Black Sunday (3/3)
U-151 Deck Log for June 2, 1918
6:20AM
Course 246. Sail sighted. Course set for the sailing vessel. It is the American 3 masted schooner Isabel B. Wiley, registered in Philadelphia (776 tons)
6:50AM
Sailing vessel is stopped with a warning shot. At the same time, a steamer is sighted. Course set for steamer. Steamer is stopped with a warning shot. Boarding party is sent over; it is the American steamer Winneconne ( formerly the steamer Stinne ) registered in New York, on its way from Newport News, VA to Providence, Rhode Island (1,869 tons) cargo: coal
8:40AM
Winneconne is sunk by demolition charges. Crew in the boats called alongside. Meanwhile the crew of the schooner Isabel B. Wiley have already left their ship and are also alongside. Our prisoners are distributed among the four boats, the boats are outfitted with fresh water and provisions and are released.
9:30AM
Three masted schooner Isabel B. Wiley is sunk with demolition charges. Cruise southward continued.
11:25AM
Sail sighted, it is the 4 masted schooner Jacob M. Haskell (1,778 tons) registered in New York, from Norfolk to Boston, cargo: coal.
11:50AM
Schooner is sunk with demolition charges.
12:00 Noon
Day’s Reckoning 101 nautical miles.
2:50PM
American 4 masted schooner Edward H. Cole stopped. Registered in Boston (1,792 tons) from Norfolk to New York, cargo: coal. Sunk with demolition charges.
4:20PM
Steamer in sight. Not until after three warning shots was the steamer stopped. The third shot struck close to the starboard side and showered the bridge with shrapnel. It is the American, formerly Dutch (from Rotterdam,) steamer Texel, registered in New York (3,210 tons) from Porto Rico to New York, cargo: sugar.
4:40PM
Texel sunk by demolition charges, crew released in boats.
5:25PM
Steamer sighted.
5:45PM
An unknown steamer sends the radio message that the schooner Isabel B. Wiley has been sunk by an armed German U-boat.
5:50PM
Submerged. Steamer observed through periscope.
6:07PM
Surfaced. Course set for steamer. Steamer ordered to stop by warning shot. Steamer alters course, and sends radio messages, which are successfully jammed by our radio operator. After several more shots that fall in her immediate vicinity, the steamer stops and lowers all boats. It is the American passenger steamer Carolina, registered in New York (5,093 tons) with about 250-300 passengers, which take to 10 heavily laden lifeboats. Ship is carrying little cargo, apparently enroute from Cuba to New York.
7:20PM
As the visibility is decreasing, and radio traffic from warships can be heard in the vicinity, it is decided to sink the steamer with a torpedo. Port torpedo tube fired while on the surface. Immediately after leaving the tube, the torpedo turns 4 points to starboard, then to port, once more to starboard, surfaced, then sank.
7:40PM
The steamer is sunk with artillery fire. Sailed away from steamer at 90°. A steamer in the vicinity sends an unknown radio message, is jammed by us. A little while later Carolina is called by radio from New York.
End of entries for June 2, 1918.
You can read a great deal more about "Black Sunday", as it is sometimes called, in Gary Gentile's book Shipwrecks of New Jersey - South.
Original NJScuba website by Tracy Baker Wagner 1994-1996
