Sunday, April 22, 2012

Schooner C.R. Bennett ~ 6 December 1906

Annual Report of the Operations of the United States Life-Saving Service for the fiscal year ending June 30, 1906:

On the morning of December 6, 1906 the schooner C.R. Bennett was stranded on "nine foot shoal", three miles northeast of the Ocracoke Station. The station crew went to her assistance, arriving at 8:30 a.m. ... "Keeper and crew run her cable & works on her 3 hours & could not get her off." They returned to the station as noon ... "Schr floted on nex high tide."
     Late on the afternoon of the 8th, during ... "bad weather NW, high tide, rough sea, the BENNETT draged anchor," and once more went aground on the same shoal. At 8 a.m. the next morning Captain D.M. Merrett again signaled for assistance. The station crew went to their assistance and ... "lightered the cargo & floted the schr ... worke on schr 34 hours." Captain Merrett and his two crewman, J.S. Sharp and Alphar Day, were from Chincoteague, VA and had come to Ocracoke to buy oysters.
     Four years later on December 31, 1910 the C.R. Bennett was in the area again, buying oysters, when she ran aground on the south side of the cut, 3-1/2 miles from the Portsmouth Station. The Portsmouth crew worked on her for two days without success. The revenue cutter arrived on January 8, 1911, but was also unsuccessful. Finally on the 16th, with the assistance of the cutter's crew, the vessel was floated and anchored in Sheep Island Slough, where she loaded with oysters.

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