Two Historic Schooners Sink Side-by-Side at a Brooklyn Pier
Two historic schooners owned by a hospitality company in Brooklyn went down in uncertain circumstances this week, bringing part of the U.S. East Coast's maritime heritage to an apparent end.
On July 1, in the midst of a squall, the schooner Pilot - most recently used as a bar by the local hospitality firm Crew - went down next to a disused grain terminal in Red Hook, Brooklyn. The 102-year-old racing schooner came to a rest on the bottom, leaving its masts protruding from the water.
No one was injured in the sinking, and the operator remains hopeful that the vessel can be refloated and restored.
"At this time, we do not yet know the cause of the incident. Most importantly, no one was aboard and no one was harmed," part-owner Alex Pincus told South Brooklyn History. "Our immediate focus is on working with the appropriate professionals and authorities to understand what happened and determine the safest path to raise Pilot."
The Pilot had been in layup since earlier this year, having been replaced by the fireboat Alfred E. Smith in restaurant service at that location.
The 1924-built Pilot was a racing schooner built in the Grand Banks style, and was used as a pilot boat in Boston Harbor through World War II. She later served as a research boat, hosting Jacques Cousteau for a trip to the Galapagos, and was bought for permanently-moored restaurant service in 2015. She was restored and installed at her new berth at Brooklyn's Pier 6 in 2017, serving as an oyster bar with views of Manhattan.
Days later, the Chesapeake Ram schooner Victory Chimes - the last vessel of her kind - went down at an adjacent berth in Red Hook. The vessel had been in Crew's possession since 2023, and was awaiting restoration. Salvors have been contracted to evaluate both wrecks, according to the owner.
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Brad Vogel, a local waterfront and shipping enthusiast, told local media that both of the wooden vessels were showing signs of age and visible deterioration before the back-to-back sinkings.
Crew operates comparable restaurant enterprises aboard the sailing vessel Sherman Zwicker (doing business as Grand Banks, in Tribeca) and the fireboat Alfred E. Smith (dba Fireboat, at Pilot's former berth in Brooklyn), along with a variety of shoreside bars and eateries.
