Charles
Schooner · United States · Lost 1807 · Cape Ann & the Gulf of Maine
A Portland-bound schooner wrecked on Richmond Island in the summer of 1807, drowning sixteen of the twenty-two people aboard, including the captain and his wife.
Become Captain of Record
The Vessel and Her Loss
The schooner Charles left Boston bound for Portland, Maine, in July 1807 carrying passengers and merchandise. Approaching Portland Harbor on the night of July 12-13, she wrecked on Richmond Island near Cape Elizabeth. Sixteen of the twenty-two people aboard died, including Captain Jacob Adams and his wife, and the tragedy prompted a widely circulated broadside ballad and gravestones at Portland's Eastern Cemetery.
Vessel
- Not established
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- Wood
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- Sail
- Not established
Loss
- July 13, 1807
- Grounding
- Richmond Island, near the entrance to Portland Harbor, Maine
- Casco Bay
- Boston, Massachusetts → Portland, Maine
- Merchandise valued at about $25,000
- 22
- 16
- Jacob Adams
The Wreck Today
- Not established
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Position
- Not established
- Position not established
- Cape Elizabeth, Maine
Evidence
Overall confidence: Documented (75/100)
The vessel's construction details, dimensions, and tonnage are not established in the sources reviewed.
Spirits Alive, Eastern Cemetery Occasional Papers
Wreck narrative, casualties, and victim identification
Maine Historical Society broadside collection
Contemporary account and casualty count
