VOYAGE OF DISCOVERY

Solent based dinghy sailor David Henshall is a well known writer and speaker on topics covering the rich heritage of all aspects of leisure boating. VOYAGE OF DISCOVERY

Not all maritime explorers went on to become household names, but the Blyth Tall Ship charity is ensuring one man’s incredible story is not forgotten.

The Williams II. Image: Violaman / Shutterstock encountered very strong headwinds. Smith carried on south knowing that at some point he would be able to tack and head back northwards, but instead, on 19 February 1819, they sighted land.

The conditions were not good, so no attempt was made to land but the following day the winds eased, and visibility improved, which allowed them to identify a prominent headland they christened ‘Williams Point’, which they reported to be in position 62° South, 58° West.

Recognising that there were other islands in the area, Smith named his discovery the New South Shetlands, but he was aware that his primary objective was to deliver his cargo. Three weeks later the Williams reached Valparaiso.

Smith went to the Royal Naval Station to report his discovery. Incredibly, not only was he not believed but he was mocked for mistaking ice for land.

Just a few months ago, Dougal’s Dairy featured the extraordinary expeditions mounted by Ernest Shackleton as he pushed out ever further south across the ice towards the pole. No one would deny that these voyages pushed human endurance to the limit and sometimes beyond, but at least the intrepid explorers knew where they were.

Incredibly, just 80 years earlier, nobody had ever seen Antarctica and, although the more far-sighted scientists of the day postulated about the existence of a Southern ice cap, it would remain unseen and uncharted.

The early 1800s were a period of great upheaval and war, until first Trafalgar and then Waterloo finally brought an end to the major European conflicts. Instead of gearing up for battle, the emphasis was now on voyages of discovery and with it the chance to ‘grab’ new lands for the growing empire.

However, whilst the great maritime explorers of this era are well-known names - Cook, Bering and Humboldt to name just a few - there was a great explorer with that most common of names, Smith, that few have heard of and even less who understand the importance of what he did. apprenticeship afloat ran for seven years, and once William had completed this in 1811 he became the part owner of a new ship that was being laid down back in his home port of Blyth.

The new brig would be called the Williams, as three out of the four owners were called William, with her final lay out resulting in a boat that was 75ft long and weighed in at 216 tons.

The primary purpose of the Williams was trade and with Smith as her master, she made trips to France and Portugal, before embarking on a number of lengthier voyages to South America. Even in a well-found ship these were risky undertakings, but the fact the Williams not only survived but prospered says much for the skills of her captain.

NEW DISCOVERY In 1818 Smith and the Williams set out on what would be a very long trip that was intended to take him to Valparaiso, on the coast of Chile, which meant that they would be rounding Cape Horn.

The ship was well laden, with the cargo including everything from confectionary to iron, books, wine and musical instruments. They called in at Rio De Janeiro to restock, then headed south, passing to the east of the Falkland Islands. As they sailed down towards the Cape, the hopedfor shift in the prevailing winds to allow them to head on westwards never materialised, and instead they

The Tall Ship moored in the Port of Blyth. Image: Maya K. Photography / Shutterstock ANTARCTICA SIGHTED On his return journey to Brazil, Smith wanted to head south of the Horn to prove his doubters wrong, but the conditions in the southern hemisphere winter forced him eastwards back into the Atlantic. After seeing the winter out in Montevideo, with the return of better weather Smith set sail, once more bound for Valparaiso, and not only did he sight land again, but he took soundings to check the seabed, exploring some 150 miles of coastline.

This time the Royal Navy not only believed his claims, but chartered Smith and the Williams to conduct an expedition to the area. Smith’s crew would now include a Naval Officer, three midshipmen and a doctor. By late December they were ashore on what was called Livingston Island. They would push on, charting and discovering as they went, before crossing a wide sound that they named Bransfield Sound, after Edward Bransfield, the

Icebergs floating in Bransfield Strait near the northern tip of the Antarctic Peninsula. Image: dani3315 / Shutterstock

YOUNG APPRENTICE Part of the reason for this was that William Smith did not hail from the popular areas of the south, from the Thames down to Plymouth, but from Blyth, in Northumberland, high on the north-eastern coast.

William had already been at sea for a year when Nelson fell at Trafalgar, but rather than fighting in the fleet the young Smith was contesting the elements around Greenland as part of the UK’s whaling fleet. Back then an Naval Officer. Eventually they spotted a long peninsular, with this being the first recorded sighting of the mainland continent of Antarctica.

As they explored further, they passed the fearsome Elephant Island, which provided yet another link to those later expeditions as it was from these barren and rocky shores that Shackleton set out to sail across 700 miles of the Southern Ocean to get help after the Endurance became trapped in the ice and sank.

In April 1820 Smith would land his passengers back at Valparaiso before setting out on the long return journey to the UK. However, in the three years that he had been away the syndicate behind the Williams had run into financial difficulties and Smith, for all his hard work, was now effectively bankrupt. The Williams was sold on as a coal carrier and was eventually broken up in 1882.

Smith would eke out a living, firstly as a Thames Pilot before he headed north again to work on a whaling ship, but with his finances broken and little in the way or recognition or reward, he died, almost destitute, in a London almshouse.

THE WILLIAMS II Happily, the death of William Smith, despite being broke and almost unrecognised, is not the end of our story, for a fantastic initiative back in his home port of Blyth is bringing his spirit back in the most amazing way.

The Blyth Tall Ship charity is drawing on the inspirational life of Smith to offer a fantastic opportunity to all ages, but particularly to the young who feel that they lack any hope for the future.

The charity views itself as a ‘Gateway to the sea’ through engagement with a Blyth-based cultural centre, a heritage boatyard that can offer a near unique range of skills packages from a simple hands-on taster to a formal qualification in Marine Engineering.

However, the jewel in the charity’s crown, their flagship, is a 108-year-old gaff rigged ketch, the Williams II, that shares almost the same dimensions as Smith’s original boat. This Williams II was built in Denmark, but uses the same construction techniques as her namesake, with a double hull which is almost a pre-requisite of working down amongst the ice. Almost the only concession to modern times is the large auxiliary diesel.

Now, though, instead of searching for new lands south of the Horn, the Williams II offers local people everything from day trips to longer and more demanding passages, with the choices available dovetailing in neatly with the work of the charity ashore.

In these times of uncertainty, the Blyth Tall Ship charity is offering hope and opportunity in much the same way that the Williams did more than 200-years-ago.

When one thinks of the challenges that Smith faced, then what he achieved, in a boat no bigger than a modern maxi-racer, you realise that this has to be one of the great untold sea stories of yesteryear. Thanks to the Williams II and the inspired people who sail her, not only is Smith’s story being remembered, but a new chapter is being added for the people of Blyth today. www.blythtallship.co.uk