Thomas Willett (fireboat)
 Thomas Willett, celebrating July 4th, 1908.
| |
| History | |
|---|---|
 New York City Fire Department | |
| Name | Thomas Willett |
| Namesake | Thomas Willett |
| Port of registry | New York City, United States |
| Builder | T. S. Marvel Shipbuilding, Newburgh, NY[1] |
| Yard number | 185 |
| Completed | 1908 |
| Out of service | 1959 |
| Renamed |
|
| Fate | Sold, converted to passenger vessel by Circle Line |
 United States | |
| Name | Circle Line XIV |
| Owner | Circle Line Sightseeing Cruises |
| Acquired | 1959 |
| Identification | USCG Doc #: 204989 |
| Status | Floating office in Morris Canal Basin, Jersey City |
| General characteristics | |
| Type | Fireboat |
| Displacement | 580 net tons |
| Length | 123 ft (37 m) |
| Beam | 27 ft (8.2 m) |
| Draft | 14 ft (4.3 m) |
| Speed | 14 knots |
| Capacity | 9000 gpm |
Thomas Willett was a New York City Fire Department fireboat.[2] She was launched in 1908 and retired in 1959. She was built as a steam-engine powered vessel with coal-fired boilers. She was converted to oil-fired boilers in 1926.
Operational history
[edit]At 02:00 hrs on July 5, 1927, a fire was discovered among cotton bales in the number 6 cargo hold of RMS Ebro as she approached New York. She docked in the North River just before 10:00 hrs, disambarked her passengers, and then John Purroy Mitchel and Thomas Willett fought the fire. It was extinguished by 14:00 hrs.[3]
On August 14, 1927, a tugboat of the New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad, towing two barges of railway rolling stock, collided with a train of rock barges towed by Henry F. Wills.[4] Thomas Willett responded, when one barge was sunk and others damaged, saving their crew.
The FDNY retired Thomas Willett in 1959 and put her up for public sale.[2] She was acquired by Circle Line Sightseeing Cruises, who converted here into a tour boat and renamed her Circle Line XIV. As of 2021 she survives in Morris Canal Basin, Jersey City, as a floating office for Statue Cruises.[5]
References
[edit]- ^ "T. S. Marvel Shipbuilding, Newburgh NY". Shipbuilding History. Retrieved 22 April 2021.
- ^ a b "Fireboat on block". The New York Times. 1959-11-14. p. B42. Retrieved 2017-03-24 – via Times Machine.
- ^ "Conceals ship fire from passengers". The New York Times. 1927-07-06. p. 11. Retrieved 2024-03-05 – via Times Machine.
- ^
"20 Saved as Barges are Rammed in Dark". The New York Times. 1927-08-15. p. 8. Retrieved 2017-03-24 – via Times Machine.
The crew of the fireboat Thomas F. Willett rescued Captain John Webber, 50 years old, and his wife, Dorothy, from the sinking rock barge Moonstone, which was rammed off the Statue of Liberty early yesterday morning, and eighteen men and women, captains and their wives from eight other barges which were cut adrift but were undamaged.
- ^ "Circle Line XIV". ShipSpotting. Retrieved 22 April 2021.