On January 28, 1915, the US flag four-masted bark William P. Frye was sunk off the coast of Brazil by the Imperial German Navy raider SMS Prinz Eitel Friedrich. As a US-owned vessel, William P. Frye was a neutral ship. The US would not enter the war until over two years later, in April 1917.
Nevertheless, because the bark had sailed with a cargo of wheat from Seattle, Washington bound for Falmouth, England, Max Thierichens, the commander of the German cruiser declared the cargo to be contraband, as it could be used to feed English troops. He demanded that the cargo be dumped overboard. The crew started discharging the approximately 5,000 tones of grain. When they had not completed the job by the next day, the German commander ordered all crew and passengers off the ship, had scuttling charges set, and sank the square-rigger. William P. Frye was the first American vessel sunk during World War I.
More than thirty years ago, I sat on the rotting planks of the old Pier 17 in the East River in Manhattan and listened to Bernie Clay and the X-Seaman’s Institute sing a song about the schooner Alice S. Wentworth. The song became known as the “
On New Year’s Eve, in 20-foot seas and high winds, the 130′ crab boat 
The 
Today, on Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, the US Navy officially named the newest of the future 
Congratulations to 
Will the Titanic II ever be built? And if so, when will it sail?
On Tuesday around 3:35 PM the Coast Guard in Galveston, TX was notified that a fishing boat, the 82′ long 
We are having a relatively warm January with significantly fluctuating temperatures. Similar weather conditions 101 years ago, coupled with a shoddily built storage tank, caused the Great Boston Molasses Flood, which inundated Boston’s North End sending a wall of molasses, killing 21 and injuring 150. A repost about the tragedy.
There are so few well-done documentary series involving ships and the sea that it seems worth pointing out that the excellent