Hidden History of Maritime New Jersey by Stephen D. Nagiewicz

Author:Stephen D. Nagiewicz [Nagiewicz, Stephen D.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Nonfiction, History, Military, Naval, Americas, United States
ISBN: 9781625856845
Publisher: Arcadia Publishing
Published: 2016-05-25T04:00:00+00:00

SS DELAWARE

The Delaware was a coastal steamship whose normal run was from New York to Charleston or Jacksonville and, on occasion, Havana, Cuba. She would stop at various ports along the way, depending on cargo or need. These types of vessels were often called “tramp” steamers, as they also carried passengers along with cargo at reduced rates (Author’s note: at least from the more expensive passenger lines) and made more leisurely sails with destinations often a surprise along the way. This suited many travelers who found the trips pleasant and inexpensive.

The Delaware was operated by the Clyde Lines Company out of New York City. Clyde Lines, established in 1844, would eventually merge with Mallory Lines in 1932. Together they would lose several ships along the New Jersey coast until both companies faded from existence. The Delaware was built at the Hillmans Yard in Philadelphia. She was 1,646 gross tons, 251 feet long with a beam of 37 feet and powered by a single-piston steam engine. She carried sixty-six passengers and crew members who lived within her three decks. The vessel itself was insured for $125,000, while her general dry goods cargo was also insured for roughly the same amount. There have always been two persistent yet unqualified rumors about her. One was that she was carrying ammunition, presumably for the soldiers and sailors fighting in the Spanish-American War, and the other rumor—more of interest to divers—was that she carried a strongbox full of coins worth over $250,000, payroll for those same soldiers and sailors. It seems a coincidence that her insured value would be the same as the purported amount of cash in a strongbox that no one has seen or recovered to this day.

Her voyage began on a late afternoon on Friday, July 8, 1898, as the steamer left her pier and out onto calm seas. She quietly passed through the minefields at the entrance to New York Harbor and proceeded south along the New Jersey coast. The country was involved in the Spanish-American War during this time, the USS Maine had been blown up in Havana Harbor in February 1898 and precautions like the minefield seemed prudent. After 10:00 p.m., a few miles from Barnegat Light, a crewman reported smoke coming out of a hatch. Officers made a hurried investigation, but it was soon evident that the crew had a difficult fire to deal with. Holes were cut in the decks and hoses inserted, but the heat beneath the decks became steadily more intense. When finally the men got to work in the saloon, rolling up the carpeting and cutting through the deck, the smoke came through in such overpowering masses that it was deemed time to wake and notify the passengers and prepare for the worst. Passengers were hurriedly taken off ship by lifeboat. There was little time to grab possessions.

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