The Deadly Shipwrecks of the Powhattan & New Era on the Jersey Shore

Captain Robert F. Bennett · Susan Leigh Bennett · Commander Timothy R. Dring

Apr 2015 · Arcadia Publishing

About this ebook

In 1854, two horrendous shipwrecks took place off the New Jersey coast. The Powhattan and the New Era were both American-flag sailing packet ships carrying hopeful European immigrants to new lives in America. The ships ran aground on the offshore sandbars along the shoreline between Sandy Hook and Little Egg Inlet, claiming the lives of many passengers and crew. The staggering casualties finally prompted calls from the public and politicians for reforms to the system for rescues that the federal government had in place. The tragedies ultimately resulted in changes that prevented countless similar deaths. This unique and gripping account offers minute-by-minute details of the deadly wrecks, their causes and their final outcomes.

About the author

Timothy Dring is a retired commander in the U.S. Naval Reserve. He is the co-author of "American Coastal Rescue Craft," which won the best history book award from the Foundation for Coast Guard History in 2010. Commander Dring is on the board of the U.S. Life-Saving Service Heritage Association and the Twin Lights Historical Society. He is a regular contributor to the Heritage Association's quarterly journal. In 2010, he was given the U.S. Coast Guard's Meritorious Public Service Award. Susan Leigh Bennett received her bachelor of science in biological sciences/science teaching from Clemson University, and her masters-plus-thirty in speech and language pathology from the University of South Carolina. She is the proud daughter of a Coast Guardsman and a descendant of three heroes of the former United States Life-Saving Service who were stationed along the New Jersey coastline. She resides in the Lowcountry of South Carolina with her mother, Barbara Bennett, and sister Lorri.