History of the WATSON A. WEST

The keel of the four-masted lumber schooner WATSON A. WEST was laid down at the shipyard of McWhinney and Cousins located in Aberdeen, Washington. Upon completion in 1901, the schooner was christened with the name of A. J. West's son, Watson A. West. The pioneering A. J. West was noted for building one of the first sawmills in Aberdeen. Master Carpenter William Henry McWhinney oversaw the schooner's construction for her new owners Slade & West Lumber Co. of Aberdeen.

Captain Ludwig M. W. Sorensen, master of the WATSON A. WEST at the time of her loss.

The cargoes of the WATSON A. WEST were delivered to coastal ports in California and distant ports such as Australia, Chili, Mexico, Japan, Peru, Philippines, Singapore and South Africa. In her twenty-two year career she changed owners only once, when purchased by Pacific Freighters of San Francisco, California. Although she had only two owners, her homeport changed several times which included Port Townsend, Seattle, Port Angeles, Honolulu and San Francisco. Researchers have located early "Records Of Casualties To Vessels" for the WEST that indicate that not all her voyages met without mishap. On one particular voyage she was a day out of Sourabaya, Java enroute to San Francisco with a cargo of copra when her sails, gaff and halyards were carried away in a heavy squall. Although crippled, she was able to make Uraga, Japan for repairs.