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Once in a great while a line gun is found or comes on the market, which brings to mind questions about what types of line guns were used by the Life-Saving and other services. We picked up just such a line gun recently.
Experiments in shooting tethered projectiles for rescue from shipwrecks dates back to the 1700s, but it wasn’t until West Point and M.I.T. graduate David A. Lyle (1845 - 1937) began his research and testing that a reliable and efficient design was developed and adopted by the US Life-Saving Service. Over the history of the Life-Saving Service, Lyle’s design was credited with saving over 4,500 lives. Earlier mortar devices developed by Edmond S. Hunt and another by Col. Robert P. Parrott was credited with saving a number of lives in the early 1800s. These “guns” were used by the Life-Saving Service and Massachusetts Humane Society for a number of years until Lyle’s gun was adopted in the late 1870s.
Not a lot is known about Hunt’s gun despite its use at many stations of the Massachusetts Humane Society and some U.S. Life-Saving stations. Much of what we know about the gun’s development comes from Hunt’s own words, from his book “Weymouth Ways and Weymouth People” (Boston 1907). In it he writes that in the 1870s, the Massachusetts “ …Humane Society voted me $500 to perfect my invention. At once I went to work and had a good gun made at the South Boston foundry, three-inch calibre, that I always held to. This first gun had a cast bronze jacket with a bronze breech-pin, mounted on an expensive mahogany carriage, and was the only one I had made this way. Afterwards I simply used a brass tube, and had another shrunk on at the breech and an iron breech-pin, mounted on a heavy plank with handles at the side for carrying. Lieut. Lyon, one of the Government Ordnance Board, was stationed at the South Boston Iron Works at this time, and helped me somewhat in the construction of the carriage for my gun. Lieutentant, (now Captain Lyon of the U.S.S. Olympia) was a fine, handsome young fellow at that time, and became much interested in my invention. Mr. Edwin Reed and his son, John Reed, then living in Braintree, were those that I had most to do with at the foundry. Mr. Edwin Reed came with Lieut. Lyle to Weymouth, to witness the first trial. When my guns and projectiles were finished, they were sent to the stations. The work of setting them up was done by Captain Faucon, I sometimes going with him. One trip was down on Cape Cod, where we stopped with Captain Snow who had charge of the station at Nauset. Captain Snow was an old sea captain, like Captain Faucon, but not of so high rank, for Captain Faucon was an officer in our navy during the Civil War. We had our supper with the Snows, and well do I remember Captain Faucon’s lecture to Mrs. Snow, a pleasant old lady who could not do enough for us. The tea table was loaded with all good things in the house, and the old lady was hovering around to see that we had enough.
The station at Nauset was quite a long way from Captain Snow’s, and we had to go some of the way a-foot and some of the way in a row-boat. I had much fun to myself in watching the old captain as he trudged along before me. He wore a large ulster with a pointed cap and a tassel on the point; putting this over his head, it gave him the look of a “brownie.” The old gentleman would resent the least familiarity, but dearly loved to tell his sea stories, sailor-like, and then he would like to relate the family histories of gentlemen connected with the Humane Society, the Motleys, the Lawrences, the Lothrops, and all were interesting. Arriving at the station, we got out the apparatus, explained the way to use it, fired the gun, and all went well. Following is a letter from Captain Snow to me:
“On the morning of March 15, 1887, at nine o’clock, the schooner J. H. Ells came ashore at low water at Nauset, near the U.S. Life Saving station. The station-men got out their gun (Lyle’s) and fired until it was of no use, — their lines parting, and after firing six times could not reach the wreck. I told them I had a gun in the Humane house that would throw a shot over the vessel. We sent for and got it. It was now high water and a long distance. The shot fell short with three oz. powder, I then put in a six oz. cartridge when the shot went fifty yards over the wreck. The vessel was much broken up, and only two men in the foretop, but they could not haul the line the current was so strong. After a while it parted. We then shot another which they could not haul in, but made it fast. It parted during the night. In the morning one man was dead in the foretop, and the captain washed off the bowsprit and was drowned. If we had had the Hunt gun in the first place I think we could have saved all the men, for there was little current running and the men could have hauled the line in. B.C. Sparrow, Supt. of the U.S.L.S. station, and the captain of the station were there all the time, and know the Lyle gun is of no use for a long distance. I can get the testimony of one hundred men in Eastham and Orleans to say the Hunt gun is all that is required, while the Lyle gun is useless for a long range. Yours respectfully, Jonathan Snow, Underwriters’ Agent.”
Hunt continues: “We continued our trip in the afternoon to Provincetown, where we stopped over night, and in the morning we went out to the Humane Society’s station on the end of the Cape among the sand dunes. Here, as at Nauset, we showed the men how to use the gun, firing it once, after which we took the cars for home.”
As you may discern, Edmund Hunt and Lieutenant Lyle disagreed greatly on the on the benefits of the two gun designs - Hunt’s design verses Lyle’s Bronze “C” gun. But by the 1880 Lyle’s bronze “C” gun would be the accepted ordnance for use by the Life-Saving Service and later (1915) by the Coast Guard. Hunt’s gun would still be used by the Mass. Humane Society crews into the early years of the Twentieth Century.
After use of the Hunt gun was discontinued by the Life-Saving Service, the only gun accepted for use for rescue by these shore stations was the Lyle Bronze Gun “C” The barrel was entirely of bronze, mounted on an oak carriage bound with iron. These guns are easily recognized by their markings: The muzzles were embossed with the foundry initials, serial number and year manufactured [eg. “RIW No 569 1905”]. In addition the Trunion would be embossed: “U.S.L.S.S.” or U.S.C.G.” Barrel measures 24¼” overall with a 2½” bore. The carriage was constructed with wooden cheeks, bound with iron and with four iron handles and mounting hardware. The carriage measured 30¼” overall in length, 10” wide and 9½” high. The carriage was generally labeled “U.S. Springfield” or with its symbol as they were made at the U.S. Arsenal at Springfield, Massachusetts. [The arsenal at Springfield remains today as a wonderful museum which includes an exhibit on David Lyle and his work on such ordnance.
Over the years there has been much confusion regarding these and other guns. A number of other versions intended for civilian shipboard use have been inappropriately labeled as “Lyle Guns” thus fetching considerably higher prices than warranted. There were numerous companies making line throwing guns from the late 1800s into the 20th Century. In response to steamship disasters in the 1880’s, Congress passed regulations requiring line guns to be carried on all vessels carrying over a minimum number of passengers. During these years there was a proliferation of guns on the market by such companies as Coston Supply Company, American Ordnance, Driggs, Reed & Sons, Reading, Galbraith, General Ordnance, Naval Co., Sculler, Steward and others. Invariably these guns were made of iron or steel on a steel base or carriage. Though some later versions may be embossed “USCG Approved” or similar, such guns were not used at Life-Saving or Coast Guard shore stations. Now and then such guns appear at auction labeled as “Lyle Guns” which may mislead the purchaser into overestimating their value.
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Jim Claflin is a recognized authority on antiques of the U.S. Lighthouse Service, Life-Saving Service, Revenue Cutter Service and early Coast Guard. In addition to authoring and publishing a number of books on the subject, Jim is the owner of Kenrick A Claflin & Son Nautical Antiques. In business since 1956, he has specialized in antiques of this type since the early 1990s. He may be contacted by writing to him at 1227 Pleasant Street, Worcester, MA 01602, or by calling 508-792-6627. You may also contact him by email: jclaflin@LighthouseAntiques.net or visit his web site at: www.LighthouseAntiques.net
This story appeared in the
Jan/Feb 2015 edition of Lighthouse Digest Magazine. The print edition contains more stories than our internet edition, and each story generally contains more photographs - often many more - in the print edition. For subscription information about the print edition, click here.
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