Sea History 106 - Winter 2003-2004 by National Maritime Historical Society & Sea History Magazine

No. 106

NATIONAL MARITIME HISTORICAL SOCIETY

WINTER 2004

SEA HISTORY

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

& ART OF JOHN PRENTISS BENSON Historic Ships on a Lee Shore Dr. Webster's Sea Diaries, 1896-97 Great Lakes Shipwreck Lucerne

THE LIFE

SEA HISTORY FOR KIDS

Voyage to the Ports, waterways and open seas that built a country. INTRODUCING STOBART: THE WORLD OF SAIL AND STEAM A new large format book featuring contemporary works by North America's preeminent maritime artist, the beloved John Stobart. MHP Enterprises presents a rich collection of 80 full-page , color reproductions-truly an exhibition in oversized book form.

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GEORGETOWN. Lock No. 4 on the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal

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SEA HISTORY

No. 106

WINTER2004

CONTENTS FEATURED IN THIS ISSUE

W ISCONS IN HISTO RJCA L SOC IETY

7 Schooner Lucerne: Lessons from a Great Lakes Shipwreck, by Andrew Jalbert Lake Superior's icy freshwater has beautifully preserved hundreds ofshipwrecks. The Lucerne's story teaches us about the realities ofseafaring on the lakes and shows how cultural resource management can serve the public. 10 A New Drake Myth, by Edward Von der Porten President ofthe Drake Navigators G uild Edward Von der Porten debunks a new book with false claims about Sir Francis D rake's Pacific Northwest voyage.

15 Historic Ships on a Lee Shore, by D eirdre O 'Regan and Joe Follansbee A distress call regarding the uncertain futures ofthree historic American ships: Schooner Ernestina ofMassachusetts, SS Catalina in Ensenada, Mexico (formerly ofsouthern California), and Seattle's Schooner Wawona. 2 1 Master and Commander-The Far Side of the World: Comments on Historical Accuracy, by W illiam H . White Patrick O'Brian's huge success stemmed largely from the meticulous detail and accuracy with which he portrayed his characters and the nautical traditions of the Royal Navy. How did the movie measure up?

22 Dr. Charles Webster, Ship's Surgeon: A Diary from Sea 1896-97, edited by Robert M. Webster, MD Dr. Webster embarked on a non-stop voyage from N ew j ersey to j apan in the Last days ofsail. His observations give a first-hand account oflife at sea when steamships were on the verge ofwiping out the sailing ship era forever. 30 MARINE ART: The Life and Art of John Prentiss Benson, by Margaret M. Betts, commentary by John G. H agan

35 Maritime History on the Internet, by Peter McCracken Maritime historian, lib rarian, and entrepreneur, Peter McCracken guides you on your research via the internet.

COVER: A Fair Wind by john Prentiss Benson. (oil/canvas, 24x42 ': date unknown). See pages 30-32. This painting and other works ofjohn Prentiss Benson will be on disp lay this summer at the Portsmouth Athenaeum in Portsmouth, New Hampshire. 30

DEPARTMENTS 2

DECK Loe & L ETTERS

NMHS:

SEA HISTORY FOR KIDS

MARINE ART NEWS

A CAUSE IN

SHIP NOTES, SEAPORT & MusEUM NEws/CALENDAR

MOTION

41 48

REVIEWS PATRONS

SEA HISTORY (iss n 01 46-93 12) is published quarrerly by rhe Nario nal Maririm e H isrori cal Sociery, 5 John Walsh Blvd., PO Box 68, Peekski ll NY l 0566. Periodicals posrage pa id ar Peekskill NY 10566 and add '! mailing offices. COPYRIGHT Â© 2004 by rhe Nario nal M ari rime Hisrori cal Sociery. Tel: 914-737-7878. POSTMASTER: Send address changes ro Sea Hisro ry, PO Box 68 , Peekskill NY 10566.

NATIONAL MARITIME HISTORICAL SOCIETY

LETTERS

DECK LOG Publishers' Circle of Support for Sea History T hanks to your strong support, NMH S weathered a particularly diffic ult struggle las t year. O ur Board ofTrustees is committed, more than ever, to the publication of Sea History as the most important activity we do. Not long ago, I ran into Peter Aron, C hairman Emeritus of South Street Seaport and a long time supporter of Sea History. O ur conversation naturally led to a discussion of N MHS and Sea History, and Peter suggested we create a Publishers' Circle of supporters who would pledge at least $ 10,000 a year for a number of years-donations that would go directly toward the costs of the magazin e. True to for m , N MHS received a check from Peter that same week. I phoned our treasurer Bill White right away to report this good news, and he signed up as a Publisher's C ircle member without hesitati on. D onald McGraw, a m ajor and long-time contributor, has always been an advocate of our keeping Sea History as the primary focus of our work and will be a valuable member of the group . Peter Aron said about Sea History, "W e need to get the story out ... and no one does that better than the crew at Sea History. Thank yo u for all that you do to hel p tell America's greatest story." We thank yo u, Peter Aron, fo r your vision and commitment to Ameri ca's maritime heritage, a cause you have served long and well . Sea History is in the process of being updated through its content and appearance; we are marketing it so a large r and more diverse readership can join in the lesso ns of their seafarin g heritage. W ith a handful of individuals pledging their support of this new Publishers' C ircle, Sea History is assured a solid and prospero us future. We look to yo u, our members, to make this happen. H OWARD SLOTN ICK

D ramatic exhibits at the Columbia River Maritime Museum capture attention.

C hairman National OutreachA Visit to the West Coast

As a membership organization, we recognize the importance of meeting our members and getting their feedback. Our members are more than the support and wisdom of the Society- they form the fo undation upon which everything we do res ts. We used the Council of American M aritime Museums (CAMM ) annual conference at the Columbia River M aritime Museum in As toria, Oregon as a chance to meet with some west coast N MHS members. Dick Wagner, Foundin g Director of the Center for Wooden Boats in Seattle, graciously hosted our member reception in their wonderful facility. What a pleasure to get to know our members, and what a diverse group we are. After we showed The Ghosts of Cape Horn, Thomas Wells, who had doubled the Horn as a young man, fascinated us with his stories. The Columbia River Maritime M useum is nothing short of spectacular. At the river's mouth, it exh ibits and interprets the richness of the Pacific No rthwest's maritime history. Executive director Jerry O stermiller orchestrated a memorable experience fo r all, and the conference provided us the opportuni ty to discuss with museum leaders fro m around the nati on the potential fo r cooperative projects in the future. B URC HENAL GREEN

Executive Director 2

Barbary Wars We received letters addressing William H. White's article on the Barbary Wars regarding both content and form. We are p leased to have readers knowledgeable enough to notice any inconsistencies in the accuracy of what we print, and I thank those who wrote in for bringing them to my attention. Mr. White has written the following in response. -DO'R Due to a variety of reasons, th e article on the Barbary Wars in the las t issue of Sea H istory 105 co ntained, at best, a misleading statement and, at the wo rst, a fallacious statement. I wo uld like to co rrect any misconceptions spawned by that articl e and set the hi sto rical record straight. On page 11 , the statement that Adams, Franklin, and Jefferson were se nt to England to seek a treaty with Tripoli is misleading; it appears as though th ey were sent after the Bas haw of Tripoli had declared war on the US-certainly not the case! Correctly, Adams, Jefferso n, and Franklin we re indeed commissio ned by Congress to negoti ate a treaty with No rth African interes ts-but in M ay of 1784. In 1785, Franklin left Paris where they had been attemp ting to obtain the release of the merchan t Betsey, captured by the Moroccan corsairs in March of that year. Franklin was not repl aced on the treaty co mmission, but Jefferson, by then minister to France, appointed T ho mas Barclay, consul general of the United States in Paris, to go to Morocco and negotiate a peace. This he acco mplished , havin g arri ved in June of 1786 and, with only a few modifications by succeeding empero rs of that co untry, the treaty stood well into the nineteenth century. O f course, when the Bashaw ofTripoli declared war on the US in M ay of 1801 , Commodore Dale was already in the Medi te rranean with a small squadron, and it was readily apparent th at further nego ti ation would be fruitless, thus began a series of Ameri can naval squadrons in the area. While Prebles' ships in 1803-04 li kely provided the most signifi cant impems fo r Yusef Karamanli to treat fo r peace, the conflict did not go to treaty until mid1805 when Co mm odore Barron (and

SEA HISTORY 106, WINTER 2004

shorrly, Joh n Rodgers) had assumed che com mand. I have also received quescio ns o n ch e ironic ro le reversal in suppo rt of o ur fl edgling navy becween Jefferso n and Adams (iro nic because Adams is co nsidered ro be che Facher of ch e A merican Navy). Bue I muse say che articl e is correcc. Som e cen yea rs pri o r to Washingto n's Navy Bill pass ing Co ngress (1 794) , Adam s, in his new rol e as a peace co mmiss io ner, wroce to John Jay (December I 0 , 17 84): "Some are of the o pinio n chat o ur crad e in che Medicerranea n is no c wo rth che expense of che presencs [cribuce] we must m ake to che piracical scares to obca in creacies wich chem. Ochers chi nk it humiliacing to creac wich such enemies of che h u man race and thac ic wo uld be more manly to fi gh c chem . The firsc, I ch ink, have noc calculaced che value of o ur Medicerranean crad e . ... T he las e have more spi ric chan prudence. As lon g as France, H olland , England, ch e E mperor &c will submit to be tribucari es to ch ese ro bbers, and eve n encourage ch em, to w hac purpose should we make war u po n chem ? T he co ncesc wo uld be unequal . T hey can in jure us ve ry sensibly, buc we canno t hur t chem in che smalles c degree ... ic would be very imprudenc for us to encertain any cho ugh cs of concending wich chem ... ." Four m onchs lacer, T ho mas Jefferso n wroce: "You will p ro bably find che cribuce to all these powers make such a proporci on o f che federal caxes as chac every man will feel chem sensibly when he pays ch ese caxes. T he q uestio n is whecher peace or war will be ch e chea pesc? But it is a quescio n char sho uld be addressed to our ho no r as well as our ava ri ce .... T he low opinio n chey [che nacio ns of Euro pe] encercai n of our powers cannoc fail to involve us in a naval war." And some fo ur mo nchs afrer chac, in July 1786, he wroce again, this cime to Adams, " ... however, if ic is decided to buy a peace, l know of no reaso n fo r delaying che operacion, bu c l should p refer obcaining ic by wa r. Juscice is in favor of chis opin io n. H ono r favo rs ic. le will procure respecc in Eu ro pe .... l chink ic lease expensive and equally effeccual. l ask a flee c of 150 gu ns .. .. " And so it wenc; Adams concinuing to favor paying the u ibure as che cheap-

SEA HISTORY 106, WINTER 2004

er road to peace and Jefferson decrying it in favor of war. l e would not be until Wash ingto n's N avy Bill was passed (at the end of his p residency) and the Q uasi-War with France was looming char Adams (ac che sta rt of his own p residency in 1797) wo uld reverse himself. Of course, when the figh ting began wich France in 1798 and, wich che "subscrip tio n warships" com bined wich the ch ree frigates buil c in 1797 u nder che Navy Bill , our Navy was keeping the merchan t fl eec safe fro m che French privaceers in the Cari bbean , the citizenry sudden ly reversed cheir sea nce and suppon ed him . Jefferson , afrer the Barbary Wars ended , felt a coastal defe nse navy all that was necessary. H e o rd ered mosc of o ur warshi ps p uc "in ordi nary" and began b uilding gunboats in New Yo rk, Rh ode Island, and C o nneccicuc. 18 10 wo uld see che re-comm issioning of che "real" navy as problem s wich Englan d becam e uncenable. I ho pe chac che forego ing will clear up any confusio n lingerin g fro m my arcicl e o n chac co nfli cc and apologize fo r any misco ncepcio ns I mighc have caused. W ! LLLAM H. W H ITE Rumso n, New Jersey

Courageous Calvin I recendy received che Aucu mn 2003 Sea H istory. I have enjoyed che magazine, and will look forwa rd to che nexc issue. I did

notice o n page 27, "Kids Maki ng Sea Histo ry," ch ar ic mencio ns chac C al vin G raham was awa rded a Purple H eare durin g che Bacde of San ca C ruz in th e Sou ch Pacifi c in 1942, and chat che USS South Dakota was fendin g off kamikazes whi le che aircrafr carrier USS Yorktown was sinking nea rby. T he Yorktown was a ship chat some of my relacives wo rked on, and I wo uld like to clarify an erro r. T he fi rst Yorktown was a gun boat and sank when ic ran agro und o n 6 Septem ber 185 0. T he seco nd Yo rktown was a sloop chac was decommissio ned ac Ma re Island, Califo rni a and so ld to a priva ce company on 30 Sepcember 192 1. The chird Yorktown was a carrier sunk during che Bacd e of M idway on 7 June 194 2. T he fo urch Yorktown was also a carrier, buc ic was no r laun ched uncil 2 1 January 1943 and is now berched ac Parri oc's Po int, So uch Carolina as a museum . So l guess so me cla rifi ca ci o n wo uld be in o rder as ic appea rs char che Yorktown (an y of ch e fo ur) could noc have been chere as mencio ned in ch e article. Thank yo u. P F.TF.R KALK

Vallejo, CA

Error noted: it was the USS H o rn ec sinking in the distance during the Battle of Santa Cruz on 26 October 1942, whilst "courageous Calvin Graham" was wreaking heroics all over the deck ofthe Sou ch D akota. D AVID ALLEN

Join Us for a Voyage into History Our seafaring heritage comes alive in the pages of Sea History, fro m the ancient mariners of Greece to Portuguese navigators opening up the ocean world to the heroic efforts of seamen in this century's conflicts. Each issue br ings new insights and discoveries. If you love the sea, r ivers, lakes,

and bays- if you appreciate the legacy of those who sail in deep water and their workaday craft, then you belong wi th us.

J oin To day ! Mail in the fo rm below, phone 1 800 221-NMHS (6647), or visit us at: www.seahistory.org (e-mail: nmhs@seahistory.org)

Yes, I want to jo in the Society and receive Sea History quarterly. My co ntributio n is enclosed. ($ 17.50 is fo r Sea History; any amo unt above th at is tax deductible.) Sign me up as: D $35 Regul ar Member 0 $5 0 Family Member 0 $ 100 Friend 0 $250 Patron 0 $500 Dono r

106

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_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ Z IP_ _ _ _ __ Rerurn ro: atio nal Mari rime Histo ri cal Society, PO Box 68 , Peekskill NY I 0566

Seventh Maritime Heritage Conference October 27-30, 2004, Norfolk, Virginia NATIONAL MARITIME HISTORICAL SOCIETY OFFI CE RS & T RUSTEES : Chairman, H oward Slo tni ck; Vice Chairmen, Ri chardo R. Lopes, Edward G. Zelinsky; Executive Vice President, Bu rchenal G ree n; Treasurer, Wi lliam H. Wh ire; Secretary, Marshall Srre iberr; Trustees, Do nald M . Birney, Walrer R. Brown, Sabaro C arucc i, T ho mas F. Daly, Ri chard T. d u Mo ulin, D avid S. Fowler, Jack Gaffney, V irgi ni a Sreele G ru bb, Rodn ey N . Ho ugh ton, Sreve n W. Jones, Richard M. Larrabee, Warren G. Leback, G uy E. C. Mairl an d, Karen E. Markoe, M ichael R. M cKay, James J. McNam ara, Ro nald L. O swald, D avid Planner, Brad fo rd D . Smirh ; Chairmen Emeriti, Alan G . C hoate, G uy E. C. Mairl and , C raig A. C. Reynolds; Pres ident Emeritus, Perer Sta nford FO UNDER: Karl Ko rru m (19 17- 1996) OVERSEE RS: Chairman, RADM David C. Brown; Walter C ronkite, Alan D . Hutchiso n, Jakob lsbrandrsen, Joh n Leh man , Warren Ma rr, 11 , Brian A. McAllister, D avid A. O 'Neil, VADM Joh n R. Ryan, Joh n Stobarr, Wi ll iam G . W interer ADVISORS: Co-Chairmen, Frank 0 . Braynard, Mel bourne Smith ; D .K. Ahhass, Geo rge F. Bass, Francis E. Bowker, O swald L. Bren , No rman J. Brouwer, RADM Joseph F. Call o, Fra ncis ]. D uffy, John W. Ewald, Joseph E. Farr, Tim othy Foore, W illi am G il kerson, T homas C. G illmer, Wal rer J. H andelman, Sreven A. H yman, H ajo Knurrel , G unnar Lundeberg, Josep h A. Maggio, Co nrad Mi lster, W ill iam G. Muller, D avid E. Perkins, Nancy Hughes Richardson , T im orhy J. Runya n, Shann on J. Wall , T ho mas Well s NMH S STAF F: Executive Director, Bu rchenal G reen; Director of Education , David B. Al len; Membership Director, Na ncy Schn aars; Accounting, Jill Ro meo; Director ofAdvertising and Merchandise, Lisa D iBenederro SEA HISTO RY Editor : D eirdre O ' Regan To ger in to uch with us: Add ress: 5 John Walsh Bou leva rd PO Box 68 Peekskill NY 10566 Ph o ne: 9 14 737-7878; 800 22 1-NM H S Fax: 9 14 737-7 8 16 Web sire: www.seahisto ry.o rg nmhs@seahisrory. o rg E-mai l: MEMBERS HIP is invi ted. Afrerguard $ 10 ,000; Benefactor $5,000; Pl ankowner $2,500; Sponso r $ 1,000; Do no r $ 500; Parro n $25 0; Fri end $ 100; Co nrribu to r $75; Fam ily $50; Regular $35. AJI members outside rhe USA please add $ 10 for posrage. SEA HI STORY is se nr to all mem bers. Ind ivid ual copi es case $3 .75. Adverrisin : I 800 221-NM H S (6647), x235

he leading mari time heritage organizations in the H amp to n Roads, Virgini a region are pleased to announce that they will be hosting rhe next Mari tim e H eritage Co nference in histo ric No rfo lk. T hese institutions in clude th e H ampton Roads N aval Museum with th e battleship USS Wisconsin, T he Marin ers' Museum, Nauticus- The Na tional Maritim e Center, th e O ld Coast G uard Stati on Museum , th e O ld Cape H enry Lighthouse, rh e Porrs mouth Naval Shipya rd Museum , and the Virginia Maritime H eritage Foundation. An impress ive list of national and international mari time organizations will co-host the event: Ameri can Lighth ouse Coordinating C ommittee, Am eri can Sail Training Association, Co uncil of Am erican M aritime Museums, Historic Naval Ships Association , M useum Small C raft Associati on, National Mari time Alliance, National Maritime Historical Society, National Park Service, Na uti cal Research G uild , Naval Histori cal Center, Naval Historical Fo undation, N orth American Society for Oceani c History, US Life-Saving Service H eritage Association, and th e US Lighthouse Society. T he 5th International Ship Preservation Co nference will be included within the meeting program. T he Co nfere nce Program Committee is inviting abstracts fo r individual papers (1 5-30 minutes in length) and sess ion pro posals (three or fo ur papers in 1- 1/2 hours) on subj ects related to any aspect of maritime or naval history. T he deadline for submissions is March 1, 2004. Papers may address a N specific subj ect or as pects of th e broader themes such as lifesaving stations, lighthouses, marine art, maritime and naval _I , _ . , museums, mari time education, mercantile port operations, oceanic trade, admiralty courts, sa il ors' life ashore, shipbuilding, ship preserva ti on, small craft, tall ships, and underwater archaeology. Co ntact Program Chair Joseph C. Mosier for submission specifi cs . I le may be reached al: Maritime Heritage Conference, Chrysler Museum of Art, 245 West Olney Road, Norfolk, VA 23510-1587 , telephone 7 57 664-6205, fax 757 664-6201, e-mail: jmosier@chrysler.org. T he conference will open with a reception on Wednesday, O ctober 27 at Nauticus and aboard the USS Wisconsin. Prog ram sessions s will be conducted from T hursday, October 28 thro ugh Satu rday, O ctober 30. O n Friday, October 29 , attendees will board the Spirit ofNorfolk fo r lunch and enj oy a narrated cruise of H ampton Roads. T he ship will pass by local naval install ati ons and then proceed to the USS Monitor and CSS Virginia barrl es ire. Naval histo rian D r. Alan Flanders will describe the naval facilities and Jeff Johnsto n of the Monitor Nati onal Marin e Sancruary will narrate the battle of th e ironclads as the Spirit circles the location of the skirmish. Histo ri c Newport News M iddle Ground Ligh t will also be viewed and described . T he ship will th en proceed to the Newport N ews Marine Te rminal where co nferees and their compani ons will board busses for T he M arin ers' M useum in Newport News. T he museum galleries will be open for tours. Tours will be fo llowed by a reception. Gro ups wishing to conduct business meetin gs or hold gatherings of their atte ndees can be acco mmodated. Sunday, October 3 1 will be set as ide for this purpose, though such meetin gs can also be fit in during the regular conference days. Co nfe rence chair Captain Channing M . Zucker should be contacted for makin g these arrangements. H e can be reached at th e Historic Naval Ships Association, 5245 C leveland Street #207, Virginia Beach, VA 234 62-6505 ; telephone: 757 499-1044, fax: 757 4 99-6378, e-mail: hnsaOl @aol.com. Conference information can be found on the Nauticus Web site at www.nauticus.org. Fro m rhe home page, cli ck on T he National Mariti me Ce nter and scro ll down to "Seventh Mari time H eritage Co nference." T he conference brochure will include the meeting agenda, program session descrip tions, to ur sign-up derails, registration fo rm , and hotel reserva tio n instru cti ons, and is pl ann ed fo r issue in Jun e 2004. Ir will be avail able via US Postal Service mail and on th e we b site.

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NMHS:

A CAUSE IN MOTION We held our Ann ual Awards Dinner on November 5 at the New York Yacht C lub. Dinner chairmen David Fowler and Richard du Moulin hosted the evening with wit, grace, and style while guests mingled, listening to the live vocals of the US Coast Guard Academy Singers. NMHS was honored to recognize Dr. Robert Ballard of the Institute for Exploration for his discovery of the wrecks of the Titanic, USS Yorktown, and other ships, and most recently, his groundbreaking work in the depths of the Black Sea, with our Distinguished Service Award. We were also privileged to present the NMHS Founder's Sheet Anchor Award to Overseer David A. O 'Ne il-chair-

Left: USCG Academy Singers; Middle (l tor): NMHS Chairman Howard Slotnick, David Fowler, David O'Neil, Richard du Moulin; Above: Dr. Robert Ballard lectures about his Black Sea discoveries. (Photos: Amy Y Lee)

past chairman of the American Merchant Marine Museum Foundation, former president of the Society of Naval Architects and Marine Engin eers, and past Governor of India House- in recognition of his extraordinary leadership in building the strength and outreach of the Society. Many thanks to all who participated. BURCH ENAL GREEN

Executive Vice President

Join Us inAnnapoCis for NMHS's Annua( Meeting Join fellow members, NMHS and Sea History staff, and the Board ofTrustees for our Annual Meeting, Friday, 11 June 2004. Hosted by the US Naval Academy Museum, the meeting will take place at the Officers' C lub. Events will include the NMHS Business Meeting, luncheon, and afternoon tours of the Yard-as the Academy is known-and US Naval Academy Museum. We are also looking into a special tour at another maritime historical site on Saturday. We have reserved a block of rooms at The O'Callaghan Hotel

in Annapolis, 174 West Street, Annapolis MD 21401, for Thursday, Friday, and Samrday evenings at $160 per night. Phone the hotel at 4 10 263-7700 and request NMHS rooms. Book early while rooms last. T he hotel is within walking distance, and a shuttle will be provided berween the hotel and the Academy. We hope you will join us to discuss NMHS activiti es and plan for the future. Please call NMHS at 800 221-NMHS (6647), ext. 0 or e-mai l nmhs@seahistory.org.

NMHS Annual Meeting 2004 Registration

I/We will attend rhe Annua l Meeting and Luncheon in Annapo lis, Maryland. Please reserve _ _ places ar $50 each*

D D

l/We will arrend rhe NMHS Dinner ar The O'Callaghan Hore! Friday ni ghr ar 7:30 PM. Please rese rve _ _ places ar $65 each.

Please make me a Sponsor of rhe Annual Meering. My $ 1000 co nrribution includes rwo places at rh e luncheon and a half-page lisring in rh e Annual Meeting program. (I will use _ I _2 _neirher of rhese places.*)

I wou ld like ro help NMHS with this donation: _ _ __

Please make me a Parron of th e Annual Meeting. My $250 co ntribution includes rwo places at the luncheon and a listing in rh e An nu al Mee ting Program. (I wi ll use _ 1 _2 _ne1ther of th ese places.*)

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SEA HISTORY 106, WINTER 2004

Schooner Lucerne: Lessons from a Great Lakes Shipwreck by Andrew Jalbert

emnants of hilltops formed between pre-glacial valleys daring hundreds of millions of years old, Lake Superior's Aposrle Islands have endured rhe scouring forces of water and ice to become a playground for tourists and outdoor enthusias ts drawn to their scenic beauty. With their proximi ty to such historic industrial shipping ports as Washburn, Bayfield, and Ashland, the Apostle Islands boast a rich maritime history as well. Scattered across the lakebed throughout the islands lay numerous shipwrecks, beautifully preserved in Superior's fresh icy water. One example is the schooner L ucerne, whose tragic sinking gives us a glimpse into the often harsh conditions that nineteenth cenrury mariners had to face and also shows how quality cultural resource managem enr can serve rhe public while preserving and prorecring those resources. The Lucerne Builr in Tonawanda, N ew York by the Parsons & Humble shipyard, the L ucerne measured 194.9 feer in length and had a 33 .7 foor beam. A large ship for her day, she was builr to carry 52,000 bushels of corn. The L ucerne ran cargo between Lake Mi chigan ports and Buffalo after her launching on 23 April 1873. Although originally registered in Buffalo , the L ucerne would change owners and masters numerous rimes in her shorr career. H er final owners, James and John C orrigan, bought the ship in M arch of 1886. At the rime, James C orrigan was

Contemporary painting ofthe schooner Lucerne. Artist unknown.

buying controlling inrerests in Lake Superior iron mines and smelting furn aces and hoped to use her fo r rrans porring ore. The new owners outfitted her wirh new sails and fittin gs and hired Captain George Lloyd of D etroit. In spite of her improvements, she wo uld only sail fo r eight monrhs before she fell victim to one of Lake Superior's in famous storms. A Tragic End T he L ucerne had offloaded coal m Was hburn, Wisconsin on November 12, 1886 befo re setting off fo r As hland, Wisconsin . Once in As hland, she took on 1,256 to ns of iron ore fo r C leveland. U nder th e command Lucerne's capstan shows the excellent state of preservation of Captain Lloyd, rhe typical of Great Lakes shipwrecks. ship departed under sail in fair weather. H er final run of the seaso n proved to be the las t she and her crew wo uld ever make. T he Lucerne headed northeas t along the Michigan coas tline towards the Keweenaw Peninsula when rhe ferocious Lake Superior nor' easter hir, bringing wirh ir gale fo rce winds

SEA HIST O RY 106, WINTER 2004

and vicious snow squalls. T he ship was sighted by two orher vessels during Captain Lloyd's artemp r to navigate rhro ugh rhe storm. Aro und 4 PM th e nexr day, the steam barge Fred Kelly reported that the Lucerne was rolling and pi tching in heavy seas off O nto nago n, with all sails set except the fo re-gaff-topsail. Again at dusk, th e mate of the Kelly re ported that the Lucerne had pur about, apparenrl y running fo r the safety of Chequamego n Bay. Based on reports fro m orher vessels and the locati on of the wreck site, it appears Captain Lloyd had hoped to clear Chequamegon Point, perhaps hoping to locate the La Pointe lighthouse fo r reference. Whether the lighthouse was no t visible or the captain simply could not get his bearings and feared sailing further amongst the treacherous shoals of the Apostles remains a mystery today. W hichever the case, anchors were dropped, suggesting they hoped to ride out the storm. T heir attempt failed, and on November 17th or 18 th the violent storm claimed the Lucerne, jamming her centerboard against the shallow lake bottom. T he heavy wave action beat the centerboard against the shoal until her seams split open and water flood ed the hull . As the ship slipped benea th the surface, some of the sailors tried to escape by climbing into the rigging. Their fa te wo uld be as terrible as those who stayed on deck. 7

ore fiel d

Sch(loner Lucerne Site Plan '

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...--

I ma instep pump box

\ keelson break

.... /

:: deck beam

drainpipe

On the morning of November 19th, the keeper at the La Pointe lighthouse awoke to a horrific scene. His reporr is as fo llows: "From tower saw a vessel with 2 masts pretty close to the shore. I went down, I found it was a barque wrecked. It appeared that they had Let go their anchors. She was lying bow to the east, about 2 miles from Lighthouse. I discovered 3 bodies, one in main, 2 in mizzen rigging, did not find any bodies on the shore. Her boat is between the lighthouse and the end of the point. H er stem came ashore_ mile east ofthe lighthouse. On her arch board is Lucerne, C leveland. The fishing tugs were out setting their nets in the morning, they saw the wreck and reported it

at Bayfield. The fishing tug Browne came to the wreck at 1 p m and took the bodies from the rigging and took them to Bayfield. " (US Lighthouse Service 19 November 1886).

Searchers aboard Bayfi eld rugs S. B. Barker and Cyclone discovered rh e wreckage later char afternoon. They reported char a section of the Lucerne's cabin was drifting near shore, and char the dead m en in rhe rigging were covered by one to six in ches of ice. The fro ze n sailors were cur down and brought to rh e undertaker in Bayfi eld where the Ashland Weekly Press described them : "One is heavily dressed, having on five overcoats beside heavy underwear. Feet were bare. Height 5 feet 10 Divers document Lucerne swindlass and chain anchor rode. inches; weight about 160 pounds. H is age cannot be far from 45. Heavy sandy moustache, but no beard. One of the others wore a heavy sandy beard, was 5 foot 10 inches ta!!, and was about 40 years old. He was also heavily dressed and had on rubber boots. The other was a young man, smooth face, 5 feet 9 inches ta!!, weight around 13 5, and about 21 years old. He was scantily

dressed, but wore high top boots. " (Ashland Weekly Press, 20 November 1886). The body of mate Robert Jeffreys washed ashore soo n afrer rhe wrecking. The next summer another body washed up on the shore of Long Island and was believed to have been another of the Lucerne's crew, leaving the probable number of sailo rs unacco umed for at four. Lucerne the Shipwreck Today, the remains of rhe Lucerne li e in twenty-four feet of water off rhe northeas t side of Long Island nea r As hland, Wi sco nsin (46° 43.389' North, 90° 46.035 ' Wes t) . The wreck is a wonderful example of Lake Superior's preservation, and the hull is remarkably imacr. The heavy iron ore cargo char she was hauling on her final voyage can be seen throughout the midships area and scattered about rhe lakebed nearby. The forecas tle deck is partially intact including the wind lass, capstan, and chain locker. Although th e anchors and eighty fathoms of chain were salvaged in 1887, small sections of chain srill remain, o ne draped over the starboard wildcat and another spanning between the foredeck and rhe chain locker. An iron bar remains eerily jammed beneath the chain on the starboard wi ldcat, suggesting the crew tried to loosen the frozen windlass and drop the starboard anchor as they attempted to ride SEA HISTORY 106, WINTER 2004

deckbeams

Archaeologists from the Wisconsin H istorical Society and the Maritime Studies Program at East Carolina University documented the Lucerne shipwreck site in the early 1990s.

Lucerne s bow section

fore~hains ~ out the storm. The spars are gone, as are the cabin, rudder, and steering gear. A close look inside the 3 1-foot long centerboard trunk shows that the centerboard still remains, although the centerboard winch was reportedly salvaged by divers in the 1970s. Of note is that the Lucerne's keelsons are broken just forward of the centerboard, reinforcing the theory that the centerboard lodged against the lake bottom while facing into the storm. Centerboards were designed to pivot on their front end, allowing them to rotate up if the vessel struck bottom while moving forward. If a ship blown backwards struck the bottom , the centerboard could not pivot and the stress wo uld be shouldered by the trunk and the keelso ns. Although the Lucerne's hull is preserved only up to the deck level, a peek at her ghostly bow alone makes a dive worthwhile. Visibility typically ranges from 5 to 45 feet and the white sand bottom surrounding the wreck is largely clear of debris. Most of the artifacts (personal effects of the crew, brass binoculars, calipers, a leather bible cover with the lettering "SCHOONER LUCERNE," etc.) were removed during a 1977 investigation, many of which are on display at the Canal Park Marine Museum in Duluth, M innesota and at the Little Sand Bay Visitor Center. SEA HISTORY 106, WINTER 2004

Preserving the Past The Wisconsin Historical Society (WHS) together with the University of W isconsin Sea Grant Institute (UWSGI) maintain a mooring buoy on the Lucerne, making it more accessible for divers and preventing damage to the site by providing a means fo r divers to secure their boats to the wreck without dropping anchors. State regulations prohibiting the removal of artifacts are clearly primed on the buoy as well. WHS and the UWSG I have produced dive guides for the Lucerne containing a site map, historical information , and the regulations prohibiting artifact collection. These programs are part of an ongo111g effort to 111crease

diver awareness and education about maritime history. Hopefull y, divers and government agencies can work together to preserve shipwrecks such as the Lucerne for generations to come. 1, Andrew Jalbert is a professional archaeologist and SCUBA instructor. Based out ofM adison, Wisconsin, he is vice president of Strata Morph Geoexploration, Inc., a firm specializing in archaeological research and consulting. For more information, visit www.jalbertphotography.com.

[DJ WHJISS$00RNJCSAJNL WISCONSIN

Bordered to the wes t by the Mississippi and St. Croix Rivers, and l' to the east and north by 860 miles of Lakes Superior and Michigan very much a maritime shoreline, Wisconsin is state. Wisconsin's eco nomic, industrial , and social development have all been impacted by its proximi ty to water, and it is nor surprising that the state possesses a rich maritime archaeological record. Established in 1987, the Wisconsin Historical Society's Maritime Preservation and Archaeology Program (MPA) is responsible for the documentation, interpretation, and management of Wisconsin's submerged cultural resources. The MPA has surveyed, mapped, and documented more than eighty underwater archaeological sites, ranging from inundated eighteenth-century fur trade posts, to nineteenth-century schooners and steamers, to twentieth-century fishing rugs. To learn more about Wisconsin's fascinating maritime history and underwater archaeology, visit: www.wisconsinshipwrecks.org and www.maririmetrails.org.

SOCIETY

by Edward Von der Porten amous firsts are magnets for histo rians, biographers, poets, nationalists and romantics. If mys tery can be connected to a famous event, untold legions of amateur detectives come forward claiming they have solved controversies th at have confounded academics for generations. Perhaps there m ay be no m ys tery in the first place. In their research, they disregard or warp evidence to fit the desired conclusion. The results invariably co nAict with each other, ye t nothing deters them from their paths toward page-o ne headlines. Witness the ancient astronauts who inAuenced civilizations around th e world, the Chinese admiral who vis ited every coastline of the Americas, and the Vikings who explored half of Ameri ca five centuries before Columbus. All are passionately believed . All widely published. Al l fantasy. Francis Drake was one of the great sailors in exploration history. Inevitably, his memory attracts scholars, hopeful dreamers, and outright cranks. Once again, anaspecrofDrake'scircumnavigation (1577 to 1580) is tlle subject of an elaborate nationalistic romance. Samuel Bawlf, a former minister of me British Col umbia government, is fascinated by Drake and old maps. He devised a legend which credits Drake wim discovering Bawlf's home province in the spring and summer ofl 579. knot speed the Golden Hind could maintain close-hauled on a long H ow Bawlf succeeded in having his srory published on born sides of offshore voyage. the Atlantic should be a cautionary tale for all who prefer accurate Once Bawlf placed Drake well north on the coast, he used a row histories of mariners and me sea. of four tiny islands shown on two contemporary, small-scale world Bawlfbased his hypothesis on limited facts and many supposi- m aps to identi fy the places Drake visited. H e alleged that these tions. From them he constructed a conspiracy theory which allowed islands were placed on the maps as a result of Drake's explorations him ro disrort evidence, ignore inform ation char does not fit his and identifi ed chem as Prince of Wales Island, the Queen C harlotte theory, and report hererofore unknown events whose narratives, Islands, Vancouver Island, and the Olympic Peninsula. Bawlf ache says, were suppressed in Drake's day. counted for the 600-nautical-mile discrepancy by explaining that Bawlf starts his tale in southern Mexico, where Drake's raid on he uncovered a conspiracy by the government of Drake's monarch, Spain's New World towns and shipping ended in April 1579. With Queen Elizabeth, to disguise information about the voyage after his a long voyage still ahead, Drake needed a safe place to repair and return. T his purported conspiracy, according to Bawlf, created a plot resupply his treasure-laden Golden Hind. H e also sought a northwes t to move Drake's published latitudes so uthward by ten degrees. That passage that might rake him eastward through northern North he has no evidence for either the conspiracy or his "ten-degree rule" America to the Atlantic and home. Drake's ships sailed westward apparently posed no problem for Bawlf. Nonetheless, the islands first from the port of Guarulco appeared on the 1564 Ortelto find the northeast trade Golden Hind rounds Point Reyes and enters Drakes Bay, Latitude 38Â° N ius world map-fifteen years winds, then northwes t until before Drake's visit. Later, they reached th e wes tercartographers simply copied f them and then added a rough lies, after whi ch they sailed approximation of Drake's north-northeast until they track. T hus, these islands, came upon the coast. Bawlf which are the foundation of ass umes the approximately 1,400 leagues (4,200 miles) Bawlf's cartographic theories, could not have derived from Drake sailed were modern leagues of 18 ,228 feet, which Drake's voyage. he used to place Drake's landH avi ng estab lished the region Drake visited to his fall on Vancouver Island's west coast. D rake, however, satisfaction, Bawlf examined many o th er contempo rary used the Elizabethan league maps and co rrelated place ofl5,000 feet, whi ch wo uld names on them with locaplace his landfall more than tions on modern maps of the 300 nauti cal miles to the northwest coast. He altered so uth , in southern Oregon, la ti tu des and ignored the fact consistent with the threeDRAWING BY RAYMON D AKER, COU RTESY DO ROTH Y AKE R

SEA HISTORY 106, WINTER 2004

135°W

that many early maps are grossly distorted, bearing no relation to the actual coastline and islands. D espi te these discrepancies, Bawlf credited al l these sites ro Drake's explorations. In order to place Drake at each of these locations, Bawlf claimed D rake sailed north on a voyage of discovery after reaching the coast, although the accounts state that D rake steered south because co ntrary winds prevented him from sailing fa rther north . Bawlf has D rake sailing 2,000 miles up and down the outer coas ts, around the islands, and through th e Inside Passage, fro m southern Alaska to northern O regon in 44 days, maki ng discoveries that later explorers took rwenty years to wo rk out. Of the 44 days, he allows 10 for stops alo ng the way, leaving 34 sailing days. Travel ing day and nigh t, his ave rage speed wo uld have had to be 2.45 knots, or 58 .8 nautical miles per day. T he Golden H ind averaged three to four knots in open ocean in good co nditions with favora ble winds. Coasrwise, D rake could have navigated onl y in dayligh t. Allowing for co ntrary winds and currents, tide races, shoals, fog, rain, and all the other vicissitudes of sailing along co mpl ex, dangerous, and uncharted coasts, his average speed co uld not have topped one knot in dayligh t-well under 20 miles per day. D rake and his crew did not spend 44 days exploring the coast. Bawlf came up with 44 days by adding 30 days to the 14 given in voyage acco unts. H e shifted the dares when Drake arrived at his harbor and again when he left afte r repairs and p rovisioning. Acco rding to the contemporary reco rds, however, after sailing fro m his harbor (now named Drake's Bay, just inside of Point Reyes, Californi a) Drake visited a gro up of islands on 24-25 July, naming them the Isles of SaintJames . This left Drake 14 days-not 44-to carry out his coastal explorations.With no stops, his day-and-night speed to travel 2,000 miles wo uld have had to average 5.95 knots, or 142.8 na utical miles per day, in a ship capable of!ess than one kn ot in those co ndi tions. At the end of his shoreline survey, D rake and his crew spent 36 days in a harbor repairing the Golden Hind and preparing for the next phase of the voyage. Bawlf identified the sire as Whale Cove, O regon. W hale Cove does not have the prominent whi te cliffs, which acco unts say inspi red D rake to name the land Nova Albion ("New England"), the offshore Islands of Saint James, nor

"'"'

'-----------------------' ~ The distinctive feather headresses ofthe Coast Miwok People were drawn by a later explorer. (Print after Louis Choris, 1822)

SEA HISTORY 106, WINTER 2004

12s0 w

130°W

120"W

Plot of Samuel Bawlfs Concept of Francis Drake's Search for the Northwest Passage

CA '\IA DA

Pacific Ocean

, . Oregon Dunes /..

Drake Navigators Guild landfall

/ om -llllllli'ii:o:: o====2 :Joo I 135°W

130°W

Nautical Miles 125"W

120°W

sixteenth-cen rnry explorer artifacts as have been found in the Point Reyes location. A contemporary drawing of th e harbor revealed an open-bay anchorage adj acent to the sheltered cove where they careened the Golden Hind. W hale Cove has no such characteristics-it could not have been Drake's port. Bawlf described D rake's encounters with Native American peoples alon g his ro ute and at his port. At Bawlf's proposed locations, these wo uld have been northwes t-coast peoples who used huge cedar canoes, split-plank communal houses, and totems. H e explained that descriptions of these meetings were omirred from the record. Bawlf ignores th e fact, however, that the accounts of the voyage described the Native American peoples Drake met at his harbor in great detail , and ethnographers have shown that they were the Coas t M iwok People, a Californian group living at and near lari rnde 38° north who had a completely different lifestyle than the No rthwest-Coast peoples. Drake's chroniclers co uld not have described the distinctive cosrnmes, ceremonies, artifacts, words, and lifeways of a peo ple they had never seen. Bawlf can not move a documented Native Ameri can tribe north 400 nautical miles simply because it suits him. 11

Left: Drake's California Harbor. This re-construction drawing is based on a contemporary view-map ofDrake's careening harbor and modern photographs from the overlook Drake used. Below: The White Cliffs of Nova Albion . Drake named this area Nova Albion after the white cliffs that reminded his crew ofEngland's coast. Here the cliffs are seen from sea under the persistent summer fog, also described in the voyage accounts. The gap is the entrance to Drakes Estero, a secure harbor. These features are not found in proposed alternate sites.

Bawlf's publications overlook much m odern scholarship abo ut Drake in the N orth Pacific and igno re most of the contemporary acco unts. H e altered rhe evidence he deemed useful by following a series of "rules" created by a supposed-Elizabethan co nspiracy, which he claims to have decoded, and added narrative from pure speculation . H ow did Bawlf succeed in having his ideas spread through publication in three countries? H e began by publishing a six-page ve rsion in the Vancouver Sun newspaper in 2000 . T hat articl e attracted considerable publi c interest. H e then self-published his first book, Sir Francis Drake's Secret Voyage to the Northwest Coast ofAmerica, AD 1579, to explain his ideas in detail. T he book is expensive at $ 100 Canadian (approximately $60 US D ). In it, Bawlf printed the nam es of eighteen scholars who reviewed drafts of the manuscrip t bur never mentioned if they agreed with his ideas. Bawlf no ted that five (unnamed) reviewers wro te to the British Co lumbia government supporring his "principal co nclusio n." T his first book was not widely reviewed. One lone favo rable review helped persuade a commercial publisher to print his seco nd book.

THE DRAKE NAVIGATORS GUILD The Drake Navigators G uild is a no n-profit research organization which brings together perso ns fro m many fields of scholarship to study rh e earl y exploration of rhe west coast of N orth America. Founded in 1949, its members and associates include practical seamen and researchers in fields as diverse as nautical history, cartography, hydrography, meteo rology, ship construction, seamanship, navigation, biology, zoology, archaeology, ethnography, museology, and Chinese ceramics. The G uild has identified the location of Francis Drake's harbo rof 1579, where Drake repaired his Go/den Hind and m ade the first English claim to the land known as Drake's C ove in Drake's Bay, thirty miles north of San Francisco. Ir has also inves tigated M anila galleon coas tal contacts, including the 1595 shipwreck of Sebas tian Rodriguez Cermeii o's San Agustin. For more information , contact The Guild c/o its Pres ident: Edward Von der Porten , 143 Springfield Drive, San Francisco, CA 94 132-1 456; e- mail edandsaryl@aol.com.

The Secret Voyage ofSir Francis Drake, 15 77-1580, reads qui re differently from the first book. Ir starts with a short introduction to Drake and his times and emph as izes England's quest for a northwest passage. A co nventi onal hi sto ry of Drake's circumnavigation , its afrermath, and Drake's late r life fo llow. No r until page 26 5 did Bawlf begin to introduce his ideas regarding Drake's time in the Pacifi c No rthwes t. At this point, he narrated his version of Drake's explorations. W hile the first book often started with hypotheses, soon treated them as pro babilities, and eventually used wo rds like "now we know," "undoub tedly, " and "now revealed," this book simply presents Bawlf's co nclusio ns as fac t. In the end notes he often cited his first book, which most reviewers and readers wo uld not have available. Even if it we re, strong familiarity with the so urces wo uld be required fo r an effective evaluation. Samuel Bawlfhas created a new Drake myth . It creates misin for matio n, a "history" built on specul ation and derived from hypotheses based o n the thinnest of mani pulated evidence. Yer it will survive in used-book stores, be referenced by unsuspecting students, and be quoted in discussions of Drake's Wes t Coas t landing place long after we have all crossed the bar. CREDITS: The late D rake scholar Raymond Aker's analysis of Bawlf's case provided much information for this article. Fellow members of the research group the Drake Navigators G uild provided input and reviewed the m anuscript.

President ofthe Drake Navigators Guild, Edward Von der Porten has worked as a naval historian, nautical archaeologist, museum director, and educator. He has extensively researched topics on pre- Viking and Viking shipbuilding, Henry VIII's Mary Rose and the development of big-gun warship, Francis Drake's California encampment, early M anila galleon wrecks, early Chinese trade porcelains, and the WWII German navy. SEA HISTORY l 06, WINTER 2004

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Historic Ships on a Lee Shore This year has been a struggle as we try to ride out a difficult economy. Groups that depend on donations and grants have felt the sting acutely-stewards of aging historic ships even more so. Three ships in particular, the Schooners Ernestina and Wawona, and the SS Catalina are in such financial distress that they will be lost without outside help. Each is listed either on the National Register for Historic Places or as a National Historic Landmark. They are important-and irreplaceable-parts of our nation's maritime heritage. Unless the funds to save them arrive soon, these three vessels, and the history they carry, will be lost.

Schooner Ernestina

ex-Effie M. Morrissey by D ei rdre O 'Regan

n Fairhave n, Massachusetts, the schooner Ernestina hibernates under her winter cover waiting for the spring thaw and fair winds. Unless the state has a change of heart, however, those covers may neve r come off. The state rece ntly to ld Ernestina's Executive Director, Captain G regg Swanzey, that the mon ey the Co mmonwealth usually provides for the annual haul-out, repairs, maintenance, and , impo rtantly, h er US Coas t G uard in spection would not be forthcoming thi s yea r. This abandonment by the state, whose Aag she Aies as the official vessel of the Co mm o nwealth of M assachusetts, could be catastrophic to the vessel and is almost certain to be a disaster for the educational program s rhar call her home. Even on the scale of the Ernestina's modest finances, the amount of money is not great- bur it is a crucial piece of her budget. Massachusetts actuall y provides only a third of rhe ship's annual budget. Mostly, she works for her living. H er educational programs earn nearly $200,000 a year. Grants and donations round our her annual budget. Is rhe Ernestina just another old vessel begging for a stare handout? No. In these rimes of fi scal strain, is she worth the money rhar the stare lays our, year after year, fo r her upkeep? She's worth it and a

SEA HISTORY I 06 , WINTER 2004

lot more besides. The stare of Massachusetts, of course, has to make some difficult choices-rimes are hard. Massachusetts nears rhe top of the list of stares with the highest borrowed money per capita. The $15 billion dollar "Big Dig," the reconfiguring of Boston's highway infrastructure in rhe form of runnels burrowed underneath the ciry, has aggravated already strai ned stare finances. It is easy to see how state bookkeepers thought the $200,000 they could swipe from the Ernestina was a plum- albeit a small one- to be plucked. So it came to pass rhar, nearly halfuray through the state's fiscal year, the D epartment of Conserva-

rion and Recreation gave Captain Swanzey the bad news rh ar this yea r's check would nor be co ming. The riming was worse than the news-with almost no rime to find an alternate so urce of funds before commitments needed to be made for the coming seaso n, rhe Ernestina's found ation may be forced to cancel rhe educational programs that provide a quarter of her budget. Without these funds, the ship-at least with her current educational mission- may literally be lost. Losing the Ernestina would be a tragedy. She is a viral part of rhe history of both Massachusetts and the nation. Permitting rhe state's budget offices to do what a century of gales, Arctic ice and rhe German Navy could not would be a sad comment on rhe value we place on both o ur history and our present. What a life she has lead! Schooner Ernestina bega n her life as rhe Effie M . Morrissey. She has been actively sailing Atlantic waters for over a century and under three Aags. H er history is as varied as any single vessel could have. Built in 1894 in Essex, Massachusetts, the Morrissey fished on rhe G rand Banks- landing 250,000 pounds of cod on her maiden voyage. In 1912, rh e Morrissey was immortalized by a ballad written about her "reco rd run" from Portland, Maine to Yarmouth, Nova Scotia.

new sails by hand on the dock in Providence, using the tradition al skills of needl e and sail palm. By the 1960s, Ernestina was tired. Although she was still sailing a hundred trips a year beMoored to pan ice in the Bering Sea, Stoll McCracken Expedition, 1928 rween the islands, she made only one rounding veterans, the Effie trip voyage to New England. She began M. Morrissey had some hogging and her decks were totally worn / hard times after the war. down. Captain Mendes could no longer I Captain Bartlett died in afford her maintenance costs. So valuable 1946. His ship was sold. was her service, however, that the Cape Then she caught fire in Verdean governm ent stepped in and paid New York and sank from for $25,000 of repairs in 1963. Her frames, the water flooding her keel sections, and hull timbers were reb uilt hold from fire hoses. Fo r in 1972 and she sailed commercially for most vessels, this wo uld rwo more yea rs. have been the end of the lin e. For the Effie In 1976, under the auspices of the The schooner logged 200 miles in rwenry M. Morrissey, it was just the prelude to her National Maritime Historical Society, hours (under just the foresail for the last fourth career. the Friends of the Ernestina/Morrissey was A veteran sea captain in the Cape formed to raise funds for acquiring and reeight). Even today, with a fresh breeze blowing, sailing aboard her is like riding a Verdean packet trade bought her, repaired storing the ship and planning for her fu and restored the ship. H e took out the en- ture. A yea r later the Government of Cape freight train . By the 1920s, the Effie M. Morrissey gine and set sail for the Cape Verde Islands Verde offi cially gave the ship back to the made her way to the Canadian Mari times. off the west coast of Africa carrying sevenry US as an expression of good will to honor Luckily for the local cod, she didn't stay to ns of cargo. H e registered the schooner the ties berween the rwo countries and Erlong. In 1924, Captai n Robert Bartlett, in Cape Verde and re-named her Ernestina nestina's role in it. Cape Verdeans worked by th en a fa mous ship captain, navigato r, in honor of his then-teenage daughter. For locally to restore the vessel to a seaworthy and arctic explorer decided it was time for the next quarter century the Ernestina- condition to make the passage back to the the Effie M. Morrissey to change careers. under sail power alone-carried cargo and H e sheath ed her hull with greenheart and passengers amongst the islands and across install ed her first diesel engine. For rwenry the Atl antic to New England. The stories of her tra nsatlantic voyages years, the Morrissey was an explorer. Sailing from New York C iry, she was home to ex- include details that give us a glimpse into peditions of American Museum of Natural the realities of our nation's immigratio Histo ry, the Museum of the American In- policies and rwentiethth-century seafardian, the National Geographic Sociery, the ing, making these histories real and perSmithso nian, and others. T he ship's com- sonal. For example, the ship, sailing wit pany conducted experiments and stud- no auxiliary power, endured coundes ies in oceanography, anthropology, and gales and hurricanes. She was dismasted arMâ&#x20AC;˘~ brought back countless samples of Arctic least rwice-once a crewmem ber rowed a plants and an imals. In 1940-at nearly small boat ten miles to shore to get help. fifry-she set yet another record. Bartlett Some passages we re torturously slow at 54 steered his ship to 80Â° 22' north latitude, days across the Atlantic; others took hal under 600 miles from the North Pole. No that long. For Cape Verdean com munities in woode n sailing vessel had ever-or would southern New England, Ernestina providever-co me so close to the Pole. During World War II , the Effie M. ed, for many, their only links to family and Morrissey, naturally enough, enlisted. She homeland an ocean away. People regularly carried suppli es to Arctic naval and air flocked by the hundreds to greet the ship bases and made a number of hydrogra phi c when it arrived in port after a transAtlanresearch missions. Like many return- tic. In the 1950s, crew mem bers still built

SEA HISTORY J06, WINTER 2004

Srares wirh marerials and services furnished by local agencies. In 1978 rhe Massachuserrs Schooner Ernestina Commission was esrablished ro receive rhe official ride; rhe Ciry of New Bedford pledged $40,000 for improvements ro rheir wa rerfronr in order ro provide rhe ship wirh a suirable homeporr. Ernestina lefr M indelo, Cape Verde for good in rhe summer of 1982. O ver rhe nexr several years, the ship was transformed thanks ro rhe support Ernestina as a Cape Verde packet ship in 1948-docked at the state pier in New Bedfo rd, and drive of Massachusetts legislators and Massachusetts, now her homeport. its new Captain and Executive Director, Dan Moreland. C aptain Moreland super- rions and she will nor be allowed ro get so many aspects of their herirage. Schooner Ernestina is unique among vised a near rota! restorarion . In 1987 the underway with students or passengers . National Trust for Historic Preservation The professional sailing crew and educa- historic ships in rhar she is already full y honored Moreland and the ship for "their rors, some of whom have a long relation- restored, USCG-certified to get underway outstanding commitment to excellence in ship with rhe ship, will move on ro other on voyages wirh students and passengers. historic preservation. " W ith Moreland at organizarions resulting in a loss of con- She does nor require a restoration costthe helm , rhe ship attained USCG certifi- sisrency. $200,000 in programming fees ing millions of dollars-but will if left to cation as a sailing school vessel. Ernestina will nor be earned and organizarions will ror ar rh e dock. In the decision ro cur her visired ports up and down the eastern sea- find other ships on which ro run their pro- fundin g, perhaps M assachusetts legislarors board and northeast inro Nova Scotia and grams, jeopardi zing long-standing rela- we re nor fully aware of her rich history, her Newfoundland, returning to her former tionships and returning programs. Foun- on-go ing programs rhar serve rhe public homeports while educaring a new genera- darion granrs will be curtailed and perhaps faithfully, and a wooden ship's inabiliry to rion of seafarers. complerely cur off if rhe ship is not sailing. maintain irself. Economic times are hard, In 1990, rhe Schooner Ernestina be- Support fro m members and donors plus but what will be lefr once we recover? 1came a Na rional Hisroric For information, contact Schooner ErnesLandmark. Ten years ago, ri na, 89 N orth Wizter St, PO Box 2 010, the Massachusetrs legislarure New Bedford MA 02741; Ph. 5 08 992 established the Schooner Er4900; or visit their award-winning web nestina Commission, des igsite at www.ernestina. org. nating the ship as the "official vessel of the Commonwealrh of M assachusetts. " W hen rhe New Bedford Whaling With a "Bone in her Teeth, " N arional Hisroric Park was 1998 Gloucester Schooner Festival established in 1996, Ernestina was named as part of the D elivering a gift from the Republic ofCape Verde park. Since then, Schooner Ernestina has volunreers will wane. A gift fro m rhe Republic of Cape Verde will nor been sailing regularly from spring to aurumn co nducring educational programs be adequarely cared for and used from short dockside evenrs ro rwo-week- fo r educational purposes that were the inten tion of the gift and the long sailing programs. In the las r several years, the ship has hosred approximarel y undersranding of the stare when it 5,000 students and 15,000 persons a accepted stewardship. Next summer rhe Am erican Sail Training Associayear. H er office crew conducts outreach ~ w programs with school children and edu- tion is sponsoring the TallShip Chal15 z carional organizations year- ro und. At the lenge 2004 series. It seems unlikely < ci rhat rhe Schooner Ernestina will moment, rhose programs and rhe fu rure of z ::s participare. Mosrly, rhe rhousands of rhe Ernestina herself are in grave danger. "'>"' Without funds, rhere will be no ship's school children and visitors fro m th e "' ~ mainrenance and repairs, no USCG in- general public will nor have access ro 0 I specrion . Ernestina will lose her certifica- a vessel that embodies the stories of "-

SEA HISTORY 106, WINTER 2004

Schooner Wawona by Joe Follansbee

plan to develop park land near downtown Seattle has upset efforts to preserve a 106-year-old historic schooner. No rthwest Seaport, a non-profit, is slowly restoring the three-mas ted schooner Wawo na. T he ship is berthed next to a city park that the Seattle Parks Department wants to develop into a maritime heritage park. A perfect match, one might think, but given the ship's partially-restored condition, the Parks D epartment is not convinced and wants the ship moved by summer 2004. No rthwes t Seaport board president Joe Shickich says his group is working on solutions to the city's concerns, which could include another location for Wawona. She has been at her current berth at Lake U nion, a 580-acre urban lake surrounded by both residential and comm ercial buildings, since 1980. Visitors and school groups can freely wander the site and board th e Wa wona at no charge during the summer. No rthwes t Seaport also owns the lightship Swiftsure, the salmon trailer Twilight, and the tug Arthur Foss. N ew planking on her starboard bow in 2002 was the most recent restoration work co nducted on her. N orthwest Seaport officials have consulted with the city since the 1960s on a maritime heritage park, but Seattle maritime heritage groups appear divided ove r park plans. Development pressures affecting Wawona also come from industry as p ro posals are on the table to turn the neighborhood into a biotechnology hub, inj ecting thousands of high-paying jobs into the depressed Seattle economy. C ity project manage r Colleen Brow ne says Wawona could stay at the park if the ship were in better condi tion. Part of the ship's bow is covered with plas ti c sheeting; the starboard side below the bulwarks was painted las t year, but paint is peeling over the rest of the vessel. T he stern and co unter behind the rudder post are pulling away from the frames. Wawona played an important role in the economic develop-

was return ed to her owners 10 1946, had new mas ts step ped, and returned to fi shing for two yea rs. Laid up in 1947, she was purchased by No rth west Seaport (then tu rned SOS-Save O ur Ships) in 1964. Wawona was listed on the National Register of Historic Pl aces in 1970 (th e first time a ship was included in the Registry) and had her li nes documented by the National Park Service's Histo ri c American Engineering Record (H AER) in 1985. A full restoration could cost up to $ 10 million. T he C A. Thayer is owned by the National Parks Service and is currently undergo ing a $9.6 milli on dollar reconstruction. J, For more in formation, contact Northwes t Seaport: 1002 Valley St., Seattl e WA 98 109; ph. 206 447-9800 ; e- mail seaport@oz. net. Visit the ship at 830 Terry Ave nue N, Seattle, WA 98109 . Access HAER ship documentati on at: www.cr.nps.gov/habshaer. Joe Follansbee is a Seattle-based free-lance writer working on a book about the 1936 voyage of the Wawo na to the Bering Sea. H e served on the Northwest Seaport board in 2 000.

ment of the west coas t. Shipbuilder H ans Ditl ev Bendixsen built her in 1897 at Fairhaven, Cali fo rnia, near Eureka. She carried lumber from Washington State to Cali fo rni a in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. O nce a common type of vessel on the west coast, the Wawona is one of only two ships left from the Pacifi c Coast lumber trade. She is constructed fro m California Douglass Fir and measures 165 feet length overall. T he other ship is the C. A . Thayer, in San Francisco, built by the same shipbuilder. Wawona was co nverted to a cod-fishing vessel in 19 14 and fished in the Bering Sea from 19 14 to 1947, except during World War II. During th e war, the US Army chartered the ship and designated her as barge BCL-7 1O; her mas ts we re un stepped and the ship towed aro und Puget So und carrying lumber. She

SEA HISTORY 106, WINTER 2004

by Deirdre O 'Regan

n dire straits is the status of the SS feet long and 52 feet on her beam, Catalina, currently half-s ubmerged in the ship carried passe ngers in style Ensenada H arbor in Baja Califo rnia, as they danced to live music in the Mexico. Dire because it is inundated with ship's ballroom, while in the engine harbor water, home to sea lions and birds, room, two triple expansion engines and also because the Port of Ensenada has propelled her along at sixteen knots. plans to dredge the harbor where the ship She and her running mate SS Avalon is aground to make way for a new marina. were known as "The Great White To accomplish this, the Mexican Navy is Steamers." During World War II, she standing by to cut it up, drag it out to sea, and dump it. T he ship's only hope appears served as an army transport ship to be through the dedicated efforts of the ferrying over 800,000 troops across SS Catalina Preservation Association (SSCPA), a gro up formed in 1999 to raise interest and funds to raise the ship and row it back to US waters for restoration. T he Mexican government relinquished ownership of the vessel over to the group in a joint effo rt to salvage the ship-but still remove her from the harbor, as she poses a hazard to navigation and takes up valuable space in the harbor. H er Half sunk in Ensenada harbor, August 2003 plight would seem hopeless co nsidering her half-sunken state, but profes- San Francisco Bay. Returning ro her origisional marin e surveyors who dived on her nal service after the war, the ship operin 2003 reported the one-inch thick steel ated as such until 1975-logging in 9,807 crossings in her career. In 1976, she was hull salvageable. SS Catalina was the last steamship in listed on the National Register of Historic service to Santa Catalin a Island, 26 miles Places. She is also registered as a Cali fo rnia off the southern Cal iforni a coast. Built State Historic Landmark (No. 895) and as in 1924 by the owner of Catalina Island a City of Los Angeles Historical C ultural and chewing gum tycoo n William Wrig- Monument (No. 213). ley, Jr., she was put in service ferrying pasIn 1977 she was sold to a private party sengers between Los Angeles and Avalon and afterwards we nt th ro ugh a series of on Sama Catalina Island, home of the problems and a number of owners, many famous Avalon Casino Ballroom. At 300 with good intentions but failed plans. She has twice been seized by US Marshals and SS Catalina and SS Avalo n docked in Avalon, Santa Catalina Island, 1930s. The Avalon Casino Ballroom is shown, top right. even tually by the Mexican government. She ended up in Ensenada in 1985 after a lessee towed her there after she had been evicted from several southern California harbors. A failed attempt to turn her into a restaurantbar, followed by the death of her owner, eventually led to her abandonment in the harbor in 1998. She

tl.-:~~~--Âˇ

SEA HISTORY 106, WINTER 2004

Full speed ahead, 1924

started sinking at her mooring and now sits on the bottom in fifteen feet of water listed to port. SS Catalina Preservation Association has new, albeit guarded, hopes that Hollywood may come to the rescue ... if it can make it happen in time. Movie producer Ken Wales and C rusader Entertainment have approached SSCPA about using the SS Catalina to "play" the part of the SS Dorchester in a mainstream movie about the sinking of the USAT Dorchester in World War II. It was Wales who paid for the 2003 survey and has offered to underwrite the cost of salvaging the ship. Estimated costs for raising, repairing, and moving Catalina to drydock come in at under $2 million, well under the $4- to $6-million cost of building a replica and sound stage from scratch. After its use for the movie, the ship would be returned to SSCPA for use as an educational and historic vessel. SSCPA is waiting for Wales to final ize negotiations with C rusader Entertainment. If these nego tiations move forward, 1.. 1.. 1.. will it be in time? For information contact: SS Ca talin a Preservation Association, 18242 West McDurmott, Suite j, Irvine, CA 92614 or visit their web site www.sscatalina.org. All images provided by David Engholm. View his web site on SS Catalina at www. escapist. comlsscatalina. Some information for this article was provided by Coty Dolores Miranda and The Log, San Diego.

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SEA HISTORY 106, WINTER 2004

Master & Commander - The Far Side of the World Comments on Historical Accuracy By Wi lliam H . W hite ith all the hoopla surrounding the first film made from the books of Patrick O'Brian, it is easy to lose sight of what the fi lm portrays in the historical context. The hype calls the film "historically accurate" and uses such language as "never before has the life of the early 19th century sailor been so well portrayed. " As with most things, there is no all or nothing h ere; some aspects of the movie get it right and others fall far short of anyth ing resembling accuracy. Let us look at what the movie does well . Life on a man-of-war in 1805-British, French, or American-is well and generally accurately shown. Crowded conditions, less than five-star food, and unspeakable danger come through with tremendous impact. As does the discovery (to most) that the junior officers and midshipmen were boys, and not in the context of "our boys" fighting in the war. The officers of the Royal Navy really were boys; going to sea as a midshipman at 12 yea rs of age was not uncommon . The horror of ship-to-ship combat is well-presented; shot splintering the wood from the hull into deadly projectiles, marksmen in the rigging shooting at anything that moves, and boarding with all th e incumbent sword-play and in-yourface cannon and small arms fire. The quite correct contrast of the "quiet time" where the captain and the surgeon played their musical instruments served to point up the chaos, confusion, and overwhelming noise of battle. The dangers of going alofr

and risking a deadly fall were graphically "squared away." Slovenly and ill-dressed and accurately portrayed. H andling sails just didn't answer. Minor detai ls, but in a in gale-force winds, manning frozen lines, film touted as the "most accurate depicand, all the while, trying to maintain a tion of life at sea in the Royal Navy ever footing made most who saw the film reach produced," unacceptable. for their Dramamine! Worst yet was the computer-generDinner in the Great Cabin with Cap- ated USS Constitution as the French vessel tain Aubrey was nicely portrayed but, at chased around Cape Horn and into the the same time, became a source for error, Pacific by HMS Surprise. Not only was historically speaking. Whi le it was quite no French warship in the Pacific in 1805 common for a captain to invite his officers raiding the British whaling fleet, but there and the occasional midshipman to dine was no ship in the entire French fleet that with him, the historical advisors to the even remotely resembled "Old Ironsides. " director either did insufficient research or had their advice disregarded when it came to the protocol portrayed. No one at the captain's table would have been dressed in anything but their best. Another example of incomplete research was seen in the passing of the decanter of port; it would have been slid down the board, not lifted off it. The wine would not have come until the tablecloth had been removed. Paul Bettany and Russell Crowe as Maturin and Aubrey While these are admittedly trifles enjoying a calm moment aboard the HMS Surprise. to most in modern times, to the participant living in the nineteenth cen- The director might have gotten away with tury, they would have been as gross a gaffe the ruse but, instead, exacerbated it by in social behavior as using one's knife to including a scene where two sailors bring pick one's teeth! Aubrey a model of the ship they are chasAs long as we're looking at the less ing and refer to it as a "Yankee-built heavy than historically accurate elements of 44, built in Boston." Upon which point Master and Commander, The Far Side Aubrey (Russell Crowe) mutters, "That of the World, consider that, unlike Rus- explains why our shot bounced off her sell Crowe, no British officer, let alone a sides"-clearly, in this writer's op1111on, captain, would appear on deck dressed in taking poetic license too far. An O 'Brian fan would be quick to anything other than a complete uniform properly buttoned and "done up. " I am point out that the book The Far Side ofthe not here referring to the scene when the World was set in 1813 and co rrectly used crew of HMS Surprise rigged out their an American ship in the Pacific wreakship and themselves as whalers as a ruse ing havoc on the English whalers. Direcde guerre. Regardless of how long an of- tor Peter Weir mentioned in an interview ficer had been at sea, he wo uld have never that he didn't feel a film depicting a Royal appeared as less than properly dressed and Navy ship fighting and beating an American one would play well to American audiences. In history, however, things don't always happen as we would wish. In 181 3, David Porter sailed USS Essex into the Pacific, did lay waste to the British whaling fleet and was captured by the Royal Navy ships ultimately sent after him. That was history, Master and Commander, The Far Side of the World was not. ~

Dr. Charles Webster, Ship's Surgeon Edited by Roberr M. Webster, MD In autumn 1896, Dr. Charles Webster embarked on a non-stop voyage from New Jersey to Japan as a ship's surgeon. Sailing on the steel, four-masted barque Iranian, his uncle Isaac Webster was master. Dr. Webster kept a diary and logged every day minus one. He lived aft but tended to the whole ship's company, giving him a view into life on board the ship from stem to stern. Of note are his observations on shipping traffic they encountered at a time when sail and steam plied the same waters. The following are his words from his notes and diary, edited slightly for clarity and, regrettably, for space. These selections represent the range of his experience from storms and seasickness to the doldrums, heat, and boredom, from cribbage in the aft cabin to near-mutiny in the fo'c'sle. The Iranian was registered in Cumberland, England. Built in 1895, she was wrecked in 1900. t is customary fo r sh ip crew,oneofthesingingkindand caprains to supp ly their sing "Whiskeyfo rm yJo hnnies," own navigation equipment, "Renzo," etc., in great style. One including charts, nautical tables, old Scotchman nam ed Cameron sailing directions, nautical almalooks like the "ancient mariner. " nacs, sextant, chronometer, and The crew give m e quite a lot of turning log. T he Iranian's turnpractice, even dental extractions. ing log was lost to a shark on the The captain has a tear passage to 39th day out, from then on, the his nose thatisstopped up and has ship was navigated solely by sun to be probed two or three times sights, chronometer and dead a week. The m ate has dyspepsia, reckoning. The Iranian m ade a the steward neuralgia, two men non-stop voyage from Bayonne, were shaky when they cam e NJ to Yokohama, Japan , October Painting ofthe steel barque Iranian, artist unknown aboard and needed bromide. 1896toFebruaryl897, 147days, One has a salt rheum (eczema) carrying a cargo of case oil. Before oil was week the tablecloth looks like a map of the of o ne palm and fin gers, Cam ero n had a shipped in tankers or conventional oil world, and needs the was hing it gets. We are toothache and is anemic, and a boy had a drums, it was shipped in two five-gallon loaded wi th case-oil and carry about 2 1,200 toothache. square tin cans, protected bya wooden case, cases [2 12,000 gallons] at $0. 18 per case. We use almost the same food on the cab in and thus named case oil. Each case holds two 5-gallon cans that are table as the crew: salt beef, butter, marmalade At sea a vessel is never quiet. You have to soldered up and put in a pitch-pine box. (served daily on English ships), and lime eat with your elbows on the table in spite When the w ind is aft we get the mingled juice. Every noon at 8 bells when watches of etiquette. Your tea and so up are always smell of kerosene oil and pitch-pine. When are changin g, the whole crew travels aft, spi lling over too, so that by the end of the the wind is abeam, as we generally have it, each with a tin pint. The steward sits at the the smel l goes forward. foot of the jigger mast with a bucket oflim e They say that the taste juice and a pint measure in his hand to deal of the oil gets in all the out the regulation drink of lime juice. food. We do not notice W hen our clothes get dirty the captain it. tells the steward that he will have to look for There are thirty-five a "washerwo man," so he picks out a good m en aboard: myself, one from the fo'c'sle, who gets a tub and Captai n (the old man) , goes to work. He does not use a washboard Andrew Watt (fir s t but manages wi th his hands. I see the boys m ate), Jones (second was hing their clothes sometimes with a m ate), a third mate, scrubbing brush laying the clothes flat on Joseph Hodgson (stew- the deck and using soap and water and the ard), cook (called doc- brush to get the dirt and tar out. T he two hours when the sailor is off tor), carpenter (chips), sailmaker (sails), 5 ap- dogwatch is the only time [he] can make prentice boys, bo at- up for lost sleep, do mending, washing, swain (bos'n) and 20 reading, or card play, etc. Sunday is generseamen (salts) ... of all ally the day for this and the ship will be co lors and nationali- decorated with blankets and clothes .... In ties. All speak English, cold rough weather when there is a good some w ith a m arked deal of ice about, he has to keep pulling at accent. Most are yo ung the braces as the ship gives on one tack o r the other to avo id the ice, he has all [the or under middl e age. They seem to be a good work] he wants.

SEA HISTORY 106, WINTER 2004

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A Diary from Sea, 1896-97 From the aft main deck a door opens in ro North . H ull down. Rat still living. a passage that leads to the main cabin . Off Fri. 30: H eavy rai n & wind in squalls. this passage are the officers' roo ms, stewa rd's Play cribbage and euchre a good deal with pantry, etc. T he cabin is large and light Captain. Saw ropsail & royals of a large but plainly furnished. Stairs lead to a chart barque on port side bound No rth . Porpoises house on the poop. This room is where the about ship. Captain and I spend most of our time. It is Sat. 31: Passed steamer bound NE in mornfurnished with a padded settee, two chairs, ing ... Rat taken out dead . a desk, and the necessary instruments for November 1: Getting roo much to Westnavigation, readingand wa rd . So tacked ship card pl aying. T he crew at noon. never come on the poop Tues. 10: Crosse d except as necessary for the lin e yes terday .. . handling sail and taking Shifted 200 cases of a trick at the wheel. oil from #4 hatch forT h e [a ppren ri ced ] wa rd to # 1 to see if she boys do no t li ve in wo uld sail better but the forecas tl e but have no un provement. quarters by themselves Thurs. 12: Shark carand the offi cers keep ried away [turning] log them away from the this mornin g. sailors except when on Mon. 16: Light trades duty. T he officers are - fin e - hot 86 ° . always growling about Wooden barque passed the boys not knowing as tern go in g SE. Also anything or being able iron b a rqu e Annie Captain Isaac Webster shooting a sun to do anything and still Spears, Li ve rpo o l. fine. He later died underway. they neve r ta ke any M ate knew by straight pains to teach th em their business. T he boys booms & rig. Both pro bably headed for have to pick it up as best way they can. T he Ri o de Janeiro. sailors do not li ke them very well, either, as Wed25: Warmer nearly 70°F. At noon south they regard them as privileged class.T he boys oflnaccessible and N ightingale Islands [not generall y get on the good si de of some of inhabited except by shipwrecked sailors] & the men, however, and pick up the kn ots, peak of Tristan da C un a. Anderson lived there for 8 days when shipwrecked on Inacsplices, etc. DAILY ENTRIES cessible Island. Six drown ed trying to swim Sunday, Oct. 4: Seasick fo r first time since ashore. H e stayed on ship 2 days, then was leaving-kept bun k. 40 days on Tristan da C una Sat.17: Fair wind and weather. Two-masted, Sat. 28: Temperature-54°F; Latirnde one-funnel tra mp steamer crossed our stern 38° 28' S x Longitude 2° 44' W. Put on go ing NE by N about 3or 4 miles away-red win ter underclothes & was chilly in the botto m, black top, red funnel with black ni ght. The oil stove heated the Captain's rim aro und to p. roo m nicely tonight. Fri. 23: Fine and warm 84°. West wind December 3: A SW gale with a rough sea. dying out to a calm at night ... Passed old Was sick at dinner. Lots of water on deck wooden barque on starboard side bound and the mate got his roo m full before doo r W. In ballast and pro bably No rwegian fo r imo cabin was closed . Ca rried one jib and West Indi es or Southern States. topgallan ts & 2 jigger staysails. Eased up in Mon. 26: Steward has nailed a ra t in our evening and put on all sail. sideboard , which is gnawing all the time Fri. 4: O ff Cape of Good H ope-Captain's to get out. H as had no foo d or water since birthday (46) & gave him my 2 cigars. Sunday morning. Mon. 7: Good breeze increasing ro gale. Thurs. 29: Rain squalls. W ind SE light. Running before it on co urse with royals Full-rigged ship with double ro pgall ant an d flying jibs set, but upper sraysa ils and yards passed o n starboard side, bound span ker in. Rough sea & lots of water on

SEA HISTORY 106, WINTER 2004

deck. Capta in says on the wind we might be abl e to ca rry topsails. Fri. 11: Barque abeam on port side about 6 to 10 miles off Almost calm. Wind SW, Fine and warm . Fished for albatross & got three on, but lost them . Breeze increasing toward night & barque we m out of sight. Sun. 13: Sea very rough in night and water all over poop and decks full. Could not sleep because ship ro ll ed so. Caught two albatross & th ird broke the hook upsetting the seco nd mate and myself. Tues. 15: Good breeze-d ear, couldn't get sun at noo n, but made at least 250 miles. Squ alls came up at noon & hid sun. Wed. 16: D ead calm all day. Captain clearing out fo rwa rd storeroom. Very foggy every little whil e and fog- horn go ing. Couldn't get sun or horizo n. Rat ran on to m y face in the night. Thurs. 17: Beautiful day, fine & clear & temp up to 70°F. Almost dead calm . U nbem crossjack sail, mended it and bem it aga111 . Sun. 20: Good breeze but cold from S. No ticed Muir going to the wheel for a 2 hour trick in a light jumper and bare feet. An other man with overcoat, muffler & mittens. Mon. 21: Cold-53°. Seen no petrels for so me days back- rough. Muir at wheel today with down overcoat, mittens and bi g boo ts. Some whales blowing around vessel. Ca n smell them. Tues. 22: Cold rainy and disagreeable, wind NW. H ad to wrap blanket round self to keep warm. Wind increased at night and took in royals. Wed. 23: D avidso n the Nova Scotia sailor raising blood-anemic & cough. Anderso n better. Pulled tooth fo r old Cameron. Thurs. 24: Lo ngitude 103° 40' E, H ad all sail off of main mas t as wind was aft & all fore & aft sails. Only topsail in since leaving NY. Fri. 25: C hristmas-Gave men grog at noo n. Boys jam , sardines, condensed milk. No wo rk. 84 days our. Potatoes gone. Two men at wheel al l night. Sat. 26: H eavy gale and very heavy sea. D avidson in bunk 102°. Pulse fast, not raising much blood & not so much cough. Mon. 28: H eavy swells & rolls- Captain and I played cribbage again for first time since Christmas. He only got one game 23

Above: Heavy Seas Astern, South Indian Ocean; Right: Underway looking forward today & is cross & our of sorts anyway. Shifred 100 more cases of oil afr ro make ship sreer berrer. Generally spend afrernoons in carpenrer shop or abour ship.

End of 1896-Heading to Tasmania January 1897-Fri. 1: Fine day and good breeze. Gave men grog ar noon ar end of second dog-wa rch. Sat. 2: Nearly up to Tasmania. Good breeze. Caughr my lasr albarross & am go ing to mounr head. The cook, mareand boarswain each have a skin srrerched on boards now. The boys have used rhe feer for brushes and wing bones for pipe srems. This was 10 feer across wings. Tues. 5: Heavy gale all night. Only carried foresail and lower topsails. Ran befo re ir, 2 men ar wheel. In afrernoon moderared. Set topgallanr sails in evening&course. Latitude 39° 40' S x Longirude 152° 22' E. Sun. 10: Storm and rain. Under foresail jib and topsails. H eavies r sea yet. On rhe wind which is Northerly. Tried for albarross in afrernoon bur couldn'r get any. Mon. 11: In the nighr wind shifred ve ry suddenly from NE to NW raking ship aback in srrong gale. Seas injured man on lookour and benr down rhe iron rail of forecasde head. Then died down to light breeze. Tues./Wed.12-13: Wind hauled Wesrerly in afrernoon & cleared up. Barque bound E crossed bows ar noon, hull down. Only made 150 mil es in 5 days ... C hart looks as if srruck by lightning lasr few days . 24

Sat. 16: Could nor clear Lord Howe's Island [Ausrralia]. Tacked in fore noon halfway by. Tacked again bur too dark to see north end well. Saw no signs of life. No boats came off [Captai n was co ncerned about pirares and cannibals when going up rhrough rhe islands]. Thurs.2l:Fineweather &sready breeze made 164 miles Northing. Very misry & cloudy bur fine and hor. Man on the fore topsail yard all the time looking our for reefs. Sun. 24: Strongwesrerly hurrican e. Carried away lower topsails but over half of mizzen lefr under which we are hove to & tiller lashed. Biggesr wind ever experienced by anyo ne aboard. Got a tarpaulin lashed in jigger rigging. H en coop washed away. The spray from sea blowing like snow and cuts face. Can'r see lengrh of ship for ir. Can't srand wirhour holding on to somerhing. Birds aboard. Mon. 25: Blowing a hurricane all day. Moderaring some ar nighr. Gor sighrs. No sail ser. Hove to. Very warm, shur up in cabin . Wed. 27: Fair westerly wind & srro ng but moderaring. Sea very rough. Off sourh end of Espiritus Sanra of New Hebrides .

Fri. 29: Go abour in bare feet all the time, except when deck so hot I have to put shoes on without stockings. Only wear shirr and pants. Thin paj amas at night. February 4: Clorhes don't cost much in warm wearher ar sea. My hat cosr $0.35, shirr $ 1.00, pants $ 1.00, handkerchief $0.12-Toral $2.47. No shoes or stockings used . The soles of my feer are black wirh rozin [resin] & rar from decks and cabin floor when caulking. Fri. 5: Men tarring down [rigging]. Some big cockroaches fl ying aro und. Tues. 9: Srrong NE rradesclearing up. In Laritude 1° N. Beginningto painr ship. I painted aro und top rail. A big wesrerly current here of 50 miles a day. Fri.12: Almost srru ck a big rree in fore noon abo ut 2 feer in di amerer or more ar small end & berwee n 60 or 75 feer long. Good breeze and all clear of rhe Caroline Islands. Sat.13: Made 210 miles but somewhar too much Westing. Ship's bottom too foul to sail well. Sun. 14: Strong NE rrades & made 250 miles last 24 hours. Wed. l 7:A beauriful fine day. Calm almosr. Two green sharks following ship. Gor hook our but Captain made me take ir in as men were painting all over ship &andhecouldn'r have raken them aboard. T hree or four pilor fish swam about each shark. Thurs. 18: Gerring cooler 75° today. Yesterday 85°-Good wind-Still in bare feer, but will have to pur on thicker clorhes if ir gets cooler fasr. Tues. 23: Uncle Ike was on deck all rhe firsr part of the nighr. I heard somevomiringhard & rhoughr perhaps ir was rhe steward as he has had rwo artacks rhis voyage, bur it was Uncle Ike. Afterwards he came to my door & and said he had a very bad headache & was confused. I gave him phenacerin and sent him to bed. H e did nor feel any numbness. He vo mired again & and said he had so me numbness on his lefr side, so I bled him a lirde, bur nor as much as I should. Did nor relieve him. Sreward helped me. Got 112 pinr of blood. Wed. 24: Uncle Ike is quite sick- pulse 86, temperature 99-3/5°, very bad pain in head, vomiring, numbness of hand & rhigh. Gave

SEA HISTORY 106, WINTER 2004

him Ergotin & morphine. H ypodermic + 10 gr. Phenacetin . Mr. Watt [first mate] taking ch arge of ship. Bad wea th er and water spout. Thurs. 25: No improvement in U ncl e Ike's condition. Very bad weather. Wind & rain . About 30 miles off land. No sights. Fri. 26: Tacked again at 1030 & stood alm ost north . At 6 almost abreast of Oshima. Go ing into Kaneda Bay to anchor. Expect to get there about midnight. Uncl e Ike very low. I'm afraid he will die before we get there. Sat. 27: Wind died last night & we we re just north of O shima at 1:30 when Uncle Ike di ed . No pain . Light bafAin g winds all day. At 4PM go t fair wind. Anchored at lO PM.

End of voyage. Captain Isaac Websters funeral was held at the Seamans Mission and he was buried in the English Cemetery. There was heavy drinking and a near-mutiny a few days Later, and several crew members were inj ured. Sun. 28: Called on Captain D exter of Windsor [Nova Scotia] in Samaritan. March 1: Saw Consul. No inquest necessary. Took us off & also undertaker wh o brought body as hore to Seam an's Mission . . .. Funeral at 4 PM. H alf crew followed . Afternoo n th e seamen drunk and almost mutiny. Tues. 2: Muir bad . H arding struck second mate, much discontent, &c. H ad them to court in afternoon. H arding-3 weeks. M uir 4 ... Risley bit blind Anderson's ear off. Osborne broken nose. Ensign upside down and rowdy sailors & m ate. Seco nd mate drinking too, but crew quiet & things co ming around. Tugs towed ship inside breakwater. Thurs. 4: Packing up Uncle Ike's things . . . . Steward gets revolver and oil coat. Old Cameron and others some of the old clothes. Mr. Watt takes tobacco. Fri. 5: Got my discharge from ship at Consuls. Mr. Watt paid H olgate $3 10 for burial . Carpenter made box for restofUncle Ike's things. Tues. 9: Mr. Watt got command. Sold him charts & books at full price (his pick) chronometer, etc. Fri. 12: Saw Weston abour Uncle Ike's things & ordered them shipped. Crated everything except sea bag & and sent my

large trunk too. Steam launch rook them off about 2:3 0PM & got them through Japanese customs all right. ... The rest of the diary notes his return steamship voyage via H onolulu to San Francisco, then by train to British Columbia and across Canada back to Nova Sco tia. The voyage logged 2 1,000 miles . Some days they sailed 5 miles in 48 hours, others they made over 200 nauti cal mil es noon to noon. The average for the wh ole voyage was 144 nautical miles per day. Fo r comparison, on Dr. Webster's return to San Francisco, th e steamer made 303 to 348 miles per day, 5, 162 miles, with a stop at H o nolulu, bu t no shore leave there because of quarantine due to small pox in Yokoham a. Regarding their cargo of case oil : 2 1,200 cases at $0. 18 per case. Total shipping cost $3,8 16. The ticket from Yokohama to Va nco uve r, British Columbia by steamer Gaelic cost $ 1,321.60. Yarmouth, N ova Sco tia had more sailing ship tonnage registered in th e 1880s than any other comparable sea port in the wo rld . Yarmouth had many sea captains, a Board of Trade office, and a governm ent navigation school. Many of the waterfront docks had sail lofts taking all the seco nd or third Aoo rs of the large warehouses and offi ce buildings; the Iranian cross jack was 100 feet across!

In Yokohama there was an age nt from Yarmouth and two other Yarmouth sailing ships we re also th ere, so Dr. Webster had no trouble handlin g the affairs of his deceased uncle and shipping belongings back home. Captain Isaac Webster was buried in the English Cemetery in Yokohama. ,!,

Regarding Captain Isaac Websters i!Lness: Dr. Charles Webster said he had to probe his tear duct from time to time, possibly indicating presence ofa tumor (malignant or benign), or old infection scar-a brain abscess is a good possibility. The diary gives no details such as bleeding or discharge. There is the possibility ofmeningitisfrom infection, again not enough symptoms mentioned. Num bness could signifj; stroke. Phenacetin is a pain andfever p reparation similar to acetaminophen. Ergo tin would be a preparation containing ergot to cause blood vessels to contract to stop bleeding. - R.M.W,MD

T he transcripts of Dr. Webster's diary and his photographs are housed at the Yarmouth Coun ty Museum and Archives, Yarmouth Co un ty Histo rical Society, 22 Collins St., Ya rmouth, Nova Scotia B5A3C8 Canada, 902 742-5539; e-mail: ycminquiries@ns. sympati co.ca; web sire: http://yarmourhco u n tym useum .ednet. ns.ca/

Barque Iranian, 1896

ALL IMAGES CO URTESY YARMOUT H COUNTY MUSEUM & ARCHIVES AND TH E WEBSTER FAMILY

SEA HISTORY 106, WINTER 2004

aragged t heir drip spotted a strange object tangled in the weave of the net. From among the pile of flopping fish they retrieved a wet, but still watertight, chest. The fishermen pried up the heavy lid to reveal something even more valuable than the gold and jewels they were hoping for. Instead of treasure. the lead-lined chest was loaded with a stack of secret German military papers and a small book. Afte r examining the book they realized t hat w ithin its pages w as the key to deciphering the top-

and Clark's Iran xpa.rlmant"

es o the German military. Recognizing the significance of their catch, the fishermen immediately delivered the chest and the codebook to British authorities. From that point forward the British military was able to decipher the coded information sent by the Germans to their patrolling U-boats and warships. That tattered book, fished from the bottom of the sea on a co ld November day in 1914, helped the Bri tish Navy safeguard hundreds of Allied ships and thousands of lives from destruction by German torpedoes during that terrible war.

tions of th e boat were tested in the water at Harpers Ferry, Virginia. The plan was that the frame would be unpacked and assembled alongshore, then be covered with an ima l skins, made watertight with tar and launched into the Missouri River. " ... she leaked in such a manner that she would not answer. I need not add that this circumstance mortifyed me not a little;... to make any furth er experiments in our present situation seemed to me madness; ... and the season was now advancing fa st. I theref ore relinquished all furth er hope of my fa vorite boat ... " - Journal of Meriwether Lewis-9 July 1805

Artwork by Keith Rocco, courtesy National Park Service

" ... my greatest difficulty was the fram e of the canoe, which could not be completed without my personal attention ..." -Meriwether Lewis 20 April 1803

ewis and Clark discovered many things 200 years ago. That America is vast. That the Rocky Mountains are higher than they'd antici pated. That wolves, bears and even buffaloes can be dangerous. And that iron sinks in water. In 1803, as part of the preparations for an historic expedition to explore the newly-pu rchased Louisiana Territory, Thomas Jefferson and Meriwether Lewis worked together to design an experi mental, collapsible boat w ith a frame of iron. Named The Experiment, the craft was to be packed up and taken along to help transport the explorers and their supplies on the journey up the Missouri River. Th e frame was forged and sec-

One hot frustrating day in Ju ly 1805, after repea ted attempts to get the animal-hide covering to ma inta in watertight integrity, Lewis gave up and buried the iron frame, along w ith a cache of letters and gear, near the expedition's camping spot along the M issouri . Some historians now believe that they have discovered the site of that camp and archaeologists using magnetometers are trying to locate the hidden cache of supplies (including the frame of the boat) . If the cache is located (and the goods are reasonably well preserved) it cou ld prove to be one of the most enlightening set of artifacts associated wit h the historic expedit ion. " ... ordered... to take her to pieces tomorrow and deposit the frame at this place as it could probably be of no furth er service to us... . I bid adieu to my boat and her expected services" -Journal of Meriwether Lewis-9 July 1805

Archaeologist Ken Karsmizki, of the Columbia Gorge Discovery Center, uses satelllite mapping to attempt to locate Meriwether Lewis's "favorite boat".

Little Lord 1\(f lson

impressed his superiors ccording to an and, while still a teenager, official biography, was offered a comm ission twelve-year-old as an officer in His Majesty's Roya l Navy. Horatio Nelson was a small and sickly child. So when Nelson's creative nava l tactics and courage under he wanted to join the English Royal Navy, the most forfi re (including f ighting aga inst the Americans durmidable fighting force in the world, he wrote a leting t he Revolutionary War) earned the respect ter to his brother begging for help in convinc ing and admiration of al l England. But it was splintheir father to let hi m go. ters, not cannonballs that his uncle should "Do, William, write to father; and tell him that have foreseen. As commander of ships and I should like to go to sea with Uncle Morrice." fleets, Nelson was wounded and blinded in 'Uncle Morrice' it happens, was the imposing his right eye by flying splinters. Less than an Captain Maurice Suckling, Commander of the hour after having his mang led right arm ampupowerful Royal Navy warship, HMS tated, after it was shattered by airborne rock fragRaisonnable. Little Horatio's mother had died three years earlier and he hoped that by training to be an offi- ments in the midst of combat, Horatio was back directing the f ight. cer in the Royal Navy he Throughout his 34 years could ease the financial bur"What has poor Horace done, that in the Roya l Navy, little den on his father, struggling he ... should be sent to rough it out at Horatio successfully ducked alone to raise eight children. all those cannonballs his Uncle Maurice wrote, in sea? But let him come and the first a teasing way, about the time we go into action, a cannon ball uncle had mockingly warned him about, and he continued dangers little Horatio might may knock off his head... " to write letters home about encounter if he really wanthis Navy adventures. ed to join the Royal Navy. Admiral Lord Horatio Nelson's stunning defeat of "What has poor Horace done, that he ... should be sent to rough it out at sea? But let him come and the.first time we go the enemy fleet at Trafalgar, in 1805, established England and the Royal Navy as rulers of t he world's into action, a cannon ball may knock off his head... "! Undaunted , Horatio signed on aboard HMS oceans. Almost two hundred years after his death, Raisonnable and soon afterward "Uncle Maurice" gave Adm iral Lord Horatio Nelson is sti ll conside red him his first big promotion. Henceforth, the ships row- England's most illustrious naval hero and a symbol of boat would be Horatio's to command ! Horatio the best of British character.

Hard Water Boating r - f \ oes boating come to an abrupt halt when the lakes and rivers freeze and snow u U covers the ground? Not for some intrepid sai lors. When temperatures begin to drop below 32 degrees, America's iceboat pilots pu ll on the ir long underwear and head out to the barn to sharpen the runners and tune the rigging on the fastest boats on water. HARD water, that is . Iceboats are sailboats that use runners instead of rudders and which can reach speeds of more than 100 miles per hour over the ice on lakes and ri vers throughout the northern half of the country. Wh ile iceboa ts have been sa iled for centu ri es in Europe, t he sport of iceboat racing was brought to America by the Dutch immigrants who settled along the Hudson River in the 1600s. Some of the fastest of these ice boats (or ice yachts as the larger ones are ca lled) were bui lt more than 120 years ago. Many of these older iceboats are still in good condition and are raced every winter weekend that promise s hard ice, (slick, "black" ice is best) strong winds, and stalwart companions (it ta kes more than a few he lpers to set up and rig one of these 40 -foo t-long Large recreational sleighs, like ice cru isers) . the Mayflower, were popular with revelers during the snowy New England winters of the mid-1 SOOs

For Sale "Forty chests of sugar returned in the Blessing are to be sold by the candle" -British East India Company December 6, I 643

"By the Caudle S A L E

CANDL E,

..dt tlu COF~-~USE;, ~EW YORK

On ·Faio":i, ~: i ~f'1;,~G~LY, 1;¢. 0 ow did American colonial merchants actually acquire the shiploads of goods they CATHA .'RJ .N~ Round Slttn, Dutch built, ~ £roe. _140 Tons .Jt.:giftcr needed to stock their shops and wareTonnage ; is w<:ll cakulaltd ·br the Cc.I « ·COaninc Tndt:, fhiru without BalWl, drn'S lit!-!c Wiii«, . and houses? And how did an aspiring merchant, trader takes the -Ground.wdl ; is wdl fOund in Stores. mf or captain purchase an entire ship including its canmay be knt to Sea at a limll Expcncc. Now lyiag al the Whitehall Stairs. nons and sails during co lonial times? I NV ENT 0 RY. In order to get the highest prices for their cargoes of bags of coffee, barrels of molasses or L AN,c11oas..,._ 1;.:..,"1:,,.,...;,. crates of china, colonial shipmasters would adverSA I LS. tise to auction their cargoes soon after landing at CA IL ES. r-c..1 1•.,. . .. .... the wharf. Interested buyers would come together .• ..,.c..i ..... at the local coffee house to bid on the goods in a particularly unique type of auction-" sale by the candle ." Townsfolk and merchants wou ld assemble at the coffeeCourtesy of the Free Library of Philadelphia house, sip a beverage, and intermittently shout out a bid for high bid that was shouted outat the very instant the wax the cargo up for sale (perhaps 40 chests of sugar) . The last around the pin liquefied and it fell out onto t he tabletophigh bidder would purchase the entire lot of merchandise or whichever ship was on the auction block . In order to deter- would be the successful one. A witness who attended just mine when the rowdy, shouted bidding should end, the auc- such a sale in 1660 was Samuel Pepys, and he seemed to tioneer wou ld draw a line about an inch below the flame of enjoy the raucous proceedings . " ... Mr. Creed and I to Wilkinson 's, and dined together, and a candle . When the candle had burned down to line, the bid.. .we met all,for the sale of two ships by an inch of candle (the ding was closed . Because of disagreements about when the flame actually reached the line, and which buyer was the last first time that ever I saw any of this kind), where I observed how to bid, a unique method was devised . The auctioneer would they do invite one another, and at last how they all do c1y, and we have much to do to tell who did cry last. The ships were the poke a pin into the wax of the candle about an inch below Indian, sold for 1,300£, and the Half-moon, sold fo r 830£." the top. The candle was then lit and the sel ler wou ld use a Samuel Pepys Diary-Tuesday 6November1660. quill to register each bid as the candle melted down. The last

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Across 4 "Don't forget" this ship 8 Oldest sh ip in the US Navy 9 Airship which burned tragically in New Jersey in 1937 12 "Tranquility base here . The _ _ has landed." 16 Torpedoed by U-boat May 7, 1915 18 Sank the HMS Hood in 1941 19 Henry Hudson's vesse l 21 Captured in Southeast Asia in 1968 22 Jack Aubrey's favorite 23 Ahab's wha li ng ship Answers (Hold the page up to a mirror to see) l\e1NbeeC\2. )\:nsma\8 nooNI \Is\-\ e\l1ul oldeuC\ eai1C\1U2. boupeC\

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Down 1 Columbus's sma ll est in 1492 2 Darwin's ship 3 Fletcher Christian's new respons ibil ity 5 Captain James T. Kirk's favorite 6 Grissom's Capsu le 7 Drake's Gilded Deer 9 Transported Jim Hawkins to Treasure Island 10 Fulton's first successful steamboat 11 First to Titanic's survivors 13 Explorer for deep sea salvage 14 Landed at Plymouth Rock in 1620 15 Nelson's flagship at Trafalgar 17 Pilgrims left her behind in 1620 20 America's first working submarin e

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JAMES

MACDONALD FOUNDATION

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1r1H1IE lLillFIE

&AA1r Of

JOHN PRENTISS BENSON

':4 Fair Wind" (oil/canvas, 24" x 42''. date unknown) by Margaret M. Betts ohn Prentiss Benson (1865-1947) grew up only rwo blocks from the wharf in Salem, Massachusetts. He inh erited an interest in painting and arr from his moth er, who, according to broth er Frank, used to "escape from the world" to a small room at the top of their house to paint. Of her six children, the rwo oldest boys, Frank

'Jo/ut)

ifJr;u are j~ to paUt,t-PAINT!"

and John, developed a lifelong interest, and eventual careers, in painting. As a young man, John also became fascinated with the new study of photography, and this wo uld enabl e him to keep valuable reco rds of his paintings afrer he became a full -rim e arti st at the age of 5 7. At 18, when John Benson was making decisions on a career, he expressed a serious interest in painting. It was nor ro be; wi th older brother Frank already an established artist, his parents made irclearrharoneartisr in the family was enough. John's sights on a profession turned elsewhere. He directed his creati ve talents towards architecture and ended up in Paris, studying architecture, watercolors, and design. Returning to the

US in 1889, he was invited to join a wellknown architectural firm in New York where he stayed for a few years before moving on to found his own firm. He enjoyed a successful career as an architect in New York C ity for the next rwenty-seve n years. By 1921 , three of his four children were grown and our of the house. John and wife

Bessiewere vacarioning in England when his brother Frank sent him a birthday telegram that changed the course of his life. Ir read, "John, if yo u are going to paint- PAINT! " The riming was right, and, over th e next rwo years, he phased out his practice and starred painting full rime-and selling. Ever meticulous, he kept a careful record ofhis paintings in a logbook, photographing many, and noting their tide and size. H e maintained logbooks from 1922 through 1944. According to his family, whenever he went off to paint, he was serious abo ut it, "dressing up in a suit, hat and necktie, always looking as though he was going off to some office in the city. " In the 1930s, John exh ibited often. He

painted co ntinuously until his death in 1947. His last exhibition of rwenty-four paintings was held in August 1947 at his studio in Kittery, Maine. He died three months later at age 82. In additio n to the paintings he left behind, John Benson's legacy includes documentation for more than 600 paintings, which have recen rl y been published in The Artistic Legacy ofjohn Prentiss Benson, compiled and ed ited by N icholas]. Baker. ,t

SEA fHlSTORY 106, WINTER 2004

A Commentary on John Prentiss Benson Paintings

by John G. Hagan

ohn Be nso n's li fe spa n coincidce nter of t he paint ing. The eye ed wit h a n exciting pe ri od for t hen natura lly moves on to view America n pa int ing. He was bo r n t he sma ll er boats on t he far right in 1865,j ust a t th e end of th e Civ il side. These boats are a co mposiWar. By the time h e was in hi s eart ional devi ce desig ned to bring ly twe nt ies, virtually every m aj or your eye co mfo rta bly back t o t h e American city offered wo l1l d-be subject of t he picture. The a rt ist artists a n opportunity for exce lemployed what is referred t o as lent train ing. Publi c a ppreciath e Stee lyard Prin cip le in designt io n of art was substa nt ia l. John ing th is picture. Thi s prin cipl e alBenso n received ample expos ure lows t hat a la rge mass at t h e pi cto t he world of art. Hi s older t ure's ce nter ca n be balan ced by a "Untitled-Boat Anchored in Rough Sea " brother Fra nk (1862-1951) was an small mass at its edge. Im agin e a (1929, oil/canvas, 24-114" x 35-114'') acco m pli s hed painter. John we nt seesaw with a large child on on e to Paris in 1885, studying architecture first at L:Acade mi e J u- side a nd a s ma ll chi ld o n t he other. In order for th em t o ballia n and later at L'Ecole des Bea we-Arts, where he rece ived ex- a nce, t he dista nce fro m t he center (fulcrum) m ust be g reate r ceptional tra ining a nd fo und himself immersed in o ne of t he for t h e sma ll er chil d. It is t his sa me principle t hat a ll ows t he world's great a rt centers. sma ll boats to ba lance t he larger one. When Jo hn Benso11 beca me a fu ll-t im e pa inter in 1921at57 John Be nso n had a n except ional eye. His architectural yea rs of age, he experienced a lm ost im med iate successs. Ge n- tra ining tal1g ht him how to see det a il a nd tr ut hfully re nd er erally speaking, it is q uite un usua l for a pa inter to do so well t hat deta il as a pa inter. Ma ny of John Benso n's paint ings were after such a late start. I suspect John Be nso n beca me t he ex- created fro m me mory, as a number of hi s very large canvases ception beca use of his so un d t ra in ing in des ig n a nd his never- cou ld on ly have bee n clo ne in a stud io. forgotte n pass ion to pa int. John P. Be11son was a pa inter of sign ifi ca nt accomp lishThe ha llm ark of a John Pre nt iss Benson pa int ing is co n- me nt . He enjoyed mem bershi p in num erou s prestigious artsistent ly good desig n, a nd hi s pictures were a lways well-de- ists' orga nizations a nd exhibited reg ularly wit h his peers. In sig ned. It is sa id t hat John's brother Frank once comme nted 1942, he was incl uded in a major exhibition of Th e Gui ld of Bosthat a bea ut ifu lly pa inted, but poorly-cl es ig necl picture, would to n Artists at t he Ml1se um of Fine Arts, along with works by not be successfu l, w hil e a we ll-cles ig necl a nd poorly pa inted hi s t hen fa mous brother Fra nk Be nson. J, picture co uld. An examp le of such solid des ign ca n be see n in hi s paint ing August Calm (be low). In t hi s pa inting t he artist John C.1-lagan has been an artand antiques collectorforoverthirtyyears pos it io ned t he subj ect of t he pa int ing, a large schoo ner, on t he specializing in American works ofart from the late nineteenth and early left halfoft he ca nvas in such a way as to d irect one's eye to t he twentieth centuries,concentrating on traditional Boston trained artists.

Left (p3 0): "Self Portrait-1943 " (oil/canvas, 23-114" x 19-112 ''); Below: "August Calm " (circa 1936, oil/canvas, 7-114" x 14-112'')

SEA HISTORY 106, WINTER 2004

COURTESY PEABODY ESSEX MUSEUM, G IFT OF JOH N I~ BENSO

IN 1933

" Whaling Scene" (1931, oil/canvas, 42-3/4"x 79 '') John Benson's granddaughter believes that Mr. Benson may have prepared this painting as a sketch for consideration by the American Museum of Natural History in New York C ity for display in their Hall of Ocean Life. When it was nor accepted, he then apparently donated it to the museum in care of Ernest Dodge who was then Director.

"The Gull" (I 947, oil/ canvas board, 24" x 42'') This unfinished painting is believed to be John Benson's last. -Nicholas J. Baker The paintings of John Prentiss Benson will be on exh ibit next summer at the Portsmouth Arhenaeum in Portsmouth, New Hampshire from June 15th until October 7th. The Portsmouth Athenaeum is open to the public Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays onlyfrom 1-4 PM. The Artistic Legacy of john Prentiss Benson, which documents more than 600 John Prentiss Benson paintings, will be on display and for sale during exhibition hours.

The Portsmouth Athenaeum, ph. 603 431-2538, 9 Marker Square, Porrsmourh NH 03802. Free admission. For more information on the artist, visit www.johnpbenson .org; e-mail: info@johnpbenson.org. 32

SEA HISTORY 106, WINTER 2004

MARINE ART NEWS The Essex Historical Society and Shipbuilding Museum acquired the Thomas Hoyne Research Collection in summer 2003, a donation by his widow Doris 0 . Hoyne. It has been processed and is now access ible to the public for research. It includes Hoyne's photographic collection wi th hundreds of historic maritime prints. Hoyne's paintings of Gloucester fishi ng schooners led him to research his craft using models by Erik A. R. Ronnberg, Jr., and he scoured private collections and museums for historic prints. Hoyne died in 1989 at the age of 65 . For questions about the collection, contact Courtney Ellis Peckham at 978 7683866; The Essex Historical Society and Shipbuilding Museum, PO Box 277, 66 Main St. , Essex, MA 01929 . Web me: www.essexshipbuildingmuseum.org.

CORRIGENDA In our coverage of the 10th Annual Coos Bay Maritime An Exhibit in the autumn issue of Sea History (1 05), we mistakenly printed the article and artwork without crediting the writer and anise. Natalie Olson provided the written coverage. Marine Artist Louis Stephen Gadal offered the use of his painting (below), "Seaworthy No. I, S. F" (watercolor, 28" x 20"). T he subject of the painting is the San Francisco fishing boat docks next to Fisherman's wharf. - DO'R

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Maritime History on the Internet, A Research Guide by Peter McCracken here can be no question that the intern et has revolutionized nearly every field of research and interest for human knowledge. Maritime history is no different. Harnessing the power of networked computers makes it possible to access and process incredible amo unts of information not previously available, opening exciting new aven ues for research and discovery. At the same time, anyone using the internet for research must keep several caveats in mind: though sites may appear current, many outdated sites-long forgotte n by their creators-li tter cyberspace. Always look for a date that indicates when the site was last updated, and then take that with a grain of salt. Especially when a site is not affiliated with a reputable organization, consider what motives the creator might have: it's easy to see a web author judiciously edi ting and emending the histo ry of his brutal sea captam ancestor. The following is a collection of sites offering reliable places to start exploring sea history on the web and provides exampl es of free resources available to researchers. A 'porral' is a site that brings together links to multiple sites on a general subj ect. Several maritime museums provide excellent portals, which are often good places to begin doing research. O ne of the most notable sires is the National Maritime Museum's "maritime information gateway," called PORT, at http://www. port.nmm.ac.uk/. The dozens of Research Guides at PORT, at http://www.port.nmm.ac.uk/research/guides.html, are particularly valuable in guiding one's research, as is rhe Australian National Maritime Museum's subj ect guide site at http://www. anmm.gov.au/LIB/SUBJECT.HTM. Mysti c Seaport's research page at http:/ /www.mysticseaport.org/ research/ nf-index.cfm provides information about highlights from their collections such as their photography and ships' plans collections.

The Art of the Sea

For lists of individual maritime museums (not just those with an online presence) see http://www. maritimemuseums.net/, or http:// www.bb62museum.org/usnavmus. html for US museums, and http:// www.bb62museum.org/wrldnmus.html for museums outsi de the US. The US Naval Historical Center provides a useful overview of US naval resources at http://www.history.navy.mil/ . One reliable individual webpage is John Kohnen's list of thousands of sites at http://www.boat-links.com/boatlink.html. The internet allows organizations to spread the word about their resources much further than would otherwise be the case. For example, the Polynesian Voyaging Society, at http://www. pvs-hawaii.com, was one of the first maritime-related gro ups on the web, and they continue to maintain an extensive site. The internet is particularly good at processing and distributing lots of data very quickly. My own site, http://www.shipindex. org, compiles over 100,000 ship names from indexes to dozens of books and journals, and indicates where one can learn more about rhem. One fascin ating si te, http://www.shiplogmapper.org/, allows individuals to enter location information fo r a voyage and share rhe travels of that voyage with anyone on the web. As researchers add data, it will become a compendium of data about numerous otherwise unknown voyages. This free site is one of the best examples of what the web can do for amateur and professional historians alike. Many, many more sites in maritime history exist. Suggestions for other sites worth mentioning are welcome at shipindex@yahoo.com . _!,

Calendar for 2004

The glory and beauty of ships and the sea have inspired great works of art thro ugh the centuries and continue to inspire the artists of today. Brilliant images, from full-rigged ships and fishing schooners to grand ocean liners, workaday tugs and small pleasure craft fill this calendar and will brighten your days. Royalties from the

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@>sHIP NOTES, SEAPORT & MUSEUM NEWS USS Lexington (cv 16) was designated as a National Historic Landmark in Jul y 2003. Launched in 1942 from the Bethlehem Steel Shipyard, Quincy MA, it is an Essex C lass Ai rcrafr Carrier, the on ly existing sh ip of its kind still afloat. Lady Lex Museum on the Bay, 2914 North Shoreline Blvd., Corpus C hristi, TX 78402; ph. 361 888-4873; e-mail: ladylex@intcomm. net; web sire: usslexington.com . A member of the Historic Naval Ships Assoc., it is the 52 nd member of HNSA to be so designated. Historic Naval Ships Assoc., clo US Nava l Academy Museum, 118 Maryland Ave., Annapolis, MD 2 1402-5034. See www.hnsa.org. . . . T he Natio nal Ocean ic and Atmospheric Administration has located two significant shipwrecks in the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands Coral Reef Ecosystem Reserve. The 133-year old wreck of the American wars hip USS Saginaw and the possible remains of the American whaleship Parker were located during a NOAA research mission off Kure Atoll led by Hans Van Tilburg, Maririme H eritage Manager for the Northwestern H awaiian Islands Coral Reef Ecosystem Reserve. The USS Saginaw was a transitional vessel, a paddlewheel steam sailing sloop. Launched in 1859 for anripiracy patrols in C hina, she was later deployed to the Pacific Squadron during the Civil War. T he Saginaw's last dury was to serve as the supply ship for a ream of divers working to blast a chan nel through the reef at Midway Atoll. She wrecked at Kure on her return voyage. Based on the arti fac t debris trail , it appears as if little warning preceded the Saginaw's impact. Archaeo logists are not yet certain of the identi ry of the whaling ship, but signs point to it being the American whaler, Parker. Of the seven known wrecks at Kure, only two vessels likely correspond to the nature of the scattered artifacts surveyed: the British whaleship Gledstanes, reported lost in 1837, and the American whaleship Parker, wrecked on the reef in 1842. Both rhe wrecks of the USS Saginaw and the whaleship are protected by a number of stare

and federal preservatio n laws. The Saginaw, furthermore, remai ns properry of rhe US Navy. . . . San Diego Maritime Museum has increased their fleer once again. The HMS Surprise (aka "HMS" Rose) joins the Schooner Californian, acquired in 2002, and will be open to the p ublic during regular museum hours, 9AM-8PM. Paid admission to the maritime museum is required. Originally christened

launched in 1970, the ship underwenr extensive modifications for the making of the movie. A full-rigged ship, it was used as a sail training vessel prior to its famous movie role. The HMS Surprise was made available to the museum by special arrangement with 20 th Century Fox, Universal and Miramax, producers of Master

and Commander: The Far Side ofthe World. . . . The Lake Champlain Maritime Musewn is planning a spring launch of the canal schooner Lois McClure. The vessel is modeled after th e 1862-class General Butler and the O.j Walker, two historic shipwrecks loca ted less than one mile from the construction sire. The Lois McClure is inrended to become a harbor-side educational exhibit illustrati ng how the lake served as a dynamic highway of commercial transportation during the 19th century. LCMM, 4472 Basin Harbor Rd., Vergennes, VT 05491; ph. 802 475-2022; e- mail: info@lcmm. org; web sire: www. lcmm .org. . . . East Carolina Universiry and the NC D ept. of C ultural Resources dedicated the Queen Armes Revenge Shipwreck Conservation Laboratory in Jam1ary. Cannons, ship parts, and medical in-

Conservators study an

artifact from Black beard's ship Queen Anne's Revenge.

struments are among thousands of artifacts being preserved at the universiry's West Research campus sire. Since the discovery of rhe wreck, which evidence supporrs was Blackbeard's flagship, more than 16,000 artifacts have been retrieved, representing only 2% of the items on the sire. After conservation, many items will be transported to the orth Carolina Maritime Museum in Beaufort. Program in Maritime Studies, Admiral Ernest M. Eller House, East Carolina Univ. , Greenvi lle, NC 27858; ph . 252 328-6097; web sire: www.ecu.edu/maririme/. Project Co nservator, Sarah Watkins-Kenney: ph. 252 744-672 1. . . . Famous shipwrecks are bei ng discovered just about everywhere lately. The SS Republic, a sidewheel steamer that sank in 1865 en route to New Orleans carrying $400,000 in specie, has been located by Odyssey Marine Explorations, Inc. T he Republic was carrying 59 passengers and cargo to aid in the recovery from the C ivil War. The ship barded a hurricane for two da s off the

coast of Georgia when her engin e failed and the paddle wheels went dead. Taking on water, the pumps failed and the ship went down but nor before most of the crew and passengers made it safely into the lifeboats. The cargo of money in gold and silver coins went down wi th the ship. The sire is beyo nd the State of Georgia and the federal government's aurhoriry over cultural artifacts, and Odyssey M arine won salvage rights in federal court. Atlantic M utual Insurance, which doled our just under $300,000 in claims at the time for the cargo and ship, has transferred ownership of the hull and cargo to Odyssey Marine in exchange for $1,600,000. N umismatic Co nservati on Servi ces and Numismatic Guaranry Corp. have been awarded an exclusive co ntract to perform

SEA HISTORY 106, WINTER 2004

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conservation, grading and encapsulation of the coins for the numismatic market. . . . The Maine Maritime Museum is fund-raising to build a full-sized reconstruction of the 6-masted schooner W)oming on the spot from which she was launched into the Kennebec River in December 1909. Today, this location is part of the Museum ; back then it was part of the Percy & Small shipyard. The schooner Tiryoming was the biggest wooden sailing vessel ever to carry ca rgo at 329.5' in length and a 50.1' beam and a 30.4' depth of hold. Maine Maritime Museum, 243 Washington Street, Bath, ME; ph. 207 443-13 16; e-mail: maritime@bathmaine. org; web site: www.mainemaritimemuseum.org . . . The original W)oming was located and identified recently by the same firm that discovered the wreck of the steamship Portland. According to Arnold Carr of American Underwater Search & Survey, the ship is in rwo pieces in an undisclosed location off Cape Cod. The ship is ripped apart amidships, which supports th e theory that the fully-loaded vessel may have struck bortom in the trough of a wave during a gale. New evidence suggests Tiryoming may have collided with another vessel. Carr's team is planning to return to the site next summer to document and photograph the site. Carr and his team have been searching for the Tiryoming since the 1970s. T hey finally succeeded using side scan sonar and a magnetometer and armed with some new historical information. . . . The Erie Maritime Museum recently obtained a rare artifact from the IO September 1813 Battle of Lake Erie. The Naval Historical Center in Washington DC has loaned a historic cannon that was captured from the British by Commodore Oliver Hazard Perry's squadron. The 24-pounder long gun was part of the armament of the HMS Detroit, the British squadron Commander Robert Barclay's flagship. US Brig Niagara, Erie Maritime Museum, 150 East Front St., Erie, PA, 16507; ph. 814 452-BRlG (2744); e-mail: sail@brigniagara.org; web site: www.brigniagara.org/museum.htm. The Georgia Dept. of Natural Resources Historic Preservation Division has hired Jason Burns to help build the new Georgia Underwater Archaeology Program. Prior

to this hire, they were un able to actively document and protect Georgia's submerged cultural resources in-house. Management had been restricted to protective legislation and support of other organizations' research on shipwrecks in state waters. Historic Preservation Division, DNR, 156 Trinity Avenue, SW, Suite 101, Atlanta, GA 30303-3600; ph. 404 6562840; http//hpd.dnr.state.ga.us; e-mail Jaso n Burns: jason_burns@dnr.state.ga. us. . . . Rogers Surveying of Staten Island, NY discovered this uncharted wreck lying in 65' of water in the East River near Hell Gate in New York City during a hydrographic survey in 2001. Earthworks, LLC of Newtown, CT made the sonar image and depth model of the vessel, roughly

COURTESY EARTHWORKS, LLC

100 feet in length, 18' in beam, and rising approximately 20' off the bottom. No identifying information on the vessel has been found to date. Any information on the vessel or suggestion on the vessel type or age would be appreciated. See http:// www.earrhworks2020.com/rogerswreck/ index. html for additional images. Earthworks, PO Box 178, Newtown, CT 06470-0178; ph. 203 270-8100. t. 37

SHIP NOTES, SEAPORT AND MUSEUM NEWS CALENDAR FESTfVALS, EVENTS, LECTURES, ETC.

•Chicago Maritime Festival : 28 February at the C hicago Historical Society located on Clark Street at North Avenu e in C hicago. (In fo : Tom and Chris Kasde, PO Box 56394, C hicago, IL 60656-0394; e-mail: kas tle@chicago maritimefestival.org) • l 50th Anniversary Speaker Series-The USS Constellation Museum : A year-long program in 2004 at the M aryland Histo rical Society, 201 Wes t Monument St., 3rd T hursday of each month . (USS Constellation Museum, Pier 1, 301 Eas t Pratt Sc., Baltimore, MD, 2 1202, 4 10 539- 1797; email: ussco nstellation@co mcast.n et; web site: www.co nstellation .o rg) • Naval History Seminar Program: 17 Feb., 16 March, 20 April , US Navy Museum, Bldg. 76, Washingto n Navy Yard, Washington, DC. (Info: Dr. Edwa rd J. Marolda, 202 433-3940, e-mail Edwa rd. Ma rold@navy. mil) •Tall Ships Challenge: 10 J une- 15 August, American Sail Training Assoc., Atl antic Coas t. Annual series of sail training races, rallies, cruises and pore festivals. (ASTA, 240 T hames Street, PO Box 1459, Newport, RI 02840; 401 846- 1775; e-mail : as ta@sailtraining.org; web site: htp ://ral lsh ips.sail training.org. •"Music of America and the Sea," CALL FOR PAPERS: 25th Annual Sea Music Festival at Mystic Seaport on 11- 13 June 2004-papers given 12 June. Deadline fo r proposals is 10 March. (Sea Music Festival Symposium, Mys ti c Seaport Museum, Inc., 75 Greenmanville Ave. , PO Box 6000 , Mystic, CT 06355-0990; e-mail: glenn. gordinier@mys ticseaport.org. In fo: 860 572-071 1 ext. 5037) •Smithsonian Folklife Festival: 23-27 June & 30 June-4 July 2004, "Water Ways: Th e Past, Present, and Future of M aritime Communities in the Mid-Atlantic," on the National Mall, Washington, D C (The Center for Folklife and C ultu ral H eritage, 75 0 9th Street, NW, Suite 4 100, Smithsonian Institutio n, Washington, D C 20560-0953; 202 275- 1150; email : folklife- info@s i.edu; web site: www. folklife.si. edu /CFC H /fes tival2004.htm CONFERENCES

•North American Society for O ceani c History (NAS OH) Annual Co nference: 6-8 Ma 2004, "Sea orts, Shi ards, and

the Mariner's World As hore and Afloat," at the Chesapeake Bay M aritime M useum, Sc. Michael's, MD (Info: Donald Shomette, Program C hair, 10525 Ward Rd. , Dunkirk, MD 20754; e-mail: Carol. Shomette@pgparks.co m; web site: www. ecu.edu/ nasoh/ .) •"Frederick Douglass and H erman Melville: A Sesquicentennial Celebration," CALL FOR PAPERS, 15 May 2004. Proposals for papers, panels, or roundtable discussions should be sent to Samuel Otter, English Dept. , 322 Wheeler Hall # 1030, Univ. of California, Berkeley, CA 94708 , e-mail: sotter@socrates. berkeley.edu, or to Robert S. Levine, English Dept. , 3 101 Susquehanna H al l, Uni v. of Maryland, 20742, e-mail : rlevine@umd.edu. •The Battle of Leyce Gulf: 18- 19 September 2004, annual symposium . T he National Museum of the Pacific War (o riginally named The Admiral N imitz Museum), PO Box 777; 340 Eas t Main St. , Fredericksburg, TX 78624; 83 0 997-4379; web site: www. nimitz-museum. com) •Maritime Heritage Conference: 27-30 October 2004 in No rfo lk, VA (see notice

p. 4 re: co nfe rence and call fo r papers). •Maritime Museum of San Diego a nd M ains'/ Haul: A journal of Pacific Maritime H istory, "Spain's Legacy in the Pacific During the Age of Sail," 24-26 September 2004, at the museum. Presentations relating to Spanish seaborne explora tion and colonization and its aftermath, includin g mili tary, commercial, fishing, scientifi c, and recreational developments. (Mariti m e Museum of Sa n Diego Library, 1492 N. H arbor Dr. , Sa n Diego, CA 92 11 6; email : edi to r@sdmaritime.org; web site: www.sdm aritime.com) EXHIBIT

•New Bedford Whaling Museum: 16 April 2004 - spring 2005 , "Yankee W halers, Manjiro, and the Opening of Japan ." Exhibi t opens with a lecture on 16 April by Stuart Frank, PhD , di recto r emeritus of the museum's Kendall Institute, and re marks by H ayato Sakurai, assistant curato r of th e museum and co-curato r of th e exhibiti on. T he exhibit examines the in Auential legacy of the whaling industry o n dipl omatic relations and cultural exchange between Japan and Western nations.

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SEA HISTORY 106, WINTER 2004

AMERICAN MERCHANT MARINE MUSEUM NEWS HALL OF FAME 2004 INDUCTEES Edwin J. O'Hara and rhe rive rboar Delta Queen were inducred inro rhe Museum's Narional Hall of Fame in January. Edwin O'Hara was an engin eering cader assigned ro rhe Liberry ship Stephen Hopkins for sea rraining. In fall 1942, rhe Hopkins was inrercepred by rwo Ge rman co mmerce raiders. The Hopkins's caprain elecred ro fighr, bur soo n rhe ship was in flam es and rhe crew ordered ro ''Abandon Ship. " O 'Hara made the deck to find th e crew of his ship's 4- in ch gun dead or wounded. He loaded and fired the gun's last five rounds by himself before fal ling mortally wounded. O 'H ara had sco red a number of direct hits o n th e enemy, sinking one vessel and severely dam aging the other. H e posthumously received the Merchant Marine's highest honor, th e Distinguished Service Medal, in 1943. The sreamboat Delta Queen began her career in 1927 on the Sacramento River providing overnight travel berween Sacramenro and San Francisco. In her heyday, Delta Queen boasted 11 7 staterooms and a dormitory to house 234 passengers, plus capaciry for 400 rons of cargo and 55 auromobiles! In 194 1, the US Navy chartered Delta Queen as a minesweeping training vessel. She lare r ferried troops ro ships anchored in San Francisco Bay. Retired and declared surplus in 1946, the steamboat was sold ro the G reene Lin e of C incinnati. After a challenging 5,000-mile journey under row fro m Californi a inro the Mississippi Rive r, Delta Queen was rorally refurbi shed and began a new life as an excursion boat servin g the W estern Rivers sys tem. In 1966, new legislation forbad e passenger operations in ships with wooden superstructures and almost gro unded th e ship for good . A public outcry caused Congress ro pass a special exemptio n for rhe vessel. In 1970, Delta Queen was designated a National Histo ric Landm ark and today still runs passenger excursions on th e Miss issippi Ri ver. (AMMM, USM MA, Kings Point NY 11 024; 516 773-55 15; e- mail: ammmuseum @ao l. co m)

SEA HISTORY I 06, WINTER 2004

OBITUARIES HORACE P. BECK (1920-2003) di ed in July 2003 in Vermo nr. Born in Newporr, Rhode Island ro a pri vileged fami ly, he wo rked as a commercial fisherman, lumberman, and miner while on breaks from college. H e served in the US Navy during World War II and then returned ro earn his docto rate from the Unive rsiry of Pennsylvania in 1952. Beck taught at Middlebury College si nce 1955 and retired in 1983 as Professor Em eritus of America n Literature and Folklore. H e had rremendous respect and passion for the sea and a love of the wild. A recognized maritime scholar, he was also an inspiring teacher who lived what he taughr. A lifelong sailo r, Beck traveled extensively in his own boat collecting dara as a fo lklorisr. H e is most well known for his life's wo rk, Folklore and the Sea, which was published in 1973 an d is curren dy in its fourth printing. Folklore and the Sea has both an academic and general readership as it covers everything maritime, including chanteys, pirates, supersririo ns, and rradirions from big ships ro rhe smallest wa tercraft. Beck is survived by his wife Jane C. Beck, Executive Direcro r of rhe Vermont FolkJife Center. DR. WILLIAM J. MORGAN (191 7-2003), former H ead, Research Branch, Naval Hisrorical Center, died last March ar rhe age of86 . H e served as a US Naval officer in World War II. Later, he moved ro Cal ifornia and raughr high school and college wh ile arrending rhe Universiry of Sourhern California, earning his PhD in hisro ry in 1956 . His doctoral wo rk was inrerrupred by a recall ro acrive du ry during rhe Korean War, and before finishing his degree, he began workin g ar rhe Naval Hisrory Division in Washington, D C. Morgan spent nearly 30 years ar rhe N H C. As head of rhe Research Branch, his experrise covered all periods, bur his specialry was rhe American Revolurion. His m enror over many years was Rear Adm. Ernest "Judge" Eller, a former C hief of Naval Information, who supported the esrablishment of rhe "Naval Documents of th e American Revolutio n." T his series was begun in collaboratio n wirh W illiam Bell C lark, a priva re cirizen whose own collecrion of early American naval documenrs he pur ar rhe disposal of rhe Naval Hisrory Divisio n. Since abour 1956, a global search of American and European public and priva re archives has go ne on to reco nstirute, cenrralize, edit, and publish rhese records. Afrer C lark's dearh in 1970, Morgan was tiam ed as his successo r. Much of his time at the Center was devoted ro this challenging wo rk, and when he retired in 1982, the series had progressed to a roral of nine vo lumes. Many other tasks also consp ired ro fill his days, however, such as the Autobiography of Rear Admiral Charles Wilkes, USN, rhe Civil Wt'zr Naval Chronology, and a Naval Chronology of World Wt'zr fl. In 1982, he received rhe Navy's hi ghest civilian award, rhe Disringuished C ivilian Service Award and also was named senior hisrorian emeritus. The No rth American Sociery fo r Oceanic Hisrory awarded him its highest award, rhe K. Jack Bauer Award , for scholarly achievement and public service in 1996 .

William ]. Morgan accepts the Navy Distinguished Civilian Service Award from the Vice ChiefofNaval Operations in 1982. 39

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After the Storm: True Stories of Disaster and Recovery at Sea, by Jo hn Rousmaniere (Internation al Marine/M cG raw- HilJ, New York, 2002, 282pp, i!Jus, notes, biblio, index, ISBN 0-07- 137795 -6; $24. 95hc) After the Storm is an ambitio us and profound book, with a center of graviry far removed fro m the journalistic hype of much storm w riting. In this sense the subtitle may mislead readers into thinking ir is simply ano ther addition to the shelves of books anthologizing a!J kinds of disasters at sea. The book as a whole is mu ch more than its parts, much deeper than its surface descriptions. The key wo rd in its title is "after. " Rousmaniere's wide-ranging com exrs enrich and so metim es am aze, bur always throw light on rhe book's cem er, precisely represenred by the first word of the title. Like a ston e thrown into a po nd, storms create but do not exhaust rhe meaning of their rippl es . As surface evenrs, they have beginnings and endings, crises and resolu tions, successes and failures for th e men and wo m en subj ected to their wrath . Starting with the premise that major sto rms are lifealrerin g evem s, he tracks rheir after-effects rele ntlessly and thoughtfully. H e himself survived a storm rhat he docum enred in Fastnet, Force 10. Thar storm drowned fifteen sailors during rhe 1958 Fastnet Race and had implications that even Ro usmaniere was no t aware of when he wrote rhe first accounr, ultimately sending him to rheological seminary. That search fo r the human meaning of storms is rh e co re of this book. T he book as a whole has shape, giving it valuable uni ry, rare in any collection of narratives. The ran ge in time and locatio n is great, but each story fits inro a mosaic with patterns of co ntinui ry. T hey a!J address rhe same questi o n: W hat is th e human meaning of storms-metaphysical and ontological- and how do they transform lives? John Rousmaniere has mo re than 35,000 miles of blue-water ex perience in sailing vessels. So it is no t surprising that he draws wisdom from thi s fund of ocean

SEA HISTORY I 06, WINTER 2004

experience and medi tates upo n it, fulfilling Melvill e's remark that meditatio n and the sea are wedded toge ther fo rever. H e writes with the precision necessary fo r seamanship and simultaneously inco rpo rates a wide range of allusions, giving us prose that is both clean and thought-provo king. I haven't enjoyed reading a nautical book so much sin ce Jo nathan Raban's Passage to Juneau, which has sim ilar li terary qualities. For me, that means After the Storm 1s wo rth readin g again . ROBERT FOULKE Lake George, New Yo rk

Admirals in the Age of Nelson , by Lee Bi enkowski (Naval ln sti tu te Press, Ann apolis, MD , 2003, 294pp, i!Jus, notes, biblio, index, glossary, ISBN 15575 0-002-9; $36.95 hc) T he British Navy's greates t age of fi ghting sail was durin g th e French Wars (1 793- 18 15), which produced a number of notable admi rals. Lee Bienkowski focuses on the lives and acco mplishmem s of eleven significant British fl ag officers that served as co mmanders- in -chi ef. T he well-docum ented life of H orati o N elson is no t included. Instead, Bienkowski focuses upon men in Nelso n's shadow who have not been adequately studied . T he author portrays these men who disrin guished themselves, so me by tacti cal brilli ance under fire and o thers who achieved victori es because of the power of their fo rces, mediocriry of their foes, and /o r new naval tactics they employed. In additi on she provides an extensive view of British naval history. More than a collectio n of individual biographies, this scholarl y wo rk provides insight into how the Royal Navy and these influential perso naliti es mutuall y affected one ano ther. T he autho r makes liberal use of primary material supplemented by carefully selected secondary so urce m aterial. Combined with her Aowing writing sryle, Ms. Bi enkowski 's well-researched effort is a significanr contribution to maritime histori cal literature. LOU IS ARTHUR NO RTON West Simsbury, Co nnecticut

The Coast Guard in Wo rld Wti r l An Untold Story, by Al ex R. Larzelere (Naval Institute Press, Annapolis, MD , 256pp, illus, notes, biblio, index, ISBN 1-5575 0476-8; $36 .95hc) T his book covers the transfer of th e US Coast G uard fro m the Treasury Department to the Navy D epartmenr in 19 J 7 because of the decla ration of wa r against Ge rm any. The USCG was created by a 19 15 legislation that co mbined the Revenue C utter Service and the Life Saving Service, plus requ ired th e newly-fo rm ed orga ni za tion to serve as a mili ta ry service and as part of the navy durin g wa rtime. The cooperation and coordin atio n between the Navy and Coast G uard are covered in detail. They in cl ude Coast G uard manning and operatio n of naval vessels, naval personnel likewise serving on USCG ships, Coas t Guard cutters esco rting convoys, the seizure of enemy shi ps by USCG perso nnel, po rt securi ry, and other du ties . T he lessons lea rn ed by bo th the Coast G uard and th e Navy produced an amazing capaciry to gain the m ost from both o rganizations since 19 17. T his sharing of abiliti es, hardware, and perso nnel has been critical in the 1920s Ru m War, Wo rld War II , Korea, Vietn am and most recentl y in th e Persian G ulf. T hose who have served in the Coast G uard in these later events wi!J recognize their ties to the pas t from the detailed repo rtin g of the events of 19 15 to 191 9. Captain Larzelere has given us an excellent view of the pas t that we may better understand the present. D AV ID E. PERKJNS Sebring, Florida

Launching History: The Saga of the Burrard Dry Dock, by Francis Mansbridge (H arbour Publishing Co., Ltd., M adeira Park, BC, Canada, 2002, 226pp, illus, notes, appen, biblio, index, ISBN 1-55 01 7280-8; $3 9. 95 hc)

Launching History: The Saga of the Burrard D ry Dock covers the foundin g of a small shipya rd in No rth Vancouve r, British Columbi a, whi ch grew into the largest shipyard in Canada. Founded by Al41

REVIEWS fred Wall ace in 1894, th e shipya rd was The Billy Ruffian: The Bellerophon and success full y run by three ge neratio ns of the Downfall ofNapoleon, The Biography Wallaces until its sale to o utsiders led ofa Ship ofthe Line, 1782-1836, by D avid to its ultim ate demise . Alfred Wallace, Cordingly (Bloo msbury, New Yo rk, 2003, a boatbuild er, and his wife immi grated 320pp, illus, appen, notes, glossa ry, biblio, to Canada in 1889 fro m E ngland and index, ISBN 0-7475-6537-6, $25.95 hc) eve ntuall y made their way to Va nco uver. David Co rdin gly's books present mariT here, he worked fo r a shipbuilder and time history in a refreshing way. His notebuilt lifeboats, with his wi fe's help, in hi s wo rth y abili ty is exemplified in The Billy spare tim e. Five yea rs la ter, he fo unded Ruffian: The Bellerophon and the Downfall his own shipya rd and delive red a wood- ofNapoleon. The Bellerophon, whose sobrien-stern wheeler in h is fi rst yea r. From quet was the "B illy Ruffi an," was both a then o n business flo uri shed, with Wal- witness to and parti cipant in three fam ous lace Shipya rd s steadil y ex pandin g, movin g to No rth Vanco uve r in 1909. It became Wallace Shipbuild ing & Drydock in 1920 and Burrard D ry Dock in 1921. THE BILLY T here were the usual ups and downs of RUFFIAN any shipya rd with wa rs a nd depress io ns, but good , ro ugh fa mil y managem ent ~Âˇ:::~~.~:~ kept th e ya rd competi tive and the uni o ns l>1W m COROTNnt.Y relati vely peaceful. T he postwar saw a modest and un certain fl ow of naval and co mmercial busin ess, with th e elder Wallaces becom ing less involved and the yo un ger o nes quarrel ing over ma nageme nt. Finally in 1972 the ya rd sold to a di verse ho lding company, endin g nea rl y eigh ty yea rs of family in vo lve ment. T he name changed, sea battles-th e 1774 Glorious First of aggressive moderni zatio n program s we re June, the 1798 Battle of the N ile, and Trainstituted, and the yard was managed falgar in 1805. In 18 15 Na poleo n surrento make mo ney, not ships. G lobal com - dered o n her ve ry deck to Captain Fredpetitio n fo r shipbuildin g co ntracts had eri ck Maitland, six weeks after Waterloo beco me intense, and with its high-living- and after over twenty yea rs of pursui t. In cos t locatio n, the ya rd co uld no t co m- the biography of the ship the reader learns pete. So me 450 vessels and hull sections about the late eighteenth-century ship dehad been buil t over the years. Employ- sign, co nstructio n, rigging, and provisioning. T he autho r vividly defines the "Billy's" ment had peaked at 14,000 durin g Wo rld War II but was down to just ten wh en captains, their co mrades in arms, the trials they fin ally cl osed. Unfo rtunately, it is a and tribulati o ns of m en who served on fa miliar shipya rd histo ry, from hum ble board, her sea battles, plus the evolution of beginnin gs to great success to loss of fa m - gunnery, tactics and signals. Finally Cordingly describes the ship's humiliating use ily contro l to disaster in many cases . M any pho tographs and documenta- as a prison hulk before it was dismantled ti on of Wallace- built vessels co mplement in a knacker's yard. the text well. O ne could wish fo r a map T he exciting narrative is well written to illustrate the layo ut of Va nco uve r and and scholarly with the use of co ntempoth e locati o ns of the Co mpany's yards and rary art and primary sources including d ocks. Aside fr om that, this is a ve ry read- diaries, letters, and ships' logs . Billy Ruf able acco unt of the rise and fa ll of a fa m - ft.an is in truth a o ne-volume survey course ily business and of shipbuilding in British of this important period of British naval history. Columbia. TOWNSEND H ORNER LOU IS ARTHUR NORTON Osterville, M assachusetts Wes t Simsbury, Co nnecticut 1 1!1 l U .lt:Mo rt lH:>I

ANl.l 'IHL OllWNMU.

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Fo r God and Glory: Lord N elson and H is Way of Wa r, by Joel H aywa rd (Naval In stitute Press, A nn apolis, M D , 200 3, 25 0pp , m aps, illu s, notes, glossary, biblio, ISBN 1-59 11 4-35 1-9; $32.95 hc) H e re is H o ra ti o Nelso n ... aga in , respun . T hi s tim e "pro fess io na l mi litary a na lys t" Joe l H ayw a rd recas ts the legend a nd his tac ti cs in seemingly a busin ess sc hool tex tb oo k fo r th e masses. In un suppressed ado rati o n , H aywa rd explo res N el so n's life, wo rds a nd acti o ns for the winning fo rmu la-so urces of the "N elso n To uch. " It's a relat ive ly interes ting jo urn ey, es pecia lly wh en th e autho r reco unts specific biographical a nd ba ttle even ts to suppo rt his th esis of Ne lso n's releva nce to 21 st ce ntu ry wa rfa re. Be awa re o f t he w riting style. H aywa rd is a form er teacher of defense and st rategic studi es and has lectured a t mili ra ry co lleges . For God and Glory read s as if it may have o n ce been deli ve red in t he stand a rd o utline: "Tell 'm wh a t yo u're go ing to tell 'm . Tell 'm . A nd Tell 'm what you told 'm ." T he bo o k is a t its bes t w hen H aywa rd brings Ne lso n , the m an , to the fo re: "The Bard e of the N ile is a superb example of the m a neuve rist co nce pts o f su rfaces and ga ps and the appli ca ti o n o f strength aga in st wea kn ess, but it is o nly o ne of many exa mples to be fo und in N elson's ill ustrio us ca ree r. " T he trea tm ent of N elson's victo ri es is o f inte res t, b ut even m o re engaging are H aywa rd's a nalyses o f hi s handling of reversals (s uch as th e defea t at Santa C ru z), ch arac ter fl aws (e.g. va nity), his ow n insub o rdin a tio n , and inn er- mo ral co nflict rega rdin g his affair w ith E mma H ami lton. This h ero seem s m o re acces sible as the author describes hi s subj ect's grow th and m a rnra ti o n. Strucrnre a nd faw ning aside, For God

and Glory: Lord Nelson and His Way of War is en gagin g readin g fo r th e Nelso n fa n and tim e we ll spent fo r th ose seek in g a contemp o ra ry reexa min ati o n o f o ne of h istory's m os t intri guin g cha racte rs. PETER SORENSEN O ld M ys tic, Co nn ecticut

SEA HISTORY I 06, WINTER 2004

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New from William H. White, the author of the War of 1812 Trilogy Read this thrilling saga of Am eri ca's firsten counter with th e Corsairs of the Barbaty Coast. Told by a 14-year-old midshipman who sails with Stephen Deca tur in 1803 to fight the pirates of Tripoli, this carefully researched and cra fted sto1y is more th an a "sea stOLy"; it is a comin g-of-age story of both a young man and the fledgling navy he serves. Sea battles, storm s, duels, and more challenge his maturity and encourage his personal grow th. Mee t Stephen Decatur, Edwa rd Preble, and other soon-to-become-fam ous participants in this littlekn own conflict, the "testing fi res" for the new American navy. Available at www.Amazon.com, your neighborhood bookseller, www.tillerbooks.com or www.seafi ction.net.

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SEA HISTORY 106, WINTER 2004

REVIEWS The Global Schooner: Origin, Development, Design and Construction, by Karl H einz Marquardr (Conway Maririme Press, London, 2003 , 239pp, illus, nores, appen, biblio, index, ISBN 0-85 177-93 01; $5 6h c) Ifa reader wa nrs ro know all about schooners, down ro the las t detail, he sho uld read this book. Orhers simply fascinared by the lore of sailing ships will find this work intriguing ro peruse-ir is a coffee-table type of book. D o nor be deceived, however, by its appearance; it is quite technical. T he author describes rigging details and other aspects of how schooners were built. The quami ty of drawings and phorographs, so me of ship models, complemenr th e text well. Readers will revel in descriprions of seafaring lore as rigging, anchors, binnacles-even capstans and windlasses-are described in great derail. Those persons disposed ro getting down ro specifics abo ut schooners will especially appreciare rhis book. The reader should ar rhe very leas r be familiar wirh such rerms as scarf, gu nwale, keelson, and pinde as rhe author ass umes rhe reader will know even rhe most obscure rerms of naurical nomencl at ure. T he book is most informative bur does require concentrarion. There are only 216 pages plus ap pendices, bur rhere is a grear deal ro digesr in it. ARTHUR D. KELLNER Roseland, New Jersey

able acco unr of rhis naval icon. Well-researched, clearly and compellingly written, rhis book purs us on rhe quarrerdeck wirh a man who proved himself fearless in barde, became a celebrity in Paris, and made borh friends and enemies in high places as he fo ughr for rhe rank and recognition he felr he was roo ofren deni ed. Despire his service ro rhe fledgling Un ired Srares, he died on foreign so il , forgotten by rhe narion he served, only ro be resurrected and lirerally dug up a cenrury larer robe broughr home and enshrined as America's Nelson. JERRY ROBERTS New York, New York

Diary of a Contraband: The Civil war Passage of a Black Sailor, by Wi lliam

B. Gould IV (Sranford University Press, Sranford, CA, 2002, 373pp, illus, maps, appe n, nores, ind ex, ISBN 0-8047-4708-3; $24.95 pb) On a rainy nighr in September 1861, eight slaves escaped Wilmingron, NC and m ade rheir way ro rhe USS Cambridge, a blockading vessel station ed off the Cape Fear River. One of the men was W illiam Benjamin Go uld . Gould was nor a srereotyp ical slave-he was an educated arrisan, and for rh e nexr rhree years he fairhfully kepr a diary of his warrime service. His diary porrrays rhe typical experience of a Civil Wa r sailor, significan tly rhro ugh rhe eyes of an African American. He served o n th e Cambridge for blockad e duty, spenr john Paul Jones: Sailor, Hero, Father of rime on receiving ships awairing new asthe American Navy, by Evan T homas (Si- signmenrs, and later rransferred ro rhe Nimon & Schuster, New York, 2004, 400pp, agara, which rook srarion in Europe lookillus, nores, biblio, index, ISBN 0-74325- ing for Confederare wars hips being built 804-5; $ 14 pb) in France and England . Within its pages John Paul Jo nes is a legendary figure are Go uld's co nfrontation with boredom, in American naval hisrory, yer few know privation, and momenrs of terror and the more than his name and his famo us quore, ship's barrle wirh rhe elemenrs . T he diary "I have nor yer begun ro fi ght. " Anyone also treats us ro his views on racism and wirh even rhe slightesr inrerest in naval parnonsm. warfare during rhe age of sail should get His family discovered rhe diary in an ro kn ow rhis imperfecr hero who almost attic in 1958, and Gould's grear-grandsingle-handedly upheld rhe honor of rhe son, an accomplished lawyer, academic, yo ung American Navy. Born a Scorsman, and former C hairm an of rhe Na rional Jones adopred rhe American cause and rhe Labor Relario ns Board, edired ir-lerring formarion of a US Navy as his own per- his grear-grandfather rel! his srory wirhsonal crusade, as well as an opportunity for out inrerruprio n. William B. Gould (rhe rhe fame and glory rhis complex characrer younger) also added o rher wrirings of rhis seemed ro cover above all orh er rhings. remarkable C ivi l War vereran , as well as a Evan Thomas has delivered a very read- family hisrory and rheir generations of ser-

vice ro rhis counrry. We can thank both Go ulds for Diary of a Contraband. Ir is a significanr co nrr iburion ro borh Civil War and African American literature. ROBERT M. BROWNING, J R. Dumfries, Virginia

Thomas Macdonough, Master of Command in the Early U.S. Navy, by David Curtis Skaggs (Naval Insriture Press, Annapolis, MD, 2003 , 25 7pp, illus, nores, biblio, index, ISB N 1-55750-839-9; $37 .50hc) Mr. Skaggs has underrake n ro immo rralize one of America's naval heroes, rhe man who made his name on Lake Champlain in Seprember 1814 by defearing a Brirish squadron and rhus assuring Am erican conrrol of rhe lake for the rest of the war. This conrrol was crucial ro avo id a British march down the Hudson Valley srraighr ro New York City, which would have caused the war and , more imporranrly, the peace nego tiations underway ar G hent, to take a quite different rum. Unforru nately, the author has made a number of errors, which combine ro creare a disappoinring result. Probably mosr signifi cant of th ese is that he views nineteenrh-cenrury actions, mindset, and morals nor rhrough the standards of rhe period, but through the discorted vision of rwenty-firsr cenrury eyes. C learly, roday's srandards differ in almost every way from those exranr during the early 1800s. Less sign ificant, bur also disrracring, is Mr. Skaggs use of secondary or even rerriary sources as his reference materi al. Ir is common for writers of biographies of historical people ro romamicize th eir subjects with exaggerated and unsubsranriared facts, and Macdonough's biographer has unwittingly fallen inro rhe sam e trap. Skaggs admirs his lack of "seafaring" knowledge; it is appa renr in his effort here. T his reviewer "heard" a vo ice repeating what others had said with ou t the author understanding the words. Factual errors result from both this lack and poor research; an example is his placement of the Chesapeake/Shannon barrle of 1June 18 13 off Cape May, New Jersey rather than off Cape Ann, Massachusetts, where it, in facr, rook place. A rhorough ed iror might have caughr that error, but good editing

SEA HISTORY 106, WINTER 2004

New from Sea History's Art Gallery

LIMITED EDITION LITHOGRAPHS by Paul Garnett A native of Boston, marine artis t Paul Garnett releases two new limited edition images-one of the USS Cons titution as she originally appeared in 1798 and one of His Majesty's Armed Vessel Bounty. Mr. Garn ett' s work has been seen in Nautica l World magazine, Marine Art Quarterly, and Sea History magazine. His paintings have also been featured on A&E Sea Tales as well as the History Channel's series History 's Mysteries.

'Defeatatthe Horn" HMAV Bounty puts about for the Cape of Good Hope, Africa, 22 April 1788 Image: 30"x22"

Trim: 34"x261/2"

$65.00

Paul Garnett's limited edition lithographs are signed, numbered and presented with signed and numbered parchments detailing the historic significance that inspired each painting. NMHS THANKS MR . GARNETT FOR HIS GENEROUS DONATION OF PRINTS, ENABLING ALL PROCEEDS TO GO DIRECTLY TO THE SOCIETY.

"Defeat at the Horn" depicts the Bounty in exactly the conditions that Bligh described so vividly in his Log; mountainous seas, a lead en sky and "lightning crackling down!" In "Shakedown Cruise," Paul Garnett wanted to show the viewer what the USS Constitution looked like when first commissioned. This painting shows the ship on the evening of her departure from her mooring near Castle Island, Boston Harbor in the summer of 1798.

'Shakedown Cruise" Frigate USS Constitution leaves Boston Harbor by Castle Island, July 1798 Image: 25"x20"

Trim: 34"x261/2"

$65.00

TO ORDER BY PHONE OR CREDIT CARD CALL: 1-800-221-NMHS (6647), EXT. 0 BY CHECK OR MONEY ORDER TO: NATIONAL MARITIME HISTORICAL SOCIETY PO BOX 68, PEEKSKILL, NY 10566

(Please add $17.50 for shipping and handling charges)

REVIEWS seems lacking here also. The book is distractingly repetitive and redundant; dates jump forward and back, making the reader's task of following a sequence more difficul t. T he author states at the outset that there was precious little information on his subj ect available with large gaps in chronological documents. T his could acco unt for his repetition of information , else the book might have rurned out to be an "article." Despite fac tual and editing erro rs, Thomas Macdonough, Master of Command in the Early U S. Navy accomplishes what Skaggs intended- it tells the story of a great officer in the early US Navy and, while its writing is sometimes confusing, the tale is still worth the telling. W ILLlAM H . W HITE Rumson, New Jersey

The Bounty: The True Story ofthe Mutiny on the Bounty, by Caroline Alexander (Viking Penguin , New York, 2003, 49lpp, illus, notes, bib lio, index, ISBN 0-97003 133-X;$ 27.95 he) The ship Bounty is often associated with mutiny, and the surname Bligh is a synonym for a sadistic ship's captain. T he popular im age and the reality of the events that led up to the mutiny and its afterm ath appear to be untrue. Author/ historian Caroline Alexa nder's book The Bounty corrects the myth through the scrupulous reading of the Bounty's log, letters by members of the crew, and court martial tes tim ony. The record shows that Lieutenant W illiam Bligh was a man of honor, a skillful mariner with a stro ng sense of du ty and co ncern about the well-being of his crew. Perhaps guil ty of micro-manage ment, Bligh is portrayed as a reluctant disciplinarian (by earl y nineteenth-century British Navy standards). Like most sea ca ptains, he was demanding, particularly of his protege and later mutineer Fletcher Christian. Alexander takes her readers th ro ugh the intricate mutin y plot, the campaign of midshipman and mutineer Peter H aywa rd to discredit Bligh, and the attacks on his character by Edward C hristian, Fletcher's bro ther. She describes th e incidents in the context of the sweeping changes that we re occurring in Europe-the political and philosophical aftermath of the French Revolution 46

and destruction of the ancient order. T his boo k co rrects an oversimplified story of that South Seas botani cal quest, the famous mutiny, and Bligh's remarkable voyage of survival, while presenting an equally co mpelling, more histo ri cally accurate, narrati ve of th e events. LOU IS ARTH UR NORTO

The Ship: Retracing Captain Cook's Endeavor Voyage, by Simon Baker (H ydra Publ ishing, Irvingto n, NY, 2003, 224pp, illus, biblio, index, !SB 1-59258-004-1; $27.5 0h c) T his work's tide is something of a misnomer. The book, commissioned by BBC Wo rldwide, wo uld more accurately be tided, "Observa tions of a BBC Team on Captain Cook's First Voyage." Ir is based on a recent voyage in an Endeavour recreation conducted fo r a BBC histo ry producti on. The author uses that six-week transit as the means to homogenize his thoughts, details of Cook's ac rual voyage, and the reactions to it of a group of "historians and experts" participating in the modern voyage. Reactions of the modern-day gro up to the hard realities of sailing a square- rigged ship are also stirred in . The author's stated objectives included seeking the answers to three questions: Who was the real captain Cook? What was the significance of his achievements then? What do they mean today? By answering those questi ons, Mr. Simon hoped to reevaluate Cook's standing as a highly accomplished cartographer, navigator and explorer. An abundan ce of illustrati ons, antique charrs, and color photographs bl end well with the text. T he result is a magazine fo rmat geared to fas t reading. J OSEPH F. CALLO New York, New York Through Spanish Eyes: The Spanish Voyages to America, 1774-1792, by Wallace M. Olson (H eri tage Research, Auke Bay, AK, 2002, 586pp, illus, maps, appen, biblio, index, ISB 0-965 9009-1-6; $60pb) In the latter dlird of the eighteenth century, Spain and its Navy enjoyed a significant revival. Spain designed and built superb warships, the Spanish naval signaling system and tactical doctrine becan1e the

most advanced in Euro pe, and Spain paid far more attenti on to educating her naval offi cers than did Britain. Unfortunately for Spain, these reforms did not affect her greatest weakness, her naval manning system. T hus, their co mbat results were disappointing, but still of interest to the historian . One of their achievements was a series of voyages of exploration from Mexico along the California and Cascadian coastlines to Alaska. Al though they sought to study the regions and its inhabitan ts as a scientific pursuit, a greater goal was to claim terri to ry fo r Spain in the face of Russian and , later, British incursions. In Through Spanish Eyes, Wallace Olson provides a thorough and readable account of those voyages, made up, in large part, of journal extracts from die naval officers who led the expedi tions. T he book's focus on their reports regard ing the native peoples and their cultu res makes the book of more interest to smdents in that field than to naval historians. Still, the growth of Spanish naval professionalism shines thro ugh, culmin ating in the acco unt of the Alaska portion of die famous Malaspina Expedition of 1791. T he book also touches on the local aspects of the Nootka Sound crisis of 1790, whi ch almost led to war berween England and Spain and left the Royal Navy mobilized to face its new co nflict wirli Revolutionary France. Through Spanish Eyes is a welcome contribution to a period in naval history when too little is avai lable in English about navies other than that of Great Bri tain . T he reviewer hopes it will stimulate others to write more about the navies of Spain and other European powers. W ILLlAM

LI N D

Alexandria, Virginia

Perils ofthe Atlantic: Steamship Disasters, 1850 to the Present, by William Flayhart (W W No rto n & Company, N ew York, 2003, 380pp, illus, notes, bibli o, index, !SB 0-393-04 155-7; $58 .90hc) Perils ofthe Atlantic is a collecti o n of relati vely brief acco unts of rwenty- rwo disasters (collisions, fi res, gro undings, sto rms) in the No rth Atlantic, predominantly in the nin eteenth century. In each case, there we re survivors who could report what hapSE A HISTORY 106, WINTE R 2004

pened. Alrhough rhis aurhor has solid credenrials as historian and wrirer, rhis work musr be somerhing of an embarrassmenr, since it is distinguished more for irs shorrcomings rhan its accomplishmenrs. The book suffers throughour from sloppy ediring, obvious errors in details (e.g., the texr says SS Rusland wenr aground starboard side to the beach; a photo rwo pages larer clearly shows rhe ship porr side to shore) and misuse of naurical rerm inology. Aside from a single diagram, rhe book is devoid of charrs or maps thar are essenrial to ill uminaring how and where the disasrers occurred. The acco ums seem superficial and ro have been writren independenrly of one anorher, since evenrs, people, and ships memioned in one chapter are often referred to in subsequent chap rers, wi rh no reference to their earli er inclusion. As a result many minor details are repeated needlessly. Finally, save for rhe firsr disasrer (rhe 1854 sinking of the Arctic fo llowing a collision with the Vesta), no artention is given to the lessons that should have been learned from these disasters . Perils of the Atlantic po rtrays many memorable and histori cally significam disasters on the No rth Arlanric, bur rhis account is not whar ir co uld be. Given the author's academic background , ir also is not what it should be. CAPTAIN HAROLD J . SUTPHEN Kilmarnock, Virginia

Out of the Fog The Sinking of Andrea Doria

NEW&NOTED Sea of Glory: America's Voyage of Discovery, The U.S. Expedition, 18381842, by Nathanie l Philbrick (Vikin g, New York, 2003, 452pp, illis, maps, notes, biblio, ind ex, ISBN 0-670-0323 1x; $27. 95hc)

Charles Benson: Mariner of Color in the Age of Sail, by Michael Sokolow (Uni-

MARITIME

versiry of Massachusetrs Press, Amherst, MA, 2003, 234pp, illus, appen, notes, biblio, ind ex, ISBN 1-55849-409-x $25 hc)

BOOKS

Evolution's Captain: The Dark Fate of the Main Who Sailed Charles Darwin Around the World, by Peter Nichols (HarperCo llins, New York, 2003, 336pp, ill us, maps, biblio, ISBN 0-060088 77-x; $24.95 hc)

A Rage for Glory: The Life of Commodore Stephen Decatur, USN, by James Tertius deKay (Free Press, New York, 2004, 229pp, biblio, notes, ind ex, ISBN 0-7432-4245-9; $2 5hc)

n Jul y 1956, two passenger linersA11drea Doria and Stockho/111-co llided at the edge o f a fogba nk. The case was settl ed o ut of court, so no documented reso lution ex ists. Thi s book has in fo rm ation not prev iously avail able in Engli sh. Both author Algol Mattsson and coeditor Gordon Pau lsen were in vo lved with the case at the ti me.

" Lea n and luc id account of a puzz ling di saste r." -A111erica11 Shipper

SEA HISTORY I 06, WINTER 2004

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by Ga ry Dillard Joiner (Scho larl y Reso urces, Inc., Wilmington, DE, 2003, l 98pp, illus, maps, notes, biblio , index, ISBN 0-8420-2937-0; $ 17.95 pb)

- Th e Balti111ore Sun

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John Walsh Blvd., Peekski ll NY 10566; minimum subscripti on price is $17.50. Publisher and editor-in-chief: No ne; editor is Deirdre O ' Rcgan; owner is Na tional Maritime Hisrori cal Socic1y, a no nprofit corporation; all arc located at 5 Joh n Walsh Blvd., Peeksk ill NY 10566. During che 12 mon ths preceding Ocrobcr 2003 thc average number of (A) copies printed each issue was 25.2 13; (13) paid and/ or requested circulati on was: ( I) outside-coumy mail subscriptions 8,789; (2) in-county subscrip1 ions O; (3) sales th ro ugh dealers, ca rriers, co11mer sales, other non -US PS paid disrribution 443; (4) othe r classes mai led throu gh USPS 347; (C) toral paid and/o r requ es ted circulatio n was 9, 57 9; {D) free disrriburion by mail. sampl es , complim entary and orh er 14.087; (E) free disrriburion OLHside rhe mails 769; (F) tota l free distribution was 14,856; (G) total disiribmion 24,435; (H ) copies not dis1ribured 778: (I) w 1.1l {of l 5G and H ] 25.2 13; U) Percem age paid and/or requested ci rcula1ion 39%. The actual numl~ rs fo r the single issue preceding Oc1ober 2003 are: (A) total nurnber primed 25.2 14; (B) paid and/or reques1ed c ircubrion was:(\) ourside-coumy mail subscriptions 8.730; (2) in-coumy subscriptions O; (3) sales through dealers , carriers, counte r sales, ocher non-US PS paid distributi on 443; (4) och er cb sses mail ed rhrou gh USPS 303; (C) weal pai d and/or req uested circulation was 9.476; (D ) free distribution by mail, samples, com plim entary and other 13.9 18; (E) free distribution outside rhe mails 750; (I=) tot:-i l free distribution was 14,668; (G) tot:-il distribution 24, 144; (H) copies not discribured 1,070; (I) tOlal [of 15G a nd H J 25,2 14; U) Pcrce mage paid and/o r req uested circulation 38%. I ce nify th at rh e above sracern cms arc co rrect a nd compl ete. (signed) Burchenal G reen, Executive Vice Prcsidenr, N~uional Maritim e Hi storical Sociery.

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SEA HISTORY J 06, WINTER 2004