Frank A. Palmer
Schooner · United States · Lost 1902 · Cape Ann & the Gulf of Maine
Possibly the largest four-masted schooner ever built, she collided with a sister coal schooner off Gloucester and sank locked bow to bow with her.
Become Captain of RecordSee Shipwreck on Map
The Vessel and Her Loss
Frank A. Palmer, built in 1897 and believed to be the largest four-masted schooner ever constructed, carried coal along the New England coast. On 17 December 1902 she collided with the schooner Louise B. Crary in a gale off Gloucester; both vessels sank together, and eleven of the twenty-one crew died before rescue. The wrecks, found intertwined in 2002, are jointly listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
Vessel
- 1897
- Nathaniel T. Palmer
- Bath, Maine
- Wood
- 274.5 ft
- 44.2 ft
- 3000
- Sail
- J.S. Winslow and Company, Portland, Maine
Loss
- December 17, 1902
- Collision
- Off Gloucester, Massachusetts, Stellwagen Bank
- Massachusetts Bay
- Newport News, Virginia → Boston, Massachusetts
- About 3,000 tons of coal
- 10
- 5
- Not established
The Wreck Today
- 300 ft
- Upright, intact to main deck level, bows locked together with Louise B. Crary
- Not established
- 2002
- Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary; National Register of Historic Places
Position
- 42.53° N 70.29° W
- Approximate position
- Gloucester, Massachusetts
Evidence
Overall confidence: Well documented (92/100)
NOAA Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary
Vessel specifications, collision narrative, and survivor account.
National Register of Historic Places nomination
Confirmation of listing and site description.
