Kings County is the most populous county in the State of New York, and the second-most densely populated county in the United States, be ...

. She was built to replace the pilot-boat ''Jane,'' No. 1, of the New Jersey Pilots' Association fleet, which was lost in 1873. ''Negus'' was registered with the ''Record of American and Foreign Shipping'' from 1876 to 1900 with Captain William Lewis as master and N. J. Pilots as the owners. She was named for Thomas S. Negus, president of the board of Commissioners of Pilotage of New Jersey. On October 31, 1893, the ''Negus'' was listed as one of eight New Jersey Sandy Hook pilot boats. On October 9, 1873, the ''Thomas S. Negus'' won a notable victory over her competitors in the Cape May Regatta, which was a race from Owl's Head Point around to

Cape May Lighthouse The Cape May Lighthouse is a lighthouse located in the U.S. state of New Jersey at the tip of Cape May, in Lower Township's Cape May Point State Park. It was built in 1859 under the supervision of U.S. Army engineer William F. Raynolds, was autom ...

in New Jersey, and back to the Sandy hook Lightship. The race was sponsored by Joseph F. Loubat, who was a yachtsman, that offered the Bennett cup and $1,000 for first place. Captain William Lewis sailed the ''Negus'' during the race. Thomas S. Negus, of the N. J. Pilots' Commissioners, was one of the invited guests onboard the ''Negus'' during the race. Negus later wrote: "Arrived at the Lightship off Sandy Hook at 8 h. 49 m. 30s. A. M. Hailed Judges on board, who informed us we were the second boat in, The ''Enchantress'' only being ahead of us." The pilot-boat ''Enchantress'' won the first prize, the ''Thomas S. Negus, No. 1'' won the $1,000 second prize, and pilot-boat ''James W. Elwell,'' No. 7, won the third prize. Of the pilot-boats, the Negus took first place with the ''Widgeon'' second, the ''Fish'' third, the ''Elwell'' fourth, and the ''Blunt'' last. On October 18, 1878, the pilot-boat '' T. S. Negus, No. 1'' carried survivors to

Stonington, Connecticut The town of Stonington is located in New London County, Connecticut in the state's southeastern corner. It includes the borough of Stonington (borough), Connecticut, Stonington, the villages of Pawcatuck, Connecticut, Pawcatuck, Lords Point, and W ...

, after being transferred from the Isaac Webb. The ''Webb,'' had rescued the crew of the whaling

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, ...

''Sarah'', of

New Bedford, Massachusetts New Bedford (Massachusett language, Massachusett: ) is a city in Bristol County, Massachusetts, Bristol County, Massachusetts. It is located on the Acushnet River in what is known as the South Coast (Massachusetts), South Coast region. Up throug ...

, on October 16, 1878, forty miles south of Black Island with three survivors. Twenty-two of the crew perished. The ''Sarah'' had been caught up in a hurricane and was lying on its side, a floating wreck. Antonio Jacobsen - The Sinking of the S

On March 19, 1886, the New Jersey pilot-boat ''Thomas S. Negus No. 1,'' picked up sixty bags of mail from the

Cunard Line Cunard () is a British shipping and cruise line based at Carnival House at Southampton, England, operated by Carnival UK and owned by Carnival Corporation & plc. Since 2011, Cunard and its three ships have been registered in Hamilton, Berm ...

passenger steamer SS ''Oregon,'' that sank after being hit by a three-masted coal schooner off

Fire Island Fire Island is the large center island of the outer barrier islands parallel to the South Shore of Long Island, in the U.S. state of New York. Occasionally, the name is used to refer collectively to not only the central island, but also Long ...

with 845 people on board. Captain William Lewis of the Negus picked up a mail bag that contained $250,000 of Erie second consolidated bonds, several boxes or oranges and a satchel belonging to G. S. Frances. All the letters were in good condition. The pilot-boat ''Phantom'' helped to rescue 400 passengers and crew. On February 10, 1895, Pilot-boat ''Thomas S. Negus,'' was blown out to sea because of a blizzard. Pilot John Hall came back to port on the White Star freighter ''Cevic''. The ''Negus'' broke her foreboom but survived the storm.

End of service

At the time when sail was abandoned for steam, the ''T. S. Negus'' was sold to Captain Joseph McClure as a pilot-boat. He changed her

rig Rig may refer to: Objects and structures * Rig (fishing), an arrangement of items used for fishing * Drilling rig, a structure housing equipment used to drill or extract oil from underground * Rig (stage lighting) * rig, a horse-drawn carriage ...

from

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 ...

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 ...

. On November 4, 1897, the pilot-boat ''Thomas S. Negus'' left for Klonkike in

Yukon Yukon (; ; formerly called Yukon Territory and also referred to as the Yukon) is the smallest and westernmost of Canada's three territories. It also is the second-least populated province or territory in Canada, with a population of 43,964 as ...

in north-western

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

. Captain Joseph McClure and a company of eight men left

New Haven, Connecticut New Haven is a city in the U.S. state of Connecticut. It is located on New Haven Harbor on the northern shore of Long Island Sound in New Haven County, Connecticut and is part of the New York City metropolitan area. With a population of 134,02 ...

, to prospect for gold. They traveled through the

Strait of Magellan The Strait of Magellan (), also called the Straits of Magellan, is a navigable sea route in southern Chile separating mainland South America to the north and Tierra del Fuego to the south. The strait is considered the most important natural pass ...

in southern

Chile Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in the western part of South America. It is the southernmost country in the world, and the closest to Antarctica, occupying a long and narrow strip of land between the Andes to the east a ...

to reach the

Pacific Ocean The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean (or, depending on definition, to Antarctica) in the south, and is bounded by the continen ...

. On June 8, 1898, pilot-boat T. S. Negus arrived in San Francisco after she returned from

Cook Inlet Cook Inlet ( tfn, Tikahtnu; Sugpiaq: ''Cungaaciq'') stretches from the Gulf of Alaska to Anchorage in south-central Alaska. Cook Inlet branches into the Knik Arm and Turnagain Arm at its northern end, almost surrounding Anchorage. On its sou ...

in south-central

Alaska Alaska ( ; russian: Аляска, Alyaska; ale, Alax̂sxax̂; ; ems, Alas'kaaq; Yup'ik: ''Alaskaq''; tli, Anáaski) is a state located in the Western United States on the northwest extremity of North America. A semi-exclave of the U.S., ...

, where she disembarked twenty-five passengers. The boat was sold to Frank J. Mauka because the owners wanted to remain in Alaska. On April 25, 1899, the schooner T. S. Negus arrived in Hawaii from

Columbia, San Diego Columbia is a neighborhood located in Downtown San Diego, California. The neighborhood is largely commercial, however there are many highrise condominium buildings under construction. The Midway Aircraft Carrier Museum and the Maritime Museum a ...

. Her owner was Frank J. Mauka.

References

{{List of Northeastern U. S. Pilot Boats : Service vessels of the United States Individual sailing vessels Schooners of the United States 1873 ships Pilot boats Ships built in Brooklyn

Construction and service

End of service

See also

References