AH-WR-2013

Powhatan

Packet Ship · Lost 1854 · The New Jersey Coast

The emigrant packet Powhatan stranded off Long Beach Island in a blinding April 1854 snowstorm; all 340 aboard were lost, one of New Jersey's worst shipwrecks.

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Artistic recreation based on recorded historical documents.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

Built at Baltimore in 1837, the 133-foot packet ship Powhatan was carrying 311 passengers and a general cargo from Le Havre to New York under Captain James Meyers when she was caught in a blinding snowstorm and stranded off Surf City on Long Beach Island on April 16, 1854. The ship was a total loss, and all 340 people aboard died, making her one of the deadliest shipwrecks on the New Jersey coast.

Vessel

Built: 1837
Builder: Not established
Yard: Baltimore, Maryland
Material: Wood
Length: 132.9 ft
Beam: 31.7 ft
Tonnage: Not established
Propulsion: Sail
Owners: Not established

Loss

Date: April 16, 1854
Cause: Grounding
Location: Off Surf City, Long Beach Island
Water: Atlantic Ocean
Voyage: Le Havre, France → New York, New York
Cargo: General cargo from France and Germany
Aboard: Not established
Lives lost: 340
Master: James Meyers

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: Surf City, New Jersey
Region: The New Jersey Coast

No pin: the museum describes its positions as approximations.

Evidence

Overall confidence: Partially documented (65/100)

Based on the New Jersey Maritime Museum's shipwreck database, compiled from newspapers, Life-Saving Service reports and books; those original records were not independently inspected.

New Jersey Maritime Museum — Shipwreck Database
Museum's compiled data sheet for this loss (dimensions, owner, master, voyage, crew, cargo, cause, lives lost).
The New York Times, 21 April 1854 — The Wrecks at Absecom
Contemporary report of the total loss of the emigrant ship Powhatan, Havre to New York, with all aboard.