W T Bell
Schooner · United States · Lost 1927 · Long Island & the New York Approaches
A rum-running schooner wrecked ashore at Bayville, Long Island, in a 1927 gale, her cargo of liquor discovered by authorities amid a lumber manifest.
Become Captain of RecordSee Shipwreck on Map
The Vessel and Her Loss
Built in 1889 in Pennsylvania and originally sailing as Number 26, the schooner was renamed W T Bell in 1923 after sale to a Norfolk owner. During the height of Prohibition, on the night of 19-20 February 1927, she was driven hard aground at Oak Neck near Bayville, Long Island, during a severe gale while nominally carrying lumber lath from Halifax. Local residents helped rescue the crew, and law enforcement subsequently found evidence of a liquor cargo aboard, confirming the schooner's rum-running trade.
Vessel
- 1889
- Not established
- Linwood, Pennsylvania
- Wood
- 119 ft
- Not established
- 180
- Sail
- Norfolk, Virginia businessman (owner from 1923)
Loss
- February 20, 1927
- Storm
- Oak Neck, Bayville, Long Island Sound, New York
- Long Island Sound
- Halifax, Nova Scotia → New York
- Plasterer's lath (manifest); liquor discovered aboard by authorities
- Not established
- Not established
- Not established
The Wreck Today
- Not established
- Not established
- Not established
- Not established
- Not established
Position
- 40.90° N 73.57° W
- Approximate position
- Oak Neck, Bayville, New York
Based on the reported shoreline location at Oak Neck, Bayville
Evidence
Overall confidence: Partially documented (68/100)
The vessel's final disposition after the wreck (breakup, salvage, or abandonment in place) is not established in the sources reviewed.
Glen Cove Heritage (local historical account, "The Wreck of the Rum-Runner")
Build history, grounding date and location, rescue, and liquor cargo discovery
