The four-masted Canadian coal schooner Bessie A. White was sailing from Newport News, Virginia to St. John, New Brunswick on February 6, 1922. The schooner struck a sandbar hard as a heavy fog crept in, causing the ship to start taking on water. The Bessie White ended itself stuck on Fire Island’s shore opposite the Smiths Point Coast Guard station, which had sadly recently been discontinued, despite the best efforts of the twenty men on board. Seaman James Rynburgh banged his head on a stanchion and lost consciousness in the surf as the crew launched lifeboats to safety. After Rynburgh’s crewmates saved him, they transported him eight miles to the Bellport Coast Guard Station so he could receive medical care. Even though there were no other casualties, the ship and its cargo were a total loss.
Foster Stills and Harry Paine of Patchogue quickly acquired the rights to the wreckage and managed the recovery and distributing of the ship’s essential parts. The four masts were given to municipalities on Long Island’s eastern shore to serve as flagpoles, and the engine was sent back to the builder. The ongoing tide and theft posed a problem to salvage operations, as they did for other wrecks near Fire Island. One stormy night, amid choppy waves, a dory full of mobile equipment—including the ship’s compass—was stolen. Men engaged in salvage operations were saved once when they became stranded on the ship during high tide.
While rescuing what they could from the ship, Stills and Paine considered selling the wreck to a production company for use in a movie. They thought the wreck could be demolished to add reality to “some movie thriller.” But negotiations broke down, leaving the remaining ship hull exposed to the sand and the tide.
The remaining debris was a popular sight for both locals and tourists, sitting just 400 feet from the shore and readily walkable during low tide. Furthermore, we are aware that the Bessie A. White’s tale is far from over, even though the debris did eventually sink below the Great South Beach’s changing sands.
While rescuing what they could from the ship, Stills and Paine considered selling the wreck to a production company for use in a movie. They thought the wreck could be demolished to add reality to “some movie thriller.” But negotiations broke down, leaving the remaining ship hull exposed to the sand and the tide.
It is thought that a significant portion of the Bessie White’s hull is still there in the Otis Pike Fire Island High Dune Wilderness, close to Long Cove, which is what makes the ship famous on Fire Island. Hurricane Sandy in 2012 uncovered and brought into full view the worn stretch of wood and nail. The ship’s skeleton is covered and uncovered by wind and waves, which occasionally unearths major pieces of the interesting item. Although the remains are believed to be those of the Bessie White, it is difficult to determine for sure if they are a genuine part of the nearly 100-year-old schooner.
The discovery of this debris after Hurricane Sandy garnered widespread media attention. Few regular island visitors were taken aback by the Bessie White’s abrupt entrance from the carved-out dunes of a Fire Island beach, despite the sudden flurry of media interest. The wreck was not found by this storm alone. Actually, Bessie White was a frequent beachgoer who would frequently reappear after severe winter storms.
The tale of the wreck, its recovery, or its discovery does not always explain why this relic is so unique. It’s relatively accessible, which is what makes it unique. All it would take to see the wreck is a short stroll from Watch Hill, one of the National Seashore’s most visited locations. Note that she does like to play hide and seek.
In 2021, the Bessie A. White wreck was thought to have resurfaced on Fire Island’s sandy face, posing an intriguing challenge for the National Seashore. How can we strike a balance between scientific research, education, and preservation? Even though leaving the wreck in its original location may have contributed to its demise, is there any benefit to examining it there as opposed to in a lab?
There were instant concerns that the wreck would start to crumble. Although the Bessie A. White’s story is similar to that of other wrecks off the coast of Fire Island, it is not noteworthy enough to be kept in a museum or unremarkable enough to be taken down. What prospects, then, did this wreck offer?
In an intriguing new initiative to identify and monitor shipwrecks, Fire Island National Seashore and the Submerged Resources Centre of the National Park Service got involved that year. Created by the “FPAN,” or Florida Public Archeology Network. The Shipwreck Tagging and Archeological Management Program, or STAMP, is a public outreach initiative that uses citizen science to better record and comprehend these historic aspects by tracking and cataloguing shipwreck locations and disarticulated shipwreck timbers.
Fire Island National Seashore Rangers collaborated with curatorial staff to apply unique STAMP tags to different areas of the wreckage, with the assistance of FPAN and the recently implemented STAMP program. The distinctive QR codes on these STAMPS enable users to enter images, GPS locations, and other data into the STAMP database, enabling the National Park Service and FPAN to monitor the site in order to see how it changes over time.
Now that they are citizen scientists, tourists may take in the wreck and help us comprehend how it evolved. The information that is obtained will allow us to see not only how the shipwreck has changed over time, but also how Fire Island has changed as waves, wind, and storms progressively shift the wreck year after year. In the future, this information might be helpful in locating further shipwrecks in American waters!
There are a lot of special opportunities that the Bessie A. White wreck offers us. The Bessie White is genuinely unique in that it offers opportunities to interact with and appreciate our nautical heritage as well as to comprehend the natural lifecycle of shipwrecks.
We eagerly await the Bessie’s next appearance when it returns to her sandy tomb. To another 100 years.