Long Beach in Nassau County, New York — The American Northeast (Mid-Atlantic)

Wreck of the Mexico (1837)

Wreck of the <i>Mexico</i> (1837) Marker image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Andrew Ruppenstein, April 24, 2019

1. Wreck of the Mexico (1837) Marker

Inscription. In October 1836, the 179-ton, three-masted American barque Mexico left Liverpool, England for New York, filled with cargo and immigrants, most of them Irish. The ship reached the entrance to New York Harbor after a stormy, 69-day crossing, and waited for a pilot to lead the ship into port. But it was New Year's Eve, and the pilots were celebrating in a Manhattan tavern. A storm arose, driving the ship back out to sea and onto a sandbar just 200 yards off Long Beach. The temperature fell to 3 degrees above zero. Captain Raynor Rock Smith of Freeport made the only rescue attempt. Shockingly the captain and crew jumped into Smith's boat, leaving 115 people behind to freeze to death overnight on the deck of the Mexico. Almost half of the victims were women and children. Their unclaimed bodies are buried in a mass grave in Lynbrook. Poet Walt Whitman wrote about this wreck in his famous poem, Leaves of Grass.

Erected 2018 by Long Beach Island Landmarks Association.

Topics and series. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Disasters • Waterways & Vessels. In addition, it is included in the Lost at Sea series list. A significant historical month for this entry is October 1836.

Location. 40° 34.987′ N, 73° 39.146′ W. Marker is in Long Beach, New York, in Nassau County. It can be reached from the intersection of Boardwalk

Paid Advertisement

Click or scan to see
this page online

and Lincoln Boulevard, on the right when traveling east. Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: Long Beach NY 11561, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is in the New York City Metropolitan Area

and on Long Island.

It is also in the American Northeast,

in the Mid-Atlantic,

and on the Eastern Seaboard. Globally, it is in the North Atlantic Region,

North America,

the Western Hemisphere,

the Western World,

and the Anglosphere.

Historically, it finds itself in what was once New Netherland

and also one of the original Thirteen Colonies.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within 4 miles of this marker, measured as the crow flies: The LIRR Station (approx. ¾ mile away); Cobble Villa (approx. 1.3 miles away); Louis Chimeri, Jr. Memorial (approx. 1.7 miles away); Mayor Joseph F. Carrigan Point (approx. 3.9 miles away); Vigilant Engine Co. and Protector H.L. & Hose Co. World War II Memorial (approx. 3.9 miles away); Historic Waterfront (approx. 3.9 miles away); Site of Oven (approx. 3.9 miles away); Dave Push (approx. 3.9 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Long Beach.

More about this marker. The marker is located on the ocean-side of the boardwalk, approximately where Lincoln Boulevard would run into the Boardwalk, if Lincoln actually ran into the Boardwalk.

Also see . . . City Unveils Wreck of the Mexico Landmark (LIHerald, Nov. 8, 2018).

Wreck of the <i>Mexico</i> (1837) Marker - wide view, looking east image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Andrew Ruppenstein, April 24, 2019

2. Wreck of the Mexico (1837) Marker - wide view, looking east

The marker is next to the lamppost on the left.

(Submitted on May 4, 2019.)

Additional keywords. Wreck of the Mexico (1837)

Wreck of the <i>Mexico</i> (1837) image. Click for full size.

James Fulton Pringle (image courtesy of the Long Island Museum of Art), 1837

3. Wreck of the Mexico (1837)

Wreck of the <i>Mexico</i> Engraving image. Click for full size.

Drawn by H. Sorret(?), engraved by N. Currier (of Currier and Ives), 1837

4. Wreck of the Mexico Engraving

Credits. This page was last revised on May 4, 2019. It was originally submitted on May 4, 2019, by Andrew Ruppenstein of Lamorinda, California. This page has been viewed 2,453 times since then and 174 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3, 4. submitted on May 4, 2019, by Andrew Ruppenstein of Lamorinda, California.