Hubbry Logo
search
search button
Sign in
Historyarrow-down
starMorearrow-down
Hubbry Logo
search
search button
Sign in
George W. Blunt (1856)
Community hub for the Wikipedia article
logoWikipedian hub
Welcome to the community hub built on top of the George W. Blunt (1856) Wikipedia article. Here, you can discuss, collect, and organize anything related to George W. Blunt (1856). The purpose of the hub is to connect people, foster deeper knowledge, and help improve the root Wikipedia article.
Add your contribution
Inside this hub
George W. Blunt (1856)
George W. Blunt pilot boat (1860).
History
United States
Name
  • George W. Blunt (1856 — 1861)
  • G. W. Blunt (1861 — 1865)
NamesakeGeorge W. Blunt, nautical publisher
Owner
  • New York pilots Joseph Henderson, James Callahan (1856 — 1861)
  • U.S. government (1861 — 1865)
Operator
  • Joseph Henderson and James Callahan (1856 — 1861)
  • U.S. Navy (1861 — 1865)
BuilderDaniel Westervelt of New York City[1]
Launched6 September 1856
Acquiredby Navy 23 November 1861
Commissioned4 December 1861
Decommissioned16 August 1865
In servicecirca 1856 – 1865
Out of service16 August 1865
HomeportNew York
Nickname(s)Blunt
FateSold, Port Royal, S.C., 20 October 1865
General characteristics 1st Blunt
Class & typeSchooner
Displacement122 tons
Length85 feet
Beam21 feet
Propulsionsails
Sail planSchooner-rigged
History
United States
NameGeorge W. Blunt (2nd pilot schooner)
OwnerNew York Pilots
OperatorJohn Phelan
Port of registryNew York
BuilderBrown & Lovell, Boston, Massachusetts
Cost$8,000
Completed1861
Acquired1861
IdentificationOfficial Number 10423
Fatewrecked in 1875
General characteristics 2nd George W. Blunt
Class & typeSchooner
Tonnage52 tons
Length75.4 feet
Beam20.4 feet
Depth8.6 feet
Propulsionsails
Sail planSchooner-rigged

George W. Blunt, completed in 1856, was a schooner built in New York that operated as a New York Sandy Hook pilot boat designated Pilot Boat No. 11.[note 1] The schooner was used to pilot vessels to and from the Port of New York and New Jersey. That schooner was sold to the United States Navy in 1861, renamed and commissioned as the USS G. W. Blunt (1856), serving in the South Atlantic Blockading Squadron in the South. A second schooner, also named George W. Blunt, was built in East Boston in 1861 and purchased to replace the first schooner as a pilot boat.[2][3]

First George W. Blunt pilot boat

[edit]

Construction and service

[edit]
Business card, George W. Blunt.

The original George W. Blunt was a two-masted, 85-foot long, 122-ton schooner, 20 tons larger than any other boat in the Sandy Hook fleet.[1][4] The cabin was finished with bird's eye maple, mirrors, and velvet brocade cushions. The stern was ornamented with a scroll and shield which displayed the national flags of America, England and France.[1] According to American Lloyd's Register of American and Foreign Shipping, the George W. Blunt was built in New York, in 1856 for the New York Pilots. James Callahan was master of the boat.[5]

As the original pilot-boat, the George W. Blunt, was in service with the N.Y. Pilots and rescued boats off the coast of New York.[6] On October 10, 1860, New York Sandy Hook Pilot A. C. Malcom, of the pilot boat G. W. Blunt, No. 11, signed a statement along with other pilots, that they were satisfied with the representation of the New York Board of Commissioners of Pilots.[7]

Civil War

[edit]

On November 23, 1861, during the Civil War, the George W. Blunt was purchased by the United States Navy as a gunboat and dispatch boat in support of the Union Navy blockade of Confederate waterways. The schooner was renamed G. W. Blunt and commissioned 4 December 1861.[2][3][8][9]

On April 19, 1862, the 60-ton Confederate schooner Wave under Captain Ryan, was captured by the pilot-boat George W. Blunt off the coast of South Carolina.[10][11]

Second George W. Blunt pilot boat

[edit]

A replacement pilot boat, built in July 1861, was purchased from Boston builders Brown & Lovell[12] to take the place of the original George W. Blunt, which was sold to the government during the Civil War.[2][3][13][14] The 75-foot vessel (tonnage variously given as 120t and 52t, but types of measure unspecified) was purchased by Henderson & Callahan of New York for $8,000 was described as a fast sailer, and registered at New York to the New York Pilots with Official Number 10423.[2][15]

In 1874, this George W. Blunt, rescued the bark Alfred at sea during a storm that brought the boat safely into New York port.[16][17]

In February 1875, the pilot boat George W. Blunt sprang a leak off Gay Head and was run ashore at Jones Inlet, twenty-eight miles from Sandy Hook and was reported to have become a total loss. She had on board the following pilots: John Handran, Thomas Murphy, Robert Yates, Edward Kelly, James Heines, and Michael O'Shaughnessy. Her value was estimated at $10,000, which only $1,400 was covered by insurance.[18][14]

See also

[edit]

Footnotes

[edit]

References

[edit]
[edit]
Add your contribution
Related Hubs