The Lightship "Nantucket"

26

T h e L ig h tsh ip " N a ntu c ke t"

by Benjamin S. Richmond, Curator.

THE ACQUISITION OF the lightship N a n t u c k e t , so that it now has become a part of our waterfront scene, is a story in itself. The facts are as follows:

In May, 1975, the lightship was suddenly (for us) declared surplus by the General Services Administration and was up for grabs on a first come first served basis. Several hurried conferences of Town officials and the Historical Association ensued. We learned acquisition would have to be made by the Town as ownership could be transferred only to a tax supported organization. The Town has no funds to operate the ship so agreement was made to lease the ship to the Historical Association who would then underwrite expenses. All this was done with utmost speed and the Town then applied for the ship, only to learn we were too late. A group from Atlantic City had already acquired her.

At that time, we learned the Lightship B o s t o n was available and it was offered to us. Research by Representative Gerry Studds' staff revealed this ship had never served on the Nantucket Station. Lengthy n e g o t ia tio n s w e re t h e n u n d e rta k en t o s w a p t h e B o s t o n for t h e N a n t u c k e t with the Atlantic City group. Agreement was reached on the condition the Boston be delivered to Atlantic City and we pay the shipyard bills t h e y h a d i n c u rre d o n t h e N a n t u c k e t .

The Atlantic City group was unable to round up a crew competent to take the Boston from Boston to Atlantic City. An impasse occurred. After several weeks of attempts to get a crew without success Mike Todd agreed to get together a crew of Nantucketers to take the Boston to Atlantic City. This was done in July 1975.

We then acquired the N a n t u c k e t . She was drydocked in Chelsea in November and had the bottom cleaned and painted. Mike Todd and his crew, plus a few others, brought the Nantucket from Chelsea to Nantucket in December 1975.

After months of delays the permits to dredge the area on the north side of Straight Wharf were received in July 1976. A steel bulkhead was installed and the dredging completed by mid-August. Mike Todd and his lightship crew, who proudly call themselves "the Dirty Dozen" moved the lightship to her permanent berth on Friday, August 13, 1976.

THE LIGHTSHIP "NANTUCKET'" 27

Steel bollards were installed on the wharf to moor the ship. Mike Todd constructed a platform to attach the gangway. Flexible electrical, water, and sewage connections were designed and installed. Although the utilities are now operational some final work has yet to be completed.

The Lightship Itself I

This lightship was built in 1936 by Pusey and Jones, Wilmington, Del., partly from funds obtained from settlement with the White Star Line after the sinking of her predecessor LV 117. She is the largest lightship in the world, being specifically constructed for the hazardous waters of the Nantucket station. She was operated by the old U. S. Lighthouse Service and was assigned hull number 112 by them. In 1939 the U. S. Coast Guard took over the duties of the Lighthouse Service. The Coast Guard assigned her the number WAL 534.

She was very heavily constructed. Her hull is both riveted and welded. She is almost a ship within a ship. Her engine rooms and crew's mess have the same watertight integrity as the outer hull and deckhouses, i.e., they have watertight doors and ports. The inner "hull" is separated from the outer by fuel and water tanks, an unusual arrangement compared to other types of ships.

Her vital statistics include the following:

Length overall Beam Maximum Draft Displacement Main propulsion engine 149 feet 32 feet 16 feet 900 tons 900 SHP 8 cylinder Cooper-Bessemer diesel

Auxiliary engines

Three diesel powered 30 KW generators

Three diesel powered air compressors to operate fog horn, windlass, capstan, and steering engine

Fresh water capacity

29,000 gallons Fuel oil capacity 50,000 gallons Anchors—Two 7000 pound mushrooms, each with over 100 feet of 1 5/8" diam. die-lock chain Cruising speed 9'/2 knots Maximum speed 12 knots Maximum cruising range 22,000 miles Mast height above maximum draft water line—68 feet

28 HISTORIC NANTUCKET

Crew: One Chief Warrant Officer in command and 20 enlisted men.

When on station Vi of crew were on shore leave or duty for 30 days.

The lightship served on the station from 1936 until February 1975, except for the period of World War II and while being converted from steam power to diesel in 1956.

Historical Background

The Nantucket Lightship Station was first occupied on June 15, 1854. It is considered the most remote and probably the most dangerous station in the world. It guards the southern limits of the dangerous Nantucket Shoals and marks the eastern end of the Ambrose shipping channel to New York. Due to the vast amount of shipping passing through the area it has often been referred to as "the Times Square of the North Atlantic."

Over the years there have been eleven different lightships, not counting the Reliefs, on the station. This ship is the ninth. Two small lightships, numbers ten and eleven, presently take alternate turns on the station, which accounts for one almost always seeing a lightship marked Nantucket at the Coast Guard base in Boston.

At one time there were some 70 lightships stationed along our coasts. Today only two remain - the Columbia Bar on the west coast and the Nantucket on the east coast. All others have been retired and replaced by buoys or Texas Towers. It is highly probable these will also be replaced by buoys within a short time. The lightship will then pass into history as much as have the coasting schooner and the whaleship.