Thomas W. Lawson

The Thomas W. Lawson was a seven-masted, steel-hulled schooner originally planned for the Pacific trade, but then used primarily to haul coal and oil along the East Coast of the United States. Built in 1902, the ship holds the distinction of being the largest schooner and the largest pure sailing vessel (without an auxiliary engine) ever built. Larger sailing vessels, but with an auxiliary engine for propulsion, were the French and German five-ma... more

The Thomas W. Lawson was a seven-masted, steel-hulled schooner originally planned for the Pacific trade, but then used primarily to haul coal and oil along the East Coast of the United States. Built in 1902, the ship holds the distinction of being the largest schooner and the largest pure sailing vessel (without an auxiliary engine) ever built. Larger sailing vessels, but with an auxiliary engine for propulsion, were the French and German five-masted barques France II  (1911) and R. C. Rickmers  (1906) respectively. The Thomas W. Lawson was destroyed off the uninhabited island of Annet, in the Scilly Isles, in a storm on December 14, 1907, killing all but two of her 18 crew including the pilot who was already aboard ship. Designed by naval architect Bowdoin B. Crowninshield (famous for his fast yachts) for Captain John G. Crowley of the Coastwise Transportation Company of Boston, Massachusetts, the construction of the Thomas W. Lawson was contracted to the Fore River Ship and Engine... less