Prior to 1962, what was the last commercial schooner to be launched in
the United States without an engine? Where was she built and when did
she go in the water?

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Clarification of Question by mccook-ga on 28 Apr 2004 18:20 PDT

Mark-ga: I think I know the vessel of which you write -- the L.A.
Dunton at Mystic -- though I did not know she was a candidate. If no
one else posts another candidate in 48 hours, please post yours as an
answer, and we'll be square!

Thanks,
McCook

mccook --

Well, it's been more than 48 hours, and I'm back to post your answer,
although it will be a bit anticlimactic because you already know the
vessel I have in mind -- the L. A. Dunton.

This short quote from the Mystic Seaport website speaks directly to
all of the elements of your question:

"Designed by Thomas F. McManus, the L.A. Dunton was built by Arthur D.
Story and launched from his well-known yard at Essex, Massachusetts,
in 1921. Built after auxiliary gasoline power had become common in
schooners, the Dunton was probably the last large engineless fishing
schooner (a few later ones were built primarily for racing). The
Dunton was used in the haddock and halibut fisheries, landing her
catches in Boston. By 1923 she was equipped with a 100 H.P. Fairbanks,
Morse and Co. C-O engine, and when the Great Depression worsened she
was sold to Newfoundland owners in 1934. For thirty years she was used
as a fishing and freighting vessel, eventually being converted to a
motor vessel with auxiliary sail. In this form she came to the Museum
in 1963."
Mystic Seaport: L. A. Dutton
http://www.mysticseaport.org/visit/vu-tour2.cfm?mc=2&mkind=visit&mp=10 


That linked page provides two more paragraphs about the L.A. Dunton,
but should you interested in much more detail about the vessel, here
is a link to the 1993 National Historic Landmark Nomination form that
provides fascinating information about the vessel's provenance,
construction and current condition, as well as a vivid description of
schooner-based commercial fishing:
National Historic Landmark Nomination: L.A. Dunton
http://www.cr.nps.gov/nhl/designations/samples/ct/mystic.pdf.


The above document concludes as follows:

"As a vessel type, L.A. Dunton is an essential element in the 350-year
history of the New England fishing industry. Representing as she does
the end of sail-powered vessels using hook-and-line methods, the
details of her story illustrate many themes of the great transitional
period in New England fishing during the first quarter of this
century. "

(The above link is to a PDF file, which requires Adobe Reader to
access.  In the unlikely event that you don't have Adobe Reader
installed on your computer, a convenient free download is available
here:
Adobe Reader: Dowload
http://www.adobe.com/products/acrobat/readstep2.html  )


Additional Information:

Along the way in this research, I found a few more interesting "last"
facts related to schooners.  For example:

"A unique and highly specialized sailing schooner, the 'ram,' was
created in Bethel [DE]. It required less water depth to navigate, and
that opened trade to remote and often inaccessible areas of Chesapeake
Bay, [Sussex County historic preservation planner Brian] Page said.
The last schooner ram was built at Bethel [ DE] in 1911."
Delaware Online: The Town That Ships Built (9/23/02)
http://www.delawareonline.com/newsjournal/local/2002/09/23bethelmain.html


And this:

"John Leavitt was a crew member on a series of coastal schooners in
Maine, from about 1918-1925, the ragged tail end of the schooner era. 
.  .  . The peak of the schooner boom was the 1870s and 1880s, after
which the railroads and steamers, fast and reliable, took over all the
passenger business and more and more of the freight business. Very few
small schooners were built in the 1900s, though there was a flurry in
WWI, and the last was built just before WWII. "
Cape Cod History: Wake of the Coasters
http://capecodhistory.us/books/WakeCoasters.htm


And:

"The schooner J T Wing. Last commercial schooner to sail the Great
Lakes, and now [housed in] The Museum of Great Lakes History, on the
shore of Belle Isle, Detroit MI"
http://www.kaleden.com/detail,schooner-wing-postcard,276463.html


Wait, there's more:

"After receiving a degree in business, [Captain Garth Wells] worked
aboard several schooners in the Chesapeake, including the Kathryn M.
Lee, the country?s last schooner to commercially dredge for oysters
under sail."
The Maine Windjammer Association Newsletter
http://www.imakenews.com/nmarshall/e_article000217759.cfm


And last, but not least:

"[The schooner Western Union] is:
The last example of a traditional American coasting schooner made in the U.S 
The last sailing cable ship on earth. 
The last tall ship constructed in Key West. . . . 
Launched in Key West in 1939, she served the Western Union Telegraph
Co. reliably for 35 years."
Clyde's Key West: The Western Union
http://www.clydeskeywest.com/Sail-Sub-01/florida_keys_sailings_ssak110.htm 


Search Strategy:

I used a variety of Google searches to find the information posted
above and, just as important, to try to determine with confidence that
I had found the most authoritative information available.  These
searches included, among others:

schooner last "without an engine"
://www.google.com/search?hl=en&lr=&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&safe=off&q=schooner++last++%22without+an+engine%22

schooner last engineless
://www.google.com/search?hl=en&lr=&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&safe=off&q=schooner+last+engineless

schooner last "built OR constructed in" u.s. OR "united states"
://www.google.com/search?hl=en&lr=&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&safe=off&q=schooner++last+%22built+OR+constructed+in%22+U.S.+OR+%22united+states%22

"l.a. dunton" schooner
://www.google.com/search?sourceid=navclient&q=%22l%2Ea%2Edunton%22+schoner


If any of the above is unclear, or if you have any trouble with the
links, please ask for clarification before rating the answer.


markj-ga

First class. On a subject freighted with many tricky variables,
markj-ga gave me what very much appears to be the right answer, and
lots of other places to help verify it

mccook -

The best I have been to do is find a reference on the website of a
prominent nautical museum to a schooner that was "probably" the last
large commercial fiahing schooner built without an engine for
auxiliary power.  (Much other historical information about the vessel
is available on another website.)

"Probably," of course, in not the same as "certainly," and the
question remains as to whether an engineless schooner was later built
for other commercial purposes (although that seems unlikely).

If it turns out that another researcher cannot nail down the
definitive answer, let me know if you would like my information to be
posted as an answer.

markj-ga

mccook --

I should have noted in my previous comment that I do have information
on the builder of the vessel and when and where it was constructed
(along with lots more about its specs and history).

markj-ga

mccook --

Thanks much for the rating, the kind words and the tip.  I (and lots
of other researchers) enjoy your interesting questions.

markj-ga

markj: Thanks for the kind words. You researchers are aces. I hope you
all become trillionaires with this public offering -- but never quit
doing what you do.