A. T. Gifford (ship)
Encyclopedia
The A. T. Gifford was the last American schooner
Schooner
A schooner is a type of sailing vessel characterized by the use of fore-and-aft sails on two or more masts with the forward mast being no taller than the rear masts....
-rigged whaleship
Whaler
A whaler is a specialized ship, designed for whaling, the catching and/or processing of whales. The former included the whale catcher, a steam or diesel-driven vessel with a harpoon gun mounted at its bows. The latter included such vessels as the sail or steam-driven whaleship of the 16th to early...
to cruise Hudson Bay
Hudson Bay
Hudson Bay , sometimes called Hudson's Bay, is a large body of saltwater in northeastern Canada. It drains a very large area, about , that includes parts of Ontario, Quebec, Saskatchewan, Alberta, most of Manitoba, southeastern Nunavut, as well as parts of North Dakota, South Dakota, Minnesota,...
. It caught fire and sank in late 1915. Although the captain and a few of his crew escaped the wreck, none survived the disaster.
Construction and Ownership
The A. T. Gifford was a sailing shipSailing ship
The term sailing ship is now used to refer to any large wind-powered vessel. In technical terms, a ship was a sailing vessel with a specific rig of at least three masts, square rigged on all of them, making the sailing adjective redundant. In popular usage "ship" became associated with all large...
built in March 1883 in Essex
Essex, Massachusetts
Essex is a town in Essex County, Massachusetts, north of Boston. The population was 3,504 at the 2010 census.Part of the town comprises the census-designated place of Essex.- History :...
, Massachusetts
Massachusetts
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. It is bordered by Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north; at its east lies the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2010...
. Rigged
Rigging
Rigging is the apparatus through which the force of the wind is used to propel sailboats and sailing ships forward. This includes masts, yards, sails, and cordage.-Terms and classifications:...
as a schooner
Schooner
A schooner is a type of sailing vessel characterized by the use of fore-and-aft sails on two or more masts with the forward mast being no taller than the rear masts....
, she measured 82.6 feet (25.2 m) in length, and displaced 82 ST (73 LT; 74 t).
From 1884 until after 1900, the Gifford was owned by George Dennis, and its homeport was Gloucester
Gloucester, Massachusetts
Gloucester is a city on Cape Ann in Essex County, Massachusetts, in the United States. It is part of Massachusetts' North Shore. The population was 28,789 at the 2010 U.S. Census...
, Massachusetts
Massachusetts
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. It is bordered by Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north; at its east lies the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2010...
. During 1913-1915 the Gifford was owned by furrier F. N. Monjo of New York City.
Edward M. Joyce
The Gifford was commanded by E. M. Joyce from 1884 until at least 1900. This was presumably Edward M. Joyce, who had previously commanded the schooners Eliza K. Parker in 1881 and Henry L. Phillips 1883.George Comer
George ComerGeorge Comer
Captain George Comer was considered the most famous American whaling captain of Hudson Bay, and the world's foremost authority on Hudson Bay Inuit in the early 20th century....
served as captain
Captain (nautical)
A sea captain is a licensed mariner in ultimate command of the vessel. The captain is responsible for its safe and efficient operation, including cargo operations, navigation, crew management and ensuring that the vessel complies with local and international laws, as well as company and flag...
of the Gifford on two voyages out of Stamford
Stamford, Connecticut
Stamford is a city in Fairfield County, Connecticut, United States. According to the 2010 census, the population of the city is 122,643, making it the fourth largest city in the state and the eighth largest city in New England...
, Connecticut
Connecticut
Connecticut is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, and the state of New York to the west and the south .Connecticut is named for the Connecticut River, the major U.S. river that approximately...
in 1907 and 1910. Comer had obtained command of the Gifford after his previous whaleship Era was wrecked off Newfoundland
Newfoundland and Labrador
Newfoundland and Labrador is the easternmost province of Canada. Situated in the country's Atlantic region, it incorporates the island of Newfoundland and mainland Labrador with a combined area of . As of April 2011, the province's estimated population is 508,400...
in 1906.
Comer spent two winters, 1910–1912, frozen in the ice at Cape Fullerton
Cape Fullerton
Cape Fullerton is a cape and peninsula in Nunavut, Canada located on the northwest shores of Hudson Bay on Roes Welcome Sound and includes Fullerton Harbour...
, during which time he made phonograph records of the local Inuit
Inuit
The Inuit are a group of culturally similar indigenous peoples inhabiting the Arctic regions of Canada , Denmark , Russia and the United States . Inuit means “the people” in the Inuktitut language...
, and collected folklore
Folklore
Folklore consists of legends, music, oral history, proverbs, jokes, popular beliefs, fairy tales and customs that are the traditions of a culture, subculture, or group. It is also the set of practices through which those expressive genres are shared. The study of folklore is sometimes called...
and legends of the Iluilirmiut of Adelaide Peninsula
Adelaide Peninsula
Adelaide Peninsula , ancestral home to the Illuilirmiut Inuit, is a large peninsula in Nunavut, Canada. It is located at south of King William Island....
(Iluilik), Hudson Bay
Hudson Bay
Hudson Bay , sometimes called Hudson's Bay, is a large body of saltwater in northeastern Canada. It drains a very large area, about , that includes parts of Ontario, Quebec, Saskatchewan, Alberta, most of Manitoba, southeastern Nunavut, as well as parts of North Dakota, South Dakota, Minnesota,...
. The vessel also took five small whales which yielded 2000 pounds (907.2 kg) of whalebone, then valued at $10,000.
James Allen Wing
62-year-old James Allen Wing (1851–1925) was the next captain of the A. T. Gifford. Wing had recently left his post as master of the steam barkBark
Bark is the outermost layers of stems and roots of woody plants. Plants with bark include trees, woody vines and shrubs. Bark refers to all the tissues outside of the vascular cambium and is a nontechnical term. It overlays the wood and consists of the inner bark and the outer bark. The inner...
Gay Head of San Francisco, and was well-acquainted with arctic
Arctic
The Arctic is a region located at the northern-most part of the Earth. The Arctic consists of the Arctic Ocean and parts of Canada, Russia, Greenland, the United States, Norway, Sweden, Finland, and Iceland. The Arctic region consists of a vast, ice-covered ocean, surrounded by treeless permafrost...
navigation. The son of whaling captain Andrew Wing of Acushnet
Acushnet, Massachusetts
Acushnet is a town in Bristol County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 10,303 at the 2010 census.- History :Acushnet was first settled in 1659. It has been included as a part of three separate towns throughout its history. It was formerly the northeastern section of the town of...
, Massachusetts
Massachusetts
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. It is bordered by Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north; at its east lies the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2010...
, he had sailed on whaleships since the age of eleven, before moving in the early 1890s from New Bedford to California to follow the profits of the whaling trade. In California he became master of the bark Sea Breeze, the steamer Karluk, and the C. T. Walker, plying the western Arctic waters for whales, and was part of the "ice catch" of 1898 in which eight whalers were trapped in the ice off the coast of Alaska. After two seasons on river steamers between Stockton
Stockton, California
Stockton, California, the seat of San Joaquin County, is the fourth-largest city in the Central Valley of the U.S. state of California. With a population of 291,707 at the 2010 census, Stockton ranks as this state's 13th largest city...
and San Francisco, he became captain of the Gay Head, a post he held from 1909-1912.
His voyage on the Gifford left in June 1913. During its cruise in Hudson Bay
Hudson Bay
Hudson Bay , sometimes called Hudson's Bay, is a large body of saltwater in northeastern Canada. It drains a very large area, about , that includes parts of Ontario, Quebec, Saskatchewan, Alberta, most of Manitoba, southeastern Nunavut, as well as parts of North Dakota, South Dakota, Minnesota,...
, Capt. Wing dropped off Capt. George Cleveland of Martha's Vineyard
Martha's Vineyard
Martha's Vineyard is an island located south of Cape Cod in Massachusetts, known for being an affluent summer colony....
, his partner Mr. Bumpus, and their supplies at Cape Fullerton to establish a trading post for the F. N. Monjo Company
Monjo Company
The Monjo Company was a New York City fur trading business that obtained furs in the Canadian arctic, Alaska, and the Northwest United States, and sold them wholesale in New York City during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. It was among the eleven largest fur importers in New...
of furriers.
Arthur O. Gibbons
Arthur O. Gibbons (1859–1915) of NorwichNorwich, Connecticut
Regular steamship service between New York and Boston helped Norwich to prosper as a shipping center through the early part of the 20th century. During the Civil War, Norwich once again rallied and saw the growth of its textile, armaments, and specialty item manufacturing...
, Connecticut
Connecticut
Connecticut is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, and the state of New York to the west and the south .Connecticut is named for the Connecticut River, the major U.S. river that approximately...
was the last captain of the A. T. Gifford. He was unmarried, the son of Mrs. Mary A. (Gibbons) Murray of Norwich. He is presumably the same Arthur O. Gibbons who is listed as the master of the Francis Allyn (1897, 1899), the Ellen A. Swift (1902, 1906), and Charles W. Morgan
Charles W. Morgan (ship)
Charles W. Morgan was a U.S. whaleship during the 19th and early 20th century. Ships of this type usually harvested the blubber of whales for whale oil, which was commonly used in lamps...
(1908). He is probably the same man as Arthur B. Gibbons who captained the Sarah W. Hunt in 1892 and 1893, and perhaps the Margaret, the Bertha (1902, 1911), and the T. Towner.
Fire and sinking
In July, 1915, the Gifford left Provincetown, MA on its final voyage. After dropping off supplies and picking up a two years' catch of furs from Capt. Cleveland at Cape Fullerton in September 1915, it was never heard from again.In 1917, George Fred Tilton of Martha's Vineyard was hired by the Monjo company to investigate the disappearance of the schooner. He sailed to Hudson Bay on the schooner Pythian and determined that it had burned and sank in flames on its homeward journey. Tilton wrote, "I found proof that the schooner had caught fire and burned until her gas tanks blew up and sunk her, and I learned from the natives of three men who landed in a small boat and died from burns and exposure."
An overturned fisherman's dory
Dory
The dory is a small, shallow-draft boat, about long. It is a lightweight and versatile boat with high sides, a flat bottom and sharp bows. They are easy to build because of their simple lines. For centuries, dories have been used as traditional fishing boats, both in coastal waters and in the...
covering two skeletons were found by Capt. Cleveland at Coats Island
Coats Island
Coats Island lies at the northern end of Hudson Bay in the Kivalliq Region of Nunavut. At in size, it is the 107th largest island in the world, and Canada's 24th largest island....
in 1921, alleged to be the remains of crew of the schooner A. T. Gifford. One of the two bodies was identified as Captain Gibbons by his small stature and his revolver
Revolver
A revolver is a repeating firearm that has a cylinder containing multiple chambers and at least one barrel for firing. The first revolver ever made was built by Elisha Collier in 1818. The percussion cap revolver was invented by Samuel Colt in 1836. This weapon became known as the Colt Paterson...
. The second skeleton remained unidentified, but was presumed to be one of the Giffords officers. The men were thought to have been trying to reach the nearest Hudson Bay trading post, some 70 mile from where the dory was found, when winter storms set in. The Canadian Government
Government of Canada
The Government of Canada, formally Her Majesty's Government, is the system whereby the federation of Canada is administered by a common authority; in Canadian English, the term can mean either the collective set of institutions or specifically the Queen-in-Council...
held a criminal investigation.
No other survivors of the wreck have ever been located.
External links
- The Monjo Post at Cape Fullerton - Excerpts from the log of the A. T. Gifford and an account of the 1915 disaster.