Steamship Lexington burns and sinks off Long Island

Background. The Lexington was a paddlewheel steamboat operating along the Northeastern coast from 1835 to 1840. Sold to the New Jersey Steamship Navigation and Transportation Company in December 1838, it was the fastest vessel on the route from New York City to Boston. Its boilers were originally built for wood but converted to burn coal in 1839.

Disaster. On 13 January 1840, the Lexington departed Manhattan's East River at 4:00 p.m. bound for Stonington, Connecticut. En route, the casing around the smokestack caught fire, igniting nearly 150 bales of cotton. Passengers and crew attempted to abandon ship, but serious errors by the crew and the failure of a nearby vessel to aid survivors compounded the catastrophe.

Aftermath. The fire remains Long Island Sound's worst steamboat disaster. An attempt was made to raise the Lexington in 1842. Silver recovered in 1842 accounted for about $500 of the reported loss. The sloop Improvement, less than five miles from the burning ship, never came to the Lexington's aid.