Schooner Beached at Bay Head - New Jersey Courier - 12 April 1894

Schooner Beached at Bay Head¹

The Susan H. Ritchie on the sands -- Crew

All Saved by the Breeches Buoy.

The three masted schooner Susan H. Ritchie Capt. J.E. Priest, from Richmond to St. John, N.B., with timber, went ashore at Bay Head on Wednesday night of last week. She was off Montauk Point, Long Island, when struck by the gale on Tuesday, and tried to beat to sea. Wednesday, finding that was hopeless, and losing all her sails as fast as they were bent on to replace those that had been blown away, her captain tried to run inside Sandy Hook. All day Wednesday, in spite of all efforts, she drifted to the leeward and at night she was off Point Pleasant. At 5 o'clock she cast anchor off Squan Inlet, which held her until 8 o'clock when she commenced to drag inshore. She crossed the bat at 9 o'clock, and a few moments later struck the beach near the Norris cottage. Patrolmen C.W. Harvey, of the Bay Head station had been watching her closely, and notified Keeper T.B. Pearce and crew. With the assistance of a team of the life-savers soon had the apparatus abreast the wreck, and at ten o'clock a line was fired over her. IT was not found by those aboard and three others were fired over her before the crew found one. To this one of the sailors tied a hawser and cast it overboard, thinking the men on shore wanted it to establish connection. None of the vessel's crew seemed to have any knowledge of the workings of the breeches buoy, and Keeper Pearce seeing by the lights that the crew sought refuge in the cabin decided to abandon further efforts until day break. Then they were made to understand the signals from the shore, and the breeches buoy being put in working order, all hands were landed by 8:15. The men were exhausted with cold and wet, but were soon brought around by hot food and drink, dry clothing and a roaring fire.

George S. Cushing of Florida, was the owner of the schooner. Her New York agent is a A.T. Henry, No. 21 Coenties slip. She had a gross tonnage of 516, was 258 feet long, 36 feet beam and a depth of hold  of 13 feet. She was built in Boston in May 1881, by J.M. Grant.

Besides Capt. Priest, her crew was composed of Sherman Martin, mate; W.H. Priest, steward, and Charles Phipps, High Stevenson, E. Hannaberry, Robert Lindsay and Charles Barker.

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