Book excerpt: From the early years of our nation, the coasting schooner served as the primary means of hauling the cargoes that fueled the country's growth. Several thousand of these coasters once existed, but by the late 1930s, relatively few remained. Among those still in operation was the coasting schooner "Coral." Hailing from Fairhaven, Massachusetts, the "Coral" and her owner, Captain Claude S. Tucker, carried goods to ports throughout southern New England. The "Coral" hauled cargo into the twilight years of the coasting trade, long after new technologies began to replace it. Authors Robert Demanche, Donald F. Tucker and Caroline B. Tucker use first-person accounts of crew members and captains to trace the life of the "Coral" and Captain Tucker. Set sail to discover the story of the "Coral" through her glory days until the 1938 hurricane left her beyond repair, hastening the end of an era.