A Bottle, with Oyster Shells grown fast to it taken from the British Sloop of War

Object Status:

Unlocated

Primary Source Reference:

Peale Museum Accessions Book, Historical Society of Pennsylvania, p. 74

Additional Source Text:

"Which was sunk by a chevauxdefrise about 7 miles above New York in the North [Hudson] River."

Notes:

During the American Revolution two rows of chevaux de frise were laid in the Hudson River to prevent the passage of British warships, but they were ineffective and abandoned in 1777 when replaced by chains and wooden booms. See Lincoln Diamant, Chaining the Hudson: The Fight for the River in the American Revolution (New York, 2004).

The only ship known to have been sunk by the chevaux de frise was the Diamond, an Irish ship on a voyage from Cork to Antigua and New York.