AH-WR-0483

Sarah B. Lawrence

Schooner · United States · Lost 1910 · Delaware Bay & the Approaches

A coal-laden four-masted schooner broke in half on Hen and Chicken Shoal in a 60 mph gale, her crew and the captain's wife saved after hours on the sinking wreck.

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Artistic recreation based on recorded historical documents.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

The four-masted schooner Sarah B. Lawrence, carrying a cargo of coal from Newport News to Boston, was driven aground on Hen and Chicken Shoal off Cape Henlopen during a 60 mph gale on February 10, 1910. Pounded by heavy surf, she broke in half. Her crew of nine and the captain's wife clung to the wreck for hours before Cape Henlopen Life Savers, using a Breakwater tug to reach the site, rescued all ten aboard.

Vessel

Built: Not established
Builder: Not established
Yard: Not established
Material: Wood
Length: Not established
Beam: Not established
Tonnage: Not established
Propulsion: Sail
Owners: Not established

Loss

Date: February 10, 1910
Cause: Storm
Location: Hen and Chicken Shoal, off Cape Henlopen, Delaware
Water: Delaware Bay approaches
Voyage: Newport News, Virginia → Boston, Massachusetts
Cargo: Coal
Aboard: 10
Lives lost: 0
Master: Not established

The Wreck Today

Depth: Not established
Condition: Broke in half and sank on the shoal
Orientation: Not established
Discovered: Not established
Protection: Not established

Position

Coordinates: 38.78° N 75.07° W
Accuracy: General area only
Nearest: Hen and Chicken Shoal, Cape Henlopen, Delaware
Region: Delaware Bay & the Approaches

General area only: coordinate of Hen and Chickens Shoal from the USGS Geographic Names Information System, marking the named place of loss recorded for this vessel, not a surveyed wreck position.