Patrick S. Kelly, 22, fisherman, helped to save William H. Haskell, 46, sea captain; Ida M. Haskell, 34, and 12 others from drowning, Edgartown, Massachusetts, January 23, 1910. In a very rough and treacherous sea following a heavy storm, Kelly was one of a party of five men who went in the “Priscilla,” a small fishing boat, to a disabled schooner that had grounded on a shoal in the Atlantic Ocean four miles from shore. The “Priscilla,” after careful maneuvering, was brought in the lee of the schooner and anchored. Kelly manned one of three 17-foot dories and made five trips to the wreck, rescuing Captain Haskell and three members of the schooner’s crew. On the fourth trip, when a sailor jumped from the wreck and missed the dory, Kelly stood by to try to pick the man up. Upon reaching the dory, the man grabbed hold of the gunwale and a wave swamped the dory, which by chance was swept under the bowsprit, and both were able to catch hold of its stays and climb up to the bowsprit, from which they were taken later in a dory. After two hours, Kelly, along with two companions who manned the other dories, had effected the rescue of all onboard the wreck. The “Priscilla” had to make a trip of 13 miles, part of the way through very heavy seas, to reach Edgartown, a huge wave at one time nearly filling the boat. 4733-552
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4733-552