Gibb-

Great find! And it's interesting for those of us familiar with the Black sailors who were long time residents of Portland, Maine, to see them documented at least in some literary fashion.

I've learned to associate the term "hooker" as used by sailors as generally referring to ships: i.e., "I'll not sail in that old hooker again!" The "hook" itself is a reference to the ship's anchor.

Edwin J. Brady also composed a nautical poem titled "Sally Brown."

Cheerily,
Charley Noble