This story has some indirect associations to the Town of York as several contributions to this narrative were notes of my great grandfather, Clarence M. Prince.  Clarence was known to the residents of York and Kittery.  He married Elizabeth (Lizzie) McIntire from York in 1884.  She was a direct descendent of Micum McIntire of York. Clarence Prince was one of the original incorporators and an important financial backer of the Portsmouth Kittery and York Street Railway, the electric streetcar trolley network which commenced operations in York and Kittery in 1897.  He was town clerk of Kittery for 27 years from the late 1800’s into the early 1900’s.  He owned and operated a prominent retail grocery and provision market in Kittery for 36 years from 1885-1921 which served Kittery and portions of Eliot and York.  Additionally, he had a contract for many years supplying wholesale meat and poultry to the Navy Yard.

Recently, I was rummaging through some of Clarence Prince’s personal papers and town records which were tucked away in my family “archives” which were handed down to me over the years.  This collection contains rich source material to support my continued interest in local history.

When I was digging through the records Clarence had saved, I came across 14 original death certificates which Clarence compiled in 1902 as part of his duties as Kittery’s town clerk.  All were signed by Kittery’s coroner Dr. Shapleigh.   To my surprise, all of the death certificates showed the same date of death as July 17, 1902 with the cause of death attributed to accidental drowning.   I subsequently learned all deaths were the result of a tragic boating accident near Appledore Island at the Isles of Shoals. 

Today’s narrative is the expanded story of this accident with material taken from my great grandfather’s notes, information on the death certificates, and local newspaper accounts published at the time of the incident. I hope you find this story interesting and informative.

Isles of Shoals

Here is some information about the Isles of Shoals which will give the reader a backdrop for this story.

This collection of small islands located seven miles off the coast of Kittery ME and Rye NH is split  geographically between the states of Maine and New Hampshire.  The largest island is Appledore Island which is located in Kittery, Maine.  Appledore is clearly visible from York as seen out upon the ocean approximately 10 miles south of Sohier Park located at the end of Nubble Peninsula.  The second largest island making up the Isles of Shoals is Star Island which is located in New Hampshire.  These islands were originally settled as part of a rich fishing territory frequented in the 17th century by European fishermen.  The fish market of these islands was unrivaled for 150 years until the fishing industry slowed down.  Then in the mid 19th century the Isles of Shoals became a fashionable destination for tourism in New England with large hotels built on the two major islands: the Oceanic Hotel on Star Island and the Appledore House on Appledore Island.

One additional note of interest for readers of the York History Group, there are a handful of York homes which were dismantled and floated to York on barges from the Isles of Shoals in the late 1700’s.  Apparently around the time of the American Revolution, the province of NH ordered the Shoalers to the mainland as they could not be protected from British naval forces.  Some of the homeowners then moved their homes by barge to York and reconstructed them.  These homes still exist in York to the present day.  On a similar note, it was also at that time the present-day York Harbor Inn’s post and beam fireplaced “Cabin Room” (Circa 1637) was carefully dismantled and transported by barge to York Harbor from the Isles of Shoals where it was set up as a sail loft for refitting of ship sails.  Today the Cabin Room is the centerpiece of the York Harbor Inn.

This photo shows the Oceanic Hotel as it appeared in 1902.  This structure was built around 1876.  Of note, this hotel survives to the present day, looking much the same as this early photo.

Back at the turn of the twentieth century this hotel was a popular, offshore retreat for tourists during the summer months.  It could sleep 200 guests and boasted a fine dining room.  Hotel entertainment included a dance hall with orchestra, sailboats and rowboats.

To service the guests, hotel management would hire many young men and women, typically in their late teens and early twenties, to be a part of its waitstaff.  These individuals were many times schoolteachers or students who would live and work on Star Island during the summer months when schools and colleges were not in session. 

Boating Accident

At mid-day on July 17, 1902, Oceanic head waiter Winfred Alward suggested the idea to others of the waitstaff to take a boat ride that afternoon for a time of recreation and relaxation. With many in favor of this adventure, Alward hired the services of Fred Miles, a well known and experienced boatman who was employed by the Oceanic Hotel for such maritime excursions.  Miles had availability of a 19’ whaleboat that could accommodate a large party of guests.

At mid afternoon several members of the Oceanic Hotel waitstaff met Miles at the Oceanic wharf. The group was comprised of two waiters and fourteen waitresses.  They asked Skipper Miles for a pleasure trip to Appledore Island, a circuit around the island, then return to Star Island – perhaps about 2 miles.

While it was a large group, Miles assured them his whaleboat could accommodate up to 40 passengers and not be overloaded as it was well built and proven to be seaworthy.  The weather was overcast and somewhat threatening with a brisk breeze and Miles told his passengers while they may have some slight rain, there would be no heavy wind for several hours.  He assured them he did not think there would be any danger.  Just before 4pm they set off in the direction of Appledore Island. The mood was festive and happy.

As they were approaching Appledore Island Skipper Miles stayed fairly close at about 200′ offshore from the island as the seas had become a bit choppy and the wind was picking up.  Miles headed toward the northwesterly side of the island in the area of Appledore Harbor. Most passengers in the whaleboat were sitting on the starboard side of the boat.  At the same time a sudden, unexpected strong squall of rain and strong wind occurred.  With no time for Miles to change the position of the boat’s sails and with the boat’s passengers concentrated on the starboard side, water immediately started pouring over the gunwales quickly filling the boat. The boat immediately capsized.  As the whaleboat was fitted with rocks and iron ballast for stability, it quickly sank, stern first.  The suction of the boat sinking pulled many of the passengers under the water with little chance to swim or otherwise stay afloat.