The schooner Orient, with no other known names, met its demise near Stoney Point light. It was a wooden schooner built in 1870 by Parsons & Humble in Tonawanda, New York. The vessel had a tonnage of 319 tons. The loss occurred on October 4, 1876, in the vicinity of Stony Point, approximately three miles above Dexter, New York, in Lake Ontario.
The Orient fell victim to a powerful storm, which led to its wreck. Although there is no mention of any loss of life, the schooner was carrying a light load, with wrecking pumps aboard. It was on its way from Sackett’s Harbor to Oswego during the night when it capsized and washed ashore upside-down due to the fierce gale. About a week later, the tug MOREY managed to raise the vessel with the intention of sailing it to Oswego. However, during another storm while en route, the Orient was lost again. On October 23, the wreck was discovered capsized and completely broken up, representing a total loss. Its location at that time was approximately one mile south of Stony Point.
The Orient was owned by Faulkner & Best, who hailed from Oswego or Dexter, New York. Despite the efforts to salvage the vessel, it met its unfortunate fate, serving as a testament to the destructive power of the storm and the perils faced by seafarers on Lake Ontario.
