H.H. Brimley
erbert Hutchinson, or H.H. Brimley, is
67 years old and has been the director of the state
museum of natural sciences in Raleigh for 30
years when he receives word of the situation at
H
Wrightsville Beach. Brimley immediately recognizes the
potential value of such a specimen, and sends his assistant
Harry Davis to Wrightsville Beach.
Through correspondence with other American museums,
Brimley later learns his instincts were correct. In
1928, only four other museums in the country
have sperm whale skeletons, and this particular
whale’s bones are estimated to be worth approxi-mately
$1,800. (The United States Bureau of
Labor’s Consumer Price Index estimates that is
the equivalent of $24,170 today.)
Upon arriving in Wrightsville Beach and
seeing the whale, Davis writes that he does
“believe this will be the largest sperm whale
skeleton in America,” and estimates that it will
take about a week to remove the flesh and bury the bones in the
sand, a process used to clean them. Local health officials are not
pleased with that timeframe, and order Kidder to dispose of the
whale immediately. Their solution is to tow the whale 20 miles
out to sea and set it adrift.
Fortunately for Brimley, the first attempt at towing the whale
fails the next day, and a
strong storm blows in,
deterring towing efforts
for several more days.
Brimley recognizes this
opportunity and calls the
towing company, seeking
to change its instructions. Instead of towing
the whale 20 miles out to sea and setting it adrift, Brimley asks
if it would tow the whale 20 miles north and cut it loose just off
the coast of Topsail Island, which is largely unin-habited
at the time. The towing company agrees.
When the seas calm and the towing company
returns three days later, the lower jaw removed
by Davis is missing. Some speculate it was lost to
the sea or buried in the sand during the storms,
but documents available from the North Carolina
Museum of Natural Sciences indicate that others
suspect foul play, stating a sperm whale’s teeth are
ivory. The full set attached to the whale’s lower
jaw could fetch a sizable sum.
H.H. Brimley
This second towing effort is a success, but the towing
company overshoots the target drop-off point by about a mile.
Captain Ramp Smith, a Topsail fisherman hired by Brimley to
bring the whale to shore, finds himself in over his head in his
attempts to do so. Fortunately, Capt. Smith is spotted by the
crew of a U.S. Coast Guard cutter that witness the odd goings-on
and suspect him of
towing an illegal rum
caché. Upon clarification
of the situation, the crew
helps deliver the whale
to shore.
Top: Trouble lay in the surf as members of the Stone Towing Company wrap cables around its body. It takes Captain C.E. Gause two
separate attempts to budge the whale from the sand. Above right: A Western Union telegram informs H.H. Brimley that Trouble is en
route to Topsail on April 13. Bottom: A composite photograph of a sperm whale skeleton. 58
WBM march 2013