Sea History 088 - Spring 1999

No. 88

NATIONAL MARITIME HISTORICAL SOCIETY

SPRING 1999

SEA HISTORY.

75

THE ART, LITERATURE, ADVENTURE, LORE & LEARNING OF THE SEA

The American Clipper Takes to THE CAPE HORN ROAD Ships of the Irish Diaspora Diplomacy in Nootka Sound, 1790

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SEA HISTORY

No. 88

SPRING 1999

CONTENTS FEATURED IN THIS ISSUE 9 THE CAPE HORN ROAD, XVIII. The American Clipper Makes Tracks on the Cape Horn Road-Pursued by the Bear Cub of the Ocean-Going Steamship,

by Peter Stanford The American clipper ship answers the needfor speed in a new and challenging economic era, while steam navigation, still in its infancy, gathers momentum 16

16 Diplomacy Averts War over Nootka Sound in 1790, by Thornton Thomas In the wilderness ofNorth America, diplomacy wins out and paves the way for freedom ofthe seas in the Pacific 20 Ships of the Irish Diaspora 20 The Jeanie Johnston-A Dream Rebuilt, by Thad Koza 21 The Dunbrody and the Spirit oflreland, byAude Bates andAnthony Mcloughlin As Ireland and North America remember the Great Famine of 1845-49, two replicas ofIrish emigrant ships rise on the ways, bound once again for the US and Canada 24 MARINE ART. A Celebration of Clippers: Artists Seek to Capture the Glory of the American Clipper Ship, by Peter Stanford The romance of the American clippers became a symbol ofdaring and grace, entering the popular imagination at home and abroad

9 THAD KO ZA

30 THE OPSAIL 2000 OFFICIAL PORTS, PART V. Baltimore: A Renaissance City, by john Barnard with William Macintosh Baltimore's maritime heritage is kept vibrantly alive in and around the inner harbor as the city looks forward to OpSail 2000 34 A Victory Ship Wins Through: The Red Oak Victory Returns to Richmond,

by Joseph Rychetnik A World War II Victory ship escapes the scrapyard and goes home to Richmond, California, where she tells the story ofthe Kaiser Shipyard's wartime feats 38 "Technology and Archeology in the Deep Sea": MIT Gathers the Experts

by David B. Allen The creators and users of new technology that allows access to deepwater sites come together for the first time to discuss the implications of their work

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46 DESSERT. A Clipper Sets out on the Cape Horn Road, by Arthur H Clark A veteran of the age ofsail offers readers a glimpse of life aboard a clipper ship as she gets underway off Battery Park in New York Harbor COVER: The Young America, shortening down for harbor after another Cape Ho rn run, Lopes along over a sunlit sea, showing the easy grace ofthe American clipper ship at its best. Built in 1853, she sailed for 30 years in the Cape Horn trade, as a rare survivor of a noble breed.

(See pages 9-14.) (Painting by Charles Robert Patterson, from the collection of Quester Gallery, Stonington, Connecticut)

DEPARTMENTS 2 6 28 36

DECK LOG & LETTERS NMHSNEWS ARTS OF THE SEA SHIP NOTES, SEAPORT & MUSEUM NEWS

37 AMERICAN MERCHANT MARINE MUSEUM NEWS 41 REVIEWS 48 PATRONS

24 SEA HISTORY (issn 01 46-93 12) is published quane rl y by th e National Ma ritime Historical Society, 5 John Walsh Blvd ., PO Box 68, Peekskill NY 10566. Periodicals postage paid at Peekskill NY 10566 and add '! mailing offices .

COPYRIGHT © 1999 by the National Maritime Historical Society. Tel: 914-737-7878 .

POSTMASTER: Send address changes to Sea History, PO Box 68, Peeks kill NY 10566.

NATIONAL MARITIME HISTORICAL SOCIETY

DECK LOG

LETTERS

With this issue, Justine Ahlstrom takes over as editor of Sea History. For some time now she has been doing most of the work and making the operational decisions to produce the magazine, and since we found ourselves doing things her way, we all decided it was time she took charge in name as well as in fact.

Our decisions are made by discussion, and we all wish there were more time for these talks-they can be quite fascinating! In our talks we've found that Justine has a wonderful way of saying what the rest of us were trying to say. That is a great gift, the gift of charting an agreed course, to which everyone can commit their full talents and energies.

Justine is trained in museology and has served her apprenticeship in Colonial Williamsburg, South Street Seaport Museum, and among the folklorists oflreland. She is also a genuine humanist, of broad interests and sympathies. She knows to go for the meaning of things, however difficult the chase, rather than dressing up a weak thought in hifalutin' jargon or as sound bytes that reinforce existing preconceptions.

Sea History's editors, I think, have a way of choosing themselves. The first editor of Sea History was Frank 0. Braynard, a founder of the National Maritime Historical Society and well-known author and lecturer, as well as the initiator, with his friend Nils Hansel, of the first OpSail in 1964, returning to the charge for the second, in 1976, honoring the nation 's birthday, as well as subsequent OpSails. The second installment of any venture is the critical one-it spells continuity, and the hope of a futurity!

The first issue of Sea History was published in 1972, in association with the Sea Museums Council, predecessor of today's Council of American Maritime Museums. "The Sea Museums Council and Sea History," we confidently said, "are the beginning of a new era of cooperation." And so it has proven, not without halts and hitches, and doublings-back along the way, like the track of a square rigger rounding Cape Horn in a rough passage. The main thing, in both cases, is to keep the sea and make the voyage. To this, I believe we are dedicated. We call Sea History "the journal of a cause in motion"-the cause of the living heritage of seafaring.

Norman Brouwer of South Street Seaport Museum was editor of the second and third issues of our journal, in 1973 and 1975. These introduced the ship lists that became the basis of his monumental International Register ofHistoric Ships, which NMHS publishes in cooperation with the World Ship Trust, headquartered in London.

I became editor in 1976, and brought the changed format the magazine now ,. wears. Now, 23 years later, I am happy to step aside and let the next watch take over. The early editors, and Justine and I are all in touch, and I find myself almost ridiculously proud to be counted in their number.

PETER STANFORD, President

USCG Eagle Celebrated Thank you for NMHS's unforgettable salute to the US Coast Guard Academy and Barque Eagle at the Annual Dinner in November. I cannot remember a richer or more rewarding program . Beginning with Captain Papp' s lively narration of the wellcrafted "Life Aboard Eagle" video, and concluding with inspiring music by Coast Guard Academy singers, the evening afforded tremendous visibility for Eagle and the Academy, to a large, prestigious and warm-hearted group.

The generous gift to the Academy of William G. Muller's stunning painting "New York Harbor Salutes America's Tall Ship Eagle" is a wonderful expression of NMHS' s commitment to our shared maritime heritage.

I will cherish Sea History Press's new edition of The Skipper and the Eagle, a book which I remember with affection from my cadet days.

Most of all, thank you for the opportunity to deliver the keynote address. The Coast Guard and its Academy are evolving rapidly, so chances to tell our story are all the more valuable.

RADM D. H . TEESON, USCG New London, Connecticut

Peter Stanford, our new Editor-at-large, with Norma Stanford (center), Executive Editor, and Justine Ahlstrom, Editor (Photo: Burchenal Green) 2

At the Annual Meeting on 25 April 1998 I was more than pleased to hear that NMHS would be republishing The Skipper and the Eagle. In the summer of 1958 our Sea Explorer Pandora, a double-ended ketch built in 1935, was tied up at Hobie's Dock at Mystic Seaport in Connecticut. My wife and I were sitting in the cockpit when Mystic's new youth program director, Gordon McGowan, seeing the Sea Scout flag, came down to look at Pandora.

He told us how, afrer he retired as a Coast Guard captain, he played bridge with friends and reminisced about his rescue of Horst Wessel and her transformation into Eagle. His bridge friends encouraged him to write the book, and he was happy to autograph a copy of it for me.

Long ago I lent my copy of The Skipper and the Eagle to a fri end who didn't return it. I've been lookin g for another ever since.

LEWJS G. KNAPP

Stratford, Connecticut I want to thank the Society for republishin g The Skipper and the Eagle. I have just SEA HISTORY 88, SPRING 1999

co mpleted reading Gordon M cGowa n's wo nderful story and enjoyed it thorou ghly.

I sail ed aboard Eagle from Portsmo uth, Virginia, to C harleston , South Carolina, in 1990. I discovered a copy in the W ard Room Library late in our voyage but was unable to co mpl ete it before reaching C harl esto n. I have sought a copy ever since so I could find o ut how the voyage ended.

Arri vi ng in Bremerhaven in Jun e 1946 aboard the US A rmy transport Edmund B. Alexandria, I saw Eddie Didi o n, the orphan who was adopted by th e Eagle's refitting crew, aboard one of the tenders bringing port personn el to greet the Alexandria at th e mouth of the W ese r River. Later in 1949 when my fat her was an assistant Post Engineer in Bremerhave n, I met Eddie again . H e was an unofficial member of the American co mmuni ty.

COL. ] AMESW. BRAD IN, US Army (Rer. ) Beaufort, South Carolin a

Our readers were introduced to Eddie Didion in the excerpt we printed from The Skipper and the Eagle in Sea History 86 {pp45-47).

Despite the crews affection for the boy, Capt.

McGowan had to leave him in Germany when Eagle departed Bremerhaven. - ED. The Call of the Sea In the summer of 1945, when I was a high school sopho more, my parents sent me to summer cam p aboard the Yankee, th en in the custody o f Admiral Billard Academy at New London, Co nnecticur. Later, after reading Irving Johnson's book, Westward Bound in the Schooner Yankee, I was hoo ked o n ships and th e sea . I graduated fro m the US Merchant M arin e Academ y at Kin gs Point, New York, in 1953 and laun ched a 40-year career in the merchant marin e, US Navy, US Naval Reserve, and positions as hore in stevedoring, marine termin al operations and port authoriti es. I retired as port d irector of the Port of Pascago ula, Mississippi, after eight yea rs of service.

I agree that the NMHS sea ex perience p rogra m is a wonderful way to ge nerate interest in the sea. Keep up the good wo rk!

CAPT. PAUL W. SMITH, USN R (Ret) Ocean Springs, Mississippi

history of WWI and WWII ve ry welldestroye rs, cruisers, battleships and aircraft carriers. But in none of yo ur main stories have you ever covered that part of the US Navy I served in , th e part known as the "amphibs"-LCTs, LCls, and LSTs. The large vessels laid off shore and fired round afte r round. T hen the landing craft moved in , hoping the min e sweepers had done a good job and the large shells had knocked out the enem y. T he large USN vessels were well o ut of reach of German shore batteries, unlike th e amphibs.

H AROLD L. SAGEN DORPH W end ell , North Carolina

Praise for Marine Artist Bill Gilkerson I read with fas cination the inner thoughts of a marin e artist so skillfully revealed by Stuart M. Frank in his interview with Bill G ilkerson in Sea History 84. The forthright hon esty of Gilkerson in respect to his objecti ves co mpl emented by examples of his art make an interesting presentation . The skills and balance of artistic express ion reveal ed demon strate why Bill Gilkerso n has established himself as a marine artist of international standin g.

An outstanding exampl e of this is the frontispi ece for his novel Ultimate Voyage.

"View of a M edi eval Seaport" embodies the skills and character of the man himself.

No doubt the article has received a nod of approval fro m Gilkerso n's peers and patrons of the ans alike. It is a credit to all co ncerned and in keeping with Sea History's

Frontispiece for William Gilkerson s UIti mate Voyage: A Book of Five Marin ers

(Boston MA: Shambhala Press, 1998) contribut ion to international m a ritim e heritage-a spirit rapidly developin g here in Australia.

GARY TONKIN, Scrimshaw Artist Albany, Western Australia

A Writer Responds M elbourne Smith 's remarks co ncernin g my book, Tidewater Triumph-The Devel-

opment and Worldwide Success ofthe Chesapeake Bay Pilot Schooner (revi ewed in SH 8 7, pp43-44), correctly point out th at the book is an hisrorical study of the social and

Join Us for a Voyage into History Our seafaring heritage comes ali ve in the pages of Sea History, from the ancient mariners of Greece to Portuguese navigators opening up the ocean world to the heroic efforts of seamen in thi s century 's conflicts. Each issue brings new insights and

new di scoveries. If yo u love the sea, the rivers, lakes and bays-if yo u love the legacy of those who sa il in deep water and their workaday craft, then you belong with us.

Join today! Mail in the form below or phone

1-800-221-NMHS (6647)

Yes, I want to join the Society and receive Sea History quarterly. My contribution is enclosed. ($ 17 .SO is fo r Sea His1ory; any amount above that is tax dedu ctible.) Sign me on as: $35 Regul ar Member $50 Family Member $100 Friend $250 Patron $500 Donor Mr./Ms. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

What About Landing Craft?

Your sea sto ri es of the days of sailing vessels are very good, and you cover aspects of th e

SEA HISTORY 88 , SPRING 1999

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Return to National Maritime Historical Society, PO Box 68, Peekskill NY 10566

3

NATIONAL MARITIME HISTORICAL SOCIETY OFFl CERS & TRUSTEES: Chairman, C raig A. C. Reyno lds; Vice Chairmen, Ri chardo Lopes, Edwa rd G. Z elin sky; President, Peter Stanford; Vice President, No rma Stanfo rd ; Treasurer, \'V'i lliam H. W hite; Secretary, Mars hall Stre ibert; Trustees, Walter R. Brown, Fred C. H awkins, J akob lsbrand tsen , Steven W . J ones, G uy E. C. Ma itland , Ka ren E. Markoe, Warren Marr, ll, H a rry Marshall , Bri an A. McAl lister, D avid A. O ' Nei l, C harl es A. Robenson , H oward Slo tni ck, B radfo rd Smith , John Ta lbot, Lo ui s A. Trapp, Jr. , Dav id B. V ietor, Harry E. Vin all , III , Jean Wort, AJexa nder Zago reos; Chairman Emeritus, Ala n G . C hoate FOUNDER: Ka rl Ko rtum (19 17- 1996) OVERSEE RS: RADM D avid C. Brown , Wa lter C ro nkite, John Lehm an, J. W illiam Midd end orf, JI , G raham H. Phillips, J o hn Srobart, Wi lliam G .

W in cerer AD V ISORS: Co-Chairmen, Fran k 0. Bray nard, M elbou rn e Smith ; D. K. Ab bass, Ray mo nd Aker, George F. Bass, Francis E. Bowker, O swald L. Brett, No rm an ]. Brouwe r, RAD MJ oseph F. Ca llo, Wi lliam M. Doerflinger, Francis J . Du ffy, J o hn Ewald , J oseph L. Farr, Timothy G . Foo te, W illia m G ilkerso n , T h omas G illm er, Wa lte r J .

H andelman , C harles E. H erdendo rf, Steven A. H ym an , H ajo Knurrel, G un na r Lund eberg, Conrad M ilste r, W illi am G . Mu ll er, D avid E. Perkins, Nancy Hughes Richardso n, T im o th y J. Run yan, Ralph L Snow, Shan no n J . Wall , Thom as Wells SEA HI STORY &NMHSSTAFF: Editor, Justine AJ1lstrom;Executive Editor, No rma Stanfo rd ; Contributing Editor, Kevin Haydon ; Editor-at-large, Peter Stanford ; Editorial Assistant, Shelley Reid; Director ofEducation, D avid B. AJ !en; Director of Marketing and Membership Development, Blaire Belli vea u; Chief ofStaff, Burchenal G ree n; M embership Secretary/Merchandising, Erika Kurtenbac h; Membership Assistant, Irene E ise nfeld ; Advertising Secretary, Ca rm en M cCall um ; Accounting, J oseph Caccio la; Secretary to the President, Karen Ritell TO GET IN T OUCH W ITH US:

Ad dress : Phone: Fax: We b site: E-ma il:

5 J o hn Walsh Blvd ., PO Box 68 Peekski ll NY I 0566 914 737-7878 914 737-78 16 www. sea hi story.o rg nmh s@seah isto ry.o rg

MEM BERS HIP is in vited. Afcerguard $ I 0,000; Benefactor $5,000; Plankow ner $2,5 00 ; Spon so r $ 1,000 ; D o no r $5 00; Parro n $25 0 ; Fri end $ I 00 ; Co ntribu ror $75; Fam ily $5 0; Regu lar $35 . All members o utsid e t he USA please add $ I 0 for postage. SEA HJ STORY is se nt ro all mem bers. Indi vidual co pi es cost $3 .75 .

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4

eco nomi c life of th e C hesapeake Bay maritim e co mmunity, not a thesis on naval architecture.

In Mr. Smith 's specifi c criticisms of the book, he misqu otes and takes out of context certain sentences . I just do not write on page 88 that "m o re balanced deckJine" gives "greate r bu oya ncy. " Co ncernin g Patapsco's cargo, Mr. Smith reveals that the o ld saw abo ut a pound of feath ers and a pound of lead is lost to him-as I cl ea rl y refer to the weigh r/ meas ure characteristics of logs vs. co ffee and fl our, a practical comm erc ial factor wh en stowing and freighting cargo .

T he definiti ons for length, breadth and depth of hold used throughout the book are those applied to sin gle-deck schooners as defin ed by an Act of Co ngress of 1790.

In a ge nera l way the shipwrights of rhe Bay worked our sets of proportions for their schoon ers' meas urem ents that, when combin ed a nd ave raged , produced an unrechni cal bur broadly reliable set of ratios.

Wh en my reviewer protests rhar I use "arbitrary internal dep ths," I ass ume that he refers to pages 245-46, where I point out that the inco rrect data contained in the builder's carpen rer certificate of the replica schoo ner Pride ofBaltimore may have contributed to the confusion concern ing her stabili ty when compared to the inherem instability of an 18 12 model and rhat was unn o ticed even after her sad loss.

GEOFFREY FOOTNER

Ballvine, Maryland M ELBOURNE SMJTH responds: A schooner with a "more balanced deckline and sheer that rises in the ends far greater buoyancy" only adds weight in the ends, not buoyancy; raising the deckline in the ends might add reserve buoyancy. And M r. Footner's remark about Patapsco 's loading- that "the logs were her only deadweight cargo "-suggests that the other goods were not. All cargo, whether feathers or lead, is dead weight, no matter what the volume or where it is stowed.

As to "incorrect data contained in the builder 's carpenter certificate" far Pride of Baltimore, he is befuddling again. Vessels built in this century must fallow the Code of Federal Regulations. H er depth-in-hold was correctly measured and recorded, as required by law.

Stability is a relationship between a righting-arm and a heeling arm in which an

arbitrary internal depth plays very little part.

I know of no confusion concerning Pride's stability. I doubt if a clipper schooner of her displacement ever carried 42 tons ofpermanent ballast as low in the bilge. Ample stability was demonstrated to the satisfaction ofthe Marine Safety Board.

Clearwater and ExperimentTogether!

Sea H istory 87's im eres ring and in fo rmative article about rh e exploits of rhe Hudson River sloop Experiment was another successful wo rk to keep landlubbers like me in tun e w ith boatin g hiscory. I do hope that the replica sloop Clearwater, which has been sai ling th e Hudso n Ri ver for yea rs with an environm em al miss ion , and the new sloop Experiment w ill nor be in com petition , bur w ill wo rk in co ncert with o ne another.

Please keep us up to date o n the progress of this most ausp icious endeavor.

D ONALD H. DEBLO JS Caze novi a, N ew York Not to worry! Pete Seeger, who founded and sailed the sloop C lea rwater to such great purposes, guiding New Yorkers and the country in the struggle to recogniz e and respect the H udson River and all this nation's waterways, is a supporter ofour project to build the Experim ent. We look forward to seeing the two sloops working together to educate people, young and old, in the environmental and historical legacy ofthe Hudso n.-ED. ERRATA On page 7 of Sea H istory 87 ("NMHS Sea Ex peri ence Program s: C hall enges and Advemures o n rhe Water"), rhe gi rl in the center photo was incorrectly identified as Desiree October. T he perso n shown is acmally Nebhia Mohammed .

Nebhia Mohammed eyes the compasss aboard the friga te Rose.

(Photo: Don Betts)

SEA HISTORY 88 , SPRING 1999

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5

NMHSNEWS NMHS Annual Meeting to be Held 5 June 1999 at the Herreshoff Marine Museum in Bristol, Rhode Island Members w ho find th eir way co Brisco!, Rhode Island, o n Saturday, 5 Jun e, are in for a treat. Our host this yea r is th e H erreshoff Marine Museum, on the site of th e Herreshoff Manufacturing Co mpan y, famous for th e excellence of the boats they d esigned and built, which ra nged from day sailers co power cruise rs and naval vessels.

Renown ed particularly for eighr co nsecutive successful America's C up defend ers between 1859 and 1934, th ey also bui lt rhe first torpedo boars for the US Navy.

The co mpany's buildin gs now house more rhan 50 class ic sailing and power yachts, steam engines, fittings, phorographs and m emorabi li a. T he America's C up Hal l of Fame is a tribute to th e great racers of this fabl ed imern ational competitio n. With rhe Model Room an d the Hall ofBoats, th e A. Sidney de W . H erres hoff Room co mpletes the museum.

C urato r Ca rlton J. Pinh eiro wi ll give a tour of the new model room , whi ch houses 600design models for Nathanael G . Herreshoff' s spectac ular race-winnin g yachts and other vessels. In addition , the president of the museum , H alsey H erreshoff, grandson of Ca ptain Nar and a naval architect himself, will give an afternoon ta lk on the museum and guide members throu gh the Hall of Boats.

Coffee and registratio n srarr at 9AM an d the Business Meetings tarrs ar lOAM. Proj ect Reports in the morning wi ll in clude the OpSail Education Program, Project

NMHS

Ex perimem , the Sea Experience Scholarship Program, Tall Ships on rhe Hudson, and the World M arine Millennium Conferen ce.

A buffer lunch will be catered for us in a rem overlooking Narragansett Bay. A cash bar will be avai lable before and during lu ncheon . Fo ll owing lun ch and the bri ef afternoon program, we wi ll break imo small groups for more intimate viewing of th e displays.

Members who choose to stay in Rhode Island for rhe weekend can rake this opportunity to vis it th e International Yacht Restoration School (IYRS) in Newport, Rhode Island. Founded by Elizabeth M eye r, who led the restoration of rhe ] -class ya ch rs Shamrock V and Endeavour, IYRS is a unique and highly successfu l program reaching yo ung peopl e rhe skills, history and related sciences necessary to rh e restoration and maimenance of historic yachts.

On Sunday, 6 June, they wi ll offer tours from lOAM until 12 noon and kee p th eir doors open until 5PM, so NMHS members can visit and lea rn about their work. Their waterfrom sire includes a Natio nal Histori c Register Steam M ill Bui lding, the Resto rati o n H all , a gall ery and a wharf w irh yachts on display.

-

B URCH E ALGREE

The beautifully restored Herreshojf yacht Ne irh sails out of Mystic, Connecticut.

(Photo: Paul A. Darling)

Curator Carlton ]. Pinheiro shows off the Model Room. (Photo: ]. H. Peterson)

Bristol Information Cost of rh e meeting includin g rhe lun cheon o n Saturday, 5 Jun e, at the H erres hoffMuseum is $3 5 per person.

P lease use rhe form below, call us at 914 737-7 878or 1800221-NMHS (6647), o rfax usat914 737-78 16, to sign up for rh e a nnual meeting and lun cheo n. It helps us in plannin g if yo u reserve early.

The H erreshoff Marin e Museum is located ar 7 Burnside Srreer, Bristol RI. From Rte. 195, take Exit 7 and fo ll ow Rre. l 14S. T he museum is on th e left , 1 /z mil e south of downtown Bristol; from N ewport, rake th e Mt. Hope Bridge to l 14N; rhe muse um is on rh e ri ght, just south of Bristol.

M embers who come by boar can do ck ($2.5 0/ ft. ) or moor ($25/night wirh skiff serv ice) at rhe museum. Call Bi ll Knowles at the Herreshoff Marine Museum ar 40 1 253- 5000 for boar reservations.

Please request rh e Annual Meeting pac ket for information about hotels, B&Bs and restaurants.

1999 ANNUAL M EETING REGISTRATION

Yes, I/we will attend rhe Annual M eeting and the lu ncheo n. Pl ease reserve _ _ places ar $35 each.

Please send me an informati on packet about hotels, B&Bs and restaurants in the Bristol , Rhode Island, area.

Pl ease make m e a Parron of rhe Annual M eeting. M y $250 contribution includes two places ar rh e lun cheon .

I wou ld like to help NMHS adva nce awareness of our maritim e heritage wirh this don ation: _ __ M y check for _ _ _ _ is enclosed.

Please charge

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SEA HISTORY 88, SPRING 1999

WORLD MARINE MILLENNIAL CONFERENCE late March 2000 (exact dates TBA) in Salem, Massachusetts Co-sponsored by the National Maritime Historical Society and the Peabody Essex Museum r

"I

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Please note date change!

The comm ittee invites abstracts for individual papers (15-30 minutes in length) and session proposa ls (three to fo ur papers in l 1/2 ho urs) on s ubjects related to all aspects of salt and fresh water m aritime history. Abstracts and proposals may address particular aspects of broader themes of the co nfere nce or a specific s ubject of inte rest to the committee:

China Trade, 1799-1999 The Seagoing Ex perience The Slave Trade Fishing & Whaling Laws of the Sea

The Shore Estab lishments Ship Models a nd Modeling Piracy a nd Priva teerin g Under wate r Archaeology Women at Sea

Pax Britannica Navigation Navies & Warfare Historic Interpretation Adventure and Recreation

Restorations and Replicas Marine Art & Artifacts Man & the Environment T he American Flag at Sea The Sea in Literature

Abstracts of indiv idual papers should be typed on no more than one page, accompani ed by a Curric ulum Vitae. Session proposals should provide a brief summary of each paper and incl ude a CY for each of three or fo ur presenters. Abstracts and proposals are due by July 1, 1999, addressed to: Pub li sher, The American Neptune, Peabody Essex Museum , East Indi a Square, Salem MA 0 1970.

Indi vidual and external group initiatives are welcome. This is a prime opportunity to propose creative approaches to the study of maritime hi story.

Questions may be addressed to Don Mars hall or Jack Bishop at 978-745 -9500, x 3172; fax at 978-744-6776.

Or you may e-mail NMHS at co nfe re nce@sea hi sto ry.o rg

Old & Rare Maritime Books Bought and Sold • Exploration and voyages by sea; • Shipbuilding, seamanship and navigation; •Naval history

•Whaling • Yachting and Cruising • Commercial fisheries • Lighthouses, pirates and shipwrecks • Logbooks, documents and manuscripts •Sea charts • Books relating to marine art, antiques and ship models

We are eager to purchase si11g/e volumes or entire co/lectio11s in these subject areas.

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THE CAPE HORN ROAD , PART XVIII

The American Clipper Makes Tracks on the Cape Horn Road-Pursued by the Bear Cub of the Ocean-Going Steamship

by Peter Stanford

T

he new ship had raken shape nicely. Her long bl ack hull Ben nett, a keen yachtsm an himself, was ever alert rn New Yorkers' srnod crisply defl ned against rhe January sky, free ar lasr of lively interest in the ships that brought the seaport city its wealth rhe scaffolding rhar had covered irs lean flanks. T he and its population, both growing by leaps and bounds. clipper Rainbow was ready rn be launched from Smirh & Dim o n's The Rainbow had so me troub le on her fl rst C hina voyage. Four ya rd inrn rh e swirlin g gray ware rs of New York's Easr River. T he days afte r leavin g New York, o n 1 February 1845 under Captain ya rd, ar rhe foor ofEasr Fourrh Street, was already well known for John Land, she carried away her topgallanrmasrs, and it was reported irs river steamers and for fasr packe rs in the Ad antic trades. that she nearly drove herself under in high winds and seas. No netheBur rhe Rainbow was so merhing else, an innovarive vessel less, she made the passage rn Canrnn in the fast rim e of 102 days, design ed rn rhe rheo ries put forward by rhe yo un g naval archirecr in an adverse season, and establi shed a ro und-trip record of just John Griffirhs. Grifflrhs had defined rhe q uali ries needed in a fas t over seven and a half months. On her seco nd C hina voyage, she sailing ship in a speech deli vered at the American Institute in did even better, as Captain C lark relates: "She went o ur to China 1844. Two yea rs larer, the shipping firm of H owland & Aspin- against the northeast mo nsoo n in nin ety-two and home in eightywal l, leaders in rhe C hin a trade, had commission ed Smith & eighr days, br.i nging the news of her own arrival in Ca nrnn. " Dimon rn build G riffirhs's ship, as develo ped from his tests of In the meantime, however, rhe vereran packer driver Roberr H. model hulls in a rowing rank. And W arerm an had brough t Howard & now, at th e beginning of 1845, she Aspinwall's pac ket Natchez, built for was rn be laun ched at last, after mo re the So u rhern co tton trade, home from Old hands in the business than a yea r o n the srncks. H er co m pleC hina in 78 days-ten days faste r were skeptical about the new than the Rainbow. The Southern trade rion had been delayed by co ntention over her des ign. had bred up its own variety ofburdenideas visible in the lean, There had been a lot of talk about som e carriers that rraveled pretty fasr taut-lined hull. . . . Would she and "Bully" Warerman, as he was the vessel durin g her lo ng gestation, cleave the sea as intended, and this apparendy worried the ownknown (in an age when rhar word ers. Old hands in the busin ess were m eam jolly, dashing, firsr-rate), had a or simply drive those sharp skeptical abo ut the new ideas visible in habit of re- ri gging his ships at sea rn set the lean, ta ut-lin ed hull. One veteran bows under? more canvas-and a way of mal<ing remarked that she had her bow turned any ship go faster than she would in inside our. And indeed, she offered a the normal scheme of things. H e could, delicate hollow in h er bows, where robust apple cheeks had been ir was said, "rake a coal barge rn sea and bring her ho me in the rule. Wo uld she cleave the sea as intended, or simpl y dri ve creditable time looking, aloft at least, like a clipper. " rhose sharp bows under?

From rhe ourser rhe clipper era depended not only on fasrs hips, Caprain Arthur H. C lark, who sailed in th e last days of the fast but on skippers who could drive the ships. Anorher grear skipper sa iling ships rhar he wrote about in his classic The Clipper.Ship Era in the growin g race rn C hina was Nathaniel B. Palmer, who sail ed (191 O), elegandy summarized G rifflrhs's changes in the accepted forrheAspinwall's ri val firm in rhe C hina trade, A. A. Low. Palmer idea of a ship as "a general drawing our and sharpening of the was a quierer man rhan rhe boisrero us Waterman, bu r no less forward body," bringing the point of greatest beam furth er aft effecrive. H e'd lea rn ed his trade in sm all vessels in rhe War of "than had hitherrn been tho ught practicable"-a truly breathtak181 2, runnin g rhe Brirish blockade from his narive porr of ing change in a world where the safety of the ship always has rn Srnningrnn, Co nnecticut. At age 20 he had taken the well- named come first, and change comes in slowly if at all. The Rainbow, sloop Hero, jusr 40 rnns, rn Antarcti ca rn hunt seals, whose skins C lark concluded, was "a radical departure differin g not merely in were America's most valuable export in the C hina trade. Sailing degree bur in kind far from any ship that had preceded her. " south in quest of fresh sealing gro unds in 1821 , he discove red the T here is, perhaps, some exaggeration in this statem ent. Ameri- Antarctic mainland. The Russian explorer Co mmander Bellingscan shippers, having learnt rhe val ue of speed in the fast packet hausen, sailin g Antarctic wa ters in the service of th e Tsar, ca me service inaugurated by the Black Ball Line, were wo rking up rn th e across rhe Hero and had the 22-year-old Palmer summ o ned rn the clipper co ncept before th e Rainbow's launchin g. But Captain great cabin of his fri gate, where he co ngratulated Palmer on C lark's pronouncement certa inly is true rn the sp irit of the age he discovering the new land "in a sloop but lird e larger than the was writing abo ut. What he sa id was indeed what people saw- launch of my fri gate." He nam ed the new land Palmer Land, the and what they proceeded ro act upon! name it carries rnday.

"The Rainbow, a new clipper for the C hina trade ... holds out Palmer went o n rn co mmand New Orleans packers in the a promise of great speed," trumpeted Jam es Gordon Ben nett's boomingcorrn n trade in the 1830s, and then in rhe 1840s moved New York Herald as the ship at las t was launched in January 1845. on to the C hina trade. In 1844, homeward bo und from China in

SEA HISTORY 88 , SPRING 1999

9

A fast packet Lies in New Yorks East River, flags streaming to the winds that wiLL soon be driving her, while another taLL ship is almost ready for Launching.from Smith and Dimon s East Fourth Street yard. The year is 1833, in this contemporary painting by James Fulton Pringle, and in twelve years, the Rainbow, first ofa new breed ofship, the American clipper, wiLL be Launched from this very spot to set new records in the New York to China run. ("Messrs. Smith & Co. Ship Yard," 1833, by James Fulton Pringle (1 788-1847), oil on canvas; courtesy New York State H istorical Association, Cooperstown, New York)

rhe fast pac ker PaulJones, he whittl ed a model of rhe kind of vessel he'd like ro sail o n this run. H e had an attentive audience, in rhe perso n of William H . Low, of the shipping firm A. A. Low & Broth er. So, a new ship was built for rhe C hin a trade. Named Houqua for rhe great Chi nese trader admired by Ameri ca ns and E nglish alike, she turned our ro be a refined vers io n of rh e fl arfl oo red packers in rhe So uth ern trade, wirh sharpened ends and rounder bil ges for improved light-weather performance. W hen she appea red on rh e East River, James Gordo n Benn ett co mmented that her bows were "as sharp as the roes of a pair of C hin ese slippers."

T he naval architectural historian Howard I. C hapelle, in his authoritat ive The Search for Speed Under Sail (1967), points our th at a hand-carved model would be roo rough ro take off lin es for the full-sized ship- but surely a model co uld illustrate th e bas ic ideas of th e d es ign. In a more se ri ous criticism of this tal e of innovation , C hapelle points our that fast packers as sharp and fl arfl oo red as Houqua had bee n entered in th e C hina trade befo re this, mainly from the ya rd of Wi lli am H. Webb, who beca me o ne of rh e premier designers of clipper ships, fast packers and big steamers. Bur perhaps rh e overrid ing co nsideration in all this is that the Houqua was seen as a ve ry sharp vessel (see Benn ett's co mment above), and proved rob e remarkably fast.

The breakthrough ship of this era, the Rainbow, went miss ing

JO

with all hands in 1848. It was presumed that she was lostoffCape Horn , sin ce she rook rh at route. Ir seems ro m e her foremast was not stepped fa r enough back from the stem ro allow for the fin eness of the drawn-o ur bow. Captain Lan d, who had nearly driven her under on her maiden voyage, probably watched this probl em in his subseq uent fast runs. It was a new cap rain who rook her o ut o n that last voyage. No o ne knows, of course, what happened ro rhe ship-foe, icebergs, even a charging whale co uld and did sink ships. But o ne wo nders if the progressive shipowner Wil liam Aspinwall wasn't ri ght ro seek outside advice about the pl ace ment of the masts. John G rifflths's next clipper, the worldbeater Sea Witch, had her foremast stepped much farther abaft rh e stem than did her predecessor.

The Quest for Speed W hat was th e drivin g force behind this ever-growing ques t for speed ?A cluster of related deve lopment was at play ro drive leaders in shippin g and fore ign trade ro push for faster ships and shorter pa sages . Most impo rtant was the liberated thinking of businessmen, who discovered rhe echoing co nsequences of fast passages o n rhe viral North Atlantic run, whe n rhe hard-driven packets of th e Black Ball Lin e began ro take the cream of this most valuable carrying trad e beginning with the sailing of packers on set schedules in 1818.

Free of the semi-monopolistic practices of English sh ippers,

SEA HISTORY 88, SPRING 1999

whose trades we re largely shel tered by the o utmoded Navigation her day, slipping ho me fro m C hi na in 77 days, under Captain Laws of the 16 00s, America ns bega n to realize the value of fas t Wa rerman. Waterman rh us bear his own stunn ing 78-day passage passages, which shortened th e ti me ca rgoes we re tied up in rransir, made in th e fas t cotto n carrier Natchez. Then, in th e sp rin g of and rhus freed up cash fo r furth er in vestm ent. This idea, so 1849, Sea Witch cam e hom e fro m H ong Kong in just 74 days, 14 comm o n pl ace in today's eco no mi cs, evolved slowly. Bur as Ameri- ho urs, a reco rd which no o ther sailing ship would eve r touch in cans, led by New Yo rke rs, bega n to Feel th e benefits of rapid rhis mosr ho tly contested run of the clipper era. turn aro und, they appl ied this thinking elsewhere-particularly in T he impo rtance of speed in rhe C hina run is dram aticall y cl ea r the co tto n trade fro m Southern ports, and then in the growing fro m th e fact rhar American clippers, commanding twice th e trade in tea fro m C hina. I n rhar lo ng- haul trade, speed of passage freig ht rare rhar E nglish ships as ked, loaded rap idly whil e rh e made a di ffe rence of weeks, and th e first reas of rhis seasonal cro p E nglish ships sat idle despite their much lowe r fre igh t ra res. o n the New York marker always co mm anded premium pri ces.

Bu r now an o ther lo ng-distance run began ro supersede rhe Ano th er ve ry impo rtant rrend fed in to this thinking and helped C hina run in rhe dem and fo r high-speed shippi ng. T hi s was th e acco unt fo r th e growth in trade with C hina. Where C hinese Califo rnia Gold Rush , which , starrin g in 1849 , bro ught an po rcelains, silks, and even sturdy nankeen cloths had been prized unparalleled shipp ing boom to Eas t Coast ya rds, including a new impo rts, rh e p ro duct of Ameri ca n co tton in cloth from rh e ge neration of clippers. T hese were big, sharp-e nded fl at-fl oo red industri alized mi lls of the E nglish Midlands rapidly became an ships of up to twice the size of Sea Witch, bui lt specifi ca ll y ro important ex po rt to C hin a-a lo ng with a host of other manufacmas ter th e screaming gales and mountain ous seas of the Ca pe tured ite ms, nota bly iro nm o ngery H orn run . ra ngin g fro m roo ls to steam engines.

In rhespringo fl 85 0 rh eSea Witch T his was in ma rked co ntrast ro the joined the race ro th e Califo rn ia go ld Sea Witch had that often o ri ginal rradewirh C hina, where Wes tfi elds. After Wa term an bro ught her erners had been so sho rt of goods rhe ho me rhar Apri l in a fas t 85-day run noted but seldom achieved C hinese wa nted, rhar much of th e fro m Canto n, he turned over the elquality of being a happily ex po rt trade was in rhe fo rm of whar egant clipper to hi s m are Geo rge was called "specie," o r silve r co in age.

F rase r. Fraser proceeded to rake her balanced design, in which the T har remarkabl e d iarist, rhe auco ur to Sa n F rancisco in 97 days . T his whole does more than the sum ti o neer and o ne-rime mayo r of New earl y clipper was o ne of just 25 ships Yo rk, Philip H o ne, nored the new balro make 'F risco in under 100 days, of the parts can explain. ance of trade in his journal , o n the amo ng th e tho usa nds of vessels which occas io n of rhe brand-new clipper Rainmade this ro ugh passage . bow setting sa il o n her first voyage to The California Clippers C hin a in 1845. H e had this to say about this "strange revo luti o n Ships from rhe East Boston ya rd of rhe Nova Scotian emi gra nt in trade": D o nald M cKay soon roo k the lead amo ng the new Cali fo rni a The same articles which we formerly imported from China, and for clippers. An extraordinary perso n, who was to build the fas test which nothing but dollars would pay, are now manufactured here at saili ng ships ever sent to sea, M cKay ar ri ved in New Yo rk as a 16one third the cost, and sent out to pay for teas. The difficulty now is yea r-o ld lad in 1826, stepping as ho re fro m a coasting schoo ner in to find sufficient returns for the American cargoes. We do not send New Yo rk's So uth Street, to go to wo rk as an apprentice in Isaac them specie-not a dollar.

We bb's Eas t Ri ve r yard. H e was just in rim e to capture the new Mo re and mo re fas rsailin gships we re built in New Yorkforrhe oceani c trades. H owland & Aspinwall did nor give co mmand of The steam schooner M idas, built in 1841 for R. B. Forbes for local rhe Rainbow to rheir favo red Captain Wate rman beca use th ey had trade on the China coast, is a remarkable example of Western in mind a bigge r ship fo r him . T his was rh e fa mo us Sea Witch , technology exported to China. H ere is Forbess own model ofthe vessel, launched at rhe end of the year 1846. She was some 900 ro ns ro courtesy ofthe Peabody Essex Museum, Salem, Massachusetts.

Rainbow's 700, and even fin er lined, wirh a Aarrish bo ttom amelio rated by rounded bilges, which reduced we tted surface, an impo rra nt co nsideration sailing in ligh t and moderate airs, whi le rh e fl at fl oo rs give resistance to heeling so that the sh ip can stand up to a press of canvas to power thro ugh stro ng w inds. And as no ted, G ri ffith s, designer of this vessel as he had bee n of Rainbow, moved his fore mas t m arkedly furth er afr than in hi s ea rlier ship, perhaps advised by Captain Land's ex peri ence in Rainbow.

Sea Witch had that often no ted bu r seldo m achi eved quali ty of bei ng a happily balanced des ign, in which the who le does more than the sum of the parts can explain . Sea Witch sim ply sailed fas ter over long courses than any shi p ever built, establishing reco rds that stand to th is day.

She established her credentials early as rhe fas resr saifing ship of

SEA HISTORY 88, SPRING 1999

ll

"Take good care ofher, Mister, clipper to that date when she was launched on 15 April 1851.

Train was proud of his fin e new ship, but when the N ew York firm of G rinn ell & Minturn offered him $90 ,000 for her on the ways, T rain sold her on the spot. T he pri ce of $90 ,000 gave an 80% p ro fit over th e vessel's buildin g cost of $5 0,000 . But this risk-free coup was one T rain wo uld rue ever afrer. Fo r when theFlyingCloudsetsail from her South Street pi er at M aiden Lane, at 2PM on 2 June 185 1, she sto rmed o n so uth to round Cape H o rn and reach San Francisco in the stunning time of 89 days, 2 1 hours-a reco rd o nl y matched later by the Cloud herself in 1854, and by the medium clipper A ndrew Jackson in 1857.

Jam es Go rdo n Bennett, visiting the ship sho rtl y before she sail ed, had praised her clean lines and sumptuo us cabins, and predicred that she was "just the vehicle" fo r a 90-day passage. T he average time of 23 reaso nably fas t sailing ships dri vin g hard for Sa n Francisco and arri vin g in the sam e period a year before had been 199 days, more than twice the time the Cloud had taken, as Carl C utler reminds us in Greyhounds ofthe Sea (1 936).

As th e ships arrived in San Francisco Bay, piling up in the hundreds o n the sho refro nt as crews fled to the gold fields up the Sacramento Rive r ac ross the Bay, supWilliam Webb s handsome Young Am erica of1853 sailed in the Cape Horn trade for thirty plies po ured in and th e high prices paid for years. Charles Robert Patterson catches her with skysaif poles swaying over a sunlit patch of such staples as fl our and clothin g rook a the ocean shes traveled, at the end ofher 16, 000-mife run home.from San Francisco. (From precipi to us dro p. T he discovery of gold in Australia gave a renewed fillip to the call for the collection of Quester Gallery, Stonington, Connecticut) fast ships, but this was no t enough to pay the emphasis on fast-sailing ships in th e C hin a trade and the dawning high premiums the clippers needed for their fas t passages, and of the clipper era in the thriving New York shipyards. H e eventu- afrer 1853, the rush was ove r. Biddin g godspeed to th e skipper of ally took his skills and dedi cati o n to Boston, wh ere the first light his lovely and lo ng-lived 196 1-to n Young America as she set sail in of the clipper's day had begun to break. H e built fast packets, and 1853, the m as ter builder W illiam Webb said: "Take good care of then the big 1,543-ton clipper Stag Hound. She was a fairly sharp- her, Mister, for when she's go ne there' ll be no mo re like her. " And, bottomed ship, with a deadri se of 40 inches (this being the rise of indeed, there weren't.

By 1857, when fin ancial depressio n set in across America, the th e floor bottom halfway om to the sides of the ship). She also had sharp ends. And she had that "lucky" combin atio n of attributes Cloud herself lay swingin g at her ancho r in the Eas t River, waiting which makes a vessel fas t and seawo rthy in th e righ t hands. in vain fo r cargo, any kind of cargo . But there were no cargoes availabl e fo r th e fin e- lin ed clipper.

Don ald M cKay built lucky ships.

M cKay went on to build bigger clippers than the Flying Cloud, And when Enoch Train wanted a bi g new clipper for the California Gold Rush trade in th e autumn of 185 0, he went to having fo und a market in England, where the great English McKay to build her. M cKay had p rogressed in his thinking on the shipper James Baines had begun ord erin g big fast-sailing ships for matter of fast ships. His new design was destined to sail into the growing emigrant run from England to Australia. McKay sold immortali ty in the reco rd boo ks as the Flying Cloud. She was him the Lightning, perhaps the sharpest-lined clipper of all his sharper-ended than the Stag Hound, and her deadrise at half floor ships, and the magnificent Sovereign of the Seas, held by many to was 30 inches, as contras ted with the Stags 40. Andher rig too was be th e fas test of all his ships. T hese extrem e clippers were powerful more m ode rate, with shorter ya rds despite her considerably larger vessels, all ove r 2,000 to ns, flat fl oo red and sharp ended, built to size. H er fl atter botto m gave her in creased powe r to stand up to this carry sail in the wind systems of the Roarin g Forties, which blew reduced but still towering rig. At 1782 tons, she was the biggest in the Indi an Ocean somh of the Cape of Good H ope.

12

SEA HISTORY 88 , SPRING 1999

for when she's gone there'll be no more like her. " McKay's ultimate sa iling ship, the four-masted Great Republic, of 4,555 tons, was towed to New York from her East Boston yard by the tug R. B. Forbes at the end of 1853. She caught fire in her South Street slip on 26 December, to be rebuilt on a more modest scale at 3,357 tons (see "Marine Art," p. 26 for more of her story).

As the trail of the clipper ships died out on the world's waters, and slower, more burdensome sailing sh ips took up the cheaper cargoes left to them by the advance of steam-powered ships, legends began to grow and multiply about the clippers. People knew they were an extraordinary creation in their time-why else did we suddenly find names like James Monroe succeeded by

ship-a run where no steamship could yet function effectively.

In the decades that followed, steamboats went on to establish service in sheltered bays and so unds, while sail continued to carry alm ost everything in salt water, with the exception of the occasional trip by steamer down the coast from New York and a few forays across the Atlantic. In these early decades of steam navigation it could be said that the most important use of steam in the oceanic trades was in the tugs that helped the sailing vessels, ever growing in size, in and out of port. The big packet ships, soon reaching up to 2,000 tons, needed this assistance in narrow quarters and benefited from being towed in or out of harbor Herald ofthe Morning, Chariot ofFame, against head winds-though skipNeptune's Car, Flying Cloud, Comet, or pers continued to take pride in clearYoung America? ing under sail when they could, as The steamship, linked up Around 1850 there grew up a sense demonstrated by Captain James with the steam railway ashore, that Americans were no longer on the Barker who sailed the Tusita!a out of rim of Europe's wheel, but at the center her Hoboken pier (across the Hudson would radically alter the of our own, a sense expressed in AmeriRiver from Manhattan) in the late nature offirst-class traffics on can letters through writers like the es1920s. sayist Ralph Waldo Emerson and the But as the 1840s progressed, the the Cape Horn run, changing novelist Herman Melville, a sense also British engineer Isambard Kingdom not just the speed ofadvance expressed, architectural historians tell Brunel built serious ocean-going but the actual routes followed, us, in the style of buildings ashore. The steamships to complete his Great American clipper perhaps most vividly Western Railway, which took peopl e saving thousands ofmiles of expressed this sea change. from London to the West Co untry ocean travel.

The Times of London, having deports of Bristol and Liverpool. There scribed the new American clipper Orithey were to embark aboard wooden sailing ships dependent on the vagarenta! when she came into London in 1850, got a sense in this ship of something more than a speedy ies of wind and weather. Brunel found this absurd. His iron steam vehicle, commenting editorially: "A giant across the ocean has railway would be continued across the Atlantic in iron steamships been unshackled." of large size and great reliability. His first vessel, named Great But the reign of the fast sailing ship in ocean trades had in fact Western for the railway, was a wooden paddlewheeler, which only a few years to run in the face of the inexorable advance of the crossed in 1838 just behind her rival Sirius, an Irish sea packet ocean-going steamship. The steamship, linked up with the steam chartered by Americans.

Brunel's next entry was more formidable, the great iron ship railway ashore, would radically alter the nature of first-class traffics on the Cape Horn run, changing not just the speed of advance but Great Britain of 1842, propeller-driven and including such innothe actual routes fo llowed, saving thousands of miles of ocean vations as a double bottom, a balance rudder and, perhaps most important, a 3,433-ton iron hull, large enough to make her an travel.

Steam Comes Thumping Along eco nomical carrier despite her primitive engines . She was indeed The growth of steam navigation proceeded steadi ly, fo llowing the a great ship-twice as large as the largest sailing ship that had been first co mmercially successful passenger run from New York to built up till then and finely-shaped. James Gordon Bennett said Albany in Robert Fulton's North River Steamboat (popularly of the clipper Sea Witch that he had not seen bows so sharp in known as the "Clermont") in 1808. By 1812 the Hudson had a South Street since the visit of the Great Britain a few years earlier!

By the 1850s, Webb and others were building big, wooden dozen steamers plying its waters. They changed the dynamics of passage on the Hudson and helped to rush shipwrights from New paddlewheel steamers for the Collins Line of transAtlantic packYork C ity's East River shipyards to the north woods to build the ets, magnificent vessels that competed successfully (with a sizable flotillas which won the vital battles of Lake Erie and Lake Cham- subs idy) aga inst the British C unard liners that had established plain in the War of 1812. These last-minute American victories regular North Atlantic service in the 1840s. The loss at sea of two defeated the heavy British counter-thrusts that had been mounted of these big wooden paddlers led to the closing down of the lineafter America's failed attempt to "liberate" Canada by force. but not to the end of wooden steamers.

Fulton and other steamboat pioneers knew well, however, that It was a New York sailing house prominent in the Cape Horn the great use of steam would be opening the American interior trade to San Francisco and China, our friends at Howland & through the Mississippi-Ohio River system, and there toward the Aspinwall, that opened the steam service that took the cream of the end of the War of 1812, a steamboat played a viral role in rushing Cape Horn trade from sailing ships. They had Webb build them reinforcements and munitions to repel the British attack on New the 1,057-ton, wooden paddle-steamer California in 1848, a 200Orleans. This attack was mounted after peace had been signed, foot vessel driven at a stately but constant pace by a 250due to the time it took to get word across the Atlantic by sailing horsepower engine. She was built to fulfill a postal contract as part

SEA HISTORY 88, SPRING 1999

13

of th e Postmas ter Ge neral's plan to have steam service from New windows still intact. This structure has been lovingly resto red (as York to Chagres on the Caribbean coast, connecting up across the reco unted in SH 38, page 6) and stands today as a remarkabl e fever-ridden jungles of the isthmus to the port of Panama on the testam ent to American style and workmanship in wood. The Pacific side. Th ere, other steamers would pick up mail and China cabin is one of the most perfectly proportion ed and passengers and cany them north ro San Francisco and Oregon. exquisitely finish ed rooms in Am erica today-evidence that howIt was either very foresi ghted or very lucky that Howland & ever crude the machines of a hundred-odd years ago mi ght seem Aspinwall made this heavy investment in what had been a sparsely to us, the Americans who built them had a vision of the ri ghtn ess trafficked route-only seven ships from New York and New of things which continues to give joy to the beholder.

England ports had entered San Francisco in all of 1848. But when She Was Indeed the Glory of the Seas the California, destined for the Pacific run, cam e into Panama on In his authoritative study of the clipper ship, The Search for Speed 17 January 1849, she found 2,500 Ameri cans waiting on the dock, Under Sail, Howard Chapelle had maintain ed that th e clipper all desperately anxious to secure passage north to the go ld fi elds of ship , as a type, did not really exist- their des igns and ri gs were all San Francisco. She embarked 375, and burning spars and furni - over the lot, and the ships called "clippers" could not be call ed a ture for lack of coal , steamed triumphantly into San Francisco Bay distinct species. Chapelle, a tall m an with a white mustache, on 28 February. This launched the very successful and profitable piercing glance and commanding presence, served as C urato r of operations of the Pacific Mail Company.

Marine Transportation at the Smithsonian Institution in WashAspinwall went on to build a railway across the isthmus to ington DC. Known as a person who did not suffer foo ls gladly, he connect the two ports with his steamship services in each ocean. nevertheless took a generous interes t in our work in the fledgling From that moment in 1853, people in SouthStreetSeaportMuseumonNew a hurry to get to San Francisco or York's East River. It was always a great It wasn't the exhilarating rush other West Coast ports took this route, occasion when C hap would stop off leaving the Cape Horn route as a for a chat in our crowded little office in ofthe sailing ship on the stretch, cargo run for sailing ships, carrying Fulton Street-an occasion often fo lbut the remorseless pounding only the occasional passenger. lowed by his sweeping us off to dinner In effect, the industrial age was somewhere in the neighborhood, to of the big, low-power engine linking land and sea routes with steam cheer us up and enco urage the work. consistently driving along a and iron. The great visionary British One day early in 1970, a few years artist ]. M. W . Turn er had celebrated after the publi cation of The Search for slender hull at low speed that the age of steam as something changSpeed Under Sail, C hapelle was in my gave steam its primacy .... ing mankind's perception ofspace and office talking about the different kinds time, notably in his marvelo us work of ship that had been call ed clippers in "Steam and Speed," a painting which dissolved the old solidities of their time. Glory of the Seas, McKay's last big square rigger, was the wo rld into a blur of speed and power. His assess ment of the called a "half clipper." She had a distin cti ve, shapely hull, but was actual and psychic impact of steam was right, I beli eve. But it is too full in the body to be called a pure clipper. important to realize that clipper ships sailed faster than any steamer Launched in 1869, she was built too late for the first-class could travel until long after the age of the clipper ship had passed. carrying trade needed to sustain th e li the-limbed beauties that had The answer to this conundrum is that steamers made their passages swept all before them on th e long-haul trades they were built for. consistendy, continuing to traverse the sea at five knots or so, while For 1869 was th e yea r that the transco ntin ental railroad across the the clipper that could roll off 15 knots or more often stood waiting United States was co mpleted with the dri ving of the ceremonial for a breeze, or battl ed her way close-haul ed under short canvas golden spike, thus short-circuiting the Cape Horn passage as a against adverse gales, which again could cut progress down to a viable way to cany passengers from New York to San Francisco (a crawl. It wasn 't th e exhilarating rush of the sailing ship on the route already comprom ised, as we've seen, by the completion of stretch, but the remorseless pounding of the big, low-power engine th e Aspinwall railway across the isthmus of Panama). And in 1869 consistently driving along a slender hull at low speed that gave the Suez Canal was opened, providing a direct water route to India steam its primacy on the ocean routes th at bind the world together. and China through the M editerranean and the Red Sea, a good T he big wooden paddlewheelers from New York's East River route for steam ers but not for sailin g ships, which throve on the yards continued to o pen up the Pacific and were soon trading to grand winds of the Roaring Forties so uth of the Cape of Good China and Japan. This didn' t las t much more than a decade. The Hope on th eir route around Africa. ships were vulnerabl e to fire and breakdown, and even without But the Glory was a beautiful vessel and from the hand of a catastrophe at sea the grea t sh ips shook themselves to pieces under master. I mentioned the grace of her figurehead in India House, the pounding of th eir huge single-cylinder engines. a few blocks so uth of our office in South Street-all that had been Of this las t flin g of th e big wooden ships in the first-class saved when the old ship was burnt for her m etal in 1923. Chapelle carrying trade, stemming from the same East Ri ve r yards that built confessed he had never laid eyes on this important remnant from the clippers, nothing survives today but some awe-inspiring the mas ter builder's yard. Not being a member oflndia H ouse, a photographs, and a sin gle evocati ve relic-the passenger saloon of private club, he had just not thought to walk in and have a look. the W ebb steamer SS China , preserved as a waterfront residence I wasn't a member either, but I got up and said: "Let's go." in Tiburon, California, with a handful of its etched clerestory When we got to that noble old brownstone named for the 14

SEA HISTORY 88, SPRING 1999

Indies trade, C hapelle was moved to see the handsome female figure reaching forward , and I felt em bo lden ed to venture a remark. "You see, C hap, you recognize the clipper as a type yourself. Though yo u claim it doesn't exist, you 're enthralled by its legend." (He turn ed a rather thundery look upon me.) "She reall y did exist, to people alive when clippers sailed. Arthur Ransome had his aged seaman who wanted to go to sea once more boast that he'd once sailed in th e Thermopylae. T he clipper may have been a creation of people's imaginations, rather than of any set design, but everyo ne knew what she was-a distinctively named, fast-sai ling ship that expressed thespiritofan age, in all her variations of design."

Chapelle looked at me hard before responding. "You ought to write up that theory, " he finally said. And so I have, Chap, after a lapse ofsome years. But never mind-the ideal of the clipper ship will live on for decades and centuries to come. .t

McKay's splendid Glory of the Seas lies ashore, about to be burned for her metal on a beach near Seattle in 1923. At this moment she leans forward, ready to continue her voyage into legend, where she sails on today.

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Diplomacy Averts War over Nootka Sound in 1790

by Thornton Thomas

I

n 1789, ar N oorka Sound, on whar is now rh e wes r coas r of Vancouver Island, Brirish Columbia, Canada, rhe Spanish commandam seized former Royal Navy officer John M eares' s merchanr ships and parcel of land. W ar fever gripped England, and rhe Brirish lion roared defi ance ove r rhe Spanish acrion in rhe wilds of rhe Pacific N onhwest. Aggrieved shipowner Cap t. John M eares presem ed a memorial to Parliamenr asking compensation .

Reaction was immediate- the Lion's hackles had been raised. In the sm all hours of 5 M ay 1790 , Brirish impressmem squads descended upon pubs, rooming houses and brothels securing able-bodied men as crew for the Royal Navy. Sixty warships were mobilized to face what was call ed "the Spanish Armamem. " T hirty-year-old Prime Minisrer William Pitt supported M eares's claim and sent a message ro Parliament, with King George's approval, demanding acrion againsr Spain .

Pin sought to weaken Spain 's cl ajm to the Pacific Ocean, which the Spanish co nsidered their private lake and from which rhey forcibly cried to exclude ships of all narions.

Boch Brirain and Spain worked to line up allies for naval acrio n. T he Ne rherlands sem rheir fl eer fo r joint maneuve rs wirh rhe Royal N avy, while Pruss ia approved rhe Brirish stand and pondered rheir own ro le.

Spain was less for run are in linin g up rheir poss ib le alli es. U nder rhe terms of the Family Co mpacr of rhe Royal H ouse of Bourbon, rhey requesred aid from France.

The rwo fl eers had wo rked togerher mosr rece ndy againsr rhe Brirish during rhe Ameri can Revolurion, bur rimes were now different. Ki ng Louis XVI's throne was on extremely shaky ground, and France's new N arional Asse mbly vo red "No!" to war.

Britain 's superi or milirary posirion having been esrablished , borh nations resoned to diplomacy, sending ambassadors to wo rk our a sertlemem fo r rhe Noo rka Sound Incident. U lrimarely rhree Noorka Sound sertlemem s were execured berween 1790 and 1795. Brirish Ambassador Lord St. H elens dealr from srrength, while Spain's Coum Florablanca tried valiantly to rerain Carlos IV's exclusive possession of land and sea co mmerce in rhe vase Paci fie O cean.

T he yea r 1790 marked the Spanish Empire's fl ood tide in history and N oorka marked rhe high warer mark. After rhe rhird senl emem agreemem ofl 795, rhe ebb ride set in fo r Spain .

Spain and Britain Face Off Jusr how did Noorka Sound in the "terra incognita" wilderness of N orth Ameri ca cause such a co nfrom arion? The Royal Navy's Capt. Jam es Co ok discove red N oorka Sound in 1778 and srayed there a

"The inside of a house in Nootka Sound, "engraved after john Webber RA (J 778) by W Sharp,from ] ames Cook 's A Voyage to rhe Pacific Ocean, Vo l. II, Pl. XL!! (London, 1784)

16

momh repairing his ships. Brirain 's fin esr explorer was searching for rhe No rthwesr Passage, a waterway so desirable char Parliamem offered a ÂŁ40,000 awa rd fo r irs discovery. Cook and his men fo und rhe Nootka narives fri endly-nor always rhe case in his rhree worldwide explorarions-and rhus his anchorage was named Friendly C ove.

Cook's sailors bartered with the natives for sea otter pelrs, giving rrinkers in return .

Afrer rheir voyages in the So urh Seas, they were cold and wee in rh e No rth Pacific, and the 1500 pelrs they acquired kept them warm . On their homeward voyage, rhe ships stopped in China where the sailors learned the high value of these pelts. T hey sold chem for enormous sums, and rhe sailors wanted to return to Noo tka fo r more pelts.

Cook reported the find in the published acco unt of his thi rd voyage. N ews of sea otter pelts at Nootka Sound spread rapidly; British and Ameri can merchant sea captains started outfittin g their ships to participate in this lucrative trade. Capt. John Meares decided to cash in on the industry.

His British merchant ships flew Portuguese fl ags-of-co nve nience and listed M acau, the Portuguese toehold in C hina, as their home port. W hen Capt. M eares visited Friendly Cove in Apri l 1788, he fo und the anchorage deserted. Fro m the Noo tka local chief, M eares acquired a parcel of land on the waterfrom where he co uld build a small schoo ner and erect a building. The purchase pri ce: rwo flintlock pisrols.

M eares put half his crew to work bui lding the schooner N orth West A merica, rhe first ship builr in rhe Pacific N orthwest.

T he res r of the crew manned his sh ips as they voyaged in search of sea otter pelrs .

T he firsr American merchamman ar N ootka, Capt. Roben Gray in command of rhe Lady Washington our of Boston, arrived in rime to warch rhe launching of the N orth West America. Both Lady Washington and irs command ship Colum bia were the first United Stares vessels to engage in the sea oner trade. T he fo llowing year Lady Washington and Columbia were at anchor at Fri endly C ove when the Noorka Sound incidem took place.

SEA HISTORY 88, SPRING 1999

The Spanish had to co ntend not only with this British and American presence in rheir territories, bur also rhe strong Russian presence in Alaskan waters. It was reported that the Russians were heading so uth in their search for pelrs and had lis ted Nootka as their next outpost.

As late as 1776 the Spanish had founded their most north erl y outpost ar San Francisco Bay. Now with threats from Britain, Russia and the US, Spanish authorities decided to establish Nootka as their northernmost outpost. Commandant Don Jose Martinez occupied Nootka in May 1789 with a garrison. T here, he had Meares's ships se ized on va rious charges as they arrived in the harbor, and sent them to Mexico along with their crews.

With Britain seemingly eager to fight a war over these events at Noo tka and Spain in a weakened bargaining position, the ambassadors, St. Helens and Florablanca, met and hammered out the 1790 N ootka Convemion. Ir stated rhar Meares would be compensated for rhe loss of his ships, including North WestAmerica, and his men and properrywould be returned. Both Spain and Britain were to send commissioners to Noo tka Sound to work our rh e details.

Diplomacy in the Wilderness Great Britain sent Captain Geo rge Vancouver, in command of Discovery and Chatham, as rheir commissioner. Vanco uver had gone to sea at rhe age of 14 and served under Capt. Cook on his last rwo voyages, acco mpanyin g him to the ice shelf in Antarctica 70 degrees so uth and the fro zen ice fields ar 70 degrees north in the Arctic. On these extensive voyages he learned Cook's methods. H e had also been aboard when the ships first discovered sea otters in Nootka Sound in 1778.

Vanco uve r commanded the 100-foot sloop Discovery with a crew of 100 and the escort tender Chatham wi rh a crew of 25.

Borh ships were out for a four- year voyage of exploration in search of the elusive Northwest Passage, but were also to make a diplomatic stop at Noorka. Vanco uver's orders read: "Carry out a survey of the coastal region of N orth America from 30 degrees northward, look for Juan de F uca' s mythical 'Inland Sea,' and take possession for the British crown of the land designated 'N oorka' from the Spanish represemative. " Spai n sent Juan Francisco de la Bodega y Quadra as its representative. As a yo ung

SEA HISTORY 88 , SPRING 1999

The image ofthe eagle (opposite) is part ofthe lodge totem ofthe Chiefof Nootka Sound, where two centuries ago, john Meares established his boatbuilding facilities at this small waterfront lot in Friendly Cove (above). (Photos by the author) The accompanying map was published with Meares's Voyages Made in th e Years 1788 and 1789, from Chin a to the No rth West Coast of America (1 790). naval officer in 1775, Quadra h ad comma nded the sm all , tubby schooner Sonora, the tender for Capt. Bruno Hezeta's Santiago. H e sailed as far north as present-day Sitka, Alaska, to find th e Northwest Passage, determine the extent of Russian acriviry, and claim the area for Spain.

On rhat voyage, both ships anchored at what is now Washington State's Quinalt River coastline. The bigger ship could not get as close to shore as the Sonora which, with its shallow drafr, anchored in a cove about a mile away. While H ezeta went ashore to claim the territory for Spain, Q uadra sent six of his most capable men ashore in the longboat for wood and water.

Natives am bushed the boat and killed the men in view of Quadra and his helpless crew. The Spanish captain was barely able to get out of the cove, contending with very little wind, low tide and native canoes harassi ng the Sonora. He reported the incident to H ezeta and wanted a force with which to retaliate, but was overruled by his co mmander, who gave him replacements for his lost seamen instead. T he ships then sailed north past the mouth of the stillundiscovered Strait of Juan de Fuca.

By 1792, Quadra commanded both the San Blas naval base in Mexico and the

Nootka Sound outpost. Quadra was agenial host who entertained lavishly and was generous to all visitors to Friendly Cove, providing visiting vessels with fresh bread daily from the garrison bakery and fresh fr uits and vegetab les fro m the extensive gardens.

As the representative of European culture in Nootka So und, he was honored by both natives and the officers and crews of visiting ships. Nootka Chief Maquinna dined with the Spaniard almost daily, sitting at Quadra's right hand as an honored guest, slept at the commandant's home, learned European manners and dined in honored sryle aboard visiting ships. Quadra, in turn, often visited M aquinna and dined with him in his village.

Vancouver's voyage took his ships around the Cape of Good Hope, and to New Zealand, Tahiti, Hawaii, the northern coast of California and past the as-yetunrecognized mouth of the Columbia River. Off the Washington coast, Vancou-

17

ver saw a sail o n rhe ho ri zo n and maneuvered to rendezvous wirh rhe Am erican Capt. G ray, who was now in command of the Columbia. T he rwo ships met in rhe lee ofDestrucri o n Island and bestowed names on today's fa mili ar landmarks: Mt. Baker; D eceptio n Pass; Mt. Raini er; Po rr Townse nd and orhers. As he co ntinued towa rd Noo rka So und, Vancouve r found rhe narrow Discovery Passage rhar separared Vancouve r Island fro m the mainland, and this led them to th e open wate r of Queen C harlorte So und.

On 28 August 1792, Vanco uve r's rwo ships arrived at F ri endl y Cove and we re greeted wi th an hono rary exchange of gun salu res. Q uad ra received the lo ng-awaited British rep resentati ves gracio usly. Capt.

Vancouve r told Q uadra of his extensive ex plo rati o ns and in fo rmedhim that Nootka was, in fact, o n an island and not the No rrh Ameri ca n mainl and. Th e rwo sea captain s exchanged charts and survey info rm ati o n, hosted each oth er at fo rmal dinn ers, to ured the Noo tka garrison, and discussed te rm s fo r th e settl ement.

C hi ef Maquinna invited both Q uad ra and Vancouve r alo ng with their offi cers and men to his inland village, where sailo rs dan ced ho rnpipe jigs fo r their am azed hosts.

E n route bac k to F ri endl y Cove, it was p ro posed th at the land now recogni zed as an island be named Quadra y Va ncouve r Island . T hi s was the des ignati o n o n nauti cal charts fo r many years.

H av in g o nly his ori ginal orders to " rake possess io n fo r th e British C rown of the land des ignated 'Nootka' from the Spanish represe ntative," Vancouver hoped in va in that th e supply ship rhar mer him at Noo tka wo uld have mo re insuucrions fro m the British Fo reign Office. His offi cial pos iti o n was that Sir F rancis D rake in 1579 had landed o n th e California coasr abo ut 30 mil es no rth of San Francisco Bay, cl aimed New Albio n for Britain , and stayed th ere about a mo nth while preparing the Golden Hinde fo r the completion of his histo ric ci rcumn av igatio n. T herefore, the British had prior claim to the land no rthwa rd .

Q uadra co uld nor accede to that cla im and no settlemem was reached. H owever, d iplo macy cominued to prevail , and d ifferences in opinion had no effecr o n their hospitali ty o r fri endship. Vanco uver and Quadra parred on good terms and sent the pro blem back to their gove rnments fo r an J8

Artist Steve Mayo writes: During the day ofApril 28th, 1792, the American ship Columbi a had been anchored about a mile off a small Indian village called Kenehenwhitt, several miles south ofthe Quillayute River-today, La Push, Washington. With evening, the weather showed signs ofdeteriorating, so they weighed anchor and spent the night sailing back andforth "on short hanks" on an east-west track to maintain their position on the coast. Also on the 28th, Capt.

George Vancouver's British vessels HMS Di scovery and HM Armed Tender C hatham had anchoredfor the night offDestruction Island about 12 miles south. On the 29th, the two vessels weighed anchor at 03 00 and with a light southerly breeze, set sail. Heading northwest along the coast, they spread studding sails as a light rain set in.

Jn his published journal, Vancouver wrote: ''..4t four o'clock, a sail was discovered to the westward standing inshore. ... She soon hoisted American colours, andfired a gun to leeward.

At six, we spoke her. She proved to be the ship Columbi a, commanded by Mr. Robert Gray, belonging to Boston, whence she had been absent nineteen months. " The view is looking to the southeast at about 0600 on the 29th of April. All hands are on deck on the Columb ia. Coming up from the south, the D iscovery leads the slower C hatham with studding sails set. D iscovery is taking in her studding sails as she prepares to heave to. From this meeting, Vancouver learned of the existence ofthe Strait ofJuan de Fuca just 20 miles up the coast where he would soon begin his extensive survey ofthe Northwest. (''Colum bia Meeting D iscovery and C hatham," by Steve Mayo; watercolor, 31"x42''.¡ courtesy the artist) ambassado rial solutio n.

T he French Revoluti o n, the Terro r and the asce ndancy of Napoleo n raised co ncerns of possible rebellio n in orher E uropea n nations. E uro pe's unresr coo led the Noo tka Sound crisis, fo r rhere we re bigger pro blems fac in g Lo rd St. Helens and Count Fl o rablanca. T he T hi rd Noo tka So und Agreement they wo rked out ca lled for the co mplete evacuatio n by bo th coumri es of Noo tka. On 16 M arch 1795, Briti sh Lieutenant Tho mas Pi erce arri ved at Noo tka aboard a Spanish warshi p in the co mpany of General Alava. T hey signed declaratio ns, raised and lowered rheir na ti onal fl ags and depan ed.

T he British and Spanish fl ags lowered in the fin al ceremo ny we re give n to C hief M aquinna. T he wa rship was ba rely o ut of sight before the natives stri pped the village

of everything po rtable; they parri cul arly looked fo r nails to make fish hooks. Soo n there was no evidence that E uro peans had ever tried to plant an outpost at Noo tka.

W hat a peaceful fi nale to a dra ma that had almost sparked a global co nflict! U nder the fi nal settl ement, Britain could co ntinue to carry out co mmerce on the Norr hwes t Coast and cross th e Pacific Ocean carrying goods to C hin a, a benefit much more importa nt to th em than possessio n o f land. Prim e M iniste r Pi tt had wo n the spo ils of wa r, and taken one mo re step towa rd Bri ta in 's goal of freedo m of th e seas witho ut a shot being fired . !,

Author and photographer Thornton Thomas first presented this paper to the 1998 Annual Conference of the Society for the H istory of Discoveries.

SEA HISTORY 88, SPRING 1999

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Ships of the The Jeanie Johnston -A Dream Rebuilt

by Thad Koza

0

n5May 1998, 150 years after her original historic departure from Tralee, Coun ry Ke rry, Ireland, a replica of the bark Jeanie Johnston was dedicated by rhe President of Irela nd, th e Honorable Mary McAleese. W ith warm greetings to the asse mbled crowd in fog an d a driving rain at Blennerville, near Tralee, the President placed a silver medallion in to a special recess in the keel timbers .

The ceremony heralded th e co nstruction of a ship that brought immigrants to Canada and America and returned to Ireland with much needed food supplies durin g th e "potato famine" of the 1840s.

T he origin al Jeanie Johnston was built in 1847 in Quebec C iry, Quebec, by the Canadian shipbuilder John Munn and was bought soon after by rhe D onovan fam ily of Tralee. A three-mas ted bark, 150 ' overall, of 408 tons, she was copper-fastened and built of oak and pine. Typical of the cargo/ passenger vessels of her day, she brought timber and foodstuffs to Ireland. T he largest importers of timber in Tralee, rhe firm of John Donovan & Sons also dealt in coal , iron and slate, and had extensive flour and saw mills. When the Jeanie Johnston returned to North America, she could carry up to 200 passengers and a crew of 17 .

After nine years in the service of the Donovans, the bark was sold to an English owner in 18 56 and, on a voyage in 1858, was lost at sea. All her passengers, however, we re saved by a Durch ship, and her safery reco rd remained intact, for amo ng a fleer of emigrant vessels that were often known as "coffin ships, " the Jeanie Johnston made 16 voyages from Tralee to Baltimore, New York C iry and Quebec, and never lost a passenger to disease or the sea.

A full -sized replica of theJeanieJohnston, designed by naval architect Fred Walkerfor mer chief naval architect at the National Mari rime M useum in London and supervising architect for Australi a's Endeavour replica-is well underway in Blennerville.

Project DirectorJohn Griffin has envisioned a ship that will be both international and in rra-national in spirit and dedication, looking to the Irish, American and Canadian ties to the ship, its history and its historic 20

voyages. T his vision has be- The Hono rable Mary gun with the multinational McAleese places a silver crew of yo ung people, in- medallion in the keel of cluding those from both the the Jeanie John sto n. north and south of Ireland, Three months later that has been working on the (below), 17frames were in place. (Photos by vessel since 1996.

Blennerville has a history Thad Koza) of unique yo uth employment initiatives, h avin g already restored a local windmill and part of the T ralee and Dingle Steam Railway. T he Co mmuni ry Yo uth Tra ining P rog ram has received grants from the Department of Arts-Heritage, Gaeltacht, the Imern arional Fund for Ireland, and the Tralee U rban District Council. T he train ees will become profi cient in a wide range of shipbuilding skills under the su- take her to Baltimore/Was hington DC, pervision of architects, engineers and ship- Philadelphia, Trenton , Albany, New York, wrights. By February 1999, planking had Newport, Bo sto n, St. John , Q uebec, begun under the direction of the ship- Monrreal, Toronto, C leveland, C hi cago, wrights, including six from the US , so me of St. Johns and H ali fax. When she returns whom have recently finished work on the home, she will be the centerpiece of rhe Emigrant Research Cen rre. new Kalmar Nyckel replica in Delaware.

T he l 50rh anniversary of the Fam ine T he replica is being built by Coi llre Teoranta, the Irish fo restry board. T he 120' has been declared a rime of official and keel is formed in three sections from wood formal remembrance. In recallin g those from the coumies of Monaghan, W icklow painful events, we have been reminded that and Cork. The keel and frames are oflrish a great many of those who fl ed hunger and oak, with decks of Douglas fir, and plank- injustice and left Ireland aboard ships like in g of European larch, some of which will rhe Jeanie Johnston did find a new and co me from Ireland and some from the prosperous life, and helped to build rwo famed forest of the Czars in Russia. To great n ations in North America. .t conform to rhe requiremems of the 2 1st centu ry, rhe ship will be firred with modern Marine photographer Thad Koza regularly communication, navigation and life-saving contributes to Sea Histo ry and is author of Tall Ships: An International G uide (East equipment, and with diesel engines .

T he building and sailing of the com- Hartford CT Tide-Mark, J<)<J6). pleted bark is being supported by gro ups on both sides of the Atlanti c, and theJeanie The Jeanie Johnston Project, Ashe Memorial Joh nston will voyage to North America in Hall, Tralee, County Kerry, Ireland; 353 the year 2000. H er planned itinerary will (66) 28888; Jax: 353 (66) 27444.

SEA HISTORY 88, SPRING 1999

Irish Diaspora The Dunbrody and the Spirit of Ireland excerpted from an article by Aude Bates and Anthony McLoughlin The Dunbrody sailedfrom M ilford on March 16, 1848 and had a favorable run out ofthe Channel. On the eleventh day ofthe passage, we had M adeira in sight, thirteenth Palma [one of the Canaries}, on the twentieth St Antonio. On the 25th day, we had attained the Parallel of 7°50, on the Meridian of 19 °30. {We} expect to cross the Equatora tomorrow. .. . Now Cap Ho rn which I hope to double in another month or so; you may allow three and a halfmonthsfor ourpassage, I think, as the ship is too deep to sailfast eight knots. Everything goes comfortable and agreeable so far and I hope it will continue.

North Atlantic, 12 April 1848 -CAPT. WILLIAM WILLIAMS

aboard the D unbrody

A

replica of the three-mas ted bark D unbrody began to take shape in the summer of 1996 under rhe skilled hands of fi ve shipwrights, with a forty-stron g ream of carpenters, general worke rs, trainees and a blacksmith, in an unused drydock o n the west bank of the Barrow River ar New Ross, County Wexford, in Ireland. W hen the members of a local civic group , the John F. Kennedy Trust, first conceived the idea to place a sailing ship on rhe quayside, rhey envi-

sioned a static display that wo uld remain at . . . . . its pier, arrracnng tounsts, serv111g as an exhibit space and housing a genealogy database. But as research into local maritime histo ry focused on the D unbrody, it sparked the already high enthusiasm, and the planners were inspired to build a ship rhar would sail the Atlantic carrying a cargo of history-for this one ship held myriad threads oflocal , Irish and, indeed, human history that reach deeply into Irish and North America n culture today.

Built in 1845 in Quebec at the Jon es Yard on the Sr. Charles River, the Dunbrody was co n structed by T homas Hamilton Oliver, a renowned Irish shipbuilder. A shortage of wood in Brirain led build ers to turn to Canada for materi als. Th e timb er trade thus became a considerable stimulus to immigration in Canada, as merchant vessels offered ch ea p west b o und transArl a n ti c p as -

sages rather than sail in ballas t after depositing a cargo in Ireland or England, and colonial shipyards required a constant stream of laborers to build the new ships that augmented Europe's commercial fl eets.

T homas H amilton Oliver was 11 years old when he and his family arrived ar Quebec in 1821. In 1825 , he was apprenticed to a master shipbuilder, and only five years after completi ng his apprenticeship , h e rented a shipyard on rhe Sr. C harles River in Sr. Rochs. He converted rhe large sawmill on the property into a mould loft, built a blacksmith shop and a steam house, and began to build ships. H e was to become the leading Quebec shipbuilder of his century. Under his supervision , 123 ships came out of the shipyard, with a capacity of 90,000 tons.

The three-masted bark Dunbrody was

The Dunbrody awaits passengers at New Ross quay in 1849, prior to departing for New York, in this p ainting by Brian D enington (Courtesy JFK Trust}. And, below, on the far right, she awaits a cargo of timber in Quebec, 1859. (Photograph by William England, courtesy the Bridgeman Art Library, London)

SEA HISTORY 88 , AUTUMN 1999

21

Planking began on the Dunbrody replica in May I 998. (Courtesy JFK Trust)

co mmi ss io ned by W illiam G raves, a timber merchanr fro m New Ross, Co un ty W exfo rd , Ireland, with Reuben D eaves of Co ric Over the co urse of a century, Graves & Son owned a fl eet of approximately 80 vessels, whi ch were sent to the four co rners of th e wo rld cany in g timber, coal, guano, co tton, iron and salt.

Co nstruction of the Dunbrody rook less than six months under the painstakin g supervisio n of Captain John Baldwin of Faith leg, Co un ty Wate rford, who was engaged in February 1845 by W illiam Graves to superintend construction and to sail as rhe vessel's first master. For this se rvice, Baldwin received £9 sterling per month as wages above his traveling expenses to Quebec, as well as 17 shillings per week for livin g ex penses until the ship was ready to acco mm odate him. In July 1845, afte r the co mpl etio n of the bark, he received £1 00 sterlin g a yea r as rhe Dunbrody's mas ter, as well as a ho use.

The vessel left Quebec in May 1845 o n her m aiden voyage as the Irish Fami ne broke our back home.

An Gorta Mor and the Dunbrody The Great Famine-An Corra Mor in Gaeli c-was ro last four yea rs and had a devasta ting effect on rhe Irish population.

Of a population of about 8,000,000, nearly one million people are estimated ro have died from starva tion and disease, and ano ther million are believed ro have emigrated ro North America between 1847 a nd 185 2.

Many crowded into cargo vessels hurriedly convened into emigrant ships ro 22

acco mmodate Irish pau pers in steerage.

Co nditions on these ships could be horrific, and certain vessels beca me known as "co ffin ships." Passe nge r Laws passed during th e G reat Fa mine were in tended to protect emi gra nrs against abuses and provide th em with minimum food suppli es, bur were often disrega rded.

D es pite the horror sto ri es, many emigrant ships were acrually well -equipped; the Dunbrody was livin g proof of good m anage ment of the passe nger trade from New Ross. When rhe Dunbrody arrived in Ireland in June 1845, her owners were the most prominem New Ross co mpany in the passenger trade betwee n New Ross and Canada. Experienced in th e needs of emigrams, they operated a fleet ofships including rhe Delta, the India, the Favorite and the Glen/yon, which had been co nveying passengers to the New World sin ce the earl y 1830s.

The Dunbrody was known as a superior emigrant vessel, combining all rh e esse nti als for safe ty and comfo rt. She could accommodate up ro 176 passenge rs, who traveled in two general classes-the cabin passengers , who paid £5 ro £8 for their passage, and the steerage passenge rs, who paid £3 .15 .0 ro £4 in the 1840s. For a laboring ten am farmer this fa re wo uld have been the equivalen r of at least two-mon rhs' income. While the steerage passengers had ro cook and fend for themselves wi th the lirrle provisions rhey had, foo d and se rvices were provided for rhe cabin passengers.

The Dunbrody regul arly sailed ro British North America between Apri l and Sep-

rember, makin g perhaps two o r three Atlanti c cross ings each year, depending o n the weather. W hen th e winds were favorable, ir usually rook a momh or less ro reach the Am eri can shores. Yer, a journey aboard rheDunbrodyco uld las t nearly two mo nths whe n rhe ship had ro sail against the prevai ling weste rli es.

W irh rh e expansion of Graves's business in New Ross, the Dunbrody's routes also expanded . Between 1848 and 1869, not o nl y did the Dunbrody often sail ro Savannah and C harleston to be loaded with cotto n, but she also weighed anchor in Jamaica and the Canaries, and she regularly crossed the Eq uator on her voyages aro un d Cape Horn to rhe rainless C hincha Islands in Peru for cotton and guano.

The Fate of the Dunbrody In late 1869, the Dunbrody was sold ro Francis P. Carrell of Cardiff, Wales, beca me a British ship and continued to sail ro No rth America. Three yea rs late r she was so ld again , for £ 1,200 sterling, ro a Ge rm an citize n res iding at Cardiff, H einri ch Rudolph H aysse n. The bill of sa le was signed on 2 October 1873, and in February 1874 rhe Dunbrody was registered at Bremen as o ne of rh e three similar ships boughr by H aysse n th e previous aurumn.

Just seve n mo nth s later, the Dunbrody went as ho re on rhe banks of the Sr. Lawrence River en route from Cardiff ro Quebec when her captain did no t wait for a local pilot, paying the price for th is maritime indiscretion when his ship ran aground on 28 September 1874. Salvaged from the shoals, she was bought at auctio n by another Irish-born shipbuilder, H enry Din nin g. In partnership with his father James, Dinning built fine-quality traditional sailing ships and salvaged damaged vessels. H e meticulously repa ired the Dunbrody and co nsigned her ro H . & T. Warson of G lasgow to sell. T hough th e nam e of her fin al owner remains unkn own, it is li kely that she was registered in Quebec.

In 1875, the Dunbrody rook her seco nd and fatal gro unding. T hi s time she was bound fo r Live rpool w ith a cargo of Canadian timber va lu ed at £ 12,5 00. As a fi erce gale arose from rhe so uthwest, the bark was dri ve n away from her usual route towards rhe Coas t of Labrador, Newfo undland, near Belle Isle, and rhe crew had ro cut away the mas ts. On 17 October 1875, she was stranded on Bradore Reef, ar Forreau,

SEA HISTORY 88, SPRING 1999

Strai t ofB ellelsle. The entire crew ca me off sa fely, but very littl e was salvaged . Gro unded full y laden, her aging hull wo uld have pounded mercilessly on the botto m, brea kin g up very quickly. On the 20th she was surveyed , and it was found th at she had a large hole in the hull, th ro ugh whi ch a great part of the cargo we nt as ho re. T he Dunbrody was acco rdingly co ndemned and so ld fo r ÂŁ30.

T he bark had traded the transArl anti c ro ute with much success fo r just over 30 yea rs, earnin g her building cos t many times ove r and los ing a minimum of human li ves during th ose many th ousa nds of sea miles, a good record fo r a wo rkin g vessel.

Celebrating a Maritime Tradition T he John F. Kenn edyT rusrwas created in 1988 by members of the New Ross Lio ns C lub . Ir was recognized that New Ross had the capaciry to be a majo r to urism area, give n the history of the tow n, its mariti me trad itio n and its co nnectio n with such well kn own Irish-Ame ricans as the Ke nn edy fa mil y-local fa rmer Pa tri ck Kenn ed y crossed to No rth America in 1849 , and the Kenn edy fa mil y has maintain ed close links with Co un ty Wexfo rd since Pres ident John F. Ke nn edy's histo ri c rerurn to his ancestral ho me in 1963.

As rhe bu ilding of this repli ca emig rant ship co in cided wirh rhe sesqui cen te nnial co mmemo rati o n of rhe Famine, rhe project roo k o n broader and mo re imm edi ate dimensio ns-and aurhenri ciry beca me paramounr in rhe des ign process. Fo rtun ately, a large collectio n of documents from G raves & So n survived in th e possessio n of D avid M cBride, whose grandfa ther Ned McBride bo ught the co mpany in the early 1930s in partn ers hip with Robert Elmes of Cork.

Six metal boxes co ntained documenrs incl uding crew agreements and captains' letters fro m all over rhe wo rld.

O ne document was of particular inreresr: rhe o riginal bill of sale of rhe D unbrody in August 1845 berween William G raves of New Ross and Reuben D eaves of Cork, who had co mmissioned the ship together.

A gold mine of information, ir gave rhe main dimensio ns of the ship and o ther derai ls of the srrucrure. From rhis, local marine arrist Garry Fallon was able to d raw rhe bas ic o utlines of rhe D unbrody, even before naval architect Colin M udie-whose previous projects include the new Indi an sail training ship Tarangini-ha d come o n

SEA HISTORY 88, AUTUMN 1999

The original Dunb rody was a three-masted bark, 109. 1 feet in length between perpendiculars, with a breadth of26 7 feet. The replica, as shown in this outboard sketch by naval architect Colin Mudie, has a length overall of 176 feet, a length between perpendiculars of 110 feet, a breadth of 27 feet and a depth of 19 feet. rhe scene. In November 1996, Mud ie produced a set of drawings fo r the new D unbrody, which laid o ut a hull conraining che viral elem ents of a ship of her rype and purpose, based o n th e ship's o riginal dim ensions- I 09 . 10 feet in length berween perpendiculars and 26.7 feet in breadth .

By th e summero f 1998, rhe ca rvel-built hull was full y pl anked and the deck beam s had been fitted. At present, the D unbrody is almost complete srrucru rally. T he mizzen and mainmast have bee n stepped and rigged; che foremas t and bowsp rit will soo n follow. By firrin g th e 17'-high oak rudder, che Irish builders have signaled rhac chis vessel is just abo ut ready fo r che water.

Like so many p rojects of chis sco pe, the Dunbrody w ill remain in d rydock beyo nd her original maiden voyage date of M arch 1999, due to a sho rtfal l in fund ing. H er maiden voyage, now pl ann ed fo r 2000, will rake her across ch e Arl anri c bo und for Boston, then o n to New London , Connecticut, Philadelphia, New Yo rk, Quebec, Buffalo, Sc. Johns and other cities important to rhe Irish di as po ra, reenacting the journeys of the thousands who went from Ireland to the New Wo rld berween 1845 and 185 1 and paying tribute to the great days of sail.

But this project does no t end with the sailing of the ship . O n her re rurn from the US and Canada, rheDunbrodywill become a to urist attractio n o n rhe quays of New

Ross, ho usin g an interactive heritage center where visitors will have an opporruni ry to experience historic emigrant voyages th ro ugh state-of- the-art technology and to learn in an interactiveway aboutth eachievements of those who left Ireland for new sho res, celebrating the "Spirit oflreland. " Sin ce 1992, th e JF K T rust has been co mputeri zin g tho usands of passe nge r lists of ships leavin g the shores of Ireland, E ngland, W ales and Sco tl and during th e yea rs 1846- 192 0 for the ports of Philadelphi a, Bos ton , New Orleans, Baltimore and New York. This should be made available soon to genealogists and researchers.

W hil e recognizing the tragic aspects of the Famin e, rhe JFK Trust is eager to develop another face of the era oflrish emigration: rhe hope, determination, and courage of those who rook a chance on new oppo rrunities. A visitor leaving the Dunbrody should have the impress ion char he himself voyaged with our ancestors. .t

This article is excerpted from a piece written

by Aude Bates, H istorical Researcher, and Anthony Mcl oughlin, Shipwright, both with The D unbrody Project.

The D unbrody Project,JFKTrust, Ross Company Shipyard, Raheen, New Ross, Co. Wexford, Ireland,¡ 353 5 1 425239,fax: 353 5 1 425240; e-mail:jjktrust@io!.ie; web site: www.dunbrody.com.

23

MARINE ART

A Celebration of Clippers: Artists Seek to Capture the Glory of the American Clipper Ship

by Peter Stanford n the complex and varying wind systems of the China run, which roared fro m the bafflin g airs of the Sunda Straits to the howling gales of the Roaring Fo rties off the Cape of Good H ope, the lovely Sea Witch of 1846 made record passages no other shi p could to uch. And when the Califo rnia Gold Rush swept her up, this fin e-lined beauty rounded Cape H orn on the N ew York to San Francisco run in 97 days-th e flrsrofon ly 25 ships rhar ever made the passage in under 100 days.

In the painting below, the Sea Witch graces the Whampoa roadsread as she comes in to anchor after another of her fas t passages from New York. The unknown C hinese artist looks upon this dainty animal as he would a gazelle, or perhaps even the longnecked giraffe that was brought to China in the 1400s to catch the emperor's fancy-alien bur charming. The painter clearly appreciates her chas te lines and delicate silhouette enlivened by billowing canvas. In fac t, he's actually fl attened the ship's sheer, the

I

rising curve of the rail to bow and stern, to convey an ideal of restrain t. Perhaps he would have limned her differentl y in the gales of the Roaring Forties-but why do that, when the highest goal of any barbarian voyage is to arrive in the Celesti al Kingdom ?

T he Sea Witch was the creation of John G riffiths, and her design undoubtedly incorporated some lessons learned in G riffiths' s earlier Rainbow. The Sea Witch was built in Smith and Dimon's East Ri ver Yard in New York and her career defin ed the clipper era from 1846 until 1855 when she caugh t fire and was wrecked off C uba. In th e years that fo llowed her demise, no such ships we re built. T he National M aritime H isto rical Society is workin g with naval architect Melbourne Smith to bui ld a new Sea Witch. T his is a distant goal-but wo uldn 't it be a treat to see this vessel rein ca rn ated to sail again to distant seas, or to charge through New York H arbor at 19 knots, as she did on one fa mous occas ion, outward bound for China?

"Clipper Ship Sea Wirch Coming to Anchor at Whampoa," by an unidentified Chinese artist; oil, 25 112 x 37111 in. (Peabody Essex M useum, Salem, ivfassachusettj)

24

SEA HISTORY 88, SPRING 1999

"Flying Cloud, "by Warren Sheppard

T

he immortal Flying Cloud was "just the kind of vehicle, or whatever else it may be called , that a sensibl e man wo uld choose fo r a ninety days voyage," as re ported in a New York newspaper. Soon after this was wri tte n, the Cloud set sai l on her maiden voyage to San Francisco, departing 2 June 185 1-a run she actually accomplished in 89 days, 2 11/z hours! T his breathtaking time contrasts with the 150-day run that was normal before the advent of the clipper ships and earned her ove rnight fa me, which has lasted among sailing people to this day.

SEA HISTORY 88, SPRING 1999

Above, the famous clipper, every line instilled with the grace of a noble animal on the stretch, runs fas t in a favoring slant of wind off Cape Horn . The H orn was the gravestone of many ships and men, but here the great clipper is in her element-perfectly at home in the wind-lashed seas the Bosto n builder Donald M cKay des igned her to earn her living in . T he late W arren Sheppard catches the vessel in mid-stride, through the rising sea, broken water ri:ishing by her svelte fl anks, the whole picture a tribute to the breed of which she was the exemplar.

25

I

;f /

I

"Clipper Ship 'Redj acket'.¡ In the ice offCape Ho rn, on herpassage.from Australia, to Liverpool, August 1854"; drawn by] B. Smith & Son, Brooklyn, L. ! ; on stone by C. Parsons. " Currier & Ives Lithograph, ca. 1855. (Courtesy, the US Library of Congress)

/

"Clipper ship 'Great Republic'.¡ Length on deck 325 feet-Breadth ofbeam 53 feet-Depth ofhold 39 feet-Tonnage per register 4500. " Currier & Ives Lithograph, ca. 1835- 52.

(Courtesy, the US Library of Congress)

T

he clippers had imm ense, almost se nsational news value.

Newspapers, led by the prominent yachtsman Jam es Gordon Bennett's Herald, reviewed the ships as one might review a first-night play on Broadway. An d, naturally, these sh ips were featured in the popular prints of C urrier and Ives, whose images of American life hung in the ho mes of the nation's emerging middle class. H ere are two examples of the genre.

The Red j acket (to p), a Maine-built beauty of great speed and virtue, shows why the clipper builders rejected the heavy beakheads and abundant swags, carvings and gildings of earlier ships, to let the des ign of th e ship shine fo rth in austere but ravishing simplicity. The Red jacket seems to exert a magical control over the dangerous scene she stee rs through off Cape H orn. In a blow, the sharp ice floes and steepled bergs wo uld make short wo rk of any

26

wooden ship, even one so en chanting as this.

The Great Republic, saluted here in a rendition of J. E. Buttersworth 's painting, was indeed the largest of the clippers.

Registering4,55 5 to ns, she was towed down from D onald M cKay's East Boston yard by the famo us tug R. B. Forbes, to be moored in triumph at South Street at the foot of Dover, just so uth of where the Brooklyn Bridge now stands. Loaded with grain and about to sail, she was burn t to the water's edge on the day after Christmas, 1853, when sparks from a bakery fire set her sails alight, already bent to her yards for departure. She was salvaged and rebuilt one deck lower, reducing her to 3 ,357 tons, still the biggest sailing ship of her time. Writers in her d ay and since have written fantasies about how she wou ld have performed under her origin al lofty rig, shown here, which was cons iderably reduced in her rebuilding. 1.

SEA HISTORY 88, SPRING 1999

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Kendall has specialized in Marine Art since 1980 and has a series of "Tall Ships" in print.

Working from research photographs he has taken at events such as Sail Amsterdam , Sail Boston, and Sail New York, the artist is able to obtain accuracy and detail in his scenes. An average of 200-250 hours each is spent on an original drawing .

"Old Ironsides - Sail 200" was done from research photographs he took from the "USS Halyburton" (one of the two naval escort vessels to accompany the "USS Constitution" during its historic sail to Marblehead on July 21st, 1997).

Other ships in the seri es include Kruzenshtern , Danmark, Sir Winston Churchill , Eagle , Amerigo Vespucci , Sea Cloud, Guayas , Dar Pomorza , Gorch Fack II , Christian Radich, Balclutha, and Golden Hind 11. All prints are hand signed by the artist.

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27

ARTS OF THE SEA

A Mistake Made 162 Years Ago When the staff of the M aine M aritime Museum sent their watercolor portrait of the ship Augusta-painted by an unknown artist in Le Havre, France, in April 1838for conservation , th ey were surprised to find a seco nd portrait on the reverse. It predates the Augusta painting by a year and depicts a merchant ship named the Nile.

It was imm ediately clear why the painting had never seen the light of day. There were obvious mistakes that wo uld have caused the buye r- undoubtedly the ship's captain-to refuse it. Shipmas ters were notoriously critical of small errors, and the fau lts in the painting of the Nile were too large for the artist to repair.

The most obvious mistake was placing the ship 's huge name pennant at the top of the foremast instead of at the mainmast truck. H e tried to cover that part of the wo rk, but co uldn 't disguise it. There were other problems of an artistic nature. The Nile is vastly out of scale when co mpared to the stone quay that marks the entrance to the River Seine, and the sea seems to slope down toward the right.

"The Nile is the earliest of his dated works I've seen," C urator Robert Webb said. "Because the mistakes are so blatant it must mark the start of his career, and may be the ve ry first painting he made of an American ship. " Because the cap tain 's name, A. G .

Blanchard, was included in the legend below the portrait, the museum staff was able to identify the ship . It was built in 1834 at Falmouth, Maine, and carried cotton from American Gulf of Mexico ports to Europe.

T he watercolor is on view, Augusta-side out, in the exhibition "Seafaring from Early Bath. " (Maine Maritime Museum, 243 Washington St., BathME 04530; 207443-1316)

The portraits ofthe Augusta (above) and the Nile (below), with a detail showing the attempt to cover the misplacedpennant. (Courtesy Maine Maritime Museum, Bath, Maine)

Mystic's Sea Music Festival Marks 20 Years The Sea Music Festival at M ys tic Seaport, which will be held this year on 10-13 J une, has blossomed into an international gathering of musicians and audience drawn together by the rich traditions of maritime music. The popularity of sea music over the last 25 years has progressed hand-in-hand with a worldwide appreciation of regional folk music of all types.

Stan Hugill, who collected and sang sea music from aro und the world, was chanteyman aboard British square rigger Garthpool in the 1920s. Such men as he gravitated to Mystic Seaport as a center of America's celebration of its maritime heritage, and he was among the first to share his work at the Sea Music Festival. Others who joined him included Dillon Bustin, who became folklorist of Massachusetts, and Cliff Haslam, who once could be found singing at the Jolly Beggar in Mystic and now holds forth at the Griswold Inn in Essex, Connecticut.

M ys tic has embraced as well the recent remarkable awakening of public interest in the musical traditions that once served as a hallmark of identity and pride to working people. The international Celtic revival, for

28

example, one of the liveliest and most innovative musical movements, has found a place and a following at Mystic. You could find C eltic musicians at Mystic more than a decade ago, among them Talitha Nelson, who has gone on to pioneer the combining of C eltic and African music on the world scene. T his year's participants include four winners from the 1998 Armand Hayer Chantey Competition, from the French province of Brittany, which has been the center of a vigorous revival of maritime cultural tradition.

They will join such musicians as Mike Seeger; Cathy Barton and Dave Para, known for their songs from the rivers of America's heartland; Louis Killen, a singer of British ballads and chanteys; Ti Jardin, a Frenchspeaking duet from Newfoundland; Black Bush, an Irish band from Germany; the W indlasses, a trio from Ohio; and the Ebony Hillbillies, a New York-based duet playing early African-American string band styles; as well as Mystic's own internationally known quartet Forebitter. (Mystic Seaport, PO Box 6000, Mystic CT 06355; 860 57207 11; www.mysticseaport.org)

Events • Mystic Seaport Museum: 10-13 June, 20th Ann ual Sea Music Festival (75 Greenmanville Avenue, PO Box 6000; Mystic, CT 06355-0990; 860 572-0711; www.mysticseaporr.org) • Woods Hole Historical Collection & Museum : 17-18 April, Biennial Woods Hole Model Boat Show (PO Box 185, Woods Hole MA 02543 ; 508 548-7270)

Exhibits • Kemerer Museum : from 30 Jan uary 1999, "Bon Voyage! Ocean Liner Collectibles" (427 N. New Street, Bethlehem PA; 610 79 1-0422; fax: 610 798-0422) • Seamen's Church Institute: 22 May 1998-30 April 1999, "Aubrey's World: Conremporary Artists Portray Patrick O 'Brian's Scenes" (24 1 Water Street, New York NY 10038; 212 349-9090) • Penobscot Marine Museum: 29 May17 October 1999, "Model Shipwrights: Model Builders of the Maine Coast"; "The Sailors' Art of Scrimshaw: Selections from the Permanenr Collection of Penobscot Marine Museum" (Penobscot Marine Museum, 5 Church Street, PO Box 498 , Searsport ME 04974-0498; 207 548-2529; fax: 207 548-2520; email: PMMuseum@acadia.net)

SEA HISTORY 88, SPRING 1999

Announcing Two New Prints by WILLIAM G. MULLER "Night Docking, East River, New York 1895."The square-rigged ship Allerton, just arri ved from sea, is nudged alongs ide a South Street pier near the Brooklyn Bridge on a moonli t ni ght over Manhattan 's East River waterfront. A limited editi on of 800 signed and numbered prints produced with li ghtfast inks on 100 lb.

Mohawk Superfine cover. Image is 28" wide by 20 1/4'' high on a sheet 33" wide by 25 3/4'' high. $175 + $ 10 shipping & handling.

"Hudson River View from West Point, New York in 1915." In this nostalg ic scene, looking north up the Hudson from West Point's high hill on the famo us military academy grounds, we see the Day Line steamboat Robert Fulton rounding the bend and passing a sailing yacht regatta of the period. A late afternoon shower crosses the river in the distance over Storm King Mountain . This limited edition of 550 signed and numbered prints is printed in lightfast inks on ac id-free Warren lustrodull 100 lb . art cover. Image is 26" wide by 18" hi gh on a sheet 307/s" wide by 231/2'' high. $150 + $10 shipping & handling.

Order from: NATIONAL MARITIME HISTORICAL SOCIETY PO Box 68 , Peekskill NY 10566

Or phone in your credit card order to 1-800-221-NMHS (6647) Proceeds from the sale of these prints benefit the National Maritime Historical Society.

OPERATION SAIL 2000 OFFICIAL PORT CITIES, PART V

Baltinlore: A Renaissance City

by John Barnard with William Macintosh

T

al l ships, historic and beautiful Chesapeake Bay, the Bay Bridge, th e Francis Scott Key Bridge, Fort McHen ry, Fells Point and Baltimore's famous Inner H arbor- these are the vistas as one enters Baltimore by land or sea.

Baltimore, 12 mi les up the broad Patapsco River, opening on Chesapeake Bay, is just north of the state capital of Annapolis. The nation's capita!, Washington DC, is a mere 40 minutes away by automobile, enhancing the ambassadorial and diplomatic importance of tall ship visits, especially those of a nation's sail training ships.

Many of the tall ships are making a return trip to familiar waters, eager to reexperience the camaraderie, the excitement, the on-going renaissance th at is Baltimore.

A Rich History The colony of Maryland was founded by

E nglish settlers in 1634. In 1729, a town named Baltimore was established on the Patapsco Ri ve r as a to bacco shipping port.

The city was named after the Irish baro ny of Bal ti mo re, seat of the Calvert family, who established the colony.

Rapid and sustained commercial growth fo ll owed throughout the 1700s and 1800s, as the ac tivity of the port steadily built the city and, in turn , the colony. Baltimore shipbuilding grew, too, with fas t, rakish schoo ners and topsail schooners being built in the city and counti es . Popularl y know n as "Baltimore clippers," these ships carried valuabl e cargos, both legal and illegal, all ove r the world. During the W ar of 18 12, they exchanged cargo for cannons and went forth as privateers to raid British merchant shipping. T hey so hindered the enemy that the British moved to attack Bal tim ore in

Baltimore's fam ous I nner H arbor is full of history, with vibrant museums, the renowned N ational Aquarium at Baltimore, grand hotels, waterside restaurants, a large and growing number of unique entertainment attractions, and, of special importance, highly ac-

30

18 14, but Fort McHen ry held firm , as did so me 15, 000 defenders entrenched north and east o f the city. Inspired by th e successfu l defe nse, an obse rver named Francis Scott Key composed a poem ti tled "T he Star Span gled Bann er. " Afte r the wa r, the city's growth in size and wealth co ntinued , slowed only tempora rily by the C ivil War. Maryland was occu pied by Federal troo ps soon afte r the outbreal< of the co nfli ct, and so it didn 't secede from the U nio n, despite strong leanin gs to d o so . Baltim ore, a city with largely Sou th ern sym pathies, was occupied by U nion troops early in the war and, along with Annapolis, was under martial law fo r the duration of the wa r.

W h en peace cam e, Bal ti more prospered .

Comme rce and banking we re the city's specialty, but ind ustry expa nded in th e late

claimed docking facilities that permit ships to dock downtown, right next to the financial and entertainment districts. In 1996, visitors crowded the harbor's piers to admire Argentina's beautifulfu ll rigger Libertad .

SEA HISTORY 88, SPRING 1999

At right, people wait zn line to board a modern NATO frigate ofthe German Navy.

Chile's training ship Es meralda in 1986, being welcomed to Baltimore (left) and, in turn, welcoming visitors aboard. Visits such as these open horizons for the young people aboard the vessels, and for the many visitors from all walks of life who come to learn about the ships and the people who sail them.

1800s, mostly in steelm aking, man u facturing and iro n shipbuildin g. By the start of the 20th cenrury, the city's popul a tion had grow n to over 500,000.

As wo rld tensions increased in 19404 1, Baltimore had a major part in th e US military buildup . The Martin Co mpany geared up for mass aircraft production , and in th e Fairfield section a huge shipyard was laid out to build the cargo ships of7,176 gt that wo uld be known as "Liberty ships."

O ut ofa total of2,742 of th ese vessels built from 1941 to 1945, 385 we re built in Baltimore, as were 94 improved cargo ships call ed "Victo1y ships," and 30 LSTs. One Baltim ore-built Liberty ship, the john W Brown, survives today as a museum ship in the city of her birth.

During the post-war years, th e city adapted to new trends and needs. In the earl y 1960s, new shops and office bu ildings replaced the old er ones in the city ce nter, and the port adjusted as well. T he M aryland Port Autho ri ty (later Admin istratio n, or MPA) was created in 1957 to plan and carry out the moderni zation of cargo handling fac ilities . Its "crown jewel" was the vast, open Dundalk Marin e Termin al opened in the early 1960s primarily

SEA HISTORY 88, SPRING 1999

as a place to unload impo rted motor vehicles. And modern general cargo piers and warehouses rep laced older ones at the other MPA termin als. By th e end of th e 1960s, cranes for handling the new ca rgo co ntainers were operational at the Dundalk T erminal. In these yea rs, mo re than 5,200 ships called annually w ith every imaginable cargo. T he port had 94 piers and could handle 17 1 ships at o nce.

T he late 1960s/ea rl y 1970s brought pl ans to improve the Inner H arbo r. No longer a working po rt area, the Inner Harbor was ripe for redevelopment. A parkli ke place was created and new piers built for recreational use. T he 1970s, '80s, and '9 0s saw the Inner H arbor transfo rmed by the World Trade Ce nter, Natio nal Aquarium, Maryland Science Cenrer, two pavilions of H arbor Place, with their ships and resta urants, and two mod ern , profess ional sports stadiums.

T he wo rking port experienced change as well. Container shi pping is now standard and in 1990 the new Seagirt Marine Terminal w ith its high speed cranes opened to ensure th at Baltimore kept up with shippers' needs. Every effort was made to ensure th e port stayed co m peti rive in an era

of intense economic rivalry. T ho ugh not as busy as the previous era, the port moved 28 million tons of cargo in 1997 and was used by about 2,200 large merchant ships. It is among the top ten US ports in containers handled and is number o ne in roll -o n, rolloff cargo. Major imports include automobiles, forest products, manufact ured goods, textiles, raw metals and o res. The biggest exports are motor vehicl es, agricultural and co nstructi on equ ipm ent, wines and spirits, manufactured goods, coal and grain .

The Heritage Today Baltimore's illustrio us mariti me heritage is kept vibrantly ali ve by the histo ric ships aro und th e harbor. T he Pride ofBaltimore II, a replica Baltimo re clipper topsa il schooner, completed in 1988 (a successo r to the original Pride ofBaltimore which was tragically lost at sea in 1986), serves as an international goodwill sailing ambassador for the city and th e state. She is complemented by th e USCGC Taney and submarine USS Torsk, both veterans of Wo rld War II; th e US Lightsh ip Chesapeake; the steam tug Baltimore; the john W Brown; and the 22-gun USS Constellation. Resea rch in the 1990s proved Constellation to be the ship of 1854, not the Baltimore31

Thousands came to visit the sailing ships of OpSail 76, such as the Danmark on the left, and the Gorch Fock at center. built frigate of 1797, as it was lon g beli eved to be. The efforts which began in early 1997 to restore the Constellation to her correct ap p earance will be comp leted in mid- 1999 , when she will rerurn to her berth in rhe Inn er H arbor.

With the new mill ennium wi ll come new challenges, but Baltimore can meet them confidentl y, building on th e lesso ns of the past. .t j ohn Barnard is a member ofthe Baltimore Council of the US. Navy League; William Macintosh is president ofSail Baltimore.

OpSail 2000 Baltimore

by Laura Stevenson and John Barnard n the summer of the year 2000, majestic sailing ships from around the globe will once again grace Baltimore's waterfront, as th ey first did in 1976. After a trip up sce nic C hesapeake Bay, the ships will be welcom ed into Baltimore's world famous Inner Harbor by thousands of cheering spectators, ki cking off "OpSail 2000 Baltimore." The ships will be in Baltimore from 23 to 29 June 2000, berthed around rhe Inner Harbor and in nearby histo ri c Fells Point.

In 1975, "Baltimore Operation Sail" was organized as a 50l(c)(3) non-profit organization by a group of volunteers wantin g to recruit and host tall ships. In 1975, Baltimore Operation Sail h osted the Christian Radich, and thus began an an nual program of visiting ships and maritime events. As rhe Mayor's Official Committee for Visiting Ships, Baltimore Operation Sail began to invite visiting ships from around the globe to Baltimore's burgeoning waterfront. As M aryland's largest port, Baltimore, with its picturesque and historic harbor, is perfect for hosting these grand vessels to the state and the region.

In 1975-76, the city's newly formed OpSail organization worked hard to bring in a number of tall ships to celebrate America's Bicentennial. In mid-July 1976, the first fleet of international tall ships sailed into the Inner Harbor, including the USCGC Eagle, Gorch Fock II, Danmark, Esmeralda, Mircea, Amerigo Vespucci, and Dar Pomo rza. Over ten days in mid-July 1976, thousands of Marylanders and out-

I

32

of-town visitors discove red Baltimore's Inner Harbor as they came to tour the visiting ships. With an extremely successful OpSail 1976, Baltimore was established as a great place for ships to visit.

Since 1976, tall ships and naval vessels continue to visit Bal timore on an annual

basis, with Baltimore Operation Sail working closely with international embassy officials to arrange these visits. The next large fl eet of vessels came in 1986, with an OpSail celebration honoring the Statue of Liberty's Centennial. Baltimore was once again fortunate to receive a number of tall ships during th at summer. Sai ling ships lining the harbor wall of the then mostly co mpl ete Inner H arbor represented D enmark, Ecuador, Indonesia, Iraly, Mexico, Norway, Oman, and Uruguay.

Again, in 1992, Baltimo re Operation Sail hosted a fleet of rail ships when OpSail celebrated the 500th anniversary of C hristopher Columbus's discovery of the New

World. Six tall ships and a number of naval vessels gath ered in Baltimore's Inn er Harbor during th at summer.

A renamin gofrheorganization in 1994 to "Sail Balrimo re" changed neither the purpose nor the dedi cation of th e group 's volunteers. An ave rage of twelve vessels of every size and type are welcomed each year to Baltimore. In 1998, Sail Baltimore hosted a record numberof 40 visiting vessels to rhe city's wa terfro nt and it continues to seek out new, exciting vessels rhar are ofinternarional , educational, or environmental interest for people to see.

In June 2000 the proud sailing ships will visit Bal timore o nce agai n to be greeted with an enthusiastic welcome from Marylanders. Sa il Baltimore is planning a series of events surrounding the visits of the tall ships of OpSail 2000 wi th entertaining and education al activi ties. In addition to touring the ships, plans are unde1way for music, food, ethni c celebrations, culrural programs, and ch ildren's ac tiviti es. Op Sail plans include a parade of sail , fireworks, sporti ng events, a cap tain 's ball and numerous other local and regional events.

The ships' crews wi ll be welcomed with special eve nts and given to urs of both Annapolis and W as hin gton DC. Sponsor opporruniries are avai lable, in addition ro numerous volunteer opportunities. Fo r infor mation on OpSail 2000 Baltimore, contact Sail Baltimore, 200 W. Lombard Sr., Baltimore MD 2 1201; rel: 410-752-8632; fax: 4 10-385-036 1; oremail: sa ilb alr@cha rm.n et. .t

SEA HISTORY 88, SPRING 1999

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Call the toll free number below to subscribe. 12 issues-$28. Special rate for National Maritime Historical Society members-$24.

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A

These items are now on sale: A Canvas totes with navy printing. NMHS logo on one side, a ship on the other.

Specify ship Commander, Wapama, Ellis Island ferry, or Kaiulani. Sale price $6. (reg. $12) B Our white or royal blue golf shirts with the NM HS logo printed in wh ite.

50% cotto n/50% polyester. White available in sizes S, M, L, XL. Royal available in size Sonly. Sale price $8.75. (reg. $17.50) C Our royal blue sweatshirrs, 50/5 0 cotton/poly, with logo printed in white. in sizes M, L, XL. Sale price: $10. (reg. $20) Childrens sizes 11-16. Sale Price $5. (reg. $10) D NMHS ball caps, blue with NMHS logo printed in white. One size fits all.

Specify royal blue or navy, solid cap or mesh back. Sale price $5. (reg. $9 & $9.50) E Tote in navy canvas with white printed design ofEllis Island Ferry. Sale price $6. (reg. $12) F Zippered mini-duffles, 10" diameter by 18" long with white nylon handles and white prinred design of steam tug Catawissa. Sale price $6. (reg. $12) G Tee shirrs in royal blue with NMHS logo printed in white. Available in adult sizes S, M, L, XL; sale price $6. (reg. $12) Childrens sizes 14-16; sale price $3.50. (reg. $7) SORRY, no additional members' discounts! Add $3.50 each item, shipping/handling.

National Maritime Historical Society 5 Joho Walsh Blvd., PO Box 68 Peekskill NY 10566 Or call 1-800-221-NMHS (6647) SEA HISTORY 88, SPRING 1999

to

order by credit card.

33

A Victory Ship Wins Through: The Red Oak Victory Returns to Richmond

by Joseph S. Rychetnik The great Liberty and Victory cargo ships played a vital role in turning the tide of war around the world in Wo rld War II and in the postwar rebuilding of shattered nations. The importance of these large workaday ships was recognized by pioneering preservationists who saved the Liberty Jeremiah O 'Brien in San Francisco, the John W. Brown in Baltimore, and most recently the Lane Victory in San Pedro, California. But these gallant and successful ship saves were not to be the end ofthe story. Here a participant who sailed in Liberty and Victory ships in both the Atlantic and Pacific, tells the story of the next Victory to be saved.

Liberty ships as the workJ1orse that got men and supplies to the front . An improved hull , steam turbine engines and modern engineering were to lend speed to the ships to take them quickly th rough Uboat infested waters and on into peace time.

T he Victory was intended to survive the war to form the nucleus of the postwar merchant marine.

The Kaiser shipyards at Richmond, Cal ifornia, built 142 Victotys, mo re than any other builder. The co mpan y made its mark ea rl y in the war and, beginning with the Ocean VanguardinAugust 194 1, bui lr 747 vessels, from frigates to troop transports.

Its four shipyards turned out Libertys in reco rd numbers and switched smoo thly to here is hardly anyone aro und these the Victory design after the 1944 launchdays who recalls the launch ing of ing of their 5 l 9th, and last, Liberty. When the Red Oak Victory from Ka ise r the C-4 trooper Marine Snapper came down Shipya rd No. 1 at Rich mo nd, Cali forn ia, th e ways on 12August 1945, it signaled th e on 9 Novem ber 1944. T he Red Oak Victory end of the Kaiser lin e.

The Red Oak Victory is the last of th e (AK-235) was built for the Navy near the end of Wo rld War II, an ammu nition shi p Richmond Kaiser output still afl oat. Durwith space aboard for not on ly the crew but ing the war, the Kaiser engineers and wo rkalso an armed guard and a special cargo- ers had improved the system of shipbuildhandling crew that made the shi p indepen- ing to the point where they could build an d dent when off load ing. After serving in launch ships in a few days. T he Red Oak WWII, she was released from the Navy, Victory was built in a typical 87 days .

T he ship was named for a small commubecame the SS Red Oak Victory, served in the Korea n and Vietnam wa rs, and sailed as nity near Council Bluffs, Iowa. Red Oak a merchant ship until she was retired in has long been known for its co ntribution to the nation's mi lirary. Ir had more soldiers in 1968 to the reserve fleet.

Victory sh ips were des ign ed to replace the U nion Army in the C ivi l War than any other place in Iowa.

In th e Spanish The Red Oak Victory in the mothball fleet facility at Suisun, awaits American War and the crew coming to take her to her new home in Richmond, California.

Philippine Insurrec(Photos by the author) tion , Montgomery Co un ty, in which Red O ak is the coun ty seat, had a Nationa l Guard regiment. Company M of the Iowa National Guard was call ed to serve un d er ÂŤBlack J ac k" Pershi ngat rheMexican Border. Six months after returning home, the unit was federalized, became part of the

T

34

l 68rh Infantry and was sent to Europe as the 42 nd R ainbow Divisio n. Co mpany M entered WWII and was nearly destroyed in the early d ays of the invasion of No rth Africa. On 6 March 1943, the coun ty seat received more than 100 telegrams from the War D epartment notifying the famili es of th e losses. O ne out of every 100 men had been killed in action. T he co un ty had suffered more losses per capita than anywhere else in the nation .

Aboard Libertys and Victorys I was fortunate to have sailed in 1946 and '47 on the Princeton Victory, launched from Richmond on 1 February 1945. Having spent so me rime on the Samuel K Barlow and the Lillian Nordica-borh Liberty ships-I was hoping to sail so meday on a more modern ship. The Liberty ships paid for themselves in one trip , some experts said, and both creature co mforts and speed were lacking. Bur it was wa rtime and the Liberty ship was known as th e truck of the sea, delive ring th e goods needed in wartime.

The C-1 and C-2 freighters I later sailed in the Pacific were a chan ge fo r the better, but I finally found a co mfo rtable home on the Princeton Victory when we were sent to the East Coast and derai led to haul UNRRA foodstuffs to the starving nations in the Eastern Mediterranean. The Victory was fast and effici ent and made a record for itself after WWII by serving as a link in the supply chain to both Korea and Vietnam .

Earli er, in 1944, 1 had almost shipped aboard the bad-luck Quinalt Victory, blown sky-high in th e Port C hicago, Californ ia, Ammunition D epot blas t on l 7July 1944, brand new and out of a Po rtland, Oregon, shipyard. M y C-2, the Flying Mist, was loading at Port C hicago as the Quinalt Victory arrived off the dock and sat in the stream waitin g for us to move out. We finished loading ammo the next afternoon and pulled down the Sacramento River to San Francisco Bay and out to the Western Pacific. T h e tremendous blast caught us under th e Golden Gare Bridge and shook our ship like a dog, bur we didn't know what had h appened until hours later.

How the rime flies! Now there are no Victory ships in service, just one preserved in San Pedro, seven left in the Suisun Bay mothball fleet in Californ ia, and seven on

SEA HISTORY 88 , SPRING 1999

the Eas t Coas t. Th e Walton Victory, launched 25 Jul y 194 5, was the las t o f th e Kaiser Victorys, all fin e ships, all delive red well under contract deadline; that was Kaiser's promise.

Red Oak Leaves the Fleet The Red Oak Victory had no t bee n in merchant service long when it was decl a red surplus and placed in th e mo thball fl ee t in Suisun Bay in 1968. From D ece mber of 1944 to 1968, the ship had paid its du es.

She was to sit th ere with eight other Vi ctori es until the M aritim eAdmini strati o n decided to scrap them all in 1990; the n she was doo med. Th e Ri chm o nd Museum of History learned about it and recognized a unique opportuni ty to return a potent symbo l of Richm o nd's pas t to the wa terfro nt.

T hey approached their Congressme n a nd in Ocrober 1996 a bill was passed in Co ngress to give the ship to Richm ond .

T he scrap value of a Vicro ry tod ay is betwee n $400 ,00 and $45 0,000. T he experrs wh o have inspected the Red Oak fo r use as a fl oa tin g museum expect that it will cos t mo re th an $ 1 million tO brin g it up tO a standard that will attract visitors. Th e Lane Victory in San Pedro, Cali fo rni a, and the Liberty ship Jeremiah O'Brien, in San F rancisco, bo th museum ships that are stea med acti vely o n occasion , se rve as role models, as does the Liberty john W Brown in Baltim o re.

It will not be a smoo th ride. Wh en presented t0 di e city, the Vi ctory was at first refused a pl ace to dock, and only a howl of protes t from hundreds of p eople interested in seeing it here saved th e day.

T here is reall y no other symbol in Ri chmo nd of the city's fam o us, vibrant wa rtim e hisrory. T he sleepy rown went fro m 23, 000 tO mo re th an 120,000 in just a few m o nths, and the new industry attracted wo rkers fro m all over the coun try, particularly the So uth , tO fill the need . More than 9 0,000 men and women worked in the shipya rds, and Ri chmond became one of th e first integrated industrial cities with black a nd white wo rkers building side by side. T he socio-eco nomic experimem wo rked well.

Today, Richmond is mainlyacityof petrochemical industry and railroadin g, a nd a burgeo ning middle-class residential site.

T he wo rk needed tO prepare the ship for her new ro le is obvious when yo u see h er.

T hree hundred and fifry of Richmo nd's citize ns and guests such as the M ayo r of

SEA HISTORY 88 , SPRING 1999

Red O ak, James A. J o hn so n , and th e V ice M ayor of Richmond , John M a rquez, had four hours tO examine the Vicrory as it was moved by river tugs from Mare Island to Point Richmond. Rust exposed by the flakin g prese rvative paint was everywhere, and booms, deck machinery and lifeboats will have tO be replaced tO give the Vicrory its proper look.

The volunt ee r crew of30 men know th eir goal will be achi eved , but no t without a great deal of physical effort and cash. They do talk about sailing the ship again and expect to Veterans of WW!l Local residents and political leaders ride return the Red Oak the Red Oak Vicrory as she is towed to her new home. tO some state that will make it a home for Richmond's histori c record of doin g th e imposs ibl e durin g ber 199 8, I believe the Red Oak will get her WWII. Th e Vi ce M ayo r o f Red Oak volunteers, her facelifr, and her new li fe . brought the penn ant presented tO the city Durin g th e four-hour trip across the

by Kaiser way back th en and asked that it Bay, my memori es of life in the merchant be preserved in this soon -to-be Victory marin e and of my time aboard a Vicrory museum. returned. My wife wanted to know about I sail ed the Red Oak fr o m M are Island to the "bedrooms" and the "kitchen" and Po int Ri chmo nd and met many of the these questi ons had me rour ing th e ship nearly 400 peo ple aboa rd . M any had been and showing off the deck house, th e bridge, involved in the Kaise r Shipya rds, and many and how cargo was loaded and unloaded. m o re we re WWII ve tera ns. H ank Kukel Back then I never thought I'd be aboa rd cold m e he served as 2 nd mate aboard the another Vicrory. But like many things, li fe Red Oak in 1967, on her fin al trip t0 often comes full circle and I enjoyed every V ietnam . H e said th e ship was briefl y tied minute of our cruise. The Red Oak is here, up in the Sea ttl e area befor e being rowed tO safe from cutting rorch, and we have th e Suisun Bay for mothballing. As we talked, honor of making this Vicrory a tribute tO the tu gs steered the gray V icrory under the Richmond , the Kai se r Shipyards a nd Richmond/Sa n Rafael Bridge. Overh ead, a America's incredibl e contributions tO vi cdoze n WWII-v intage aircraft zoomed and to ry in World War II .

-1 circled: four SNJs, a Mustang, a C-47, and a quartet of Stearman tra iners in the bright Photographer and writerJoseph S. Rychetnik livery of WWII training squ adrons. The lives in Point Richmond, California.

Port of Oakland fireboat, with all three nozzles going, circled the ship repea tedly. Richmond M useum of History, 400 Nevin Based on the enthusiasm evident as the Avenue, PO Box 1267, Richmond CA 94802; ship returned to Richm ond on 20 Septem- 510 235-7387; /ax: 510 235-4345.

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SHIP NOTES, SEAPORT & MUSEUM NEWS Gold Rush Celebrations & West Coast Happenings T h e California Gold Rush conjured new Bear. (NHS, 1064 CaLLe Negocio Unit B, continue at the maritime museum with expectations of the American Dream in San Clemente CA 92673; 949 369-6773; their annual Festival of the Sea, 25-26 1849, enticing men and women, young fax: 949 369-6892; web site: www Sep tember, with hands-on activi ties, multiand old, westward, some to sink their lives .californian.org;ASTA, PO Box 1459, New- cultural performances, music and refreshinto the search for riches, others to capital- port RI 02840; 401 846-1775; fax: 401 ments. (SFMNHP, PO Box 4703 10, San ize on the exponentially expanding market 849-5400; e-mail: asta@sailtraining.org; Francisco CA 94147-031 O; 415 561-6662; fax: 4 15 561-6660; e-mail: sfnmma@ for supplies the 'Forty-niners required and web site: www.taLLships.sailtraining.org) for th e luxury goods the lucky ones eagerly A Gold Rush Cargo aol. com) Endeavour on the West Coast acquired.

If events find you shorebo und, stick to th e Hundreds ofvessels arrived in San Fran- waterfront and head to the Maritime Na- If you see a lone sailing shi p off the Coast cisco carrying prospectors, only to be aban- tional Historical Park at Fisherman's Wharf. this spring and summer, it may not be a do ned by their crews, who also heard the refugee from the Gold Rush Race. The siren call of easy go ld. This summ er, the splendid replica of Captain James Cook's Endeavour, now in San Diego for a refit, sesquicentennial of the Gold Rush will bring new adventurers to America's West will wend her way north from San Diego to British Columbia between April an d OctoCoast.

Mervyn's California ber, stopping in 15 ports along the way, before co ntinuing on her circum navigaGold Rush Race 1999 tion. Don't miss your chance to step aboard T he Nau tical Heritage Society, operator of this historic replica-you may even want the replica revenue cutter Californian, is to sail as crew! (HM Bark Endeavour Founorganizing a series of off-shore and port events in July of this year. The program is This tiny filigree dragon, barely an inch Long, dation, PO Box 7 186, San Diego CA 92167; being organized for th e California Sesqui- was part ofthe cargo heading for San Fran- 619 223-9477;fax: 619 223-9437; e-mail: centennial Foundation and will visit the cisco aboard the Frolic in 1850. (Courtesy, hmbark@ibm.net; web site: www. bark endeavour. com. au) seaports of San Francisco , Long Beach and SFMNHP) San Diego, with sponsorship from Mervyn' s department stores. The events kick off Among the many maritime pl easures to be The replica Endeavour underfuLLsaiL. (Courwith a maritime parade into San Francisco sampled there, yo u will find an exhibit on tesy, the HM Bark Endeavour Foundation) harbor on Friday, 2 July, honoring the the discovery and reco very of artifacts from arrival of the clipper ships th at brought the Frolic, a ship carrying a cargo of Chiprospectors to California. The Am erican nese goods to San Francisco. She ran Sail Training Association is organizing the aground on the Mendocino coast in 185 0, race that fo llows from San Francisco south under the command of Edward Horatio to Long Beach , with a start on 5 July and an Faucon, made famous in Richard H enry arrival deadline of 9 July. The fleet will stay Dana, Jr. ' s Two Years before the Mast. T he until 12 July and then cruise in co mpany to ship's history, and cargo, were recovered San D iego, arriving on the 13th. Off-shore when an archaeologist found unexpected activities, shoreside events, festivals and pieces of Chinese porcelain in a Pomo public visitation will bring crowds down to Indian house site. "Found! The Wreck of the waterfronts, recreating the hust!e-and- the Frolic-A Gold Rush Cargo for San busd e of the historic seaports.

Francisco" runs through 3 October 1999 As of January a number of American and focuses on the dive rsity of people who and international sail training vessels and contributed to the story of the Frolic-the other ships had committed to joining the native Americans who salvaged much of fleet for all or part of the events. America's the cargo, the Chinese who manufactured tall ship USCG Bark Eagle, Japan 's Kaiwo it, and the American businessmen who Maru , Canada's HMCS Oriole, C lass chose what would sell best in Gold RushAfloat's Concordia, Ecuador's Guayas and era San Francisco. The cargo itself was a Tell Us What Is Going On! her sister ship Gloria of Colombia, the treasure trove of artifacts revealing new Nadezhda and the PaLLada from Russia, information about North Coast history Please let us know about other maritime and, of course, San D iego's own Star of and the beginnings of California's trade projects and programs commemorating the India will be among the sailing partici- with China. T h e exhibit includes gold fi li- Sesquicentennial of the Gold Rush, so we pants. In the steaming category, visitors gree jewelry, Chin ese suspender clips, a can tell our members. (Sea History, PO Box will see the WWII-vintage SS Lane Victory carved ivory fan, a silver scallop-shell tin- 68, PeekskiLL NY 10566; 914 737-7878; fax: 914 73 7-7816,¡ e-mail: nmhs@sea and SS Jeremiah O 'Brien as well as the der box, and horn checkers.

California Maritime Academy's TS Golden The celebration of the Gold Rush will history.org)

36

SEA HISTORY 88, SPRING 1999

AMERICAN M ERCHANT MARINE MUSEUM N EWS The twentieth annive rsary of the American M erchant Marine Museum is upon us this year. It doesn't seem possible that the Museum will soo n pass this important milestone.

The dream that Captain C harles Renick had more than 20 years ago is now a thriving and dynamic reali ty. The Museum's collections are growing, its public programs are expanding, its exhibition areas are improving and more families and school groups visit each year.

The Museum has many exciting events and programs planned ro celebrate this special anniversary. First and foremost is the museum's Annual Awards Dinner on March 25 , 1999 . The 1999 dinner, which will once again be held at the Union League Club in New York City, promises to be even bigger and better than the previous year. The Museum will honor Rear Admiral Lauren McC ready for his many years of dedicated service to the United States Merchant Marine Academy and to the Museum. The keynote speaker for the event is C live C ussler, founder of the National Underwater Marine Agency (NUMA) and author of the bestselling novels featuring underwater adventurer Dirk Pitt. A silent auction featuring unique and notewo rthy items wi ll top off the evening.

The long-awaited Sperry Navigation Wing will also open this spring. The gall eries in this area will trace the history of nav igation from the 1400s to the present. On display will be an outstan ding collection of navigational instruments.

Once the ribbon is cut on the new Sperry Wing, the Museum will begin construction on the National Maritime Hall of Fame. Design ers from the Gal lery Association of New York are hard at wo rk designing an exhibition area that promises to inspire visitors whi le telling the important sto ries of the men, women and ships that have made exceptional co ntributions to America's maritime history.

We are also in the planning stages for the Academy Room. Housed on the second Ao or of the museum buildin g, this new gallery will focus on the history of Kings Point, student life at the Academy both past and present, and the important ro le USMMA graduates have played in our nation 's maritime industry.

Other events planned include: a Veterans Reunion in the spring which will honor Geo rge Searle and Joe Katusa; a special art exhibition in the fall featuring the work of USMMA graduate Jeffrey Eldridge KP '69; beginning in May, a series of exhibitions that tells the important story of the merchant marine's role during the Korean War; and "New and Notewo rthy," an exhibition featuring new acquisitions to the Museum collection.

-LINDA FASBACH, Executive Director (AMMM, US Merchant Marine Academy, Kings Point NY 11024; 516 773-5515)

The American Neptune Enj oy the leading scholarly journal of maritime history and arts in the US. The American Neptune , a quarterly publi cation of the Peabody Essex Museum, is a great read for coll ectors, model makers, and all who love sh ips and the sea.

We offer Sea History readers an opportunity to subscribe to The American Neptune for $33, a $6 savings over our regul ar subscription rate ($36 for non-US residents. Institutions: call for rates) . To start your subscription, send a check or money order to:

The American Neptune Peabody Essex Museum East India Square Salem, MA OI 970 (508) 745- 1876 Yo u may charge your subscription by fax at (508) 744-6776, or e-mail dori_phillips@ pe m.org. We accept VISA, MasterCard and American Express .

Visit our website at www.pem.org/neptune

$652,616 Awarded in Thirty-nine 1998 Maritime Heritage Grants, But the Program's Future Looks Bleak The National Park Service announced in December that 39 grants totalling $652,616 have been awarded through the National Maritime Heritage G rants Program. The NPS received 342 ap plications requesting approximately $10.3 million . Three grants were awa rded to nonprofit organizations (call ed Interim Projects) and 36 to 20 State Historic Preservation Offices for subgrant administration. Of these, 19 are for education projects and 17 are preservation grants.

However, the entire program may end with th is first round, as there are no funds available for 1999 and future funding is uncertain. T he grants are funded from 25% of the proceeds from the sale and scrapping of obsolete vessels of the National Defense Reserve Fleet. Problems in determining ad-

SEA HISTORY 88, SPRING 1999

equate environmental safeguards during the scrapping process have caused delays, resulting in a loss in value of the vessels and a decline in the funds ava ilable for the National Maritime H eritage Grants Program .

There is certain ly a critical need for fed eral fundin g to support the burgeoning field of maritime preservation and education. Some members of the field, including Peter Stanford, president of the National Mari ti me Histo rical Sociery, are calling for a direct appeal to the Am eri ca n people that w ill provide an on-going funding base through taxes for these vital programs.

(NationaLMaritime Initiative, NPS (2280), 1849 C Street, NW, Washington DC 20240; 202 343-5969; web site: www.cr.nps.gov/ maritime)

37

SHIP NOTES, SEAPORT & MUSEUM NEWS "Technology and Archeology in the D eep Sea": MIT Gathers the Experts Comroversy has been inherent to the world of underwater archaeology since its inception. The tug-of-war between academics, salvagers, sports divers, gove rnments and insurance companies over access to inrellectually, politically or financi ally importanr shipwrecks and ownership rights has heated up recently as the result of extrao rdinary finds in deep-water locations made possible by new technologies. Public awareness of these issues has been fueled by rhe discovery of the Titanic, rhe incredible ancient shipwrecks found in the Mediterranean, and discoveries yet-to-be- made in rhe anoxic water of rhe Black Sea. The Engineering D epartmem of rhe Massachusetts Ins tirute of Technology and rhe Insrirure for Exploration (IFE) based in M ys tic, Co nn ecticut, recenrly gave the creators and users of these technological innovations, as well as rhe lawye rs who defend rhe rights of different imerests, the opportunity to meet and discuss the tough questions emerging from their disparate abilities, expectations and responsibi lities. The co nference ar MIT over 29-31 January, entitled "Technology and Archeology in the D eep Sea: Toward a New Synrhesis," brought together 60 archaeologists, engineers, oceanographers and lawyers from six coumries. The primary goal of the conference was to lay the fo undations for the newly emerging field of deep-sea archaeology, wirh methods, prob lems and laws rhar are very differenr from land or shallowwarer archaeology.

Papers focused on rhe possibilities offered by rhe recenr advances in underwater technology, rhe problems associated with exp loration and research in rhe deep seawhere a lack of oxygen offers rhe potential for superbly preserved artifacts-and rhe legalities associated with rhe ownership of shipwrecks. The presenters were lively and so metimes conrroversial.

Dr. Robert Ballard, rhe oceanographer who led rhe expedition rhar found rhe Titanic and USS Yorktown and founder of the IFE, stared rhar deep sea archaeo logy is a "three-legged stool" of archaeologists, engineers and oceanograp hers. Many attendees were surprised to learn rhar there are actually more than 100 Remotely Operated Vehicles (like JASON) capable of d iving to more than 2000 meters, and

38

by David B. Allen three more come on line each month. The majority of these belong to commercial operations searching for oi l and minerals on the ocean floor. Ballard likened the gathering of data by these robotic instruments to" drinking from a fire hydranr"; so much information can be gathered so quickly that so me of the most valuable archaeological finds are made whi le analyzing the data months later in the laboratory.

He proposed the formation of a proactive body to seek out and study the profusion of deep sea data stumbled upon by oil exploration compan ies and others.

Technology Alone is No Solution Dr. George Bass, founder of rhe Institute of Nautical Archaeology and, indeed, a pioneer in archaeology underwater, warned that technology cannot replace good archaeological methods and rhar archaeologists should not be dependent on or in awe of the new deep sea technology. H e believes none of rhe numerous ancienr shipwrecks he discovered wou ld have been found ifhe had relied on ly on new technology, and he reminded the conference that finding a wreck sire and removing objects is not archaeology. Archaeologists, nor engineers, must be sire directors of archaeological digs.

Dr. David Mindell, an MIT engineer who helped design rhe JASON, warned engin eers to realize rhar, although technology offers fantastic possibilities for archaeologists, "measuring an artifact is nor all rhar is needed to understand it. " Dr. Anna McCann, an archaeologist from Boston University, staring that "archaeology needs engineering, " said that collaboration is rhe only way to go forward.

Some of rhe newest and possibly most archaeo logically valuabl e deep sea engineering tools areAutonomous U nderwarer Vehicles (AUVs)-submersible robots rhar can roam rhe sea floor for monrhs, searching our, mapping and photographing underwater artifacts much more cosr effectively rhan manned expeditions. In addition to transmitting information and images, AUVs could acr as mechanical sentries, so rt of "RoboCops" of the deep, to protect wrecks from thieves and "por hunters. " The new technology can make underwater cultural reso urces much more accessible to studems and the general public,

particularly through rhe Inrerner, creating "virtual museums" ofshipwrecks rharcould be studied and inrerprered in situ.

Many of the co nferees agreed rhar rhe new technology enhances rh e possibilities for archaeo logical research but multiplies rhe danger of rhe desrrucrion or looting of submerged cultural resources. James Goold, a lawyer from rhe law firm of Covington & Burling who is active in shipw reck preservation matters, noted that current salvage law mandates rhat the salvager must disclose the coordinates of a w reck to rhe Court and must bring a piece of the wreck to substanriare their claims. Dr. Ballard's team did notwanr to disclose rhe site of the Titanic, and so losr legal rights to rhe wreck when another group, RMS Titanic, later learned the coordinates and brought back an artifact from the ship.

Needed: New Law The archaeo logica l co mmunity seems wholly agreed on rhe critical need for a comprehensive law of the sea to prorecr historically significant wrecks in deep water and to preserve them for study and education. Currenr laws do not give adequate state or federal protection for cultural resources in waters farthe r than 24 miles from shore. Archaeologists were encouraged to learn and use existing laws to prorecr sires and acquire rhe rights to sires for museums and other educational institutions. The United Nations Education , Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) is currenrly working on an international agreeme nt rhat, if passed, would offer some protection to wrecks in internation al waters.

Suggestions emergi ng from the conference were: to organize a society of engineers, archaeologists and oceanographers ro discuss the problems and possible solutions for deep sea archaeology; disseminate a newsletter about these problems and solutions; publish a statemem from the conference attendees expressing their concerns about deep sea archaeology; and to publish rhe papers presenred ar rhis conference.

Toward the end of the conference, Dr. Ballard piqued rhe interest of many attendees wirh news of a project he is helping to plan-a deep sea exploration of the oceans on one of rhe moons of Jupiter! ,t

,t

,t

SEA HISTORY 88, SPRING 1999

Lighthouse News The Great Lakes Lighthouse Museum Mackinaw C ity, Michigan, may have lost the National Lighthouse Museum to Staten Island, New York, but supporters of the Michigan location are proposing to use their plans for the national museum to create the G reat Lakes Lighthouse Museum . Those plans call for the construction of a 50,000-square-foot museum on the site of the former Straits of Mackinac ferry dockatanestimatedcosrof$25 million. In addition to a state-of-the-art lib rary and repository fo r li ghth ouse artifacts, the museum wo uld also include a 126-foothigh modern tower, topped by a beacon visible throughout the Straits ofMackinac, which is home to 12 lighthouses.

Michigan has a total of 123 li ghthouses, more than any other state in the US, while the Great Lakes region itself is home to 438 ligh thouses. In comparison, the American Northeast has 400 lights. (The Great Lakes Lighthouse Museum, PO Box 7 12, Mackinaw City MI 49701; 616 436-3333; fax: 6 16 436-7870)

Hatteras Light to be Moved Beach eros ion has been a se rious threat to one ofAmerica's most beloved landmarksth e Cape Hatteras Lighthouse. America's tallest rower has watched over the Diamond Shoals off North Carolina's Outer Banks since 1870. A bill approved by Congress in October provides $9.8 million to move the stru cture one-half mile inland.

Some gro ups and local business men advocated an altern ative-a fourth groin to protect the light from the sea-that, acco rding to the US Army Corps of Engineers, wo uld cost $6.4 million . But the office of No rth Carolina Senator Faircloth, whi ch pushed for the appropriation to move the lighthouse, notes that hardened coastal structures are illegal under state law. Maritime preservation groups, such as the American Lighthouse Foundation and the US Lighthouse Society, argued for the move, and th e state's environmental organizations, including the NC Coastal Federation, the So uthern Environmental Law Center, and the NC C hapter of the Sierra

Club, opposed any weaken ing of th e state's ban on hardening the coast.

National Historic Landmark Status In the past six months, four histo ric lighthouses have been designated National Historic Landmarks, bringing to eight the number of lighthouses carrying this distinction. The Thomas Point Shoal Light Station (1873), in th e C hesapeake Bay near Annapo lis, Maryland, is of a fa mi liar design in C hesapeake Bay-a white, hexagonal wooden bui lding with a red roof topped by a black lantern . The Grosse Point Light Station (1873) in Lal<e Michigan near Evanston, Illinois, established as the leading navigational aid in to the port of Chicago, has bee n resto red over the las t 25 yea rs. The Cape Hatteras Light and the Ponce de Leon Light (1887), south of D ayto na, Florida, were des ignated las t August. (NPS (2280), 1849 C Street, NW, Washington DC 20240; 202 343-5969; web site: www.er.nps.gov/maritime) -KEVIN H AYOON

Hornblower on the Small Screen T he seafarin g adve ntures of C. S. Forester's Napo leonic War-hero Horatio Hornblower have been recreated for television

by A&E and United Broadcasting & Entertainment. T he four rwo- hour movies will be broadcast on A&E in the US beginning on 4 Apri l.

The second of these movies recreates naval battles of the Napoleonic Wars using a fl eet of scale replicas as well as rwo fullsize vessels. The 125-foot, 22-gun wood en vessel Grand Turk takes the role of the 24gun frigate Indefatigable. The vessel, designed by M ike T urkand initially intended for an Arnold Schwarrzenegger movie, was built in the Turkish port ofMarmaris by a team of 40 boatbuilders using traditional tools. Another addition to the fl eet is the Bal tic trader Julia.

T he four fi lms, The Even Chance, The Examination for Lieutenant, The Duchess and the Devil and The Frogs and the Lobsters, are based on Mr. Midshipman Hornblower, in which Forester explored his character's early naval career. Maritime buffs in Britain who have already seen the series were generally appreciative of the accuracy of the presentation.

SEA HISTORY 88, SPRING 1999

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SHIP NOTES, SEAPORT & MUSEUM NEWS CALENDAR

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40

Festivals, Events, Lectures, Etc. •American Sail Training Association: from 2 July, Gold Rush Race 1999, San Francisco, Long Beach and San Diego CA (PO Box 1459, Newport RI 02840; 40 1 846-1775; fax: 40 l 849-5400; e-mail: asra@sailrraining.org; web sire: www.rallships.sailrraining.org) •Boston Seaport Festival: 23-25 July, 9th Annual Boston Seaport Festival & 3rd An nual Boston H arbor ParadeofLights (Co nve ntures, Inc., I Design Center Place, Boston MA 0221 O; 617 439-7700; fax: 61 7 345-0888; e- mail: info @co nventures.com;www.seaportfes tival.com) • Center for Wooden Boats: 3-4 July, Lake Union Wooden Boar Fes tival (1010 Valley Streer, Seattle WA 98109; 206 382-2628) • Seattle Maritime Festival: 13- 16 May 1999 (165l Bellevue Avenue, Seattle WA 981222014; 206 443-3830; fax: 206 292-9887)

Conferences • Australian Institute for Maritime Archaeology: 18-23 September 1999, "The Pacific Rim: Trade and Migration," Co nference at the Australian National Maritime Museum (H eri tage Office, Locked Bag 5020, Sydney NSW 2124, Australia; (2) 9635 6155; fax: (2) 9891 4688; e-mail: nutley@herirage. nsw.gov .au; web sites: www. heritage.nsw .gov.au and www .anmm.gov.au) • Canadian Nautical Research Society and the Association for the History of the Northern Seas: 9-14 August, Joint Co nference in Corner Brook NF (Dr. OlafU. Janzen, Dept. of History, Sir Wilfred Grenfell College, Co rner Brook NF, A2H 6P9, Ca nada; 709 6376282 ; fax: 709 639-8 125; e- mai l: O laf @beothuk.swgc.mun. ca; web sire: www.swgc .mun. ca/ahns) • HistoryofCartography: ll- 16 July, "The Cartography of rhe M editerranean World," Internation al Co nference in Athens GR (Mr. George Tobias, National H ellenic Research Foundation, 48 Vassileos Konstantinou Avenue, GR-116 35 Athens; 30 (1) 72 1-0554; fax: 30 (1 ) 724-6212; web site: www.ihr.sas.ac .uk/maps/confs.html) •Institute of Marine Studies: 9-12 August, "Eclipse 99: Navigational Stimulus to the HistoryofScience" (Dr. P.A. H. Seymour, Institute of Marine Stud ies, Un iversity of Plymouth, Drake Circus, Plymouth, Devo n PL4 SAA, UK; 44 (1 752) 232462; fax: 44 (1 752) 232406) • International Cartographic Association: 14-2 1 August, 11th Ge neral Assembly (ICA Ottawa 1999, 6 15 Booth Street, Room 500, Orrawa ON, KlAOE9, Canada; 61 3 992-9999; fax: 613 995-8737; e-mail: ica l999@ccrs. nrcan .gc.ca; www.ccrs.nrcan.gc.ca/ica l 999) • Nautical Research Guild: 23-25 April, Ship Model Building Symposium, cosponsored by The Mariners' Museum in VA (TMM, 100 Museum Drive, Newport News VA 23606;

757 59 1-7743 or e-mail : kgove@mariner.org; N RG at www. naut-res-guild.org) • Mystic Seaport Museum: 17-19 June 1999, "Melville and the Sea" (Mary K. Bercaw Edwards, PO Box 367, Mysric CT 06355; ma1y k@mysric.org; fax: 860 572-5329) • National Arcliives-Mid-Atlantic Region Center in Philadelphia: l 0 April, "Changing T ides: The Histotyand Evolution of the Philadelphia Naval Shipyard, 180 1- 1998 an d Beyo nd" (call Joseph-James Ahern at 2 15 44034 17 or Shawn Aubitz at 2 15 597-9770) • Society for Historical Archaeology: CALL FOR PAPERS: 4-9 January 2000, Co nference o n Hisrori cal and Underwater Archaeology, Q uebec QC (D eadlin e for applications is 1 Jun e 1999; co ntacr Reginald Auger, Program Coordinaror, SHA Quebec 2000, Ministere de la Culture et des Com muni cari ons, 225, Grande-Allee Est, QuebecCiryQC, G lR 5G5, Ca nada; 418 656-2952; fax: 4 18 6565727; e-mail: reginald.auger@celat. ul aval .ca)

Exhibits • Canadian Museum of Civilization: 4 April3 Jun e 1999, "Vikings" (100 Laurier Streer, PO Box 3100, Stario n B, Hull QC, J8X 4H 2, Canada; 8 19 776-7000; fax: 819 776-8300; email : members@cmm c.muse.digiral.ca) • Cold Spring Harbor Whaling Museum: 4 July 1998- Jun e 1999, "Cold Spring H arbor Whalers around rhe World " (Box 25, Cold Spring H arbor NY 11 724; 5 16 367-34 18) • Fairfield Historical Society: 26 MarchO crober 1999, "Trade Winds" (636 O ld Post Road, Fairfield CT 06430; 203 259- 1598) •The Mariners' Museum: 14 February-3 1 D ecember 1999, "Chris-C raft: The Affordable Dream" (100 Museum Drive, Newport News VA 23606-3759; 1 800 58 1-7245; fax: 757 591-7320; www. marin er.org) • Penobscot Marine Museum : 29 May-17 October 1999, "Model Shipwrights: Model Builders of rhe Maine Coasr''; 'T he Sailors' Art of Scrimshaw: Selections from the Permanent Collection of Penobscot Marine Museum "; ''Travels to the Pacific Rim: T he Chi ldhood Sea Advenrures of Lincoln and Joanna Colcord" in the Old Town Hall (5 C hurch Street, PO Box 498, Searsport ME 049740498; 207 548-2529) • San Francisco Maritime National Historical Park: 7 February 1998-3 October 1999, "Found! The Wreck of th e Frolic-A Gold Rush Cargo for San Francisco" (Foot of Polk Stree t, PO Box 4703 10, San Francisco CA 94147-03 19; 415 929-0202) * * * * "The T echnical Aspects of Maintaining, Repairing & Preserving Historically Significam Ships" conference in Sweden listed in SH 87 for M ay 1999 will not be taking place. No future d ate has been set.

SEA HISTORY 88 , SPRING 1999

IEWS The Hundred Days, by Patrick O'Brian (W. W. Norto n & Co., New York NY, 1998, 28 l pp, ISBN 0393-04674-5; $24hc) O'Brian fa ns rejoice, nor o nl y is rhe latest-No. 19-now avai lab le, bur rhere is every indicatio n that rhere will be a twentieth, and possibl y ye t another fo llowing that. Our o ld friends Jack Aubrey, now an admi ra l, Stephen M a rurin , on ly sli ghtl y wiser to the ways of the sea, and the frigate Surprise are back and co ntrive to bring us ye t another excitin g sea saga of the Napo leo nic Wars .

The Hundred Days refe rs to the time of Napoleon's escape from Elba and his efforrs at marshaling a ho rde of Muslim mercenaries to join forces w ith his own zealous troops, bottling up the British before their Russian allies can assist them. He w ill then lead his French ar mies to victory at Waterloo. In o rder to persuade the Algerian soldiers to help him , Nap oleo n has arra nged for a huge shipm ent of gold in gots to be sent to them, with the coo peration of several members of the Alge ri an roya lty, across the desert by camel and, final ly, aboard a xebek.

Much of the rale is devoted to following Maturin across the desert to seek the cooperatio n of a friend ly ru ler, and we discover that O'B ri an is as much at home writin g about the desert as he is the sea; th e same attentio n to detail, wonderful characters, and ab ili ty to place the reader in the actio n all come to bear, and the resu lt is a most entertainin g read. When the xebek is mer

by HMS Surprise, we find vintage O'Brian with CommodoreAub rey in complete co ntro l of his ship, his men, and the situation.

And the end leaves little doubt rhar more wi ll fo ll ow!

Wh ile this is certainly not rhe "salti est" of the nineteen books of rh e Au brey se ri es, it is probably one of the most ambitious for O'Brian, and deals with a tumultuous wo rld evem of which mosr of us are only dimly aware. Deciding whether a particular book of the se ries is superior to another is a trul y personal endeavor-what wo rks for o ne reader may not for another, and rhar is rhe joy of these wonderful books. Taken as a

SEA HISTORY 88, SPRING 1999

who le, they are certainly among the best sea tales and sho uld be considered in that li ght. E nj oy rhe characters, the litera1y style and the srarding accuracy, and if yo u haven ' t ye t had the pleasure, buy them all, find a quiet hideaway, and begin readi ng w ith number one. At the end , yo u will likely walk with a rolling gait while yo u think abo ut whether or not to furl th e tops'ls!

WILLIAM

H . WHITE

Rumson, New Jersey British Museum Encyclop a:dia of U n derwater an d Maritime Archaeology, ed ited by Jam es P. Delgado (British Museum Press, Lo ndo n GB, 496pp, ill us, index, ISBN 0-7141-2129-0; $55hc) T his impo rtant refe rence work pro mises acco unrs of d row ned cities, ancient buried ships and more recenr wrecks such as the Titanic. Included are unresto red remains and vessels that have been rai sed pi ece by pi ece and reassembled . It is hard to chin k of any so rt of m aritime history no t to be fou nd between rhe covers of this tome.

So me item s of interes t and impo rtance stand out. One, for exam pi e, is the Kyrenia, found by Michael Katzev in 1967, after he had been alerted to its existence by a G reek Cypriot diver. T his site was about o ne ki lo meter offshore from Kyren ia, Cyprus, in 30 mete rs of warer. Karzev, under rh e direction of the Univers ity of Pennsylvania, was charged with the excavatio n of the wrecked ship below its cargo of amphorae.

The ship proved to be a 4th-ce ntury BC G reek merchant ship which , afte r being treated with po lye thylene glyco l, is now o n exhibit in the Kyrenia C rusader Castle, Cyp rus. Because this vessel was in such remarkabl y good condition and so much of it preserved, it at once suggested replication. Co nsequendy, under rhe direction of Katzev a replica of th e vessel has been bui lt.

The replica's abiliti es under sail have changed histo rians' views of ancient ships.

She can sail in more directions than simply downwind and has bee n reco rded under sail to have reached a m ax imum speed of 12 knors-a respectabl e speed for any comparab ly-sized sa iling crafr today.

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Bur the wo rk does no t sto p with vessels and their excavation . Sites of discovery, o rga nizatio ns engaged in resea rch, resto rati ons, recoveries, artifacts, methodology, laws governing sal vage and archaeo logy, and even contin ents fall under the edi to r's purv iew. Ir is in evitable in a wo rk of this scope that some scho lars will fi nd impo rtant sires and subj ects left our o r discover some factual errors, bur ove rall this boo k is a co mprehen sive and fascin ati ng window in to the field of underwater archaeo logy and maritime history as a who le. T he edi torial adviso ry boa rd includes internati o nally kn own names, and Delgado has led and participated in impo rtant archaeological explorations in fa r co rners of th e wo rld as well as in the Americas. H e is wel l qualified to compile such an all- inclusive reso urce.

THOMAS C. G ILLM ER Annapo li s, Ma ryland The Royal Navy in World War II, by Ro bert Jackso n {Naval In stitu te Press, AnnapolisMD, 1997, 176pp, illus, appen, index, ISBN 1-5575 0-7 12-0; $34.95 hc) In this bri ef survey of the Royal Navy in the second wo rld war, Robert Jackson, for mer RAF pil ot an d navigator, prov ides a ch ro nological acco unt of the majo r actio ns throughout thi s six-year co nflict. H e sets the stage with a n intro d uc tio n to the prewar situatio n as it affected the Royal Navythe increase in size of the Navy in the 193 0s, ships being too old fo r modern conflict, the W as hingto n and Lo ndo n treaties which redu ced the strength of the Navy, and the d eplo rable state of the Fleer Air Arm, whi ch fl ew obsolescent aircraft th ro ughout th e earl y stages of the wa r. The o nly bright sid e to th is dismal picture, acco rding to Jackso n, was the quali ry of the manpower of th e N avy.

T he reade r is given b ri ef overviews of the major evenrs in the naval war. Actio ns such as Dunkirk, th e M editerranean, the North Adan tic, the battle fo r th e co nvoys, U ltra, Malta, the Arctic and, las tly, a very b rief descriptio n of th e Navy in th e Pacific in 1945, are prov ided with a ro ll call of ships participating in each battle. T he photographs are, by the author's ow n admissio n, biased towards naval aviation.

T he read ier co mes away fro m this study with th e feellin g that this is lirde more than an outline oo f th e Royal N avy during the wo rldwide cco nflicr. Little m entio n is made

SEA H-flSTORY 88, SPRING 1999

of the American contributi on to the Royal Navy's success. The 50 destroyers lenr, or sh all I say given, to the Royal Navy are glossed over as is the signifi cance of A merican aircraft which finally bro ught the Fleet Air Arm into parity with Ax is aircraft.

Additionally, insufficienr mention is made of the construction of esco rt carriers in American yards, whi ch permitted the Royal Navy to truly possess blue-water naval aviation. Furthermo re, the Royal Ca nadian Navy's contribution is hardly m enri o ned and there is not even an index entry fo r Canada! Surely th e Royal Navy did not wi n World War II at sea solely through its own efforts. Fo r a balanced treatm ent of the Ro yal Navy in World War II readers will wanr to come abreast of Co rrelli Barn ett, Engage the Enemy More Closely: The Royal Navy in the Second World War and leave Jackso n to leewa rd.

H AROLD N. B OYER

Florence, So uth Carolina US Carriers at War, 2nd rev. editi o n, by Peter Ki lduff (Naval Institute Press, Annapolis MD , 1997, l 28 pp , illus, bibli o, ISBN 1-55 75 0-858-5; $34.95 hc) First published in 1981 a nd rev ised for this edition, aviation histo rian Pete r Ki lduff has provided a brief overview of carrier warfare during th e seco nd wo rld war. H e reviews ca rrier development in th e Un ited States leadin g up to th e war a nd rh en looks ar va rious battles and individual carriers in an attempt to prov ide the reader with a glimpse of what this parti cular type of warfare was li ke during those dark days berween 1941and 1945.

T he title of this book is really a misnomer for ir sho uld have been tided an "oral histo ry" of ca rri ers at war. Each chapter hi ghlights a particul ar pilot w ho had firsthand experience in a parti cul ar battl e, type of plan e, o r carrier, with li ttle overall structure lin king the chapters. T he text is acco mpanied by many photographs which co mplement and improve the boo k.

T here is insufficient backgro und information in each chapter to guide the beginning reader and too much oral histo ry for the scholar lookin g for new in terprerarions and co nclusions. One only h as to look to works by Clark Reynolds, Norma n Po lmar, Andrew Faltum or Barrett Tillman, to name bur a few, to find excellenr wo rks on carrier warfare during WWII. T his book conrrib-

SEA HISTORY 88, SPRING 1999

ures nothin g new to rhe historiography of that struggle.

H AROLD N. BOYER

Wake of the lnvercauld, by Madelene Ferguso n Allen (McG ill-Queen's U niversity Press, Montreal QC, Kingston ON, London GB, Buffalo NY, 1997, 256pp, illus, appen, index, ISBN 0-7735- 1688-3; $45 hc) Bleak and uninhabited, the Auckland Islands group lies 290 miles south of New Zealand, berwee n 30° and 55 °, squarely in the track of sa iling vessels bound aro und Cape H o rn from Australia. T he steep cliffs o n th e weste rn side of Auckland Island, the gro up's largest, have claimed nin e vessels that are kn own and probably man y ochers.

T his book is the sto ry of one of those shi ps and her crew's struggle for survival.

The new, Aberdeen-built ship I nvercauld loaded in London in January 1864 for Melbo urn e and after discharging th ere departed in ballast for Callao . As was custom ary for sa ilin g vessels, she headed south of New Zealand to take advantage of the stron g weste rlies in those latitudes before heading north.

On 10 May 1864, seven days after sailin g from Melbourne, the I nvercauld was w recked on Auckland Island. Of the 25 on boa rd, six were drowned ; the others, after getting ashore, found themselves at the bottom of a cliff 1,000 feet in height with o nly the clothes they were wearing, and with almost no food. T he strenuous climb to the top revealed a treeless landscape with shrubbery so dense they were co mpelled to walk on top of it and weather of the worst kind: heavy rain and w ind, snow and bitter co ld- Roarin g Forties weather, in fact.

The island provided o nl y meager fa re, an d within a co uple of monrhs, 16 had succumbed to ex posure and starvatio n. The survivors-Ca ptain Geo rge Dal ga rn o, C hi ef Mate And rew Sm ith and sea man Robert Holding-moved to a smaller island , one of those enclos ing rhe harbo r to the north which afforded a possibi li ty of rescue. T hirteen months after th e wreck rh eywere taken off by a ship which had put in for repair.

All three men left acco unts of the experience, the captain 's bein g the briefes t and Holding's the lengthi est and with the greates t derail; all are included here. Holding's accounr, written in his old age in Ca nada, came into the hands of his great-great-

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granddaughrer, rhe aurhor of rhis book.

She deserves much credir for rhe work she has done here, whi ch involved a !or of research and rwo expediri o ns ro Auckland Island wirh her fa mil y, where rhey visired rhe wreck sire and cracked rhe nail of rhe casraways. The book is illusrrared wirh maps and color phorographs rhar well co nvey rh e desolare landscape and many graphi cs rhar lend period fl avor. The rexr mainly consisrs of long quores from Holding inrerwoven w irh complemenrary paragraphs by rhe aurhor, who has raken a rale of survival o n a desolare island and made ir inro a hearrwarming rribure ro rhe human spirir.

ANDREW

J. N ES DALL

Waba n, Massachuserrs South, by Sir Ernesr Shacklero n (Lyo ns Press, New York NY, 1998, 375pp, illus, a pp e n , ind ex , IS B 1-55821-783-5; $ 16.95pb) Shackleton's Boat Journey, by F. A. Worsley(W. W. Norron &Co., New York NY, 1998, 220pp , illus, ISBN 0-393-3 1864-8; $ l 3pb) Together rhese books provide readers wi rh rwo val uab le perspecrives on rhe 191 4 Brirish ex pediri o ns ro Amarcrica, wrirren by rwo of rh e rhree expedirion leaders.

Shac klero n led rhe team rhat was ro cross rhe Amarcric ice cap fro m rhe Weddell Sea ro rhe Sourh Po le and o n ro rh e Ross Sea. His acco unr was firsr published in 19 19.

Worsley co mmanded rhe vessel Endurance o n rhe voyage ro rhe Weddell Sea. The ex ped irion was o ur of rouch wirh rhe resr of rh e wo rld for almosr 18 mo nrhs.

During this rime rheEndurancewas napped in rhe ice and drifred wirh rhe pack for a yea r unril ir was finally crushed and sunk.

T he crew rhen spenr five monrhs living o n rhe ice and moving wirh rhe ship's rhree boa rs roward land. Afte r a shorr boar journey from rh e edge of rhe ice pack rhey reached Eleph anr Island and so lid gro und .

T he larges r of rhe rhree boars was modified and equipped fo r an 800-mil evoyageacross rhe ope n sea in rhe middle of winrer ro So urh Georgia with a crew of six. T hree of rhe six crossed rhe unknown mo unrain ous inrerior of Sourh Georgia o n foor ro a w haling srario n where rhey received aid in rescuin g rhe resr of rhe members from rhe o pposire side of Sourh Geo rgia and from Elephanr Island.

Shackleron goes inro grear dera il abour

rhe plannin g and prepararions rhar wem imo every asp ecr of rhe voyage and rhe consranr revision of rhese plans as circumsrances changed . H e was always chin king of alrernarives to every siruarion . In addirion ro his personal courage and endurance, he always demonsnared grear co nce rn fo r his crew.

Worsley was rhe navigaror of rhe ex pedirion , as well as master of the Endurance.

From borh books one learns of his difficulries in celesrial n aviga rio n wirh our accurare rimepieces, with ice packs and mounraino us seas for horizo ns and of raking sigh rs fro m a 23-foo r boar in 25-foor seas . D ead recko nin g was no easier, w irh unpredicrable curren rs and winds acring o n rhe moving ice fl ows and bergs. The success of hi s wo rk is demonsrrared by rhe accuracy of his land fa lls, o ne afrer a year of unkn own drifring and rhe orher afrer an 800-mil e voyage in a con vened lifeboar in midwinrer in rhe Anra rcric.

T he foresight, professionalism, courage and endurance of rhese rwo explorers ca nnor be measured by rh e success of rhe expediri on , which did no r achieve irs goal of cross in g Ama rcrica, bur rarh er by rhe facr rhar all m embers survi ved and rernrned in spire of a year of grear hardship and danger. This fear places rhe evenrs of rhe expedirion, along wirh rhose of Bligh of rhe Bounty and Melvi lle of rhe Jeanette, as rhe rhree grearesr survival ep ics of rhe maririme wo rld.

DAVIDE. P ERKI S Sebring, Flo rida Almost a Hero: The Voyages of John Meares, RN, to China, Hawaii and the Northwest Coast, by J. Richard Nokes (Wash in gron Stare Universiry Press, Pullman WA, 1998, 240pp, illus, nores, bibli o, index , IS B 0- 8 7422- 155-2 ; $35 hc, $19.95pb) T he name of John Meares, RN, does nor ri ng wirh rhe hisro rical rimbre of Vancouver, Bodega y Quadra, or G ray, yer Meares was on rhe Pacific coasr of N o rrh America when rhese maririme heroes were, charrin g rhe sa me rerri rories, enco umering narive peoples and exploring new economic opporruniri es. Today, he is mosr well known as rhe caralysr fo r whar co uld have been a wo rld\Wide co nfli cr berween Bri ra in and Spain oveer Spain 's seizure ofMeares's ships in Nootrka So und.

SEA HUSTOR Y 88, SPRING 1999

T he aurho r exp lo res Mea res's ad ve nrures in fin e derail and places him in rhe co m exr of rh e peri od in an arrempr ro redeem him fr o m obscuriry and ro refure rh e opini o ns of prev io us hi sto ri a ns.

M eares's misrakes- a horrendously diffi culr winter o n rhe Pacific coasr, sailing pas r rhe mourh of rhe Columbi a Ri ve r, h is fruirless search for rhe No rrhwes r Passage, using fl ags of co nve nience ro avo id Brirish trade regul ari o ns, incirin g Spanish ireare reviewed side-by-side wirh h is successes-his grand plan ro develo p a Pacific rradin g empire wirh Brirish, Po rru guese, C hinese, H awa ii an and Na ri ve Am eri ca n involve menr, his abili ry ro co nvince wealrh y businessmen ro join hisven rure, rhe launching of rh e fi rsr ship o n rhe No rrhwes r Coasr, and his ex pl o rari o n of unknown o r lirrle-known ware rs-and rhe resulr is a hi ghly readabl e and hisro ri cally ch a rged image of o ne man who rraveled rh e sa me parhs as grear mari rime exp lo rers and deserves a pl ace in America's hi sro ry boo ks.

J USTINE AHLSTROM C lassic Sail, by Joseph G ribbins (Michael F riedman Publi shin g G roup , New Yo rk N Y, 1998, 128 pp , illus, index, ISBN 15679 9-45 1-2; $27 .50h c) G ribb ins, d irec ror of publi carions ar Mys ri c Sea po rr M use um in M ys ric, C onnecri cu r, has asse mb led here a collecrion of

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srunning phorographs and paimings ofsailboars pasr and presem fro m aro und rh e wo rld . The acco mpanying rexr explores rhe h isro ry of man's fascin ari o n wirh sail fr o m ancien r rimes ro rhe presem , spannin g such carego ri es as day sa ilers, racing boa rs and luxury yachrs.

SHELLEY RE ID T h e Broadbill Swordfisheryof the N orthwest Atlan tic: An Economic and Natural Histo ry, by C harl es D ana G ibso n (Ensign Press, C amden M E, 1998 , 160pp, ill us, no res, index, biblio , ISBN 0-9608996-7-7; $ 19.95hc) T his comprehensive, docum em ed accounr cove rs a depl ered and rhrea rened fi shery from the ea rl y 1800s through 1995, from the poim of view of th e fi shermen in vo lved , and indeed from that of th e fi sh, tracing rheir breedings and migrari o ns and rh e foods rhey co nsum e. A ve reran of rhe fi shery and a maririme hi sro rian of norable repure, G ibson beli eves rhis rhrearened fi shery can be saved , bur only if real co nservari o n measures are adopred and enfo rced.

P ETER STANFO RD K. u. K. Flotte 1900-1 9 18: Die letzten Kriegssch iffe Osterreich -Ungarns in alten Photographien , by W ladi mi r Aichelburg (Verlag O srerreich , Rennweg l 2a, A1037 Vienn a, Ausrria (fax: 43 1 79789

502; e- mail : wieselberg@mail. oesd .co.at), 1998, 224pp , illus, index, ISBN 3-704611 26-3 and 3-8 132-0573-8; oS 698) Ligh t o n th e Water: Early Photography of Coastal British Columb ia, by Ke irh McLaren (U ni ve rsiryofWas hingto n Press, Searrle WA, 1998, 16 0pp, illus, biblio, index, ISBN 0-295-97748-5; $35 hc) Images ofAmerica: Ligh th o uses an d Life Saving along th e Massachusetts Coast,

by Ja mes C laflin (A rcadia Publi shing, C harlesto n SC, 1998, l 27pp , illus, bibli o, ISBN 0-7524- 1372-4; $ 18.99 pb) Several collecri o ns of photographs have ca ughr o ur arremio n in recenr mo nrhs.

W ladimir Aichelbu rg has produced another insrall mem in his beautifully produ ced se ries of maritime photograph s fro m the wanin g Aust ro- Hungarian E mpire.

T his volum e showcases th e E mpire's fl eet in its fin al days. In Light on the Water, Keirh M cLaren has bro ught to light treasures fro m several archi val collectio ns in British Co lumbi a. T he pho tographs refl ect the two wo rlds coexistin g along the coast at th e rurn of the century: the grand sailing vessels and rhe sream ships beginning to come in to rheir own . James C laflin 's Lighthouses

and Life Saving along the Massachusetts Coast pays tribute to rh e men and wo men who watched the coasrline, and th e lo nely o utpos ts fr o m which they watched .

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45

DESSERT

A Clipper Sets Out on the Cape Horn Road

by Arthur H. Clark

W'hen Captain Clark first went to sea, the era of the clipper ships was just ending. As the tall ships with their sharp bows and long black hulls driven by towering rigs were vanishing over the horizon of time he set about gathering records, memories, and even the songs of the clipper crews.

In this passage from his classic work, The Clipper Ship Era, published in 1910, he gives us the lively scene of a

I

clipper getting under way offNew York's Battery Park.

Crowds gathered to see the spectacle and hear the songs of the ship's people hoistingyards and tramping around the capstan on the forecastle head to weigh anchor.

In Clark's account we do better than watch from shoreside. He takes you aboard, onto the decks crowded with hurrying men as the ship gets under way, outward bound on her 16, 000-mile voyage to San Francisco.

n those days, afte r a New York clipper kling of Spaniards, Portuguese, and Italhad finished loading, it was the custom ians, and one or rwo Americans. Some wear for her ro drop down the East River and thick, coarse, red, blue, or gray flannel anchor off Battery Park, th en a fas hionable shirrs, others blue dungaree jumpers, o r reso rt, where she would remain for a few cotton shirrs of vario us co lors; their trouhours to rake her crew on board and usually sers are in a va riety of drabs, blues, grays, ro ship from five ro ten tons of gunpowder, and browns, suppo rted by leather belts or a part of her cargo rhar was stowed in the braces; rhey wear stiff o r soft felr hats o r main hatch, ro be easily handled in case of woollen caps of many colors. But no clothes fire . Towboats were not as pl entiful in New rhat were ever invented could disguise these York harbor as at present, and unless the men; their bronzed, weather-beaten faces wi nd was ah ead or calm, rhe clippers sel- and sun-baked, rarrooed ar ms, with every do m made use of them, for with a leading swing of their bodies, betray them as breeze these ships would sail to and from sailormen, and good ones roo, above rhe Sandy Hook much faster than they could ave rage even in those days. They wo uld no be rowed. One of rhe clippers getting un- more submit to being put into uniforms or der way off Battery Park was a beautiful ro rhe cur-and-dried disciplin e of a mansight, and an event in which a large part of of-war, rhan rhey would think of earin g their food ar a table with knives and forks . rhe community was interested.

The people who gathered ar Battery They are all pretty full of alcohol , bur Park ro see a clipper ship get under way, the sailor instinct is so srrong in them that came partly ro hear rhe sai lors si ng thei r sea they do their work as well , some of rhem so ngs, or chanties, which were an impor- perhaps better, than if they were sober. tant pan of sea life in those days, giving a There is no romance about them or abour zest and cheeriness on shipboard, which any part of their lives; th ey are simply nothing else could supply. I t used robe said co mmon, every-day sailo rs, and will never rhar a good ch an ty man was worth four men be anything else, unless they happen ro in a watch, and rhis was rru e, fo r when a encounter so me inspired writer of fiction; crew knocked offchan tying, rherewassome- then iris diffi cu lt ro say what may become thing wrong-the ship seemed lifeless .... of them. Some of them have much good in T here is a crisp northeasterl y breeze, rheir natures, others are sarurated with evil, and rhe blue wa ters of the bay dan ce and and all need ro be handled with tact and frolic in the sweet June sunshin e. T he crew judgment, for too much severity, or on rhe are all on board, wirh the cap tai n and pilo t other hand any want of firmness, may lead in consulrarion o n rhe quarterdeck; ir is ro trouble, wh ich means rhe free use of nearly high water, and rh e ride wi ll soon kni ves, belaying pins, and knuckle-dusters. run ebb . Th e mare rakes charge of rhe Now rhe fl ood-ride begins ro slacken , topgallant forecas tl e, with the rhird mare and as rhe ship swings ro rhe wind, rhe and rhe boatswain to ass ist him , while rhe order is passed along from aft to man rhe second mate, wit h the fo urth mate and windlass and heave short. We hear rhe boatswain 's mate work the main deck and mate sing o ut in a pl easant, chee ry voice: stand by ro look after rh e chain as it comes "Now, then, boys, heave away on the windin over rhe windlass. lass breaks; strike a light, it's duller than an As rhe crew muster on the forecastle old graveyard." And the chantyman, in an they appear to be a motl ey gang, mostl y advanced stage of hilario us in toxication , British and Scandinavian, with a sprin- gay as a skylark, sa il s into so ng:

46

"Jn eighteen hundred and forty-six, I found myselfin the hell ofa fix, A-working on the railway, the railway, the railway.

Oh, poor Paddy works on the railway.

"Jn eighteen hundred and forty-seven, When Dan O'Connolly went to heaven, He worked upon the railway, the railway, the railway.

Poor Paddy works on the railway, the railway.

"Jn eighteen hundred and forty-eight, I found myselfbound for the Golden Gate, A-working on the railway, the railway.

Oh, poor Paddy works on the railway, the railway.

"Jn eighteen hundred and forty-nine, I passed my time in the Black BalL Line, A-working on the railway, the railway, I weary on the railway, Poor Paddy works on the railway, the railway. " And so on ro the end of the centu ry, o r until rhe mare sings out, "Vast heaving, " lifts his hand, and reports ro rhe captain : "The anchor's apeak, sir." "Very good, sir, loose sails fore and afr. " "Aye, aye, sir. " "Aloft there so m e of yo u and loose sails. One hand stop in the tops and crosstrees ro overhaul the gear." "Aye, aye, sir. Royals and skysails?"

"Yes, royals and skysails; leave rhe staysails fast." "Lay o ur rhere, fo ur or five of yo u, and loose rhe h ead sai ls. " "H ere, you fellow in the gree n-sported shirr, lay down our of rhar; there's men enough up there now to eat those sails. " "Mr. Sampson, take some of your m en aft and look after the main and mizzen; put a hand at rhe wheel; as he goes alo ng let him clear the ensign halliards; whi le yo u' re waiting lay rhar acco mmodation ladlder in o n deck; leave the spanker fast. " "C) n the foreropsa il ya rd, there, if yo u cut that : gasket, I'll sp lit yo ur damned skull; cast it acd rift, yo u lubber." "Boatswa in , get

SEJA HISTORY 88, SPRI G 1999

The lofty clipper Young America leaves New Yorks Battery Park astern, outward bound for San Francisco in the 1860s, like the vessel in Captain Clarks account ofsailing days aboard a California clipper. Note the Whitehall boat in the near foreground, one ofthe ubiquitous water taxis mentioned in Clarks account. (Painting by William G. Muller)

yo ur watch tackles along to the topsail sheers. " "Aye, aye, sir. " "Here, so1ne of you gentl emen's sons in disguise, get that fishdavir our; hook on the pendant; overhaul th e tackl e down ready for hooking o n. " "Mainskysail yard there, don ' t m ake those gaskets up , my boy; fetch them in alo ng the yard, and make fas t to rhe rye ."

By this time the sails are loose and the gaskets made up ; courses, topsails, to pgall an tsa il s, royals, and skysails flutter in their gea r, and the clipper feels the breath of li fe. "S heer home the topsails." "Aye, aye, sir. " "Boatswain , loo k o ut fo r those clew-lin es at the main; ease down handso mely as the sheers come home. " "Foretop there, overhaul yo ur bunrlines, look alive!"

"Belay yo ur port maintopsa il sh eet; clap a watch tackl e on the starboard sheer and rouse her ho me." "Maintop there, lay down on the main -ya rd and light the foot of that sail over the stay." "That's well, belay starboard. " "W ell , the mizzenropsail sheets, belay." "Now then , my bullies, lead o ut yo ur topsail halliards fore and aft a nd masthead her. " "Aye, aye, sir. " By this tim e the m ate has put so me gi nger into th e crew and lo ngs ho remen , and th ey wa lk away w ith th e three topsa il halli ards:

"Away, way, way, yar, We'll lei!! Paddy Doyle for his boots."

SEA HISTORY 88 , SPRING 1999

"Now then, lo ng pulls, my sons." "Here, yo u chanryman, haul off yo ur bouts, jump on that m aindeck capstan and strike a light; the best in your locker. " "Aye, aye, sir. " And the three topsailya rds go aloft with a rin gi ng chan ry that can be heard up in Beaver Street:

"Then up aloft that yard must go, Whiskey fo r my j ohnny.

Oh, whiskey is the life of man, Whiskey, johnny.

I thought I heard the old man say, Whiskey for my johnny.

We are bound away this very day, Whiskey, j ohnny.

A dollar a day is a white mans pay, Whiskey for my johnny.

Oh, whiskey killed my sister Sue, Whiskey, j ohnny, And whiskey killed the old man, too, Whiskey fo r my johnny.

Whiskeys gone, what shall I do?

Whiskey, johnny, Oh, whiskeys gone, and I'll go too, Whiskey for my j ohnny. " "Belay yo ur main to psa ii halliards." "Aye, aye, sir. " And so the canvas is set fore and aft, topsails, topgall an rsails, royals, and skysa ils, fla t as boards, th e inn er and o uter jibs are run up and the sheets haul ed to wind-

ward; the main- and afte r-ya rds are braced sharp ro the wind, Lhe foretopsail is laid to the mas t, and th e clipper looks like some great seabird ready for fli ght. The anchor is hove up ro:

'1 wish I was in Siewers Hall, Lowlands, lowlands, hurra, my boys, A-drinking luck to the Old Black Ball, My dollar and a halfa day. " And whi le so me of the hands bring the anchor to th e rail with cat and fish tackl e, and:

"A Yankee sloop came down the river, Hah, hah, rolling john Oh, what do you think that sloop had in her?

Hah, hah, rolling john, Monkeys hide and bullocks liver, Hah, hah, rolling john," th e rest of th e crew fi ll away the foreyard, draw away the head sheets, and check in rhe after ya rds. As the ship pays off, and gath ers way in the slack water, the lo ngs ho remen and runners rumbl e over the side into the W hitehall boars, rh e crowd at Battery Park gives three parrin g cheers, the ensign is dipped, and the clipper is o n her way to Cape Horn.

47

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