Joseph Henderson
Henderson ca. 1880
Born(1826-09-09)September 9, 1826
Charleston, South Carolina, US
DiedOctober 7, 1890(1890-10-07) (aged 64)
Brooklyn, New York, US
Occupationharbor pilot
SpouseAngelina Annetta Weaver
Children6, including Alexander D. Henderson
Signature

Joseph Henderson (September 9, 1826 – October 7, 1890) was a 19th-century American harbor pilot who guided large vessels into and out of New York Harbor as a Sandy Hook pilot.[1] During his long career his work included bringing the ship that carried the Statue of Liberty safely into port after its trip from Europe.

Early life

Henderson was born in Charleston, South Carolina.[2] At sixteen years of age, Henderson left Charleston to find passage to New York as a cabin boy on a ship traveling there. By 1845, he was a New York pilot.[3] Henderson married Angelina Annetta Weaver on February 11, 1849.[4]

Career

Henderson was a Sandy Hook pilot in New York Harbor and along the Atlantic Coast during the American Civil War. In 1846, he took out his pilot papers with the Board of Commissioners of Pilots of the State of New York. He became adept in all branches of piloting.[5]

Henderson owned several pilot ships in the Sandy Hook service.[6] By the age of twenty-one, he was captain of his own schooner, self-educated in seamanship, and a New York Sandy Hook pilot. He spent over 45 years as a New York pilot and was in more boat accidents than any other pilots.[7] On September 13, 1853, he became a Branch Pilot on the pilot boat Ellwood Walter, No. 7, belonging to the New York Pilots' Association.[8]

In December 1856, Henderson was one of the captains for the pilot boat No. 11, George W. Blunt.[5] On January 21, 1857, Henderson was on the Blunt, anchored at Coney Island, but hemmed in by the ice.[9]

Civil War

Arago (1855)

During the Civil War, Henderson was a pilot on the steamboat transports Arago and Fulton, running from Newport News, Virginia to Port Royal, South Carolina.[10]

Henderson was one-quarter owner of the William Bell, a pilot boat built in Greenpoint, Brooklyn, New York, in 1864 and co-owned with other Sandy Hook pilots.[11] On August 11, 1864, the William Bell ventured too far out to sea and was captured and burned by the Confederate raiding steamer the CSS Tallahassee. Henderson was at sea on another vessel at the time of the capture, acting as pilot for the Government.[12]

Post-Civil War

In December 1869, Henderson offered his services to pilot the steam vessel Tybee out of the port of New York, leaving for San Domingo, Dominican Republic; but the shipmaster refused to employ him. The Tybee proceeded to sea without a pilot of the port on board. In a trial, "Henderson v. Spofford," a judgment was made in the district court of New York City in favor of Henderson for thirty-eight dollars and eighteen cents plus the costs for pilotage fees out of the Port of New York.[13]

In 1879, during the construction of the east river bridge, Henderson was called upon as an expert seaman to determine the height of the water span of the Brooklyn Bridge, a new bridge from Brooklyn to New York City.[14] Another witness, Edward W. Serrell, who was a civil engineer, said that he had examined the plan and sections of the bridge and that the calculations of the assumed strength of the bridge were not accurate; and the effect of gales or wind would have upon the structure and upon foot passengers. There was a fear of cars being overthrown and woman being raised by the wind and cast over the railing.[15][16]

In 1883, Henderson, Walter Brewer, Henry Seguine, William J. Barry, and Josiah Johnson started the Sandy Hook Pilot Boat Company to have ownership and control of vessels and equipment for the use of pilots in the New York Harbor and water ways of Sandy Hook. They received a certificate of incorporation from Albany, New York. The capital stock raised was $100,000, which was to be invested in pilot boats and other equipment. Their office was in Burling-slip in New York City.[17] There was opposition to the project as it was seen as forming a union.[18] The new Sandy Hook Pilot Boat company intended to influence legislation of a bill to reduce the pilot fees.[19]

Henderson's appearance with the Isère was reported in several New York newspapers. On June 16, 1885, at ten o'clock at night, the Pilot Boat Pet, No. 9 was sighted by the French steamer Isère, laden with the Statue of Liberty. She was about ten miles outside the Sandy Hook lightship. Henderson set sail and when near enough launched a dingy and pulled alongside the Isère. He was taken on board and they then headed for the Sandy Hook Lightship. Henderson judged that the night was too dark with rain falling for safe crossing of the bar. He took charge of the ship, brought the ship to an anchor, and stood offshore waiting for daylight.[20][21] On June 17, the Isère arrived at the Horseshoe of Sandy Hook and it was moved to Gravesend Bay[22] alongside the man-of-war USS Omaha.[23] On Friday, at 1 o'clock, the Isère reached Bedloe's Island. The ferryboat Atlantic left the ferry house at the foot of Wall Street and then passed Governors Island. Then the Atlantic came next to the Isère. The first man from the Atlantic was Henderson.[24]

In 1888, Henderson was on board the pilot boat America, No. 21 during the Great Blizzard of 1888, when the vessel rode out the storm off the Shinnecock Light.[25][26]

New York Sandy Hook Pilot Boat "Pet, No. 9"

On October 28, 1872, Henderson, captain of the New York pilot boat "Pet, No. 9", sighted the brig Emily during a heavy gale. The crew of the Emily came on board the Pet, which lay by the brig until 7 p.m., at which time the Emily capsized. It was not until the next day that the crew members were transferred from the Pet to the steamship Italy, from Liverpool, and brought to the New York port.[27] On September 22, 1880, Pet, No. 9, ran across the schooner Gladiator, which sailed from Barbados for Yarmouth, Nova Scotia, that was overturned bottom up. The crew lowered a boat, which went alongside the vessel. They cut a hole in her side to sink her but discovered a terrible stench that was coming from below. A man was discovered with a rope around his neck hanging from the bowsprit. The crew of the vessel were laying dead in her cabin.[28] On November 20, 1889, Henderson was commander of Pet, No. 9, which was lost in the Newport, Rhode Island harbor. It was reported as having gone to pieces and left abandoned and was partly insured.[29][30]

Ships
Photo of the Teutonic
RMS Teutonic
Photo of the City of New York
SS City of New York

On August 13, 1890, Henderson took the White Star Line passenger steamer RMS Teutonic to sea on its first westward race across the Atlantic with the steamship SS City of New York. The race ended in victory for the Teutonic. The race from Queenstown harbor, Ireland to Sandy Hook, took five days and nineteen hours.[31] On August 21, 1890, Teutonic, piloted by Henderson, and City of New York raced from the New York pier to the Sandy Hook bar out to the bay. Hundreds of people were present to observe the liners as they departed. [32]

On August 23, 1890, Henderson guided the cruiser USS Baltimore out to sea when it carried inventor John Ericsson's remains to their final resting place in Stockholm, Sweden.[7][33]

Death

Joseph Henderson tombstone at Greenwood Cemetery, Brooklyn, New York. Lot #13244 and Section #88

On October 4, 1890, Henderson left home in good health and sailed to Sandy Hook on board his pilot boat America, No. 21. During this trip, he became ill and was brought home to New York and died of peritonitis on October 7, 1890, at his home in Brooklyn. He was one of the oldest pilots in service.[7][10] He was buried in the Green-Wood Cemetery.[10]

See also

References

  1. ↑ "Death of an Old Pilot" (PDF). The Evening Post. New York. October 8, 1890. Archived (PDF) from the original on September 24, 2015. Retrieved January 22, 2020 – via fultonhistory.com.
  2. ↑ "Joseph Henderson vs. The United States". babel.hathitrust.org. United States. Court of Commissioners of Alabama Claims. January 22, 1883. pp. 3, 13. Retrieved January 30, 2020. I reside in Brooklyn, N. Y.; I am a Sandy Hook pilot, born at Charleston, South Carolina, Sept. 9th, 1826
  3. ↑ "Half a Century of Piloting" (PDF). New York Herald. October 12, 1890. Archived from the original (PDF) on September 24, 2015. Retrieved January 22, 2020 – via Fultonhistory.com. The late Joseph Henderson's extraordinary record of distress, accidents and lucky escapes.
  4. ↑ "Married". The New York Herald. New York. 1848-02-13. p. 4 – via ProQuest. On Sunday evening, the 11th, by the Rev. Mr. Lathrop, at the Baptist Tabernacle, in Mulberry street, Mr. Joseph Henderson, of Charleston, S. C., to Miss Angelina A. Weaver, of New York.
  5. 1 2 Russell, Charles Edward (1929). From Sandy Hook to 62°. New York: The Century Co. pp. 148–153. OCLC 3804485.
  6. ↑ "Joseph Henderson vs. The United States". babel.hathitrust.org. United States. Court of Commissioners of Alabama Claims. January 22, 1883. pp. 3, 13. Retrieved January 30, 2020. I reside in Brooklyn, N. Y.; I am a Sandy Hook pilot, born at Charleston, South Carolina, Sept. 9th, 1826
  7. 1 2 3 "Captain Joseph Henderson Dead". Brooklyn Daily Eagle. New York. 1890-10-09. Archived from the original on 2019-06-01. Retrieved 2019-06-01 – via bklyn.newspapers.com. An old pilot and a long resident of Brooklyn passes away.
  8. ↑ Document provided by the Board of Commissioners of Pilots of the State of New York, September 13, 1853
  9. ↑ "The Day After The Storm, Terrible Shipwrecks on the Coast and Looss of Life". The New York Herald. January 21, 1857. p. 1. Retrieved 2020-01-30. George W. Blunt, No. 11 (list of pilots including Joseph Henderson). She is now at anchor at Coney Island, hemmed in by the ice.
  10. 1 2 3 "Pilot Henderson Dead". The Evening World. Oct 8, 1890. Archived from the original on January 8, 2014. Retrieved January 22, 2020. He was one of the oldest and best known of the Sandy Hook crew.
  11. ↑ "The Tallahassee, Complete Rebel History of Her Depredations". New York Times. 1864-09-29. p. 1. Archived from the original on 2020-01-28. Retrieved 2020-01-28 – via Richmond Dispatch. This was pilot-boat "No. 24," or, the William Bell, one of the finest vessels I have ever seen. We hastily gathered a few things from her, nautical instruments, telescopes, charts, clocks, medicine chest, etc. And then, pouring turpentine ever the cabin floor, this fine boat was fired.
  12. ↑ "The William Bell, A New York Pilot Boat". Issue of The Log of Mystic Seaport. 1969. p. 17. Retrieved 2020-01-28. One of the pilot boats of the 1860s, the William Bell, ventured too far out one day in 1864 and was captured and burned by the Confederate raiding steamer Tallahassee.
  13. ↑ Henderson v. Spofford. Abbott's Practice Cases - Volume 10 - Page 141. 1871. Retrieved February 1, 2014.
  14. ↑ Green, S. W. (Samuel W.) (1883). A Complete History of the New York and Brooklyn Bridge from its Conception in 1866 to its Completion in 1883. New York: S.W. Green's Son.
  15. ↑ "The Obstacles to the Bridge, Views Of New Yorkers—Its Supposed Shakiness". The New York Times. 1879-03-21. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2020-01-24. There were glances of admiration bestowed by the inland members of the committee upon Capt. Joe Henderson, one of the oldest pilots around New-York, when that mariner reeled off a lot of nautical terms in his testimony.
  16. ↑ "The East River Bridge; Doubts Expressed of its Asserted Strength" (PDF). The Evening Post. March 21, 1879. Retrieved January 23, 2020 – via fultonhistory.com. Captain Joseph Henderson, a Sandy Hook pilot, was the next witness called.
  17. ↑ "Brooklyn Enterprise. The Incorporation of the Sandy Hook Pilot Boat Company". The Brooklyn Daily Eagle. Brooklyn, New York. 30 Aug 1883. p. 4. Retrieved 2021-07-07.
  18. ↑ "Pilots Trying To Combine". New-York Tribune. New York, New York. 1 Sep 1883. p. 2. Retrieved 2021-07-08.
  19. ↑ "The New York Pilots". The Morning Journal-Courier. New Haven, Connecticut. 6 Sep 1883. p. 1. Retrieved 2021-07-08.
  20. ↑ "The Isère, Bartholdi's Gift Reaches the Horseshoe Safely" (PDF). The Evening Telegram. New York. 1885-06-17. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2020-03-12. Retrieved 2020-01-24. It was learned that pilot boat No. 9 had spoken the Isère at ten o'clock last night. Pilot Henderson was taken aboard, but judged that the night was too dark for safe crossing of the bar.
  21. ↑ "A Sentinel". New York World. New York. 1885-06-18. Retrieved 2020-02-13. Capt. Joseph Henderson, of pilot-boat Pet No. 9, brought the Isère over the bar. I was cruising around outside Sandy Hook looking out for some deep-draught ship, and about sundown of Tuesday night sited a craft that looked as though she might be either a man-of-war or a transport steamship of some kind.
  22. ↑ "Arrival of the Big Statue". New York Tribune. New York. 1885-06-18. Retrieved 2020-01-24. On Tuesday Pilot Boat No. 9 was sighted and Pilot Joseph Henderson was taken on board.
  23. ↑ "The Isère Arrives". New York Herald. 1885-06-18. Retrieved 2020-01-24. The French transport vessel Isère, with the Bartholdi statue on board, arrived in this port yesterday. Pilot Joseph Henderson, of the pilot boat Pet, No. 9, ran across her about ten o'clock on Tuesday night, about ten miles outside the lightship.
  24. ↑ "Welcoming The Statue, A Brilliant Scene on the Waters of the Harbor". New York Times. New York, New York. 1885-06-20. Archived from the original on 2020-06-25. Retrieved 2020-06-25. The first man from the Atlantic was Pilot Henderson, who jumped from the skylight down on to the quarter deck.
  25. ↑ The New York Herald
  26. ↑ New York Herald-Tribune (New York, NY) Page 3.
  27. ↑ "The Pilot Boat Pet - Number Nine of the New York Harbor Fleet" (PDF). Spirit Of The Times. February 3, 1877. Archived (PDF) from the original on September 24, 2015. Retrieved July 20, 2014 – via Fultonhistory.com.
  28. ↑ "New York, A Pilot's Ghastly Discovery". The Morning Journal-Courier. New Haven, Connecticut. 1880-09-23. Retrieved 2020-04-12.
  29. ↑ "A New York Pilot Boat Sunk". The Sun. November 20, 1889. Retrieved 2020-01-30. Pilot Boat Pet, No. 9, of New York went ashore this morning on the east side of Conanicut Island, half way between Beaver Tail and Mackerel Cove.
  30. ↑ "ASHORE NEAR NEWPORT". The Brooklyn Daily Eagle. November 21, 1989. Retrieved December 26, 2019.
  31. ↑ The New York Evening Post
  32. ↑ "Neck and Neck On The Ocean" (PDF). The New York Herald. August 21, 1890. Archived (PDF) from the original on September 24, 2015. Retrieved 2013-09-25 – via Fultonhistory.com. The Teutonic and the City Of New York again racing. The pilot on the Teutonic was Joseph Henderson.
  33. ↑ "Homeward Borne Like A Viking. Captain John Ericsson's Body Begins Its Journey to the Land of His Birth". New York Herald. 1890-08-24. Retrieved 2020-01-26. Captain Joseph Henderson, one of the oldest pilots in the service, who piloted the Baltimore to sea this afternoon, states that she is the first government vessel in seven years to take a Sandy Hook pilot.
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