AH-WR-2037

Esperanto

Fishing Schooner · Lost 1921 · Nova Scotia & Sable Island

The Gloucester racing schooner Esperanto, first winner of the International Fisherman's Cup, sank near Sable Island on May 30, 1921; her crew was rescued.

Become Captain of Record

Artistic recreation based on recorded historical documents. See the documented evidence.

Interpretive Reconstruction, drawn to convey the vessel's era, type and general form. See the documented evidence.

The Vessel and Her Loss

Designed by Thomas F. McManus and built at Essex, Massachusetts, in 1906, the 107-foot Gloucester fishing schooner Esperanto won the first International Fisherman's Cup in 1920 under Captain Martin Welch, beating Delawana of Riverport — a defeat that helped inspire Lunenburg to build Bluenose. On May 30, 1921, she struck a submerged wreck near Sable Island and sank. Her crew was rescued.

Vessel

Built: 1906
Builder: James and Tarr
Yard: Essex, Massachusetts
Material: Wood
Length: 107 ft
Beam: 25 ft
Tonnage: Not established
Propulsion: Sail
Owners: Not established

Loss

Date: May 30, 1921
Cause: Collision
Location: Near Sable Island, about a mile southwest of the island
Water: Atlantic Ocean
Voyage: Not established
Cargo: Not established
Aboard: Not established
Lives lost: 0
Master: Not established

The Wreck Today

Depth: Not established
Condition: Not established
Orientation: Not established
Discovered: Not established
Protection: Not established

Position

Coordinates: Not established
Accuracy: Position not established
Nearest: Sable Island, Nova Scotia
Region: Nova Scotia & Sable Island

No pin: no surveyed wreck position in the sources used.

Evidence

Overall confidence: Partially documented (65/100)

Based on a published secondary account corroborated by the Government of Nova Scotia shipwreck catalogue; original records were not independently inspected.