USCS Robert J. Walker

An 1852 painting of Robert J. Walker by W. A. C. Martin in the collection of the Mariners' Museum in Newport News, Virginia
History
United States
NameRobert J. Walker
NamesakeRobert J. Walker (1801–1869), United States Senator from Mississippi (1836–1845), Secretary of the Treasury (1845–1849), and Governor of Kansas Territory (1857)
BuilderJoseph Tomlinson, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Completed1844
Acquired1848
In service1848
FateSunk in collision 21 June 1860
General characteristics
TypeSurvey ship
Length133 ft (41 m)
Beam31 ft (9.4 m)
Draft9 ft 3 in (2.82 m)
PropulsionSteam engine, sidewheel
Robert J. Walker shipwreck and remains
NRHP reference No.14000064
Added to NRHPMarch 19, 2014

USCS Robert J. Walker was a survey ship that served in the United States Coast Survey, a predecessor of the United States Coast and Geodetic Survey, from 1848 until sinking in 1860 after a collision at sea. Her loss resulted in the death of 20 men, the greatest loss of life in single incident ever to befall the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration or any of its ancestor agencies. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places on March 19, 2014.[1]

  1. ^ "New Jersey and National Registers of Historic Places – Atlantic County" (PDF). New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection – Historic Preservation Office. September 29, 2021. p. 3. Robert J. Walker, shipwreck and remains (ID#5327)