SCHOONER REBECCA WALLS LOST AT SEA

THE SCHOONER REBECCA WALLS

The schooner A. B. Marts, Captain Steelman, arrived February 13 from

Apalachicola, Florida, bringing Captain Smith, one passenger, and seven of the crew of the schooner Rebecca M. Walls of Philadelphia, which was abandoned at sea, February 6, in latitude 32.25, longitude 79.

Saved with Captain Smith, were Mate James Emory of Lynn, Massachusetts , Second Mate Willett Roberts of Portland, Maine, Steward James Cole of Manilla and Seamen David Lundquist, Louis Gabrielson, Harry Olsen of Norway, Walter Harrison of England,. F. A. Phelps of New Haven, Connecticut was a passenger from Brunswick.

Captain smith reports that he left Brunswick February 1 for Philadelphia with cargo 432,000 feet of lumber for the Pennsylvania Railroad, consigned to William A. Lloyd Company.

A moderate gale blew prior to February 4 on which day at 4 am the pumps showed there was no water in the vessel but to the surprise to the crew , all of the schooner, there was four feet of water in the hold at 9 am. The whole crew manned both pumps but at noon the was six feet and water was gaining seven inches per hour up to 9 pm. The vessel than filled and waterlogged, taking a list to port. The cabin flooded and only a few hard biscuits and a little bit of water was saved as all hands took to the top of the house to await rescue.

It was not until 5 am on the 6^th that a vessel was seen and Captain Smith lighted a torch and was rewarded by seeing the vessel bearing down upon the Walls, by daylight the same vessel was sighted seven full miles away and was soon out of sight to the eastward.

The Rebecca Walls crew was able to get a small canvas up on the Walls taking her on a west northwest by west course during which were seen two schooners to the eastward but too far away for signals to be seen. At 2 pm a steamer was sighted about four miles off, an ensign with the union down was raised but caught no attention. The Walls crew began to lose faith but later the day a four masted and a three masted schooner were sighted, the burgee was hoisted on the Walls and the the three master , which was the Marts, bore down on Captain Smith and took off all hands after their two days on the sinking schooner.

Later, a day or two, the Walls was reported as being off Charleston Bar, waterlogged and abandoned, then subsequently towed inside the bay for wrecking. Henry D. May, & Company of Philadelphia are owners of the Rebecca M Walls which was built in Milton, Delaware in 1879.

Source: Wilmington Delaware Evening Journal , Tuesday February 14, 1893.