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SEA HISTORY
No. 143
SUMMER20 13
CONTENTS 10 Navigating Between Friend and Foe: Jacob Gibson in the War of 1812,
by Pete Lesh er, illustrations by Marc Castelli Landowners along the Chesapeake Bay were in an awkward position in the \%r of1812; selling provisions to British ships, even under duress, was seen as aiding the enemy. Jacob Gibson found himself under this kind of scrutiny, and didn't help his lot with an ill-considered prank. His purchase of two cannons for the local militia was an attempt to restore his neighbors' good will, and these guns would prove critical in the Battle ofSt. Michaels.
14 The Cape Horn Road-Francis Drake Sails for Freedom, by Peter Stanford In observance ofNMHS's 50th anniversary, we are revisiting favorites from Sea History's past. In this installment from Peter Stanford's popular Cape Horn Road series, we follow Francis Drake in his momentous journey around Cape Horn, challenging Spain and Portugal's dominance of world trade on the high seas. 20 My Week ''Aboard" Mystic Seaport's Charles W. Morgan, by Jim Nordmann Inspired by a talk with fellow SUNY Maritime alum and Mystic Seaport shipyard director Quentin Snediker, Jim Nordmann spent a week in Mystic's shipyard working with their seasoned crew on the restoration ofthe Charles W Morgan. He shares his impressions here. 26 USCG Cutter Ingham, Pride of the Coast Guard, by William Verge and John Viele During World \%r II, US Coast Guard cutters were well suited to convoy escort duty due to their extended cruising range. Here we learn ofthe career of USCGC Ingham, the most decorated ship in USCG history, in that vital role of convoy escort.
30 The Onus of Debt: William Henry Brown and the Building of the Schooner
America, by James G. Brown Ambitious shipbuilder Wiffiam H Brown wowed the public in 1850 with a triple Launchthree ships in one day. He was then awarded the contract to build the schooner yacht America in response to the British chaffenge that would evolve into what we know today as America's Cup. Financial troubles, however, would overshadow his triumph.
Cover: The Whaling Ship Charles W. Morgan Undergoing Restoration. Photo by Dennis Murphy, courtesy of Mystic Seapo rt. The 172-year-ofd historic ship, the Last remaining wooden whaling ship in the world, wiff be relaunched this July at Mystic Seaport after 4 112 years on the hard for a major restoration. (See story on pp. 20-24 and refer to page 25 for details on how you can participate in this historic event.)
DEPARTMENTS 40 S HIP NOTES, SEAPORT
4 DECK Loe
5 8 34 38
NMHS:
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MUSEUM NEWS
LETTERS
A CAUSE IN
SEA HISTORY FOR
MOTION
Kms
MARITIME HISTORY ON THE INTERNET
49 CALENDAR
51 56
REVIEWS PATRONS
Sea History and the National Maritime Historical Society Sea History e-mail: editorial@seahisto ry.org; NMH S e-mail: nmhs@seahistory.org; Web site: www.seahistory.org. Ph: 91 4 737-7878; 800 22 1-NMH S MEMBERSHIP is invited. Afrerguard $ 10,000; Benefactor $5,000; Plankowner $2,500; Sponsor $ 1,000; Do nor $500; Patron $250; Friend $100; Co ntribmor $75; Family $50; Regular $35.
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SEA HISTORY (issn 01 46-93 12) is published quarterly by the National Maritime H istorical Sociery, 5 John Walsh Blvd. , POB 68, Peekskill NY 10566. Periodicals postage paid at Peekskill NY 10566 and add'! mailing offi ces. COPYRIG HTŠ 201 3 by the National Mari rime H isrorical Sociery. Tel: 914 737-7878. POSTMASTER: Send address changes ro Sea History, PO Box 68, Peekskill NY 10566.
NATIONAL MARITIME HISTORICAL SOCIETY
DECK LOG
a
NATIONAL MARITIME
The Maritime Museum Community Interprets the Past for a 2J5f-Century Public
'V' HISTORICAL SOCIETY
useum professionals from across the country gathered in April at the North Carolina Maritime Museum in historic Beaufort for the Council ofAmerican Maritime Museums (CAMM) annual meeting. Whether they came from large institutions covering a broad range of our maritime heritage or the smallest of museums interpreting a regional history, these leaders in the maritime heritage community understand that the challenges we face and our missions are often the same. Once a year, we come together to share our experiences, lessons acquired, and goals for the future in hopes that we can learn from each other. Session topics included preserving historic ships large and small, developing traveling exhibits to get stories out to a broader audience, making archives accessible online, and developing maritime heritage trails that engage the public out in the very places where historic events occurred. The shift towards extending a museum's reach beyond the confines of buildings and grounds was clear, and with new technology so much more is possible than ever before.
PUBLISHER'S CIRCLE: Peter Aron , G uy E. C. Maitland
M
Shadboat, built by the North Carolina Maritime Museum, under sail on Taylors Creek in Beaufort. The museum hosted this year's CAMM meeting and shared with colleagues thefull range ofthe coastal North Carolina maritime history they interpret, from their active community boatbuilding program to underwater archaeology (the famous Beaufort Inlet Wreck, a.k.a. Queen Anne's Revenge, lies just outside the channel), to research projects studying North Carolina boatbuilders and their craft from colonial periaugers to shadboats to modern fishing vessels and yachts. It was invigorating to witness the excitement as museum directors, curators, ship- and boatbuilders, and others presented their current projects and new programs, many of them innovative in their approach to both preserving the artifacts in their care and interpreting them to the public. Even in the face of a difficult economic climate, today's maritime museums are actively preserving historic vessels great and small, adding more exhibit space, and developing shared programs with other institutions. Maritime history is being made more accessible and engaging to the general public, while the level of scholarly work remains high behind the scenes. One of the big stories of the meeting, of course, is the upcoming launch of Mystic Seaport's famous whaler, the Charles W Morgan , and Mystic's president Steve White extended an invitation to all to witness the historic event on 21 July (see page 25 for details) . The Morgan will be reBoated on the date that she was first launched from a New Bedford, Massachusetts, shipyard back in 1841. The public is invited, and we encourage our members to attend and also to seek out their local maritime museums this summer to enjoy, participate, and support what they have to offer. -Burchenal Green, President 4
OFFICERS &TRUSTEES: Chairman, Ronald L. Oswald; Vice Chairman, Ri chardo R. Lopes; President, Burchenal Green; Vice Presidents, D eirdre O 'Regan, N ancy Schnaa rs; Treasurer, Howard Slornick; Secretary , Jean Wort; Trustees: Charles B. Anderson; Walter R. Brown; RADM Joseph F. Callo, USNR (Ret.); Jam es Carter; Thomas Daly; W illiam S. Dudley; David S. Fowler; William Jackson Gree n; Karen Helm erson; Robert Kamm ; Ri chard M. Larrabee; G uy E. C. Maitland; Capt. Brian McAllister; CAPT Sally C hin McElwreath , U SNR (Rer.); Jam es J. McNa mara; Mi chael W Morrow; Timothy J. Runyan; Richard Scarano; Philip ). Shapiro; Bradford D . Smith; Cesare Sorio; Philip J. Webster; Daniel W Whalen; Trustees Elect: Ri chard Patrick O 'Leary; Roberta Weisbrod; Chairmen Emeriti: Walter R. Brown, Alan G. Choate, G uy E. C. Maitland, Howard Slornick; President Emeritus, Peter Stanford FOUN D ER: Karl Kortum (1917- 1996) OVERSEERS: Chairman, RADM David C. Brown, USMS (Ret.); C live C uss ler; Richard du Moulin ; Al an D. Hutch ison ; Jakob Isbrandtse n; Gary Jobson; Sir Robin KnoxJohnsto n; John Lehm an; H. C. Bowen Smith; John Srobart; Willi am H. White; William Winterer N MHS ADVISORS: Chairman, Melbourne Smith; D. K. Abbass , George Bass, O swald Brett, Francis J. Duffy, John Ewald, Timothy Foote, Willi am G ilkerson , Steven A. Hyman, J . Russell Jini shi an, G unn ar Lundeberg, Conrad Milster, W illiam G . Muller, Stuart Parnes, Lo ri Dillard Rech, Nancy Hughes Richardson, Bert Rogers, Joyce Huber Smith SEA HISTORY EDIT ORIAL ADVISORY BOARD: Chairman, Timothy J . Run yan; Norman). Brouwer, Robert Browning, William S. Dudley, Daniel Finamore, Kevin Foster, John Odin Jense n, Joseph F. M eany, Lisa Norling, Ca rl a Rahn Phi ll ips, Walter Rybka, Quentin Snediker, William H. White
N MHS STAFF: Executive D irector, Burchenal G reen; Mem bership D irector, Nancy Schnaars; M arketing D irector, Steve Lovass-Nagy; Accounting, Peter Yozzo; Vo lunteer Coordinator, Jane M auri ce; Exec. Administrative Assistant, Kell ey H oward SEA HISTORY. Editor, D eirdre O 'Regan ; A dvertising, Wendy Paggiotta; Copy Editor, Shell ey Reid; Editor-at-Large, Peter Stanford
SEA HISTORY 143, SUMMER 2013
We Welcome Your Letters! Please send correspondence ro:
LETTERS Bounty's Long Wake In res ponse to rhe lener primed in rhe lasr issue of Sea History concerning Bounty, which sa nk in Hurricane Sa ndy off Cape Haneras las r fa ll, I would like to make rhe follow ing srare menrs. To begin wirh, rhere has been enough m isin fo rmarion abour rhis storied replica ro fill Bligh 's sea chesr! While ir was rrue that M arlon Brando was upset char MGM pla nned to scurde rhe ship, it was not-a nd never was-rhe reason for her being saved. The trurh is
editorial@seahistory.org or by USPS to: Editor, Sea History, 7 Timberknoll Road, Pocasset, MA 02559 Considerin g that fifty years after her launch, she was still sailing rhe globe under Captai n Robin Walbridge, the lener wrirer's concluding comment that "Little attention was g iven to her survivability at sea, as it was never the intention of the designer o r builders for the ship ro be used in a sea-going capacity" is a slap in the face ro des igner and marine supervisor Jam es C. H avens, her builders at Smith & Ruh land in Nova Scotia, and all of us who went before. I suggest that readers who doub t this locate a copy of the April 1962 issue of National Geographic a nd read rhe cover story, ''A New Bounty Sai ls ro Ta hiti ." Lierle an ention given to her sur vivability at sea-indeed! PAUL GARNETT
Bounty shipwrighr, M G M , 198 0-1986
Argo Crewmen , World War II A dear friend , a n NM H S member, called ro tell me abo ut rhe article in your last issue about rhe Argo, from World War II. Ir recited a story that my deceased husband researched , a nd borh of us hea rd abom over rhe yea rs. You see, my husband, Eston A. Husted, was a rad io o perator on rhat ship. This story mea nt a lot ro me, and jusr know that a person in the midwes r very much appreciated the article. MARDELLÂŁ M. LA MOU R E
St. Paul , Minnesota
Paul Garnett at the helm aboard Bouncy in 1981, bound fo r Pensacola, Florida. In the background is Captain Hugh Boyd. that the MGM brass decided to keep her as a publicity rool ro promore rhe opening of the film. H ence, after fini shing a full yea r of fi lming on the isla nd , Bounty was sailed from French Polynesia ro H awaii for refit in dry-dock, thereafter being sem on a world-wide publiciry tour. Th is journey rook her ro points on both coasts of the continental United States a nd afterwards to ports in Europe. Crossing from Boston ro Calais, France, she set a then sailing reco rd m aking the trip in eighteen days. All of this after h aving already sa iled down the eastern seaboard from Nova Scot ia, through the Pan am a Ca nal, and halfway across rhe Pacific for fi lming-a ll under her own canvas!
SEA HISTORY 143, SUMMER 20 13
1 h e a rticle about the surrender of Nazi submarine U-234 in the Spring issue was of special interest ro me. My brother, Lt. Walter 0. Mertz, was a Signal Co rps Offi cer and passenger on the merchant ship SS Louise Lykes, en route from New York ro Belfast, Ireland , which was torpedoed by the G erman sub U-384, commanded by Hans-Achim von Rosenberg-G rus zynski , at 1837 GCT on 9 January 1943. All hands were lost. We were unable to get much information from the War D epartment at the time a nd were unable ro get copies of W alter's milita ry reco rds (o r my own). Later, we were rold that they were lost in a fire at the records center in St. Lo uis in the 1970s. What information I have ca me from the ce metery ar Cambridge, E ngland, in the A nnals of t he Missing. Any further inform ation yo u can provide wo uld be most appreciated. FRED B. M E RT Z Berger, M issouri
From the Editor: Acco rding ro the Na tional Archives a nd Records Administration, on 12 July 1973, a massive fire at the Na tional Personnel Records Center (NPRC) in St. Louis destroyed approximately 16- 18 million Offi cial Mi lita ry Perso nnel Files (OMPF) . Most of these records had no duplicate
Join Us for a Voyage into History Our seafa rin g heritage comes alive in the pages of Sea Histo1y, from the ancient marin ers of Greece to Portugu ese navigators opening up the ocean world to the heroic efforts of sailors in modern-day conflicts. Each issue brings new insights and discove ries. If you love the sea, rivers, lakes, and
bays-if you appreciate the legacy of those who sa il in deep water and their workaday craft, then you belong with us.
Join Today ! Mail in the form below, phone 1 800 221-NMHS (6647), or visit us at: www.seahistory.org (e-mail: nmhs@seahistory.org)
Yes, I want to join the Society and receive Sea History quarterly. My contribution is enclosed. ($ 17.50 is for Sea History. any amounc above that is tax deductible.) Sign me up as: D $3 5 Regular Member D $50 Family Member D $ I 00 Friend D $250 Parron D $500 Dono r M r./Ms. - - - - - - - - -- - -- - - - - - - - - --
143
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ational Maritime Historical Society, PO Box 68 , Peekski ll , NY I 0566
5
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copies and no indexes had been created before rhe fire , preventing archivists fro m being able ro say, w irh cerrainry, which record s were in rhe building ar rhe rime. Immediarely afrer rhe fire, rhe N PRC salvaged wh ar records rhey could and ser abour worki ng ro resrore rhe paper archives, damaged either fro m fire and sm oke or from rhe m old rhar soon followed , once rhe fi rehoses rerreared bur lefr millions of gallons of wa ter in rhe building. The fire was a severe blow ro our nation's cul rural a nd hisroric documentation, and especially ro rhe ve terans whose records were permanenrly lost. The N PRC has reconstructed m any of the dam aged files or fo und redunda nt infor matio n in o rher reposirories. Vetera ns and their fa milies seeking info rmation from rhese los t fil es may file a request for military personnel records ar the N PRC, 1 A rchives D rive, Sr. Lo uis, M issouri 63 138; Ph. 314 801-0800; em ail: M PR. center@nara.gov; website: www.archives. gov/veterans/.
Constitution's First Captains I was pleased ro see an arricle about USS Constitution in the recent issue of Sea H istory (#142). W hat riming! G reat article-but ir could have been mentioned rhat Samuel N icholso n was one of rhe first fi ve captains appointed by George Washin gron ro the "new" US Navy. The fifrh captain was James Sever, the captain that
chri stened the Constitution wi th a botrle of red wine. H ad ro mention this sli ghtold fa mily, yo u know. W ith respect, ] A M ES SEV E R
M arion , Iowa A Different Take on the War of 1812 In th e arricle o n Constitution's first captain in the las t issue of Sea H istory, the author srates, "America's vicrory in the War of 18 12"-this is is a bit of a stretch of revisio nist hisrory. From a boxing perspective, rhe best thar America achieved was perhaps a draw in this bour or arguably a loss by split decision . Other than vicrory in a few minor skirmishes in the G reat Lakes and Lake C hamplain and a decisive win in the Bartle of New Orleans (albeit afrer the fo rmal peace rreaty was signed), do we forget Lundy's Lane, Queensron H eights, D etroit, and rhe rorching of Washingron? The proximate cause of the War of 18 12 was Britain's embargo of American trade wirh Napoleonic France, which from the British perspecrive was justified . Napoleon was hardly a paragon of rhe shared Anglo/American concepts of freedom and dem ocracy. This counrry's attempted invasion of Canada was a prequel ro manifest destiny, failed miserably, and Canada's standing roday 200 years later as an independent nation is a tesrimony ro the results of the wa r. C APT.
S. E.
0LDALE
C row, Oregon
Launching of USS Constitutio n, Harrt's Yard, Boston, 24 October 1797 Painting by Paul Garnett, oil, 28 x 48 in ches
6
SEA HISTORY 143 , SUMMER 2013
Romance of a Life at Sea Love Sea History magazine! Interesting, fasci nating, and educational articles. It is appropriate that I am renewing my subscription whi le sitting on a yacht in Nuku Hiva, Marquesas (delivery from Gloucester, Massachusetts, to New Zealand). I first visited here as a crewman on the Brigantine Romance, under command of Arthur and G loria Kimberly, on the 1975 - 77 circumnavigation. That voyage started me on my way to a career at sea: crewing on Pride of Baltimore, the schooner Lindo, Art hur Holgate's schooner Antares (for her 1983-85 circumnavigation), and then on into private yachts-but no powerboats, still sailing! I sti ll enjoy reading about the histories from the square- rigger days, but I have gotten used to the hot showers, chef-prepared meals, and no more 2AM "alofr and stowsquall line coming!" calls to duty! I look forward to reading more Sea History whe n I get back to Key West. Thank yo u for a great magazine. Bos WALLACE writing from Nuku Hiva, Marquesas
Brigantine Romance in the Marquesas under the command ofCaptain Arthur and Mrs. Gloria Kimberly. Captain Kimberly was awarded the p restigious NMHS Kari Kortum American Ship Trust Award at the Society's annual awards dinner in October 2008.
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SEA HISTORY 143 , SUMMER 20 13
7
NMHS: A CA USE IN MOTION NMHS Visits the Palm Beach Maritime Museum
'
s part of our 50'h anniversa ry celebration, the National Maritime Historical Society is holding receptions for our members around the country for the next five yea rs. What better kick-off than the Palm Beach Maritime Museum (PBMM) , where our advisory board chairman, world-renowned m arine architect Melbourne Smith, is the m arine superintendent, building a replica of John Paul Jones's Continental Navy ship Ranger. PBMM chairman Thorne Donnelley and his board and staff gave us an enthusiastic recep tion at the museum on Peanut Island. Together, we hosted more than fifty NMHS members, many of whom had nor yet visired the museum or Pea nut Island. The museum, in Curie Park on the Intracoas tal Waterway in West Palm Beach, Florida, presents the maritime history of rhe Straits of Florida and the Caribbean Basin. Exhibits include a series of historic photographs from 1911 depicting the lntracoastal Waterway and the Lake Worth Lagoon. On display is the old steel desk that once belonged to nava l architect Jack H arg raves, the designer of H atteras yachts who introduced fib erglass to boatbuilding. This new material and technique filled the Intracoastal with affordable boats, changing the waterway from an important commercial route to one of recreational use. Ship models, morors, shipwright tools, and navigational instruments are among the many artifacts also displayed and interpreted . The museum's grounds include five acres on Pea nut Island, the location of President John F. Kennedy's bunker bui lt during the C uban Missile crisis, the histo ric 1936 Coast Guard Station, a boathouse, and other historic structures. The museum plans to build a replica of]ohn Paul Jones's ship as a showcase of wooden shipbuilding. The Ranger of 1777 was the first Continental Navy ship to defeat a Royal Navy ship in British waters during the American War of Indepe ndence. *Te mu seum hopes that this President john F Kennedy's bunker, ship- and its construction, open to built during the Cuban Missile Crisis the public-will " insp ireournarion's Ranger
A
yo uth to emu late the character of John Paul Jones and inspire them to maritime voca tions, linking their future to their past a nd Florida to her rich maritime roots." During Ranger's two-yea r construction phase, the museum will di splay a special ex hibit, john Paul Jones and the Continental Navy. Before this bigge r project gets underway, the museum , w ith help from 1 area students, w ill first build a reproduction of Ponce de Leon's chalupa in celebration of the 500'h a nnive rsa ry of the founding of Florida. We were enthralled with our visit to the Palm Beach Maritime Academy, a Kinderga rten-ro-Srl'-G rade "/\' rared charter school, guided by principa l M a rie Turchiaro. This awardwinning school is a stella r exa mple in the growing field of ma rit ime-themed academies for younger students. Teacher Steve A ll en was a ve teran of the NOAA Teacher-at-Sea program a nd has participated in underwater archaeology field work in the G ul f of M ex ico. His enthusias m has in spired his students; Eighth grade r Ca meron Mason recently wo n the state's ROV competitio n. "The hardest part of it," he rold us, "was the control box. If you mess up one wire you mess up t he whole thing." Which he didn't. It was a worthy win ning proj ect from a school w ith a w inning environment. For details on our upcoming events and anniversary celebratio ns, please visit ou r website: www.seahisrory.org. -Burchenal Green, President ROV Champion Cameron Mason
r
8
SEA HISTORY 143 , SUMMER 20 13
NMHS Ship's Store
Prices include embroidery with our NMHS logo featuring our flagship Kaiulani, in five colors.
Men's Gildan 6.1 oz. heavyweight T-shirt Gear #006 S-XL $18.00 + $7.95 s/h, XXL add $4.00, XXXL add $8.00 Colors: Ash, Black, Sand, Eggplant, Maroon, Navy, Pine, Red , Stone Blue, Tan.
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Engraved Crystal Kaiulani Paperweight Gift #104 $25.00, free shipping Celebrate the Society 's Golden Anniversary with this attractive crystal cube paperweight engraved with the NMHS flagship , Kaiulani. (3" high x 2" wide)
This 12-Meter racer set features a hull design based on the America's Cup boat Courageous . Each boat co mes with a white mainsail marked with the number "12 ," along w ith a colored jib to match the paint of the topsides.
To order, call 1-800-221-NMHS (6647), ext. 0, or visit our web site at www.seahistory.org. Allow 2 to 3 weeks for delivery. Shipping within USA only. Satisfaction guaranteed!
Navigating Between Friend and Foe: ~ !7tkorv Yv ~ t!f't&t2
w(U<'
by Pete Lesher, illustrations by Marc Castelli
'~W e were fortunate enough not to have a man hurt, although the grapeshot flew like hail in the town, and their balls passed through a number of houses." So reported a letter to Baltimore's Niles Weekly Register regarding the defense of Sr. Michaels from British attack on 10 August 1813. For a seemingly small, inconsequential town on the Eastern Shore of the Chesapeake, Sr. Michaels was ripped by conflict in the spring and summer of 1813. Warships of a hostile navy advanced up the bay, confiscating or destroying farm crops, liberating slaves, raiding towns, and seizing local boats that dared to cross the waters. No t everyone ashore supported the war, and some neighbors engaged in
10
what seemed like treasonous acts-aiding the British by selling provisions to feed their sailors and troops. Sr. Michaels was one of the few locations largely spared in the face of British raids in the Chesapeake theater of operations during the War of 1812. The town of at most 300 persons was home to a Methodist chapel, an Episcopal parish, and a handful of small shipbuilding yards. Lying on a narrow peninsula that extends into the Chesapeake Bay and terminates at Tilghman Island, the town was thought by local militia leaders to be vulnerable to a British raid. To defend the town and its shipyards, they placed a small battery on
Parrott's Point at the entrance to the town's principal harbor and its shipyards along the Miles River. Ir was a prominent but vulnerable location, as the defenders soon learned. The British objective, to capture or destroy any armed vessels in the harbor and to destroy the battery, wo uld be only half achieved in the end. The counry's militia had gathered at Sr. Michaels, tipped off by a British deserter. Nevertheless, a British landing parry under Lieutenant Puckinghorne, shielded by early morning darkness paired with a drizzly fog, overran the battery and spiked the small cannons abandoned by the fleeing militia. Separated by an expanse
Two 6- pounder cannons given to the local militia by Jacob Gibson were hastily mounted on cart wheels to prepare for the British attack that came on 10 August 1813.
SEA HISTORY 143, SUMMER2013
of the harbo r, additional militia inside the town then exchanged fire with the landing party, which returned to its boats as the day dawned. The British retaliated by firing on the town from eleven small boats that had been escorted up the river by the brig Conflict. The St. Michaels Patriotic Blues had another artillery battery at Impy Dawson's wharf with a pair of recently-acquired 6-pounder cannons that returned fire until the British boats withdrew. A third artillery battery under Easton's Lieutenant Vickars joined in the fray as soon as it relocated from its morning post along the town's main road to Mill Point on the harbor. These 6-pounder cannons, "rudely mounted upon cart or wagon wheels," had recently been presented to the town as a gift by local planter Jacob Gi bson, with a backstory that was far more involved than a mere charitable donation to the town's meager defenses. Purchased in Baltimore and transported to St. Michaels, the cannons were an attempt to repair community ties after the stain of aiding the enemy and a childish and alarming prank had tarnished Gibson's local reputation. Jacob Gibson was one of those largerthan-life figures, a well-to-do landowner and slaveholder who nonetheless championed the populist ideas of the party of Jefferson, the Democratic-Republicans, and the more radical idea of raising funds to pay for the manumission of slaves. Gibson's principal residence was a farm near Long Point that he named "Marengo" after Napoleon's victory, situated along the Miles River (also referred to as St. Michaels River in some contemporary sources and charts), roughly opposite St. Michaels. Earlier that year, on 12 April, Gibson had been in the process of removing his slaves, livestock, and grain from his farm on Sharp's Island when he was stopped by the British under Admiral Warren. As recounted in Oswald Tilghman's History of Talbot County, the British forces appropriated some of his sheep, cattle, and hogs, reimbursing Gibson for his loss in a combination of hard money and government bills. Several days later, Warren released Gibson, but ordered him not to remove any of his remaining livestock from the island, though he was permitted to remove some of his grain . In the island-dotted Chesapeake, these SEA HISTORY 143 , SUMMER 2013
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This enlarged section ofan 1840 map of the Chesapeake Bay shows the proximity of Gibson's farm to St. Michaels and neighboring Poplar, Kent, and Sharps Islands.
raids were a regular part of the British strategy for provisioning within the bay. With their 74-gun ships and other armed vessels, the Royal Navy easi ly commanded the open waters of the Chesapeake. Landing parties sent as hore for foraging might risk hostilities with militia, but this hazard was minimized when provisioning from a vulnerable island farm . Nearby Poplar Island and Tilghman Island suffered similar raids, and the British used Kent Island for an encampment before and after their raids on St. Michaels in the summer of 1813. After noting that "a marauding party landed last week on Poplar Island and plundered to a large extent," the 27 April edition of the Republican Star and Eastern Shore General Advertiser editorialized, "Had the Islands in the bay been divested of succor to the enemy, which interest and
patriotism certainly dictated[ ... ] their visit up the bay would have been both short and unprofitable." Editor Thomas Perrin Smith was a political ally of Gibson , so he omitted any direct mention of activities on Sharp's Island, but his remarks reflect how the Maryland public viewed local participation in provisioning the British forces, even when the suppliers were not willing participants in the exchange. C learly, Gibson's sale of livestock to the British would be viewed as unpatriotic. Gibson wrote to Secretary of State James Monroe and Maryland Governor Levin Winder a week later to report his encounter with Admiral Warren's forces, noting the compensation he had received and insisting that the British left the remuneration for him even though he had refused it. He offered that he had "no control over the money or bills thus left, until
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the pleasure of the government is communicated as to its disposal." Certainly other M arylanders and Virginians had received similar compensation from provisioning the British, and had been painted as traitors for what was perceived as open trade with the enemy. Gibson clearly was seeking to fend off such accusations by offering the funds to the state or federal government. Gove rnor Winder forwarded G ibson's letter to President Madison with a transmissio n, reprinted in the May 25 edition of rhe Republican Star, which carried a tone favorable to G ibson, while clearly articulating rhe concerns raised by the case. Mr. G ibson was not in a situation to resist any demands that might be made upon him , and of course is not to be censured for the conduct of the enemy. It is now for rh e constituted authorities of this country to decide, whether, under circumstances disclosed, and when that
protection, which is rhe just claim of every citizen, has no r been afforded to him, chis gendeman shall receive rhe co mpensation which rhe enemy offers, o r it would be better by refusing such permission in all cases, and indemni fy ing the injured out of the nation al resources, to take from individuals the temptations which might sometimes be offered, to an underhanded and dangerous traffi c with th e enemy. It was a second gaffe chat seriously marred his character in local circles, however. Gibson had reached bis fa rm o n Sharp's Island by first crossing the Miles River to St. Mi chaels, cross in g to th e other side of the narrow peninsula, then taking a second boat fro m Broad C reek, down the C hoptank River to Sharp's Island. H e returned the same way, in a vessel that resembl ed a barge, a larger class of sh ip's boat that co uld be sailed or rowed.
On returning up Broad Creek, G ibson Rew a red Rag from his masthead that co uld have been mistaken at a di stance for the British red ensign. Accom panyi ng him o n the vessel were so me of his slaves, o ne of whom was thumping rhythmically on the head of an emp ty ba rrel-a so und that is thought ro have been mi staken from ashore as a military drum. His prank reportedly had the desired effect, creating enough commotion asho re ro call fo r a muster of rhe Sr. M ichaels Patriotic Blues, the neares t militia company. As hore, G ibson received an indignant receptio n. The militia commander, Cap tain Kemp, a Federalist and political oppo nent of Gi bson, extracted both an apology and an explanation of his deal ings w ith the British on Sharp's Island, parts of which had undoubtedly been observed from a distance. Ultimately G ibso n was permitted to return to his hom e across the M iles Ri ver, having brought the scrutiny and co nd emnation of Sr. Michaels society upon hi s head for which a m ere
At least two schooners were on the stocks in St. Michaels at the time of the attack, in addition to a barge that would later become part ofJoshua Barney's gunboat flotilla.
12
.SEA HISTORY 143 , SUMMER2013
Gibson advanced on St. Michaels flying a red flag and with the beat of a drum, fa lsely alarming the populace over a much-anticipated British advance.
apology would not suffi ce. Reparations wou ld need to be made. At this time, cannons were in short supply among the militia companies defending the Chesapeake's shoreside towns. Principio Iron Works, farther north on the bay near Elkton, Maryland, had been producing cannons and balls for the US Navy and many of the letter-of-marque schooners out of Baltimore. Less than a month after Gibson's brief arrest on Sharp's Island, another British raiding parry overran a five-gun barrery and destroyed the foundry on 3 May 1813. Indicating th e magnitude of his atonem ent, Gibso n somehow procured the pair of 6-pounders on one of his visits to Baltimore, then shipped them by land aro und the head of
the Chesapeake, because of the high risk of capture if sent by water. The blockade hampered not only the movement of letter-of-marque schooners out of Baltimore bound for ocean waters, but also local trade berween the shores of the Chesapeake Bay. Remorseful restitution worked, and G ibson appeared to have learned his lesson. Although tainted by his absurd prank and the dealings with the British, the gift of the cannons helped to reestablish Gibson's partisanship for the American war effo rt, for which he was and remained an arde nt supporter. ~ Pete Lesher is the chief curator at the Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum in St. Mi-
chaels, Maryland. He encourages Sea History readers to visit historic St. Michaels and check out the new exhibit at the Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum, Navigating Freedom: The War of 18 12 on the Chesapeake, where Jacob Gibson's cannons, amongst other exhibits on this theme, are on display. See the notice below for more details. Artist Marc Castelli specializes in depicting the watermen of the Chesapeake Bay and the rich maritime heritage ofthe region. H e's also been known to branch out and photograph and paint the action in modern America's Cup races and scenes of working sailors aboard today's US Navy ships, amongst other subjects. He was the featured artist in Sea History 132 (Autumn 2 010).
Navigating Freedom: The War of 1812 on the Chesapeakea new exhibit at the Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum After the war, the guns were kept for a rime in th e marker house on Sr. Mary's Square in Sr. Michaels, bur ultimately they were removed to the armory in nearby Easton . On 9 June 1861 , all of the arms at rhe Easton armory were transferred to federal troops, who removed them to rhe safety of Fort McHenry. They have remained at the fort since that rime and became part of the National Park Service collections after the fort became a national park in 1925. There was an unsuccessful effort to return th e cannon s to Sr. Michaels for rhe celebration of the sesquicenten nial of the attack in 1963. Remarkably, they retain their identity to th is day as the guns used to defend Sr. Michaels, and specifically th ose o btained by Gibson. Jacob Gibson's cannons are on display in the new exhibit, Navigating Freedom: 7he "War of 1812 on the Chesapeake, recently opened at the C hesapeake Bay Maritime Museum-not 500 yards from where they were first used. The exh ibit explores the impact of the War of 181 2 on the people of the Chesapeake-black and white American s, m il itiamen, Baltimore m erchants, and British sailors who found opportunity or misfortune amid the conflict. The exhibit is open to the public now through the beginning of 2015. (Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum, 13 N. Talbot Street, Sr. Michaels, MD 21663; Ph. 4 10 745-29 16; www.cbmm.org.) SEA HISTORY 143 , SUMMER 20 13
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THE CAPE HORN ROAD From Sea History issue 70 in the summer of 1994 until Sea History 92 in the spring of 2000, Peter Stanford, in 21 chapters and an Envoy, wrote the article series The Cape Horn Road, which laid out how seafarers shaped history. Starting with the assertion that the first voyages around Cape Horn opened the world, he traced the origins of those voyages back to the Mediterranean Sea some 12,000 years ago, to the Norse crossing the Atlantic in Viking ships, and opening trade routes. He wrote of Portugal's and Spain's ocean discoveries with Henry the Navigator, Christopher Columbus, and Magellan. He elaborated on the significance of the journeys of Francis Drake and Captain James Cook. We are with Great Britain as she ruled the seas, suffering the plight of HMS Bounty, and following the rise and defeat of Napoleon; and then we are with the young nation, the United States, as she changes the Atlantic world. The American dipper ships take on Cape Horn, steamships take over the Atlantic, seafaring lessons help win the World Wars and sailing ships are again built and sailed. We reprint here from the "Cape Horn Road," Chapter 10, "Francis Drake Sails for Freedom," from Sea History 80. The first time I met Captain Bob Papp, master of the US Coast Guard Barque Eagle and now Admiral Robert J. Papp, Jr., Commandant of the United States Coast Guard, he was aboard the ship and had just received his issue of Sea History. "I am waiting to read this chapter of The Cape Horn Road," he said. "I look forward to it each time. It is a wonderful series, and I learn so much." - Burchenal Green, NMHS President
PT'~ {j})rafee
(j!/adi/{j/)( PT'~
by Peter Stanford
CCAman can't die, not while he's got the smell of this stuff in his nostrils." A gnome our of a C eltic fa iry tale, the speaker was slight and dark, with a quizzical grin on his face and dark-hued , pine-smelling oil running off his hands as he held them up fo r our inspection. "S tockholm tar! " he explained . This was Joe Bennett, fa ther of Oswald . We had idly asked O swald Bennett his age as he worked in the ri gging loft, and when we co ngratulated him on still working in his strenuous trade at the age of seventy, he'd said "Oh, when it comes to age, you'd best talk to my Dad." And he had turned to call a dim fi gure working at the back of the loft, who came up to be introduced. The elder Bennett then offered the tarry nostrum cited above, with considerable delight- in which we shared . The conversation rook place a quarter century ago [now more than forty yea rs hence), in Alan Hincks's ya rd in Appledore on the north coast of D evon, England, where a working replica of Francis Drake's Golden H ind was taking shape in the old-fashioned way, with the Bennens, father and son, laying up her ri gging. Stockholm tar is the traditional preservative that h as been used to protect cordage from wind and weather from rime immemorial. Ir's no t at all like the petroleum-based tar we use on rooftops and roadways today, except for its dark color and resistance to water. It has a grand spicy smell to it and keeps rope supple and strong in near-miraculous fashion. When the replica of the Golden Hind was being built, we did not know that the original H ind had also been built in D evon. Scholars had believed that this formidable fast-sailing ship had been built across the English C hannel in France. A document discovered online in 1981, however, shows Drake applying to Queen Elizabeth for a bounty-o r as we would say, a subsidyfor building the ship in his home country of D evon. The little ship was eminently suited for war service, and in that dangerous era, the Q ueen had every reason to encourage the building of such ships.
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No rma and I pursued our way, visiting a round of old British seaports in that distant fall of 1972, thinking how good it was to meet the countrymen of Francis D ra ke. These were people of yeoman stock like Drake himself, talking the same gnarled, knotty, vividly expressive English he spoke. These West C ountry people were his people, whom he never forgot. And an observant Spanish prisoner, captured during D rake's global voyage, noted rhe immense respect his men had for him; as for how they felt about him, Don Francisco de Zarate said simply: "They adored him." "The Famous Voyage" A round five in rhe evening on 15 November 1577, Drake's Golden Hind put to sea from Plymouth, on D evon's south coas t, steering southwest down rhe English Channel toward rhe open ocean. She sailed under her original name Pelican, rated at 100 tons (actually nearer 150) in the muster of the squadron she was leading to sea. Aboard her were some 80 souls, led by Francis Drake, as captain general, a recognized leader after his freebooting forays against the Spanish colonies in the Americas in recent years, and a new-minted man of substance who had 1,000 pounds of his own money inves ted in the voyage. England 's foreign minister, Francis Walsingham, the Royal Navy's George W inter, and others prominent in Queen Elizabeth 's co urt, made up the balance of the inves tment needed to get the little Aeer to sea. Bur Elizabeth 's role was suitably deniable, an eminently w ise precaution as she steered her ship of stare through the dan gerous currents of an international scene overshadowed by the growing worldwide hegemony of Spain. Drake, as events were to show, most likely had no written commission for the voyage he was embarking on. H e was later to say that the Queen, in a personal audience, had told him: "I would gladly be revenged on the King of Spain for divers [va rious] injuries that I have received ." But the mission of the voyage ran deeper than that. To both Eli zabeth and Drake
SEAHISTORY 143, SUMMER 2013
the object of the voyage, as revealed in their actions then and late r, was ro shatter the monopoly of oceanic world trade asserted by Spa in and Portugal with the support of the Pope as God's spokesman on earth. Spain's tribute from the conquered American colonies had provided the gold and silver that made her all at once the dominant power in Europe, spurred on by a driving religious ideology that made her a menace ro the independence of other nations. So, it is clear that Drake's five ships, sailing into the autumnal evening ro go out and attack the world 's strongest and most aggressive power, carried a heavier cargo of concerns, and perhaps a greater share in the world's destiny, than a casual raiding expedition. "The famous voyage," as it would soon be known, got off ro a messy start. Standing southwest through the night of 15 November, by morning Drake's ships had reached the mouth of the English Channel, where they were met by a head wind "quite contrarie to [their] intended course." Under threatening skies they ran back ro anchor in Falmouth, driven by a rising wind. Over the next two days this wind rose to a howling gale. The flagship Pelican and the little Marigold were both forced ro cut away their mainmasts ro avoid being driven ashore, even in the sheltered anchorage they'd gained. Running back ro Plymouth, the ships made good their damages. They put ro sea again "wit h happier sayles" on 13 December. The squadron made a swift 12-day passage southward, keeping well ro sea in fair winds. Sailing in the wake of Portuguese and Spanish navigarors, man had come a long way from the headlandro-headland piloting practiced by Europeans only a century earlier in these same waters, as the Portuguese h ad worked their way, step by step, down the Moroccan coast, which Drake reached in one quick leap from England. The fleet raised the sandy, barren coast of Africa just north of Mogador on Christmas morning, 25 December 1577. From there, having reprovisioned, the fleet headed south along the coast. It had been talked up in seaport rowns that Drake was bound ro the Mediterranean, but as the fleet sai led southwest ro the Cape Verde Islands and then struck out across the Atlantic rowards Brazil, it became clear that Drake was bound into the Pacific world. In 1520, Magellan had discovered a way through the Americas ro the Pacific. But in the intervening half century, few ships h ad sailed through the Strait of Magellan. It was not that Spain's Philip II did not see the importance of the Strait as a direct sea route ro his growing colonies on South America's Pacific coast. It was just that the going was roo rough. Samuel Eliot Morison, the great chronicler of these voyages, sums up the agonies of the Spanish effort ro carry out Philip's orders ro develop this route: At least six expeditions had tried ro get through, with about seventeen vessels, twelve of which had been cast away in or near the eastern entrance: and Elcano's Victoria still held the unique distinction of passing through and returning home. "Of these vessels' crews," he adds, "not one man in five ever saw his native land again; probably well over a thousand had perished."
SEAHISTORY 143, SUMMER2013
The Ships and Their People Now that the ships' crews know where they are going, let's have a closer look at Drake's squadron, its mission and its people, beginningwith its remarkable Captain General. Francis Drake was born about 1540, son of one Edmund Drake, a yeoman farmer and wool-shearer who leased his farm near Plymouth from the Earl of Bedford. Edmund ran into trouble with the law, and for this reason or because of religious persecution (the srory his children were brought up ro believe), he left Devon when Francis was about eight, traveling across England ro Chatham, a burgeoning naval base on the Medway just off the Thames estuary. Edmund found a home for his fami ly in a laid-up ship's hull a nd scraped out a living as an evangelical preacher ro the ships of the fleet. Francis acquired a good education in these straightened circumstances. The O xford-educated naval officer and hisrorian William Monson later said of Drake: "He wou ld speak much and arrogantly but eloquently, which was a wonder ro many that his education could yield him those helps of nature." In the early 1550s, Francis was apprenticed ro the owner and master of a small barque trundling cargoes up and down the coast. He also made voyages ro the Continent, and now and then piloted larger vessels through the treacherous sand banks and swirling tides of the Thames estuary-a wonderful training ground for seamanship. It was a region where waterfront streets and taverns echoed ro the talk of sailors and merchants, just in from Lisbon, Bordeaux, or Genoa. The Thames served as an outlet for the ever-growing trade of the port of London, which by the 1550s handled some ninety percent of England 's exports. Francis's mother had died, and Edmund followed in 1557, leaving a scanty estate. The master of the barque died a few years later and left the vessel ro Francis, aged about twenty. Francis sold the vessel and rook his money, a few friends from the ship, and himself ro Plymouth. There, in the early 1560s he began shipping out in the deep-sea trading expeditions his cousi n John Hawkins had begun ro run ro Africa and the Caribbean.
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Engla nd 's entry into ocean voyaging, as Morison and orhers have nored, came !are in rhe new day of ocea nic commerce. From rhe beginnings of rhe !are medieval revival of rrade in rhe 1100s and 1200s, English ships had been barred from rhe Balric rrade by rhe para milirary Hansa nerwo rk. Th e well-capiralized scare shippin g lines of rhe Iralian maririme republics, norably Ge noa and Venice, h ad effecrively monopolized rhe ri ch rrade from rhe more adva nced Medirerranean world, including preciou s spices from rhe Fa r East. 111e Hansa kepr rheir grip on eas rern rrad e unril rhe mid-1500s, and as Iralian capiral, know-how, and iniriarives srimulared rhe grear seawa rd surge of fi rsr Portuga I a nd rhen Spain from the 1300s o n, England, despite isolared ve ntures and voyages (to which E nglish-spea king histo rians have perhaps paid too much arre ntion), remained a bir player on rhe ocea nic scene. John Cabor's (G iova nni Caboto) norable voyage to Newfo undl and in 1497 was nor effecr ively followed up, despire rhe growing wealth a nd srabiliry of rhe new Tudor mona rchy under the H enr ys VII and VIII; Cabor's son Sebastian left England to become piloto mayor or senior pi !o r of rhe Spanish monarchy, returning only !are in life to English shores to share his wisdom, in rather pontifical fashion. Th e h ard-hirrin g H awkins fa mily was somerhing new on the scene.1l1ey were determined to seize their share of rhe rich Spa nish rrade wirh the Ame ricas, whi ch Spain reserved to irself, as nored earlier. Drake flourished in chis heady ar mosphere of voyagi ng in distant waters, fa r from a ny fri endly base of support. In 1568, we find him in comm and of the barque Judith in a fleer of ships led by John Hawkins, as rhe fleer pu r into San Juan d 'U lua for repairs afte r a gale. A Spanish squadron happened by, and promising no harm, was allowed to berth alongside rhe English sh ips. 111e Spa nish rhen artacked wirhour warning. H awk ins a nd Drake, fighring a rearguard acrion, escaped wirh as many men as they could save, and limped back to England separarely in rhe rwo survivin g, overburdened ships. After chis, Drake began to raid Spanish shipping ad lib . He concentrared hi s effo rrs on Panama, improvising brilli anrl y to ourwit Spanish defenders of rhe silver shipped by mule train from the Pacific to rhe Caribbea n for shipment ho me to Spa in. H e allied himself wirh rhe C im a rron es, escaped Africa n slaves who formed effecrive auxilia ries . H e collaborared o n one occas ion wirh a French raider. Ir's hard to call rhese raiders "pirares," as ir is now fashionable to do . Rea l pirares tortured, raped a nd slaug htered th eir vicrims. Drake did none of rhese rhings a nd severely controlled his m en's beh av io r, as Spanish restimony affirms wirh remarkable unanimiry. In rhe course of these hi ghl y profirable ventures, in which rhe Queen surrepririously rook part, Drake and his companion John Oxenham, guided by Juan Pedro, a Cimarrone chief, crossed rhe Isrhmus of Panama to get ar rhe pore of Panama, where silver was broughr in for rransshipment to Nombre de Dios on the Caribbean side. As they struggled across high hills, Pedro invired Drake to climb a rreerop observation post a nd , on a clear January day in 1573, Drake saw rhe Pacific Ocean, or rhe G rear South Sea, gleaming in rhe sun before him. According to the official narrative in Sir Francis Revived, he "besoughr Almighry God of His goodness, to give him life and leave to sa il once in an English ship, in rhar sea!"
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Thar was whar his voyage of 1577 was abo ut. Queen Elizaberh, backing her adventurous mariners, used the funds they broughr in to srrengrhen her Royal Navy. Drake, with hi s usual eloquence, made rhe case for breaking into Spain's A merica n trade by rhe back door, sa iling a squadron aro und to the Pacific by way of rhe fo rmidable Srrair of Magellan . Anorher Wesr Countryman, rhe fi ery Richard G renville, had proposed a simil ar scheme. But Elizaberh as turely com missioned Drake in stead. She did chis in a personal m ee ring a rranged by Foreign Minister Walsingham wirh a shore, stocky, ro ugh-hewn Drake-a man very unlike rhe dashing yo ung nobles who flo cked to rhe Q ueen's court. One quinressenrial courtier, Thomas Doughry, was in rhe fl eer as seco nd in comma nd, unfo rtunately both for the voyage a nd fo r himself. Duries can be delegated, counsel ca n be rakenpractices Drake regularly followed. Bur com mand is indivisible, a lesson D oughty, with all his skills at self-advancement, had apparendy nor learned. As rhe fl eer wo und irs slow way down rhe South Arlantic, rroubles involving Doughry kepr popping up- trouble over the division of spoils from a Portuguese ship rhey had cap rnred in rhe Cape Verdes, troubles over precedence and protocol-troubles simi lar to rhe problems that had a ri sen berween Spanish lordlings and rhe rough Porruguese warrior Magellan, sailing rhese same waters. The "sweet smell ofl and," when the squad ron made rhe Brazilian coasr and commenced its lon g haul sourhward, did nor mure rhese rroubles. During rhe passage Drake gor rid of rhe suppl y ship Swan, 50 tons, and rhe small Portuguese vessel named Mary when rhey had her in excha nge for the pinnace Christopher, 15 to ns, which had acco mpani ed rhe squadron from England. On 20 June 1578, as the Antarctic winter was coming on in violent gales, rhe squadron pur inro Port San Julian, 2,0 00-odd miles short of rhe Srra ir of Magellan. The ships were now just rhree in number: rhe fl ags hip Pelican, 150 tons, under Drake as Caprain General; rhe sh ip Elizabeth, 80 rons, under John Winter; a nd rhe little barque Marigold, 30 tons, under John Thomas. Drake planned a rhorough refit a nd re-provisioning in San Julian. Sailing into the barren inlet, the men spied the gallows on which Magellan had ha nged his mutineers, still standing after 58 yea rs in that icebox climate. The place seem ed ill-omened, and to psychic disco mfort was soo n add ed the dismal discovery, as Drake ordered the ships rumm aged (cleaned our and fumi gated), rhar they had been badly shortchanged in provisions for the voyage. Adding to these woes, the nati ve Patagonians were hostile and would not make peace, though Drake refrained from reprisals after the killing of two seamen in an early skirmish . Bur rhere was yer anorher "mischief, wro ughr and co ntrived closely am ong ourselves, as grear, yea farre grearer," as rhe official narrarive has ir. This was rhe evidenr division in rhe high command , wirh Doughry !erring it be known to rhe gentlemen advenrurersabout 40 of the roral ships' companies of 160 men- thar he, nor Drake, had secured rhe Q ueen's support for rhe voyage, and rhar he, not Drake, should lead from now on. Drake deci ded to act. H e impaneled a jury of rhe gentlemen and officers (Doughry's peers) and held a rrial of D o ughry for fomenring resisrance to Drake as rhe Queen's appointed caprain general. In rhe course of the rrial, Doughry, parading his i mporta nr SEA HISTO RY 143 , SUMMER 2013
connections, boasted that he had consu lted w ith Lord Burghley, Elizabeth 's senior counselor. This was a bad slip. Drake, enraged, shouted that the Queen had ordered that the voyage was to be kept secret from Burghley, a conservative com mitred to a policy of appeasemem of Spain. This rings v ry true. Ocher charges fo llowed, makin g up a pattern of treacherous insubordination, which endangered the squadro n, its miss ion and every soul involved. The jury found Doughty guilty. Doughty apologized for hi s faults and reconciled himself to Drake. They had a farewe ll supper together, "each cheering up the other, and taking their leave, by drinking to each other as if some journey only had been in ha nd." Doughty then took Communion, kneeling side by side with Drake, and was duly beheaded . So passed from the scene a troubled sou l, a man whose fate it was to m ake trouble, perhaps without realizing rhe consequences of his ac ts. But everyone, including Drake, felt that Doughty had faced chose consequences bravely at the end. The ships' people remained uneasy as the three vessels tugged at their anchors in the unending succession of ga les and snow squall s that swept over the naked, barren la nd scape. D oughty's execution stopped the threatening cabal of gentlemen and courtiers in the fleet by showing plainly that his was a losing game; it did nor cure persistem doubts and unrest. Again Drake decided to acc. Ca lling all the ships' compa nies as hore o n Sund ay, he gathered them to hear him speak on "some matter of importance." The Beet chaplain, Francis Fletcher, offered to preach a sermon. "Nay, soft, Master Fletcher," said Drake, motioning him aside, "I must preach this day myself." "Masters," he started OU(, "I am a very bad orator, for my bringing up has not been in learning ... " But he advised all hands to listen, for he stood ready to answer for everything he said back in England and w the Quee n herself. He reminded them that they were "very far from our country and friends wherefore we are not to make small reckoning of a man, for we cannot have a man if we would give for him ten thousand pounds." He called for a n end to the "comroversy between the sai lors and the gentlemen," and went on to make the fa mous statement that was to become a core doctrine of the Royal Navy, o ne which echoes down through the intervening centuries wit h a fresh force and vitality today: But my m asters, I must have it left, for I must have the gentleman to haul a nd draw with the m a riner, and the mariner w ith the gemleman. What, let us sow ourselves to be of a company, and let us not give occasion to the enemy to rejoice at our decay and overth row. "I wou ld know him that wo uld refuse to set his hand to a rope," he added, "but I know there is not any such here. And, indeed, if there was any such person on that desolate beach, he did not speak up then, or at any time from then on in the voyage. It is from John Cooke, a carefu l w riter who sa iled with W inter in the Elizabeth, that we have these words from Drake. It is from Cooke also that we have the full proceedings of the Doughty tri al, in recording, in wh ich Cooke was clearly a nxious nor to give offense to Doughty's fri ends back to England . Drake's force of SEA HISTORY 143, SUMMER 20 13
character simply bursts through these constraints of time, space, and interpretation-it seems to have worked a simil ar m agic on the men. " The Intolerable Tempest" And so on 17 August, risking a passage in the dead of the Antarctic winter, the Pelican, the Elizabeth, and the Marigold sa iled our of Port San Ju li an. Three days lacer they raised the Cape of the Virgins, which marked the emrance to the much-feared Strait of Magellan. This was as far as the knowledge of their Portuguese pilot, N uiio da Silva, ran. They had picked him up in the Cape Verdes, and he had helped their coastal piloting to thi s point. Few seamen, however, had gone through the Strait of Magellan and come home to tell the tale. Drake, w ith hi s customary sense of ceremony, struck his topsai ls in sa lute to E lizabeth, the Virgin Queen , and took the occasion to rename the Pelican as the Golden Hind. The name honored Sir C hristopher H arton, whose fa mil y crest was a hind-an old term for a female deer. H arton was a patron of the voyage and had employed Thomas Doughty, the man Drake had executed a few weeks ea rlier. Sternly practical reasons for the choice of this delightful name show through this gesture, as such reasons show through many of Drake's most elega m aces.
Drake's Golden Hind
The three ships ran through the srrair in the remarkably fast tim e of 16 days, which was lo ng a record. This, however, was the end of their peaceful sailing. On 7 September, two days into the Pacific, the ocean Magellan had named Mar Pacifi co (a nd which Fletcher said were better named "Mare Furisum"), the squad ron ran imo an appalling storm out of the northeast, which raged almost w ithout intermission fo r the next 52 days. Runnin g before its violence, the squadron was driven far to the SOLl(h, where on 30 September the Marigold was lost with all hands. Last seen "spoom ing along before the sea," she beca me rhe first of a long count of ships lost with their people in the bitter seas off Cape Horn. Struggling back north in somewhat moderated wea ther, the sur viving Golden H ind a nd Elizabeth took shelter and anchored in a cove a little north of the Pacific entra nce of rhe Strait of Magellan. But rhe gale, reviving, hit them with such violence
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rhar rhe ships' anchors would nor hold and rhey were driven out rn sea-the Elizabeth rn re-enter rhe Strait, and rhe Hind rn drive southward in the open sea. Fletcher describes the scene: The seas ...were rowled up from the depths, even from the roots of the rocks, as ifit had been a scroll of parchment .. . and being aloft were carried in a most strange manner and abundance, as feathers or drifts of snow, by the violence of the winds, rn water the rnps of high and lofty mountains . Those who have been in extreme weather at sea will recognize that ultimate state in which great drifts of sea become airborne. The Elizabeth had had enough. She ran home rn England, which she reached in June the next year. Her captain, John Wimer, who had been foreman of the jury that unanimously convicted Doughty, backpedaled energetically to distance himself from the execution and, with equal energy, blamed his crew for forcing him rn abandon Drake halfway through the voyage. Available evidence suggests strongly that Wimer himself was the quitter and, further, that another man who straggled home later, claiming he had been abandoned in a small boat by Drake in the Pacific, actually was abandoned by Winter off rhe coast of Brazil, where he was eventually recovered. (Winter is recorded as losing a boat there.) All other experience of Drake show that his men would stand by him through practically anything, and he by them. "A Most Large and Free Scope" On 28 October 1578, a sea-worn vessel came rn anchor in the lee of a mountainous island at the southernmost tip of the archipelago that ends the continent-the island of Cape Horn. Her ship's company gave thanks rn God for their deliverance, and the record tells us that Drake immediately set about gathering herbs ashore rn cure the incipient scurvy, which had begun rn break out among rhe ship's crew, sta rved for fresh fruits and vegetables. Water casks were filled at the isla nd springs and rowed out rn the ship, firewood was gathered for the ship's srnve, and we may be sure clothes and bedding were hung out everywhere in the welcome rays of the sun. Francis Drake went ashore rn take careful observations with his as trolabe, an instrument practically useless ar sea, but very accurate for sighting the sun or stars from a platform that did not weave and stagger through shouldering seas. In a rwo-day stay, he determined that he was on the southernmost land any European had ever reached, and in clear weather he could see that none of the islands or headlands around them reached as far south as this island he had come to. Hounded southward by gales of irresistible violence, he had come rn the southernmost land and found open sea rn the southward beyond ir. Fletcher, writing the official hisrory, notes that "being chased alo ng rhe by the winds" was interpreted by Drake "as though God had sent them of purpose rn the end which ensued." The narrative continues: The uttermost cape or headland of all these islands, stands near in 56 degrees without which there is no main, nor island rn be seen rn the southwards: but that the Atlanric Ocean and the South Sea, meet in a most large and free scope.
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Up rn this time the Strait of Magellan had been thought rn be a passage through the solid landmass of a great southern continent, Terra Australis. If ir were blocked by the Spanish, entry rn the Pacific would be blocked. But this was not the case. Drake carried this great news home with him rn England. He romped up the Pacific coast of South America, srnpping rn take cargoes of Chilean wine, and gold and silver from the mines. Once, coming on eight llamas laden with silver, they "offered our service and become drovers," ca rrying the silver down rn the waiting ship. Their greatest haul, however, was the taking of the Pacific galleon Nuestra Senora de La Concepcion with a cargo that more than paid for the whole voyage. Sailing on across the Pacific, Drake also arranged a treaty with the Sultan of the Spice Islands rn ass ure England's direct role in rhe spice trade. The Golden Hind arrived home on 26 September 1580, after two years, nine months and two weeks at sea. Drake brought nearly the entire ship's company home safely, a record unparalleled in ocean voyaging. His first question on arriving home was: "Is the Queen still alive?" She was, and early in the fo llowing year Drake was knighted on the decks of the Golden H ind. Elizabeth had great fun, as the sword was handed rn her, inciting Philip's demand that she chop off Drake's head. The ship was then in a drydock built for her on the south banks of the Thames below London. She was rn be preserved as a monument, but rotted away before a hundred years had passed. Her fame, however, and the lessons rn be learned from her sailing live on rnday.
The idea of world's oceans as a commons, like the vi llage green that is used by all, is so well established rnday that it comes as a shock rn realize that it is only in the last 500 years of the 5,000-year srnry of civilization that people began rn think of the sea as free and open rn all. Ancient navigarnrs in the Mediterranean divided their sea inrn separate basins of commerce and transshipped their goods on reaching the limits of thei r trading areas-and this pattern persisted. The idea of the free scope of the seas was rhe predecessor for the concept of freedom of the seas, that is, freedom for all comers . This condition became a reality throughout the world-wherever there was water enough rn float a British warship, as the saying went-only a little less than 200 years ago. Drake's "famous voyage" became famous not just in England, but throughout Europe, wherever people were struggling for freedom to determine their own destinies, from the provinces of Holland, rn Bohemia far inland. For by his sailing Drake had defied Earth 's dominant tyranny-and survived! And rhe message of that voyage has echoed down the hallways of time. People took heart in Drake's srory in 1940, when the British air/sea power srood alone against the most monstrous tyranny of our own age and kept the ocean road open for the ultimate defeat of Nazi Germany. Were people deluded or wrongheaded rn call on Drake's message then? I don't think so, not for one minute.
SEA HISTORY 143, SUMMER 2013
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My Week '~board" Mystic Seaport's Charles W. Morgan by Jim Nordmann or one of the few times in the histo ry of Mystic Seaport, their flagshi p vessel, the famous whaling ship Charles W Morgan, is high and dry "o n the hard." The Morgan is currently in the museum'sdrydock undergoing a fi ve-year, $ 10-million resto ration rhatwill return this, rheon ly remaining wooden whaling ship in the wo rld, back to a seawo rthy and sailabl e condition by the summer of 2014. At the helm of the museum's Henry B. duPonr Preservatio n Shipyard and overseer of the restoration, is Q uentin Snediker, a fe llow alumnus of SUNY Mari rime College. I first met Quentin at a SUNY Mari ti me alumni meeting held in Mys tic Seaport in Jun e 2011. Quentin delivered a fascinating presentation on the Morgan's history and its restoration. H e explained that, because the twenty-firs t-century shipya rd time frame is much more generous than what the original shipbuilders had to contend with, they co uld rake rhe rime to both document the original fabric and construction derails full y and resto re the ship to a conditio n actually better than she would have had at her 1841 launch in New Bedford, Massach usetts. The Morgan's restoration benefits from the availabili ty of high technology, which includes laser telem etry and X-ray radiography, as well as computer-aided imaging of everything. In a strange twist of fare, it appears that the Morgan is rhe unintentional beneficiary of the old adage rhar says "it's an ill wind rhar doesn't blow so me good." The violent
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The C harles W. Morgan when she was still an active whaling vessel.
storms that ravaged rhe southern US since Hurri cane Katrina toppled many a tall hardwood tree and, in doing so, provided an unanticipated source fo r difficult-to-find shipbuildin g stock. Q uentin explained that as soon as the museum would learn rhar o ne of these big trees was down, the Seaport wo uld send out an inquiry to the city involved to see if the museum might acquire the wood from the downed tree. In most cases, the cities involved were very willing to donate the trees and we re actually pl eased to know that one of their historic
trees would live on as part of the res tored Morgan, rather than just be cur up and carted away. Quentin's message resonated with m e, as a graduate ofSUNY Maritime and a sailor. During his presentation, it dawned on m e how I cou ld help a fellow schoolmate and help a no r-for-profit organization at the same rime. It always seems that I have some unused vacatio n rime at rhe end of rhe year. I rho ugh r, what better use of that time than to donate it to a worthy cause? After he finished his talk, I ap proached him and asked, "Are yo u looking for volunteers?" Wirhour hesitation , the master shipbuilder said simply, "Sure!" My opportunity to serve "o n board" the Morgan cam e that December. I m ade it a point to work the same ho urs as the regular shipya rd staff. So, early o n the morning of5 D ecember, I made my way through a darkened shipyard, li t o nl y by rhe rising sun, to find the shipyard office. It was the start of their regular work week, and, at that time of the morning, rhe shipyard office serves as an impromptu coffee room and meeting place. Seated aro und rhe old wooden table Shipyard Director Quentin Snediker in Pass Christian, Mississippi, to select live oak trees felled by Hurricane Katrina.
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SEA HISTORY 143, SUMMER 2013
in the center of the room was a wide array of workers from an equally wide range of ages, all artired in a variety of denim, Aannel, and canvas wo rk clothes. "Good w see yo u Jim," said Quentin when he saw me, ''I'll turn yo u over w the Morgan's project manager, Rob Whelan." I followed him out a back door an d inro the spacious shipyard loft. The inside of the loft is as high as an airplane hangar and has been the site of the construction or restoration of many a wooden ship over the years. Rob Whelan is an experienced shipwrigh t from New England-very frienclly but in a reserved sort of way. After shaki ng hands, Rob asked, "Jim do yo u know how to handle a band saw?" I replied that I am fam iliar with a good m any woodworking tools and fo llowed him out of the loft and in to the lumber sheds, which contain the va riecies of wood requ ired in wooden shipbuilding: cut lumber, raw timbers, and large uncut tree sections. Walking through the aisles between stacks oflumber, I spied a huge t ree trunk lying on the gro und alo ngside the shipya rd's saw mill, which clearly had co me from one of the sto rms Quentin had mentioned in his presentation. Rob looked over a pile of cut lumber and rearranged the stack ofwood and pulled out a four-foot length of oak, and we both headed back into workshop. Rob placed the oak stock on a work bench and began sketching out a series of zigzag lines with a marking pen in a repetiti ve panern and said "Jim, yo u're go ing to be installing some shims on the Morgan, and I wo uld sugges t you cut the wood in thi s pattern-I'll show yo u where they go." I fo llowed Rob into the
(top right) View of the lowest deck during the first phase of restoration. The shipyard crew recorded every piece of the ship, from the larger materials like knees and planks to the smallest offastenings, before removing a single item to be sure the original fabric of the ship and details of her construction were properly documented. (middle) One of the many live oak shims the author custom cut to close the gaps in the frames that developed since the ship was built in 1841. (bottom) The C harles W Morgan as she appeared in the shipyard in December 2011. Even with her masts removed, the drydocked Morgan stiff towers over the rest ofthe museum.
SEA HISTORY 143, SUMMER 20 13
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(above) The shipyard crew ladled a mixture of rock salt and borate (as a fu ngicide) into the spaces between the frames as the new hull planking is installed. By using this mix ofsalt!borate, the risk ofrot from freshwater is minimized. As rainwater seeps its way into the lowest areas of the hull, the freshwater will mix with the salt to produce a briny solution that will inherently help preserve the wood. From firsthand experience, I can tell you there is no easy way to do this. I personally ladled about 800 pounds of rock salt between the frames on the ship's starboard side. (below) Shipwrights take a plank for the Morgan out of the steambox, with the museum's other fall-rigged ship, the Joseph Conrad, hauled out behind them.
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d rydock area where the Morgan is currently blocked up. The M organ o ut of the wa ter is a sight to see. Perched securely on her keel ato p a wheeled, rectangular steel cradle, her size seems even more m assive than I remembered from visits to the Seapo rt in the pas t. The 172-year-old ship was lifted into her current pos itio n fro m the Mystic River using this cradle and a combination of lifts, as well as a netwo rk of underlying rail tracks within the shipyard . O nce she was lifted out of the water, she was m oved co her current locatio n and stabilized by an elaborate array of diago nal braces, upright columns, and cross pieces. Workers access the hull via a series of catwalks, staircases, and ramps that also surround the vessel. O ut of the water, the Morgan is as much a main attractio n fo r visito rs at the museum as when she was afl oat, and most parts of the ship, both o n and below decks, have been open to visito rs and tours th ro ugho ut the restoration project.
Becoming a Shim Expert Some of the ship's planks had already been
SEA HISTORY 143, SUMMER 2013
partially removed, revealing some of rhe original frames rhar gave rhe 172-year-old hull irs shape. Rob poimed our some gaps in rhe original framing and insrrucred me ro use rhe oak he had given me and "see whar [I] can do ro cur some shims and close up rhese gaps." He poimed our some of rhe shimming rhar had been done by orher volumeers. "Yup .. . gor ir," I replied and off! wem. As I sized up rhe job, I could see rhar every one of rhese gaps was unique wirh irs own irregular shape, so a one-size-firs-all srraregy was our of rhe quesrion. Each ser ofshims required several sreps of measuring, curring, re-measuring, and sanding before I could finall y pound rhem inro place. Purring your hands ro work on such an imporram hisroric ship is a bir inrimidaring ar firsr, and I probably over-engineered every shim , raking over rwo hours for rhe firsr ser, bur gerring rhar down ro less rhan an hour as I workedmywayaround rhehull. Ar rimes I felr that I must be a source of some comic relief ro rhe professional shipwrighrs who could probably accomplish whar I was doing in fifreen minures, bur I rook my usual SUNY Maririme College engineer's pride in what I was doing and wanted ro be sure that, once rhese shims were installed, they would rruly be permanent. At some point, Rob came back ro inspect my work and gave me a simple, "Looks good, Jim." My farher was a serious woodworker who made a lot of furnirure around rhe house as I was growing up. I benefited from some of his knowledge abour working with wood and the various types of wood. By comparison, all of rhe workers I mer in rhe yard were masters in their knowledge of species of wood used in boat and shipbuilding and rheir unique properties. I actually wanted to learn more about the subject-and wanted ro sound so mewhat inrell igent ar the same rime-so I asked "does rhe oak that I'm using come from Sourh Carolina?" "Ir's white oak," Rob replied-then smiled as if he already knew why I was asking and said "and it came from Connecticut. Why do yo u ask?" With a slightl y puzzled look, I explained that I had read once that "Old Ironsides" had been planked wirh a very dense oak rhar on ly grows in Sourh Carolina. "The Morgan, and many ships of rhat era," he explained, "were built from white oak, which comes
SEA HISTORY 143, SUMMER 20 13
Ihe museum's investment in a new shiplift in preparation for the Morgan restoration has paid off Its fleet of large vessels need annual dry-docking for both regular maintenance and for Coast Guard inspections for their operational passenger and sail training vessels, including the steamboat Sabino (left) and schooner Brilliant.
from New England." Rob spun around and pulled our a piece ofscrap live oak from rhewood bin behind us and laid it alongside rhe piece of whire oak I was wo rking wi th. In rhe side-by-side comparison, you could clearly see the differences in density and rhe grain. I was grateful for rhe lesson of rhe day from Rob, who was obviously very busy bur still rook rhe rime to show me. During my week ar rhe shipyard, rhe restoration crew removed rhe 3,000-pound rudder from rhe Morgan using a forklifr and block and tackles from overhead. The cask would be challenging enough on any given day, bur naturally a cold front was passing rhrough and broughr wirh ir a frigid, soaking rain. Trurh be told, I was relieved when I was assigned to position myself inside (and our of rhe rain) with a flashlight and relay verbal commands and help pull slack out of lines through rhe overhead block and tackle when commanded. Towards rhe end of rhe week, I helped build a !arching mechanism rhar wo uld be used to secure a couple oflarger remporary doors. These would allow access to the work areas during rhe winter months when rhe Morgan will be wrapped in a cocoon of plastic to prorecr rheworkers from exposure to rhe wearher in rhe coldest of rhe wimer months.
A Welcome Everywhere Throughour rhe week, I was impressed how appreciarive everyone ar rhe museum was to see me rhere. They explai ned how viral volunteers are to rhe success of rhe museum as a whole and rhar, even rhough what I was working on mighr appear small, ir all helps in rhe overall success of rhe insrirurion. Many rimes, a volunteer's work can help
(right) A view of some of the port-side stern planking shows the documentation labeling.
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free up time for the regular staffers to work on larger, more involved tasks. The night before my fin al day with the shipyard crew, I walked over to the Mo rgan to check over my week's work. It was aro und sunset, all the yard workers had left for the day, and the Morgan was bathed in a warm setting sunlight that gave her a regal appearance. At that moment, I could not help but become a bit nostalgic as I began to envision how many miles this ship had sailed, how many lives she supported, how many adventures she experi enced. I could not help but adm ire how great and important the Morgan is ro all of us. When the day ended on Friday, I found myself departing with a truly ambivalent feeling. The week had been filled with hard work, but rewarding wo rk. As I look back, it was a very memorabl e experience. I left feeling fulfilled and hoped that my modest co ntribution wou ld somehow, nonetheless, co ntribute towards the preservation of an impo rtant piece of our history. I also met some fascinating people, so me who ca me from aro und the world;
The author looks over the original planks and frames of the 172-year-old whaling ship, Charles W Morgan. Despite the Morgan's age, much of the original planking is still sound. learned a lot about wooden ship co nstruction and m aterials; and gained som e new talents.
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And if yo u are in need of some custommade shims, yo u know where to find me.
Call for Volunteers Mystic Seaport welcomes volunteers in just about every capacity. You don't have to be a woodwo rker or engineer to contribute; all skills and talents are welcomed. Those wishing to volunteer should contact Rhoda H o pkins (e mail rhoda.hopkins@mysticseaport.org; Ph. 860 572-5378) for help in matching talents with tasks. Of note: many peop le don't real ize that fair and reasonable expense that yo u incur for dedicated participation supporting a recognized not-for-profit organization can be considered deductible as a charitable donatio n. Costs such as hotel, meals, gas, and to lls may qualify as deductible from perso nal taxes if it meets the IRS guidelines. If yo u don't live near Mystic, it is likely yo ur local maritime museum could use yo ur help. It is a great way to contribute and have a lot of fun at the same time. j:,
Jim Nordmann is a native of the New Yo rk City area and currently works as a manager of engineering in the auto industry. Jim is a part-time free-lance writer and photographer covering local, community, andsportingevents. He is very active in volunteering, and, as a result, it is not uncommon for him to donate his talents as photographer and writer-or shim-maker-for many not-for-profit causes.
SEA HISTORY 143 , SUMMER 2013
Witness the Historic Relaunching of the Charles W. Morgan 21 July 2013 at Mystic Seaport After nearly five years of painstaking restoration in the H enry B. duPont Preservation Shipyard at Mystic Seaport Museum, the Charles W Morgan wi ll be launched on Sunday, 2 1 July. The date is significant, as it is the l 72"d anniversary of her original launch at the Hillman Brothers shipyard in New Bedford, Massachusetts, in 184 1. Freshly planked, caulked, and painted, the ship will have been moved out onto the shiplift some days in advance and positioned to be lowered into the water. A temporary mast will be stepped to B.y the stars and stripes, and sh e will be properly dressed for the occasion. Mystic Seaport is planning a day full of special activities and programs surrounding the ship, with the high point being the launch ceremony that will begin at 2PM. Filmmaker Ric Burns will deliver the keynote address. Unlike most launches, there will be no big splash as she enters the water. Although the Morgan could no doubt handle it in her newly restored condition, the ship lift is designed to minimize stress to the hulls of historic vessels. Once the switch is thrown, she will inch slowly down until she B.oats clear of her supports. The process should take about twenty minutes. Once the Morgan is back in the water, the restoration work will continue as she is re-rigged and fitted out for her 38'h voyage to historic ports in New England, planned for the summer of 2014. The public is invi ted to attend what should be a great event. Both parking and space on the Mystic River (for those who choose to co me by boat) will be tight, so people are encouraged to arrive early. C heck for updates at the museum's website, www. mysricseaport.org. (a bove) The Charles W Morgan in November 2 008, as she was lifted out ofthe water to undergo a major restoration ofthe hull.
(Mystic Seaport, 75 Greenmanvill e Ave., Mystic, CT 06355; Ph. 860 572-0711; www.mys ricseaport.org)
Celebrating the Charles W. Morgan, A Special Marine Art Exhibition The Maritime Art Gallery at Mystic Seaport is holding a special exhibition this summer to celebrate the launch of the newly restored Charles W Morgan. Gallery artists have been invited to submit work that features the ship, and the resulting show will feature a wide range of media. A highlight of the show wi ll be a scratch-b uilt model of the ship by model builder Kenneth Thomsen (right). The 3/JG-scale model is 3 1 1/2 inches long and ~ features a remarkable level of derail. The exhibition runs 19 July to 8 Seprem~ ber. For more information contact the gallery at 860 572-5388 or gallery@ mysticseaporr.org. The Maritime Arr Gallery is free to the public and open 10AM to 5PM daily. (right) Charles W. Morgan, model by Kenneth Thomsen
Charles W. Morgan, Outward Bound, by Paul Beebe, watercolor 17" x 27" SEA HISTORY 143, SUMMER 20 13
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US Coast Guard Cutter Ingham, Pride ef the Coast Guard
fter more than half a century of active service, the most decorated ship in United States Coast Guard history, the USCG Cutter Ingham, is moored alongside the seawall at the former Key West Naval Station, now a memorial museum. The only cutter to be awarded rwo Navy Presidential Unit Citations, she saw battle service in World War II and in Vietnam. Today, she is a National Historic Landmark and a national memorial to Coast Guard sailors who died in battle. She lives on as a floating museum, open to the p ublic, reminding visitors of the courage and sacrifices of those Coast Guard officers and men who fought for our freedom. Built in 1935-36, Ingham was one of seven sister ships known as rhe Secretary class, christened with the names of secretaries of the Treasury. She is 327 feet long, displaces 2,650 tons, and has a gearedturbine steam plant capable of speeds up to 20 knots. At 11 knots she could cruise for 8,000 miles without refueling. After her commissioning, the Ingham conducted routine peacetime d u ties in 1 Free-French escorts were French navy ships that joined the resistance after the Germa n defeat and occupatio n of France.
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by William Verge and John Viele
USCGC Ingham is believed to be the only US vessel afloat today to have sunk a German U-Boat. In 2013, she is still dedicated to US Coast Guard service-these days as a museum ship in Key West, Florida, that preserves the memory of those who served aboard her, her place in Coast Guard history, and the broader role of the Coast Guard in American history, alive for today's and foture generations. the Bering Sea. When war broke our in Europe in 1939, she and her sister cutters patrolled the Neutrality Zone off the East Coast to prevent attacks by warring powers on merchant ships. In April 1941, with the possibility of US involvement in the war looming ever closer, Ingham was assigned to the US Navy but retained her Coast Guard crew. After a six-month tour in Lisbon, Portugal, to protect American interests, she sailed to Argentia, Newfoundland, to prepare for service as a convoy escort in the critical effort to keep theAdanticlifeline to Grear Britain open. Until the United States entered the war, the Battle of the Atlantic was fought by the Royal Navy, the Royal Canadian Navy, and a few Polish, Norwegian, and Free-French escorts. 1 The US Navy at rhar rime had no ships with the capabilities to serve as escorts in the stormy waters of rhe North Atlantic. Because of their fine sea-keeping abilities and their extended cruising range, Ingham and her sister ships were ideal vessels for North
Atlantic duty. Before the U-boars began losing the battle in May 1943, all sinkings of U-boars by US surface escorrs were by Secretary-class cutters. World War I fl ushdeck destroyers were also used as escorts, bur in heavy seas they had to reduce speed and sometimes leave the convoy because of low fuel reserves. To carry out submarine detection and attack, Ingham was equipped with radar, sonar, depth charge racks, and K-gun depth charge launchers. Her armament, which was changed from time to time as her mission changed, included rwo 5-inch, rwo 3-inch, and fo ur 20mm guns. As the war continued, a hedgehog launcher and a high frequency radio direction finder (HF/ OF) were installed. Her complement was increased to sixteen officers, five warrant officers, and 202 enlisted men. During her sixteen months in the North Atlantic, Ingham served as an escort with thirty convoys, sank one German U-boar, and rescued over one hundred survivors of torpedoed ships. SEA HISTORY 143, SUMMER 20 13
lngham's first assignment as an escort was or launch snowflakes (like Fourth-of-July with an eastbound convoyof43 ships assem- rocket bursts) to try to illuminate the Ubling at Argenti a. The convoy got underway boat. Escorts would speed to the attack area on 9 December 1941. The wintertime North and try to locate the U-boat visually or by Atlantic crossings delivered gale-force winds sonar. piling up thirty-foot seas, which rolled the In September 1942, Ingham and her cutter forty degrees and smashed one of her sister ship, the cutter Bibb, were on their lifeboats. With the merchant ships scattered way to reinforce the escort group of a westover a wide area, the convoy was officially bound convoy. Bibb's radioman picked up dispersed. Ingham and a destroyer escorted distress signals from two merchant ships, five merchantmen safely ro Reykjavik, Ice- and the escort commander ordered the land. Ingham then proceeded to Hvalfjor- two cutters to investigate. Three hours later dur Bay, 25 miles north of Reykjavik, which they found an oil slick, and after another was a base for convoy escorts and repair hour, a lifeboat crowded with 66 survivors ships. Surrounded by mountains on three from the rorpedoed ship SS Penmar. While sides and a rocky shore with a Quonset Ingham screened her, Bibb recovered the hut bar open only two hours a day, it was a survivors (when slowed or stopped to pick less than inviting location, but it was to be up survivors, an escort was in its most lngham's home port for most of her service vulnerable situation). A short while later, in the Barde of the Atlantic. lngham's lookouts sighted flares and they The stretch of ocean between New- headed towards them. One of lngham's foundland and Greenland was called the officers, Ensign Matte, described the scene "G reenland Air Gap" because long-range that followed: "At 3PM a life raft was sighted aircraft, even those based in Newfoundland with eight men aboard. Lt. Masters took an d Iceland, could not reach it. Iceland's our No. 1 boat (under oars) to the raft and mid-Atlantic location made it a strategic- took off the men. The boat falls were led ally important base for Allied long-range aft "married" [tied together], and about a aircraft, surface ship escorts, and ships hundred men tailed off along the falls. On leaving or joining convoys. Escorts based in its return, when the boat had hooked on to Iceland were used ro reinforce escort gro ups the falls, the order was shouted and instantof convoys under heavy U-boat attack, and ly the men ran the boat out of the waves ro escort ships breaking off from convoys to and up, two-blocked in about two seconds! proceed ro Reykjavik or leaving that port to The survivors were from SS Tennessee and had been clinging to their little raft since join a convoy. Because of the absence of Allied air Tuesday night [four days]." A convoy of forty-two ships had left coverage, U-boats concentrated in the Greenland Air Gap. Having broken the New York on 24 October 1942. After a British and Allied merchant ship code, the U-boat sighted and reported the convoy, Germans knew the routing of convoys. Us- Admiral Doenitz ordered a wolf pack ing this information, Admiral Karl Doenitz, into the attack. As the convoy entered the commander of U-boats, would order the Greenland Air Gap, the slaughter began. boars by radio to form a long scouring line In two nights of attacks, U-boats sank fifacross the expected track of a convoy. The teen ships. The convoy's designated rescue boat that sighted the convoy would radio ship picked up 300 survivors and two US headquarters, report the convoy's course Navy tugs picked up 240, but many more and speed, and trail astern. The other boats, died in the frigid waters. Ingham and the in groups called "wolf packs," wo uld race destroyers Schenck and Leary were ordered to positions to intercept the convoy. Their to get underway from Iceland to reinforce usual tactic was to approach at night on the the convoy's escort. As Ingham approached surface (th eir low silhouettes being almost the convoy, her captain, Commander impossible ro see), launch torpedo attacks McCabe, aware of the appalling losses of from within the convoy, and, if necessary, ships and men, ordered his crew to man submerge ro escape. Upon the sound or their battle stations, and, with the biggest sight of a torpedo explosion, or a distress call American ensign and signal flags flying from a torpedoed merchant ship, ships and stiff in the breeze, steamed up and down escorts of the convoy would fire starshells the columns, in high seas at twenty knots. SEA HISTORY 143, SUMMER 2013
Merchant ship crewmen, military personnel, and survivors lined the rails of the convoy ships and cheered as Ingham ran by. When Ingham joined a convoy on 12 December 1942, one of the escorts with HF/DF detected a radio transmission from a U-boatahead of the convoy. Ingham moved out to engage. Commander McCabe, contrary to prescribed anti-submarine warfare doctrine, ordered the sonar operator to stop pinging and listen . McCabe theorized that a U-boat coming in on the surface at night would detect the pinging and dive or alter course to avoid the escort. If not pinging, the escort's radar wo uld detect the U-boat long before the active sonar would. Near midnight, the sonar operator reported hearing the fast screw beats of a submerged submarine. The officer of the deck launched an attack with depth charges set at 150 feet, then opened out for another attack, directing the sonar operator to commence pinging. After the second attack, as the cutter was opening out, there was another heavy explosion. Unsure of what had happened, the bridge watch looked our and saw their captain standing on the bridge wing by the remote depth charge release. He said, "I dropped one more on the bastard myself. This war is too damn impersonal." In spite of criticism from higher authority of the captain's departure from standard antisubmarine procedures, post-war German records showed that the attack had destroyed the German submarine U-626. Ingham joined the escort group of a 51ship eastbound convoy on 21January1943 just south of Greenland. The next day, a Force 12 hurricane struck the convoy. With the air temperature near freezing, winds blowing up to 100 knots piled up gigantic 60-foot seas. Ingham rolled heavily, up to fifty degrees. When she dove into a monster wave, she would come to a momentary, shuddering stop. In thedrivingsprayandsnow, the radar proved useless; the officer of the deck had no idea where the convoy was. All the ships in the convoy were fighting for survival and unable to maintain station. With near-zero visibi li ty, two merchantmen collided and a tanker cresting a mountainous sea broke in half. The impact of repeatedly pounding into head seas tore the shield aro und lngham's sonar dome open, making it useless except at slow speeds. After the storm subsided, it took Ingham and the other escorts three
27
(left) USS Ingham on convoy duty in Wo rld Ular II. In wartime, the p resident ordered that the Coast Guard be placed under the op erational control ofthe US Navy. A ll Coast Guard ships remained Coast Guard assets and were maintained by Coast Guard crews. In WWII, the ships' names were changed to reflect this change in status (i.e. USCGC Ingham changed to USS Ingham). Rhode Island's Representative Clairborne PeLL had served in the Coast Guard in WWII and was frustrated that Coast Guard vessels had to lose most of their identities. H e introduced and got p assed legislation that Coast Guard vessels would retain their identities when merged with the navy in wartime. Therefo re, in Vietnam, the Coast Guard's 82 -footers and other Coast Guard vessels operated under the US Navy but maintained the "US CG C" in their names and, in the case ofthe large cutters, retained the identifjing color scheme ofwhite hulls and the orange-red racing stripe.
days ro round up some, bur nor all, of rhe missing ships. Twenry-rwo were nor found and had ro proceed independently ro po re. On rhe way, one was rorpedoed and sank wirh all hands. l ngham's nexr escort du cy involved her in whar Admiral Doenirz described as "rhe hardesr fo ughr convoy barde of rhe war." The sixry-ship convoy lefr New Yo rk on 24 January 1943. Two escons sanka U-boat and captured its crew on 4 February, but despite this success, rwo more U-boats moved in and sank rwo of th e freighcers. Ingham, her so nar heavily damaged from the recent storm, with destroyers Babbitt and Schenck, was ordered ro reinforce. Before they arrived, U-boat ace Baron Siegfried von Forstener, commanding U-402, moved in and, in less than rwo hours, sank six convoy ships. His sixrh vicrim was rhe troopship H enry R. Mallory with 498 crewm en and mili ra ry perso nnel o n board. M allory had been srraggling as tern of rhe convoy and was no t zigzagging. After she was hit, rhe captain failed ro send a distress m essage or send up flares, and as a result, it was six hours before anyone knew she had been sunk. The cutter Bibb cam e across a lifeboat loaded with survivo rs, learned they were from the Ma!Lory, and informed the escort group co mmander. Th e commander o rdered Ingham ro sweep as rern of the convoy ro look for survivo rs. After passing through wreckage from ano ther of U -402's victims, Ingham found herself in 28
a sea of bodies from the Mallory, most of them dead. With Ingham screening, Bibb commenced recove ring those that were still alive. The escort group commander ordered Bibb to halt recovery and rejoin the convoy at besr speed, bur Co mmander Rainey, Bibb's commanding offi cer, replied, "Th e sea is alive wirh m en and we have ro go gee chem." In all, Bibb rescued 202 Mallory survivors. l ngham's rwo boars rescued seven m en from a lifeboat and fifreen mo re from capsized rafts and wreckage. When men in the water were too incapacitated to help themselves, volunteers fromlngham climbeddown cargo nets strung over th e cutter's side and passed lines around survivo rs in the water. After a few minutes in the icy wate rs, the rescuers' hands were so frozen th ey co uld do nothing and had robe hauled up o n deck. In summ ary, this o ne co nvoy had been attacked by rwenry-o ne U- boats-three U boarswere sunk, fo ur were heavily damaged, and only three penetrated the screen . The U-boatssank eleven convoy ships; mo re than 400 m en lost their lives. Fo r his successful attacks against this and a previous convoy, Forstener was award ed Ge rmany's highest honor, the Iron C ross. The las t N orth Atlantic convoy batde Ingham rook part in was th e biggest convoy barde of rhe wa r. Two co nvoys, a slow one with sixry ships and a fast one with fifcy ships, sailed eastbound fro m New York within three days of each other. The Ger-
m ans intercepted and decoded messages, which gave them the convoy routes. Admiral Doenirz ordered rhirry-seven U -boars to form patrol lines to intercept the convoys. Because of bad weather, the convoys passed through the patrol lin es underecred , bur a U -boat returning ro base sighted and repo rted the fas r co nvoy and the barde was on. Ingham and Babbitt were o rdered fro m Iceland to rein fo rce rhe escort groups. U -boats located both convoys and sank rwen ry- rwo ships. O ne of the las t to go was the Ma tthew Luckenbach, which had left her station and raced ahead of the co nvoy. Ingham sighted rhe plume of a torpedo explosion alo ngs ide the frei ghter, sped ro her position and rescued the entire crew and armed guard. The Luckenbach stayed afloat, and one of l ngham's officers volunteered to go aboard with a few men and bring her to port. Fortunately, the captain said no- the next day ano ther ro rpedo arrack sank the Luckenbach. In a peri od of three days, 42 U-boars had attacked the rwo convoys and sank 22 m erchant ships. More than 470 men (including U-boar crewmen) lost their lives . Admiral Doenirz called it "[t]he grearesr success that we had so fa r scored against a convoy." The Allies we re afraid that it was rhe end of rhe co nvoy sys tem, but actually it was the turning point in the Barde of the Atl anti c. With jeep carriers, more long-range bombers, new destroyer escorts,
S EA HISTORY 143 , SUMMER20 13
better detection equipment, and improved training, the Germ ans never again came so close to severing the lifeline between No rth America and Europe. It was also the end of lngham's North Atlantic duty.1heA!lied command d ecided to withdraw American surface ship escorts from the Nor th Atlantic and shifr them to convoys bound for the Mediterranean. Ingham escorted ten co nvoys to the Mediterra nean witho ut losing any of the convoy ships. For a brief period in the winter of 1943, Ingham and her sister cutters escorted convoys in the Caribbean . Finally, in July, orders sent Ingham to the Charl eston Naval Shipyard for co nversion to an Amphibious Assault Command Ship (AGC), where she was o utfitted with army co mmuni catio n equipment and accommodatio ns we re made for Signal Corps personnel. In additio n, the depth charge racks were removed and anti-aircraft weapons were ad ded to the ships armament. Afte r co nversio n, Ingham sailed to the Pacific and, as flagship and guide, directed six amphibious landings in the Philippines. The first was the retaking of Co rregidor. Ge neral MacArthur cam e aboard for a final
conference on the co nduct of that operation, after which he left aboard a PT boat, transferred to a Ian ding craft, and "returned" to Corregidor. During the Vietnam War, in 1968, Ingham patrolled the coast of So uth Vietnam, stopping, boardin g, and searching vessels suspected of supplyin g arms and ammunition to enemy forces. She also conducted shore born bardrnen ts and provided logistical support to US Navy and US Coast Guard
vessels in the area. She was awarded two US Navy Presidential Unit C itatio ns for her performance in Operation Swift Raider and Operation Sealords. In 198 0, she sailed to the Straits of Florida and helped save the li ves and property of C uban refugees attempting to cross the Straits to Florida. In all , she rescued twen ty survivo rs of swa mped boats and rafts, and towed o r escorted seven vessels load ed with refugees to Key West. After fifty-rwo years' active du ty and service in two wa rs, Ingham was decommissio ned in May 1988 .A letterfrom President Reagan co ngrawlated her on that occasion as the oldest acti ve commissioned naval vessel serving our nation and the most deco rated vessel in US service. JWilliam Verge is a retired USCGR officer who served in Vietnam. He is the executive director of the USCGC Ingham Memorial Museum. John Viele is a retired naval officer, former submarine captain, and author of a three-volume history of the Florida Keys. (left) Commandant of the USCG, Adm. Robert]. Papp, a strong proponent ofhistoric preservation, visited the Ingham in June 2011.
aNational Memorial to Coast Guardsmen who lost their lives during WWII through Vietnam. • Awarded two Naval Presidential Unit Citations for her se rvice during Vietnam. • Credited with sinking U-Boat 626 during convoy duty in the North Atlantic. Don't miss the opportunity to tour this ship. learn about its remarkable history. the recently completely underwater re-fit and the current work being done restoring her topside. USCGC INGHAM is located in Key West on the Truman Waterfront.
National Historic Landmark
STILL SAILING AFTER 70 YEARS
Join us on a 2013 cruise: SEP02
OCT12
OCT13
New Bay Bridge Opening
San Francisco Fleet Week
San Francisco Fleet Week
You Can Visit ...You Can Help The foundation seeks donations to continue restoration of this important vessel. Please send your tax-deductible contributions to:
USCGC INGHAM Memorial Museum TO ORDER: (415)544-0100 or ssjeremiahobrien.org
Visit SS JEREMIAH
O'BRIEN at Pier 45, San Francisco
SEA HlSTORY 143 , SUMMER 20 13
j
P 0. Box186. Key West. Florida 33041 • Phone: (305)-395-9554 j WWW.USC gc ing ham.0 rg
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The Onus of Debt: Willialll Henry Brown by Jam es G . Brown n the morning of Monday, 28 January 1850 in New York C ity, there occurred a nautical event never before attempted . Shipbuilder William Henry Brown was going to launch three different vessels on the same day. By 9:00AM a huge crowd, estimated to be as many as thirty tho usand people, gathered alo ng the East River and the streets bordering th e Brown shipyard at the foot of 12'h Street to catch a glimpse of the spectacle. 1 Also present as guests were the m ost famous, prominent and inBuential people of the time, including the likes of Horace Greeley, William H . Aspinwall , Edward K. C ollins, George Schuyler, Cornelius Vanderbilt, and Daniel Webster. All had come to witness the accomplishments of William H. Brown, the forty-six-year-old shipbuilder and entrepreneur.2 The program began at 9:30AM with the launch of the steamboat New World, a 526to n steam er destined for the Wes t Coast, to run from San Francisco up the Sacram ento River. To enhan ce the spectacle, New World was launched with steam up in her boilers, and as soon as the hull was in the water her paddlewheels began to ro tate; she soon turn ed and sped upriver to the am azem ent of the gathered throng. N ext, the steam er Boston, built to run between Boston and Bangor, was successfully launched, and then all eyes focused on the star of the day and the main attraction, the great steam er A rctic, built for the Collins Line of steam packets to England. This 3,000-ton giant
0
slid into the wa ter acco mpanied by the loud and appreciative cheers of the huge crowd. O nce the vessels were launched, New World came back to the shipyard dock and rook aboard a party of guests. She sailed down the river on a trial voyage into the lower bay and out to sea. She made twen ty kno ts in the calm water, and eighteen kno ts when she traveled into the open water past the lightship. She returned to the dock late in the afternoon. After tying up at the shipyard dock, the guests gathered in New World's saloon for a celebration staged by Brown. D aniel Webster was elected chai rman for the occasion , and he spoke in glowing terms about William H. Brown and the shipwrigh ts of New York. Several other speakers fo llowed, toas ts were proposed, glasses were raised, and then Brown rose to speak. Brown thanked Webster for his words and then spoke of his own innovative building methods and the savings he had created with the launch of New World with her boilers hot and ready to sail. H e spoke of his shipbuilding experience and the hull shapes he favo red fo r his vessels, specifically mentio ning the sharp, or "hollow," entry he favo red . H e related how well received his vessels had been and predicted that ships wo uld soon be built of iron and to great size.3 H e spoke eloquently, and as the visionary he fancied himself to be, derailing the need for innovations like a trans-ocean telegraph, a transcontinental railroad, and trade to China and other Pacific Ocean
The 3, 000-ton steamship Arctic, built for the Collins Line, was one of the three vessels in the "triple launch" in January 1850, built by William H. Brown.
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pons . He called o n Wall Street fin anciers and o thers to join with him in creating a shipping line to span the wo rld 's oceans. H e was clearly envisio ning building a great line of steamers to ach ieve this goal. This was W ilJiam H . Brown at the very height ofhis inBuence, wealth and reputatio n. But Brown h ad an embarrassing secret; despite his outward show of wealth and his aura of flamboyant success, he owed almost everyon e mo ney. A hint of this circumstance came several weeks later, when New World was prevented from sailing fo r the Pacific by a court injunctio n filed o n behalf of William P. Furniss, a wealthy New York merchant, trader and property owner. Although W illiam H. Brown was identified as the owner of New World, Furniss actually held a halfinterest in the ship with him. The courr actio n was due to a dispute over money and the ownership of New World and another steamboat. 4 Several sheriffs deputies were placed aboard New Wo rld to keep h er from sailing. After consulting with Brown, the ship's captain, Ned Wakeman , convinced the deputies of the need to test the engines. Wakem an made sure the deputies were entertained fo r several days with liqu or and foo d, and the deputies agreed to the trial. Wakem an steam ed out of the harbor and gave the de puties the choice of getting off or going to Califo rnia. The deputies drew pistols, but they were confronted by a gang of armed crewmen and agreed to leave the ship. After mo re adventures, New World made San Francisco and began running on the Sacram ento. 5 Of course, Brown had to deal with Furniss, and this case continued for several years. But he wouldn't let anything stop his plans to start the great steamship co mpany he envisioned. H e planned to build a num her of other steamships for his own account to run between New York and Panama, and Panama and Cal ifo rnia. Amo ng Brown's personal friends were Robert and Geo rge L. Schuyler ofR. & G . L. Schuyler, a prominent civil engineering firm. These two hal f- brothers were the sons of Philip Schuyler, and there was a thirteenyear difference between them. Robert, who had attended law school, was a banke r and entrepre neur, while George was a trained
SEA\ HISTORY l43 , SUMMER 2013
and the Building of the Schooner America engineer. Both had been active investing in early steamboats and railroads, and had been influential in bringing business to William Brown early in his shipbuilding career; they were, in effect, his p atrons, and his first large vessel, Narragansett, had been built for the Schuylers' New Jersey Steam Navigatio n C ompany in 1836.6 In 1840, the Schuylers obtained the contract to build the Russian steam frigate Kamschatka and gave the contract to Brown , a coup that generated controversy and animosity toward both Brown and the Schuylers.7 It is fair to say the Schuylers were both fri ends and m entors to William Brown. They helped his career and business over the years, and Brown and the Schuylers had lent each other money. N ow Brow n needed funds for his grand plan, and th e Schuylers could help him. W illiam Brown had worked for his entire career in the shadow of his uncles Adam and N oah Brown, who were successful shipbuilders in the city. H e no doubt also m easured his own success against his very successful cousin, D avid Brown of the shipbuilding firm of Brown & Bell. 8 Unlike his shipbuilding relatives, his goal was to extend beyond simply building ships to owning and operating them as commercial enterprises throughout the wo rld. The frenzy of the Gold Rush was in full swing in 1850, and in his sp eech at the triple launch Brown announced he wo uld soon lay the keels fo r vessels fo r the Pacific; he sought to put them into service between New Yo rk and the Caribbean side of Panama, and in the Paci fi c from Pan ama up to San Francisco. True to his wo rd, by the end ofl 85 0 he had built four more steam vessels on his own acco unt, sending th em off one by one to the west coast. 9 O n 28 August 185 0, the Mercantile Age ncy, th e fo rerunner of D un & Bradstreet, assessed Brown. He was described as "industrious, shrewd, keen , cautious yet o n occasions bold, daring and even desperate in his business dealings." They wondered if his business was successful due to his managem ent o r simply because of business co nditions. H e was said to be "always borrowing" and th e Mercantile Agen cy judged he had no business system and do ub ted that he knew his net wo rth "wi thin $50,000 ." 10 Brown and the Schuylers co nti nued
SEA HISTORY 143, SUMMER 201 3
New York H arbor, 1850, when William H. Brown was at the height of his shipbuilding career. H is shipyard was at the bottom of 12th Street on the East River.
their financial dealings thro ughout 185 0 providing liquidity to each o ther by exchanging notes, but as the year progressed Brown was increasingly in debt to fin ance the ships he was building and operating. 11 Ir was against this background that, in the fall of 185 0, a group of yachtsmen, including John C. Stevens, Commodore of th e New Yo rk Yacht C lub, and Geo rge Schuyler, both fo unding members of the club, decided to accept an invitation to send a vessel to com pete in a seri es of regattas in England the following summer. A syndicate was fo rmed, and six men agreed to rake shares in the p roposed schooner. 12 There was no question as to who wo uld design the schooner- that job wo uld go to George Steers. Steers had apprenticed with his fa ther, Henry Steers, and his older brother, Jam es, and by age sixteen had built afastsloopnam ed Martin Van Buren. Before he was twen ty he had built a nu m ber of sm all boats. 13 In 1845 he opened a shipyard across the East Rive r in W illiamsburg, with W. H. H athorne, where they built fas tsailingyachts and pilot schooners, including the Sandy H ook pilo t boat Mary Taylor, built in early 1849. Soon after the launch of the pilot boat, Steers and H athorne dissolved their partnership and Geo rge Steers went to wo rk fo r William Brown , a frie nd of his father's, as his loft fo rem an fo r the specific purpose of lofting the lines for the Collins steamers A tlantic and Arctic. While working there, he also designed and built another pilot schooner in Brown's yard fo r
his own acco unt. 14 W ith the obvious choice of Steers to design the New Yo rk Yacht C lub's racing schooner, the choice of the yard to build her was also dictated by where the yo ung designer was currently wo rking. Because of Brown's relationship with Geo rge Schuyler, it was easy and mutually beneficial to have the yacht built at Brown's yard, and for Brown to accept the contract on whatever terms that were presented to him. Both the proposal to build the yacht and the acceptance were composed and written by Geo rge Schuyler in his own hand. Brow n duly signed the offer letter. The keel for the America was laid down in the yard before the end of the year, and, under the supervision of George Steers, constructio n co ntinued. Perhaps as a result of the cold winter that year or because of a shortage of funds and m aterials, delays occurred. It becam e apparent that America wo uld no t be ready to launch by the original con tract date of 1 April 1851. The wo rk pushed ahead, non etheless, with a pressing deadline looming that wo uld allow enough time to sail to England. Finally, on 3 May, America was launched . George Schuyler wrote to Brown on 24 M ay and, on behalf of the syndicate, info rmed him that the p rice of the yacht would be reduced to only $20,000 "as is." 15 Given his circumstances, William Brown could hardly disagree. His position at the end of M ay 18 51 must be unders tood . An ob se rva tio n
31
made by rhe Mercamile Agency on 5 June 185 1 relared char William H. Brown had a significanr amoum of nores oursranding and couldn'r find a marker on Wall Srreer. His paper co mmanded a large discoum and rhe Mercamile Agency reporred char he "mighr be wo rrh $25 0,000 or norhing and doubred he knew himself." 16 On 11 June, in an accouming wirh rhe Schuylers, Brown owed chem a ner amounr of $16,000.'7 Among his other debrs, he owed a large sum of money ro Co rnelius Vanderbilr, and rhe Schuylers helped senle a dispure berween rhe rwo men by guaranreeing Vanderbilr against loss on one of rh e ships in which he had an imeresr. 18 William Brown also sold rhe new sreamer Daniel Webster ro Vanderbilr, while thar vessel was srill on rhe srocks in Seprember 185 1. 19 Before her launching, Brown appears ro have paid for rhe coses associared wirh building America our of his own funds. Afrer 30 Jun e, however, rhe expenses for America were paid by R. & G. L. Schuyler rhrough rheir acco um ser up for William H . Brown. 20 This acco um was debired for amoums paid for rhe schooner, and, when members of rhesyndicare paid their shares of rhe $20,000 due Brown, chose checks we re paid ro R. & G. L. Schuyler and credired ro Brown's acco um. Clearly, he was nor in co m rol of his business ar char rime. Of rhe six members of rh e America syndicare, only fo ur Qohn C. and Edwin Srevens, George L. Schuyler and John K. Beekman) acrually made $4,000 paymems
America arrived ar Le H avre on 11 July 1851. While she was fining out for the final leg to England, on 19 July 185 1 William
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to purchase America. James Ham.ilron and H amilton W ilkes apparendy did nor acrually pur up money for rheir panicipario n; a fifth share was purchased by W illiam E. Laighr, a New York mercham and fellow member of rhe New York Yachr C lub. 21 On 25 June 1851 rheAmerica cleared New York bound for England under rhe command of Caprain Dick Brown. Aboard was Geo rge Sreers, along wirh his brother James. Abom rhe middle of July, William Brown, sensing rhe inevirable, uansferred rhe rides on the rhree steamers in which he still had an imeresr to rhe Schuylers because "rhey would be much safer in tl1e Schuylers' hands than in his own .,, 22
Am erica's fast lines and the sharp rake of her masts are plainly evident in this photo against the backdrop of the square-rigger astern, offthe Charleston Navy Yard in 1863.
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Brown failed, or "became embarrassed ," as ir was politely stared ar that time. 23 Wirh this, his involvemem with rhe schoon er America ended. On 1 Ocrober, a gala dinner was held at rhe Astor H o use in New York ro celebrare Americasgreatvicrory. Toasrswere proposed ro Co mmodore John Cox Srevens, rhe mechanics and anisa ns who builrAmerica, and rhe crew of rhe vessel. 24 There was no memion of William H . Brown. Four monrhs lacer, on 9 January 1852, anorher dinner was held ar rhe Merropoliran Hall in hono r o f George Sreers, who was by now rhe deserved roasr of rhe rown. Four hundred of rhe ciry's mosr influenrial cirizens anended chis gala ro praise Sreers and ro again celebrare Americas vicrory. Again rhere was no memion of Brown. In an ironic rwisr, the final speaker of rhe evening was Edward Collins, who jusr rwo years before had anended rhe rriple launch ar rhe William H . Brown shipyard. He proposed a roas r in rhe memory of Roberr Fulron. 25 Collins would suffer his own financial problems in rhe years ro come, bur ar the rime, he was srill on rop. There is, of course, more to the story of William Brown and rhe Schuylers, bur chis is rhe end of the story on rheir collaborarion on rhe yachr America. Around rhe rum of rhe rwemierh cenrury, rhe lerrer signed by William Brown agreeing ro build rhe America rurned up in rhe possession of his son,Anhur Brown, who had worked for his farher during rhe period when America was builr. H es rared rharhewaswillingto donare rhe lerter ro "someone who is imeresred in rhe histo ry of rhe America. "26 Ar char rime, some of rhe Brown fa mily used rhe lerrer to argue char William H . Brown should h ave received more credir for his pan in building rhe America. This posirion was advanced by Thom as H . M acdonald of rhe Bridgeporr Yachr Club in a lecrure ar rhe Yachrsmen's C lub on Wesr Forry-Third Srreer on 3 April 1901. 27 Macdonald cited some of rhe marerial from rhe "Triple Launch" (a collecrion of comemporary newspaper acco unrs of rhe 1850 evem), and because Anhur Brow n was a resident of Fairfield and had business imeres rs in Bridgeporr, ir mighr be
SEA HISTORY 143, SUMMER 2013
supposed that Macdonald rook the side of Arthur Brown, who had died several months before in D ecember 1900. It was a nice sentiment, bur from the eviden ce, George Steers deserves the whole credit for her design and building. G ive n Wi lli am Brown's flamboyant and self-promoting nature, the challenge of the all-or-nothing proposal to bui ld America as stated in the Schuyler letter co uld well have com e from him. One co uld speculate that, from a statem ent Brown m ade a t the triple launch abo ut all his ships having a particularly sharp entry, he might h ave had so me influence on Geo rge Steers in the design of the now-famous schooner.28 0 n the face ofit, however, while he might have been tempted to be a bigger part of the America story, in reality his financial problems wo uld not have allowed him to do so. ,!,
NOTES: 1
New York Morning H erald, New York, NY,
29 January 1850. 2
The Triple Launch, manuscript located at the Darien Historical Society, Darien, C T, "Brown genealogy fi le." This abstract is most likely taken from several newspapers from the end of January 1850. 3 Ibid . 4 New York Court of Common Pleas, john Eng/is against William H Brown and William P Furniss, 19 M arch 1855. 5 Wi lliam H . Ewen, Days of the Steamboat (Mys ti c CT: Mystic Seaport Museum,
1998), 88-93. 6
John H. Morrison, History of American Steam Navigation (New York: Stephen Daye Press, 1958), 273-274. 7 John W. Griffiths, Early History of Shipbuilding in New York, The US Nautical Magazineand j ournal, Jul y 1857, Vol. Vl, No. 4 & 5, p. 438. 8 In The Triple Launch, WHB mentions his U ncle Noah. WHB was in fact the so n of Doctor Brown, brother to Adam and Noah Brown. David Brown was the son of Francis Brown, another brother ofAdam and Noah. Noah Brown had adopted David after the death of Fran cis. 9 Pacific, Independence, Sea Bird and New York. 10 R. G. D un & Company Credit Report Volumes, Vol. 366, p. 238, Baker Library Historical Collections, H arvard Business Schoo l. SEA HISTORY 143, SUMMER 20 13
The schooner built at Willam H Brown's shipyard in lower M anhattan would become one of the most famous sailing vessels in history. H er construction, from her keel to her sails, changed the way schooners and other vessels built for speed would be designed for generations to come. 11
New York Superior Court, Zachary Peck to WHB by George Schuyler on his order. vs. William Minot f r., Executor, and Mary 2 1 Ibid., Payments for America are listed in Ann Bryant, Executrix and others. This case this accounting. is detailed in New York Court Records and 22 Peck vs.Minot, testimony ofArthur Brown. 23 Briefs, Court of Appeals, 1867 Vol. 13. R. G. Dun & Company Credit Report 12 John Rousmani ere, The Low Black Schoo- Volumes, Vol. 366, p. 238, Baker Library ner, (Mystic, CT: Mystic Seapo rt Museum Historical Collections, Harvard Business Stores, 1986), 7-9. School. This is also co nfirmed in several 13 Howa rd I. C h apell e, The Histo ry of court cases, including Peck vs. Minot. American Sailing Ships, (New York: Bonanza 24 New York Times, 3 October 185 1. 25 Books, 1935), 308. New York Times, 10 January 1852. 14 26 Rousmaniere, p. 10. New York H erald, New York NY, 23 D e15 Winfield M. Thompson and Thomas W cem ber 1900; an earlier article in the New Lawson, The Lawson History ofthe America's York H erald, 9 October 1893 m entions Cup (Boston , 1902), 6-8. The authors say a meeting berween WHB and G LS. The this letter "was composed and written by information is again from Arthur Brown Mr. Sch uyler." and states the letter is in the handwriting 16 "New York, New York," R. G. Dun & of GLS. The whereabo uts of this letter are Company Credit Report Volumes, Vol. 366, today unknown, and Sea H istory welcomes p. 238, Baker Library Historical Collections, any inform ation from readers who might H arvard Business School. know more abo ut it. 17 27 Peck vs. Minot. Lecture by Thomas H. Macdonald, His18 New York Court of Common Pleas, tory and Development of the Racing Yacht # 18 5 5- 13 13 ,james H. Quimby against Cor- Forest and Stream, A Weekly journal of the nelius Vanderbilt, derails how the Schuylers Rod and Gun, New York, 20 April 1901. 28 stepped in to take the ship Independence. The Triple Launch. 19 Peck vs. Minot. 20 Peck vs. Minot, Exhib it 22Z, William H. James G. Brown manages investments in Brown in acco unt with R. & G. L. Schuyler. Providence, RI. H e is a long-time amateur On 30 August 1851 a total of $4,3 13.01 maritime historian and genealogist and reis paid out and deb ited to the account of cently became a trustee ofthe Destroyer Escort WHB for "the following bills paid fo r the H istorical Museum/USS Slater in Albany, yacht America." These bills includ e such NY H e is writing a biography of New Yo rk items as sails, water casks, towing to Screw shipbuilders Adam and Noah Brown and Dock, furniture, crockery and hardware, their nephews, David Brown, William H enchinaware, refrigerator, ship's lamps, and ry Brown, and Charles Brown. William H. knives, and one entry indicating $1,200 paid Brown is his first cousin six times removed.
33
SEA HISTORY for kids
Fast Boats his summer, San Francisco Bay will bethe site of more
Two-masted schooners were nothing new to the Brit-
than 50 races between the fastest sailboats in the
ish, but what made America different was her sleek hull and sharp bow that could cut through w ind and waves with ease and her new
world, as they compete in the 34th America's Cup . The America's Cup is not only the most prized trophy in sailing
cotton sails, cut and
competition, it is the oldest
sewn so they'd keep
international competition in
their flat shape in
any sport. It all began in
the wind and not billow and stretch out to leeward like
1850,
when a group of yachtsmen in New York accepted an invitation from the British to send a schooner to compete against
PHOTO BY GILLES MARTIN¡Rl\GET
America's Cup defender Oracle Team USA training in San Francisco with challenger Artemis, from Sweden .
them in a series of yacht races around the Isle of Wight, an island off the southern coast of England . The Americans had a new racing schooner
designed and built just for this purpose (see article on pages30 - 33) 1 and named it America . They hired a capta in and crew, who sailed the new yacht to
the British fla x sails . These and several other factors al -
tr
j'l"liii
lowed the Americans to win the 100 Guinea Cup handily. Not satisfied with defeat, the British bought the schooner America and kept her in England, while the trophy went back to the United States, and so started the international sailing competition now known as the America's Cup. !,
England in the summer
of
When the Americans' new schooner 1851 .
showed up on the coast of England, the Marquess of Anglesey, one of the orig inal members of the Royal Yacht Squadron, paid his American guests a visit . When he saw their schooner's fast-looking hull and sharply raked masts, he remarked, "If she is all right, then we are all wrong!" After the America passed the royal yacht to take over first place, Queen Victoria asked who was in second place. " Your Majesty, there is no second, " came the reply. The America's Cup finals are between just two boats, the defending champion and a cha/len ger that has already won a series of races to be al~ lowed to compete against the CU'fent Cup holder
/)n
'-lJ
SEA HISTORY 143, SUMMER 201 3
J -
Flying oday's America's Cup boats are designed and built with one purpose in mind-speed. They are made with cutting-edge technology and high-tech materials and leave no room for anything extra-no galley to feed the crew, no bunks or storage areas, or anything that would add weight or bulk to the boat. The crews do not live on board, and the boats travel to competitions on the decks of bigger ships as cargo. The boats that will compete in the 2013 America's Cup races can sail in excess of 30 knots in the right conditions, and are designed to sail even faster than the wind is blowing. The original schooner yacht America was also designed with the same purpose in mind, but she sailed across the Atlantic and housed her crew on board to do so. In August of 1851, when the America was busy beating the British yachts in England, another fast sailing ship was breaking speed records back home in the United States. Nine days after the America won its trophy in England, the clipper ship Flying Cloud dropped anchor in San Francisco, with a full cargo of merchandise and supplies and a crew of more than 100 men, just 89 days after she departed New York City. This was before the Panama Canal was built, which meant that Flying Cloud had to sail all the way around the southern tip of South
America in some of the roughest conditions in the world to get there. That was more than 16,000 miles, a trip other square-rigged ships normally made in 200 days! Flying Cloud was built in Boston by the famous naval architect Donald McKay, who designed many very fast and large clipper ships (a naval architect designs ships, just as a regular architect designs buildings). Flying Cloud was considered an "extreme clipper ship" because she carried a huge amount of sail on very tall masts, and her hull was sharp and streamlined so that she could go very fast. Like the America, the Flying Cloud was designed for speed, bur she was also built to carry cargo and people. Her crewmen weren't competing for a trophy, they were trying to make a profit. 1851 was the height of the Gold Rush, where lots of money could be made getting cargo and people to the California gold fields. At that time, California was only sparsely populated, and nearly all supplies and manufactured goods had to be shipped from the East Coast. The ships that could get there the fastest with goods to sell made the most money. Four years after Flying Cloud made her first voyage to San Francisco, she broke her own record again by thirteen hours. This record remained unbroken for more than 100 years! ,!,
Flying Cloud's first navigator was a young woman, which was extremely rare in that era. Eleanor Cressy signed on the ship as the captain's wife, but she did not sail as a mere passenger. She was a whiz at math and science and understood how a square-rigged ship sails, making her the most qualified onboard to plan the route they'd sail to take advantage of prevailing winds and ocean currents. She was very knowledgeable about weather and astronomy, too. This was long before they had things like GPS, radar, and satellites. Mariners had to navigate by taking precise measurements of the sun and stars to determine their location on the earth, especially once they sailed out ofsight of land. SEA HISTORY 143, SUMMER 2013
Animals in Sea History
by Quinton Bley
n ist Takeshi Yamada has a thing fo r horseshoe crabs. A few years ago h e visited Coney Island, New York-not to ride the rides on the boardwalk, but to observe the horsesh oe crabs on the beach. H e th en helped with an annual h orseshoe crab survey in Delaware Bay. These visits inspired a series of art wo rks rhat highl ights rhe human connection to horseshoe crabs. H e even used a pen crafted our of a h orseshoe crab tail, to mimic the tradi tional styles of Japanese artwork. Another of Yamada's creations is a series of ceremonial masks painted on horseshoe crab shells. According to Yam ada and the Ecological Research D evelopment Group, the horseshoe crab has long been thought of highly in Japan, wh ere it's called kabutogani. Early Japanese artists painted horsesh oe crabs on rice paper and wrote of th em in haiku. Yamada was inspired by a legend fro m the 1100s, which has it that, at the close of the Japan ese Civil War, people saw likenesses of warriors' helmets on the shells of th e horseshoe Takeshi Yamada displays his horseshoe crabs crawling alon g the coas tal areas of Japan. (Anoth er version crab ceremonial masks. has these to be samurai crabs, Heikea japonica.) The respect for horseshoe crabs in Japanese history may come from their impeccable design, which all owed their species to survive since the age of the dinosaurs. 1 h ey have existed unchanged as a species for some 200 million years. H orseshoe crabs belong to the phylum of arthropods, invertebrates that have jointed limbs and a body divided into differe nt sections, p rotected by an exoskeleton . H orseshoe crabs are actually more closely related to scorpions or spiders than to crustaceans. There are fo ur species of h orseshoe crabs, fou nd only in th e sh allow waters of the east coast of No rth America and along the coasts of so utheast Asia and Japan. Horsesh oe crabs breathe underwater through "book gills," which overlap like layers of pages. In additi on to its various eyes, horseshoe crabs h ave photoreceptors on their rails, or telsons, that communicate with the animal's brain to recognize night and day. They use this rail to steer and ' h elp right themselves if they've been flipp ed over. Delaware Bay is rh e most dense,ly populated area for horseshoe crabs in the world. A single female h orseshoe crab might lay tens of thousands of eggs, which sh e deposits in the sand to be fertilized by the m ales. These eggs are essential in feeding migrating birds every year, while the eggs and larvae also serve as foo d for crabs, snails, b arnacles, and worms. SEA HISTORY l43, SUMMER2013
Atlantic Horseshoe Crab ( Lirnulu s polyphenus)
Tak eshi Yamada explains that N ative Americans ate horseshoe crab and used their tails fo r spears. European colonists harves ted h o rseshoe crabs from the beaches by the thousands to fertilize their crops, and early fishermen used horseshoe crab meat as bait. O ver Gn a thob ases the years, however, all of this res ulted in frighteningly low populations of these animals. Various state and federal fishery management plans fo r h orseshoe crabs h ave been in put in place since the 1990s, but with three-quarters of a million harvested each year along the Atl antic C oast , m an agers are still watching the health of this animal carefully.
Subfrontal
Doubl e rib
Genit a l oper c ulum
Terminal membran e
Sections Pharmaceutical companies collect thousands of horseshoe crabs each year to drain some of their blood. This does not kill the animal, and they are later returned to the ocean. Their bright blue blood has the unique ability to detect contamination in pharmaceutical products, reducing the risk of infection in the people who need these types of medicine.
Pro soma
Most of the horseshoe crabs taken today are used in the medical industry, bur the live animals are ultimately returned to the ocean. The horseshoe crab does not have an immune sys tem, like a human does, to fight infection. Instead, it has compounds in its blood that resist bacteria, fun gi, and viruses. This natural chemical is used to test pharmaceuticals, m aking it safer Opisthosoma ~ fo r people to take m edication or get vaccinations without risk of in fec tion. Takeshi Yamada explains that even now in Japan, the horseshoe crab is highly respected and given official "m onument" status. 1hrough his art and his educational activities, Yamada hopes the horseshoe crab will be granted the same respect and protection in Tel son 7 the U ni ted States. For more Animals in Sea History, go to www.seahistory.org. Next issue: the largest fish on Earth. Quinton Bley is an undergraduate at the Rhode Island School ofDesign.
SEA HISTORY 143, SUMMER20 13
Hin g e
Terminal bay Photoreceptors
MARITIME HISTORY ON THE INTERNET b y Peter McCracken
Apps for Maritime History hen we rhink of rhe Inrerner, we usu- Aurumn 2011) now have apps. Fleetmon ally rh ink of web pages. Smarr phone offe rs a free A ndroid app, and is currently apps, however, play a major role in rhe updaring its iOS app. Vesseltracker.com Inrerner's presenr and fu ru re; rhe number and Shipping Explorer also offer apps. In available and rhe porrion ofi nrerner rraffic each case, rhe app provides some access; devored ro mobile applicarions grows every yo u need ro subscribe ro rhe complere daramonrh. Whi le rhere are nor yer many apps base fo r full access. of inreresr ro maririme hisro ry, iris an area One place where app srores outperworrh warching. fo rm web pages is in music, books, and orher The biggesr di ffe rence berween apps media. Books can be purchased for reading and web pages is how rhey can be used . in many forma rs, bur be wary- some are On an iPbone, yo u can only use iO S poo rly edired versions of copyright-free apps. W irh a phone running the And roid rcxrs, offered for 99 cents. On the other operaring sysrem, yo u can only use A n- end of rhe spectrum, yo u can buy an e-book droid apps. Remember, of course, rhat web on sex rants in rhe N ational M aritime pages rhemselves are viewable on any smarr M useum, for $192! O f course, given rhe phone; rhe layo ur mighr look quire di f- iTunes sro re's original foc us on music, ferent-or not work well ar all- bur rhe lots of sea m usic is available rhere, as well. subj ecr here is nor "mobile versions of Many relevant podcasts can be found, roo, exisring web pages" bur rarher applicarions such as rhe US Naval Academy's "A His[i.e. programs] builr specifically for rhe iOS rory of rhe Navy in 100 Obj ects" (free, in or Android enviro nment. Access ro apps is iTunes, and thro ugh Android podcas t anorher big difference- apps are generally managers). The US Naval Institute offers only available rh ro ugh their respecrive irs Proceedings and other publications gareways (app srores), and in some cases rhe rhrough a free app; some contenr is free, apps that appear rhere musr be approved bur subscribers can access much more for fo r lisring by rhe app srore owner. Anyone a small fee. Many direcrories ofbartleships, who has a modicum of skill and a website submari nes, and orher ships are available as can share a resource online; you can'r dis- apps, along with a wide range of weather rrib ute an iOS app, however, unless Apple tools. approves it first. More and more museums are offering To further complicate marters, some apps, as well. 1 h e NationalNaval Aviation apps are made just fo r the smarr phone M useu m in Pensacola, Florida, for insrance, version of the operating system (rhat is, offers an app/guide (iO S &Android) to its iOS or A nd roid, which are the two most museum fo r 99 cents. I'm nor sure why a common operatin g sysrems), while orhers museum wo uld charge fo r an app like rhis, are made just for rhe tablet version (i Pad, and, given the poor reviews rhis one has for example) of an operating sysrem, and received, ir may nor be worrh rhe money. still orhers operate in borh. The National Civil War Naval M useum, Providing U RLs for rhe apps them- in Columbus, Georgia, seems to have a betselves is hard because they are ava ilable ter concepr of whar an app can do and uses in many differenr places. On a compurer, irs free iOS app ro high lighr and interp ret yo u need ro select rhe proper srore: usually, irs collecrion. Alas, its Calendar and Abour the iTunes program fo r your iOS devices, Us secrions are out of dare, emphasizing hrrp://play.google.com for most Android rhe need for organizations to nor forget apps, and Amazon.com fo r Kindle Fi re abour rhese rools afrer they have been builr, apps (these are a subset of exisringAndroid whether on an app or their reg ular website. apps). You can also obrain apps directly Suggesrions fo r orher sires worrh rhrough rhe app srore program on your mentioning are welcome ar p eter@shipdevice. As a resul r, ir's besr ro simply search index.org. See http://shipindex.org for by app name in rhe srore. a free compilarion of over 140,000 ship M any of rhe ship rracking rools names from indexes to dozens of books mentioned in rhe pas r (Sea H istory 136, and journals. .t
W
38
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SEA HISTORY 143, SUMMER 201 3
Sea History Columnist-
Meet Peter McCracken eter McCracken has been writing the Maritime History on the Internet column for Sea History for the past eight years now. Each column explores a different way of using the Internet to do maritime history research, either by discussing interesting websites on a particular maritime subject, or presenting ways of applying vario us search strategies or tools to maritime history research. Peter has always had an interest in maritime history, perhaps as a result of growing up in Seattle, a city directly influenced by water and the marine environment. While he didn't spend a huge amount of time on the water as a child, he does recall any number of sailing activities: overnight sailing trips to Blake Island (in Puget Sound) and Sucia Island (in the SanJuans) while in middle school, fam ily trips to the San Juans, Whidbey Island, and others, along with many canoe and kayak trips across the region. Peter delayed graduation from college when he learned about the Williams-Mystic Program in American Maritime Studies on the campus of Mystic Seaport M useum. He persuaded his yo unger brother, Steve, to apply to the program as well, and they spent the semester together at Mystic in 1991. (Steve went on to become much more of a real sailor, eventually sailing in a number of vessels on either side of, and through, the Panama Canal.) A few years after college and a summer working back at Mystic Seaport, Peter enrolled in graduate school for a degree in library science. He spent the summer between his two years of library school as an intern at the Maine Maritime Museum library, in Bath, Maine, where the initial idea for Shipindex.org was set. To pursue a career as an academic reference librarian, Peter was advised to specialize wi th a second master's degree, and he landed at East Carolina University (ECU) in Greenville, North Carolina, to earn an MA in maritime history. He got his first professional job as a li brarian at ECU's Joyner Library, which has an extensive
P
Peter McCracken aloft on the Charles W Morgan in 1993. maritime collection ro support its graduate program in maritime studies . When a job at the University ofWashington (UW) opened up, Peter and his wife (they got married at Mystic Seaport, too!) jumped at the chance to move back to Seattle. While worki ng at the UW, Peter starred to build what wo uld become Shipindex.org-aguide ro ships mentioned in books. Using the library's extensive research collection, Peter scanned the indexes ro these books and put the contents into a database that one could search by ship name. Shipindex rook a hiatus when Peter, his two brothers, and a high school friend started a company that helps libraries manage electronic resources, called Serials Solu tions. When it was rime to move on from Serials Solutions, Peter decided ro go back to what really matters to him, and combine the work he'd done in maritime history, libraries, and business, to create rhe Shipindex.org database. The database tells yo u what books, websites, databases, journals, CD-RO Ms, and more, mention the ships people want to know more abo ut. Abo ut 140,000 citations are completely available for free, and the remaining content is in a premium database that contains over 2 1/ 2 million citations, and is always growing. He manages the service today from his home in Ithaca, New York. While Shipindex hasn't seen the extensive commercial success that Serials Solutions experienced, it does relate much more closely to Peter's areas of interest. The goal of Shipindex today is to simplify maritime history research, and to rhar extent Peter is exploring many different ways of making maritime history content more easily discovered, shared, and celebrated. "I feel very strongly about the importance of maritime history in local, regional, national, and world history, and in many different disciplines. It's like the ultimate interdisciplinary study," he says. "Think of emigration, for instance. In the US, apart from a few people who walked here thousands of years ago, and immigrants of today who fly here, essentially everyone came by sea. Huge amounts of the goods we buy and sell are transported by sea. I firmly believe that the marine environment has an enormous impact on our lives, bur how we study it is not easy. I'd love to make it simpler for folks ro do that research, and better understand its impact on our li ves." .t
Last year, Peter was recognized by the University of North Carolina School ofInformation & Library Science as their Distinguished Alumnus for 2012 in an awards ceremony at his alma mater.
SEA HISTORY 143, SUMMER 2013
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OsHIP NOTES, SEAPORT & MUSEUM NEWS In April, the National Coast Guard Museum Association (NCGMA) announced plans to build a 54,300-sq.-ft. museum on the New London, Connecticut, waterfront, including docks and a pier capable of berthing the 295ft. USCGC Eagle. New Lo ndon is hom e to the US C oast Guard Academy and is homeport to the Academ y's training ship, the barque Eagle. Th e proposed sire is located on ciry-owned properry down town, adjace nt ro the train station and ferry terminal. The ann ouncement was made by James ]. Coleman Jr. , chairman of the N C GMA boa rd , and included supportive remarks by U SCG C ommandant Admiral Robert J . Papp, Jr., C onnecticut Governor D an M all oy, and N ew London Mayor Darryl Justin Fi ni zio. The m useum is expected to cost $80 m illio n and will be paid for by a combination of federal fundin g and private donations. Gov. Malloy p ledged $20 million in stare funds ro build a foo tbridge across the railroad tracks to allow access to the visiting public, and the owners of the adjacent Cross Sound Ferry Terminal pl an to renovate the terminal as part of the overall plan for the downtown area. NCGMA plans to break ground in th e spring of 20 14 . (USCG Fdn ., 394 Taugwo nk Rd., Stonington , CT 06378; Ph. 860 5350786; www. coastguardfo undation .org)
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Plimoth Plantation in Massachusetts has put out an appeal for white oak lumber to help repair M ayflower II, the full-scale reproduction of the M ayflower that sailed to Plymouth in 1620. Mayflower II is currently undergoin g extensive repairs in dry dock at the Fairhave n Shipyard in Massachusetts and needs new frames and planks. These repairs are critical to the iconic ship's return to her berth on the Plymouth , MA, waterfront, where she is a pop ular living history exhibit of Plimoth Plantation . The 56-year-old wooden sailing vessel requires very specifi c wood to complete her repairs. "This wood doesn't come from rypical commercial sources," said Peter Arenstam, th e ship's captain and manage r of Plim oth Plantation's M aritim e A rtisans program. "We are looking for ve ry specifi c trees that need to be the right age, size and even have the proper bend." The oak trees being sought are approximately 100 feet tall, more than fo ur feet in d iameter, and clear of any knots. The final lumber for the planks will meas ure 24 in ches by 30 feet and 3. 5 inches thi ck. T11 e frame stock will measure 24 in ches by 10 fee t and 8 inches thick. Reusing whi te oak trees that fe ll as a resul t of this past winter's storms would be ideal fo r this proj ect. The m useum emphas izes that the sourcing of wood materi als for
Mayflower II must be carried out in an enviro nmentally responsible manner and that they plan on implementing a tree planting program to replace any trees that may be taken down to comp lete the ship's repairs. T11e current shipyard wo rk
is part of a seven-year, $2- mi ll io n restoration project for th e historic vessel. Indi viduals who can help with this effort should contact the museum by email at whiteoak@plimoth .org or by calli ng Sarah M acdo nald at 508-746-1622, ext. 8206. Plimorh Plantation is a living history museum dedicated to telli ng the histo ry of the Plymouth Colony from the perspective of both the Pilgri ms and the native Wampanoag. U pdates on the restorati on can b e fo und on lin e at www.pli moth.org/SOS. You can view a video highlighting the restoratio n of the Mayflower II at www.boa tinglocal. com /news/ repairing-th e-m ayflowe r-ii.html. (Plimou th Plantatio n, 137 Warren Ave, POB 1620, Plymo u th, MA 023 62; Ph. 508 746-1622; www.plimoth .o rg) The Chesapeake Bay M aritime Museum (CBMM) in St. Michaels, MD, is offering free general admission to all activeduty military personnel and their families this M emorial Day through Labor D ay. The prom otio n is part of C BMM's affili ation w ith Blu e Star Museums-a partnership with th e National Endowment for th e A rcs (N EA), Blue Star Families, the Department of D efense, and more than 1,800 museums across the United Sta tes. Open daily during the summ er, C BMM co mprises twelve exhibit bui ldings and numerous historic wa tercraft o n more than 18 acres along the Mi les River. Hi ghlights of a visit include climbing the 1879 H ooper Strait Lightho use a nd interacting with shipSEA HISTORY 143 , SUMMER 20 13
Battle of Lake Erie Bicentennial at Put-In-Bay
· Redpath Waterfront Festival Toronto: June 20 - 23 ·TALL SH IPS• Hamilton 2013: June 28 - 30 ·St. Catharines 1812 TALL SHIPS• Visit: Port Dalhousie, Ontario - June 29 - 30
• Port of Cleveland 2013 Tall Ships• Festival: July 4- 7 ·Tall Ship• Celebration: Bay City, Ml: July 12 - 14 · Sail s on the St. Marys, Sault Ste. Marie: July 19 - 21
·Tall Ships• Duluth 2013: July 26 - 28 ·Tall Ships• Chicago 2013: August 7 - 11 · Baylake Bank Tall Ship" Festival Green Bay, WI: August 16 - 18 ·TALL SHIPS" 1812 Georgian Bay
Collingwood, Wasaga Beach/Nancy Island, Owen Sound: August 16 - 18 Penetanguishene, Midland, Discovery Harbour: August 24 - 25 · Southwestern Ontario: Sails to See
Windsor, Amherstburg, Kingsville, Pelee Island: August 30- September 2 • Battle of Lake Erie Bicentennial: September 2 ·Tall Ships• Erie 2013: September 6 - 8
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wrights at work building authentic, wooden Chesapeake boats and restoring the historic skipjack Rosie Parks. Visitors can also take a river cruise on the buyboat Mister Jim. To receive free admission, active-duty military personnel and their families need to show a military ID upon entry to CBMM. (2 13 N . Talbot Sr., Sr. Michaels, MD 2 1663; Ph. 4 10 745-2916; www.cbmm.org) The Hong Kong M aritime Museum (HKMM) reopen ed in February in a new facility on Pier 8 in th e Central district, on the Victoria Harbor waterfront. The new building provides more than five times the space and houses rwo times the amo unt of exhibits than the previous quarters allowed. Developmenr of rhe museum was made
possible through a partnership between the Hong Kong government and companies and individuals in the shipping industry. In addirion co paying for converting the pier and preparing the physical structure, more than $11 million in priva te donations was spent on acquiring new artifacts and exhibit items, along with establishing an endowment. Exhibits, including more than fifty interactive couch screens, include text in both Chinese and English. (HKMM, Central Ferry Pier No. 8, Hong Kong; www.hkmaritimemuseum. org) Columbia Pictures recently announced an October release date for Captain Phillips, the Hollywood fil m
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Captain Phi llips, in theaters this October. based on t h e book, A Captain's Duty: Somali Pirates, Navy SEALS, and Dangerous Days at Sea by Richard P hillips and Stephan Talty. Captain Richard Phillips and his crew aboard the 14,000-ton container ship Maersk Alabama were seized by Somali pirates in
(left) The Chinese Junk Keying, c.1847 (gouache on buff paper) at the newly reopened Hong Kong Maritime Museum. 1he Keying left Ho ng Kong in December 1846 and dropped anchor in New York the following July, where she remained for several months as a popular tourist attraction before continuing on to Boston in November 1847 and then to England, arriving there in March 1848.
SEA HISTORY 143, SUMMER 2013
April of 2009, and the unfo lding events and dramatic rescue of the captain and crew by the US Navy were followed in real time by a wo rldwide audience. Academy award-winning actor Tom Hanks plays the role of Captain Phillips, Paul Greengrass (known for t he Jason Bourne action movies) directed, and the screenplay was adapted by screenwriter Billy Ray. (Moviegoers can catch the film's opening in the USA on 11 O ctober 2013. You can view the trailer online on Yo uT ube.com, IMDb.com, and many other websites that post movie trailers.) Marine Art of Yesterday and Today, an exhibition of more than 100 paintings, sculptures, ship models, and scrimshaw, is now on display at the J. Russell Jinishian Gallery in Fairfield, CT, through September. The gallery exhibits works by today's leading m arine ar tists, including many fam iliar to Sea History's readers: A. D. Blake, Christopher Blossom, James Butterworth, Frederic Cozzens, Roy Cross, Donald D emers, Paul Garnett, William Gilkerson, Antonio Jacobsen, Russ Kramer, Ian Marshall, John Mecray, Patrick O 'Brien, Marek Sarba, John Stobart, and T im Thompson, among others. (1899 Bronson Road, Fairfield, CT, Ph. 203 259-8753; www.jrusselljinishiangallery.com) . . . Fire Fighter, the 1938 fireboat that served the New York City Fire Department for more than seven decades before being decommissioned in 2010, has recently found a new home in Greenport, NY, where she is open to the public as a fully operational museum and memorial. The vessel made the trip from Brooklyn to G reenport in early February under her own power. H er crew for the transit was made up of both for mer and ac tive FDNY Marine U nit firefighters and volunteers, under the ve teran command of a retired FDNY pilot. Heading up the group that took ownership of the fireboat this winter is C harlie Ritchie. The 134-ft. Fire Fighter is a National Historic Landmark, and the new museum's volunteer personnel are worki ng hard to restore h er, while keeping her open on weekends to the public. They will also be developing programs that balance preserving the vessel itself, honoring the memory of her service and those who served in her, and allow for
SEA HISTORY 143, SUMMER 20 13
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OUR 2013 6- HOUR DAY CRUISES from Baltimore, Maryland June 1, September 7 and October 5 Cost for each guest - $140. Inquire about Group Discounts. Restrictions & penalties apply to cancellations. The ticket order form is available on our web site, liberty-sh ip.com. Mail ti cket orders to P.O. Box 25846, Highland town Station, Baltimore, MD 21224-0546. Phone Orders: (410) 558-0164 •Fax Orders (410) 558-1737
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Fire Fighter
non-essential space ro be used for ex hibits and displays . Th e M a ritime Adventure Program (M A P) is being developed ro invol ve teens in the preserva tion and operatio ns of the boa t, plus the opportunity ro lea rn small boat skills a nd handlin g. Volunteers are welcome, no m atter what your bac kground is. C ontac t Mr. Ritchie at fireboatfirefi ghtermu seum@gm ail .com. (Fireboat Fire Fighter Museum, 115 Front Street at the Mitchell Park M arina, Greenport, NY; www. fireboatfirefighter. org) Dr. William S. Dudley, NMHS Trustee and the former Director of Naval History with the Naval
SOUTHPORT SILVER
Historical Center (now known as the Naval History and Heritage Command) has announced t h e release of his new book, The Naval War of 1812: "America's Second War of Independence." Publi shed by 1l1e D o nning C ompany Publishers of Virginia Beach , Dr. Dud ley's new book is both a hi sror y of the majo r evem s of rhe naval wa r and a ca talog of the impressive new exhibit on display at the U S Nava l Academy's M a han H all until N ovember 201 3. The exhibit combines the Academy's exrraordi nary trove of War of 1812 art a nd arti fac ts w ith W illiam I. Koch 's personal
Tfie Orig ina{ Jvl on fiegan Js{ana Jvlai{6oat 'Exyerien ce .:A..6oara t he Jfist oric Lau ra 'B.
co llecti o n of art a nd a rtifacts pertainin g ro the career of Cap ta in Ja mes Lawrence (whom Koch claims as an ances ror) . Dr. ]. Scott H a rmo n, fo rmer direc ror of th e Naval Academy M useum , collaborated as cu raro r of the exhibit. The book is replete w ith beautifully reproduced images of portraits, wea po ns, documents, maps, t rack cha rts, and ship models from the combined collect io ns. (The book ca n be purch ased fo r $95 at the Naval Academy gift sh op in the US N A Visitors' Center in A nnapolis, M D , o r online at: www. navyonline.com . IS BN 978- 1-57864-8023; U S Naval Academy Museum, 11 8 Maryla nd Ave., Annapoli s, MD 21402; Ph . 410 293 -2108; www. usna.edu /mu seum /) The National Park Service has announced that Liberty Island, home to the Statue of Liberty in New York Harbor, will re-open on the Fourth of July, after having been closed to the public since Hurricane Sandy hit New York last October. Lady Liberty hersel f ca m e th ro ugh th e hurrica ne in good sh ape, but 75 percent of the la nd sur ro undin g th e base of th e statu e was underwater during the superstorm. Nearby Ellis Isla nd is still closed and the
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Ellis Island is a 27.5-acre island in Upper New York Bay and is a National Mon ument, along with the Statue of Liberty. N PS has no r es tabli shed a date when those grounds a nd the museum will reopen . 1l1e collection inside the mu seum had minimal d a m age, but the infras tructure su ffere d sig nifica nt da mage, includin g d am age ro mecha nica l sys tems and the fire supp ression sys tem. C lea n-up and repairs a re o n go in g o n both sires, bu r you can still v isit on lin e ro conduct research or lea rn m o re about these impo rta nt sites. (www. nps.gov/s tli /; ww w. nps.gov/eli s/; w w w.ellisisland.org)
315-342-0480
(continued on page 46)
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SEA HISTORY 143 , SUMMER 2013
10th Maritime Heritage Conference Save the Date! Organizers of the 10th Maritime Heritage Conference recently announ ced the date and venue for the triennial event: 17-2 1 September 2014 in Norfolk, VA. Nauticus, the science and technology center and hom e to the Battleship Wisconsin and the H ampton Roads Naval Museum, is the principal host. Co nference sessions and presem ations will be held in the Norfolk Waterside Marriott. Naval Historical Foundation program director Dr. David Winkler will serve as the program chairman-a call for papers announcement will go out in the coming months. The Maritime Heritage Co nference is hosted by multiple organizations and institutions associated with maritim e heritage and covers a wide ran ge of topics, wit h the overall goal of seekin g to reawaken the general co nsciousness of what the maritime world has meant (and means) to all of us. Museums, universities, government agencies, and non-profit historical and heritage societies large and small send their leaders and staff members to the co nference to
share with-and learn from-one another. Networking opportunities abound. The last tim e the co nference was held in Norfolk, more than 500 people attended. At past co nferences , sessions covered the fo llowing: international trade, oceanic immi gratio ns, m aritime law, shipbui lding, small craft history and preservation, li ghthouses and lifesaving stations, whaling, underwater archaeology, historic ships and prese rvation , sailors' lives at sea and as ho re, African-Am erican maritime history, maritime museums and organizations, mercantile & naval ports, naval hi sto ry, sea literature, native maritime cultures, marin e arr and sea music, maritim e education, sail training and tall ships, M arine Sanctuaries and Protected Areas, and other topics related to global maritime heritage. The co nference them e, keynote speakers, and other details will be forthcoming. Pl ease save the date and keep yo ur eye our for ways yo u can participate. Check the NMHS webs ite at www.seahisrory.org fo r details as they em erge in the coming months. J,
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(continued from page 44)
The Slaggie Family Foundation of Winona, Minnesota, announced in early May that it is giving $1.1 million to the Minnesota Marine Art Museum (MMAM) for a gallery expansion. The expansion plan wi ll add abour 2,500 square feer of exhibition space for rhe museum's growing collecrio ns. O nce complete, MMAM plans ro reinstall many of its most prized masrerpieces from rheir Impress ionist and European collecrions in rhe new gallery, wirh more space and design features char will provide an atmosphere for groups and individuals to be able to experience rhese works in a more inspirational and appropriate way. Sreve Slaggie, president of the Slaggie Fami ly Foundation, scared thar rhe foundar ion seeks to "further educariona l excellence at an affordable price ro rhe people, nor only in the classroom, bur in ocher endeavors, including cultural, civic, and artistic initiarives." The Minnesota Marine Art Museum opened in July of20 06 in Winona, MN, and was featured in Sea History 118. (800 Riverview Dr., Winona, MN 55987; Ph . 507 474-6626; www.minnesotamarineart. org) The Maritime Museum of San Diego just opened a temporary exhibition of forty paintings by artist Joe Gleason (1881-1959), curated by Marcus De Chevrieux. The exhibit fea-
A CARELESS WORD-A NEEDLESS SINKING by Cape. Arrhur R. Moore. Documented account of catastrophic losses suffered by American Merchant Marine and Armed Guard during WWII. 720 pp, lists crew members and ships, profusely illusrrared. Eighth printing sponsored by American Merchant Marine Vererans. E-mail: gemurphy@verizon.ner. NEXT VOYAGE WILL BE DIFFERENT by Cape. Thomas E. Henry. Accounts from my 37 years at sea. Available rhrough Amazon.com and BarnesandNoble.com. Also CRACKING HITLER'S ATLANTIC WALL. Call (772) 287-5603 EST or Arcome@ao l. com for signed copies.
IT DIDN'T HAPPEN ON MYWATCH and SCUTTLEBUTT by George E. Murphy. Memoirs of forty-three years wirh Uni red Scares Lines aboard cargo and passenger ships. Anecdotes of caprains, chief engineers, crew members and rhe company office. Visit us on our websire: www.gemurphy.com; e-mail : gemurphy@verizon.ner.
Advertise in Sea H istory! • Call 914 737-7878, ext. 235, or e-mail: advertising@seahiscory.org. 46
Homeward Bounder by Joe Gleason tures paintings on loan from the Kelton Coll ecrion and from rhe artist's family, and includes personal artifacrs from the Gleason fam ily to give visirors more of rhe story behind this multi-ralented man. A sixth-generation Californian, Joe Duncan G leason was a rrue renaissance man. Equally adepr ar landscapes and SEAHISTORY 143, SUMMER2013
portraits, he is best known for his marine and h arbor scenes, but G leason was also a philanthropist, historian, author, musician, and wo rld-class gymnast. He won the international championship on the Roman Flying Rings eleven times. He worked as a production design artist for MGM and Warner Brothers studios , helping to create such seafaring classics as Yankee Clipper (1926) and Captain Blood (1935). The exhibit opened on 24 May and will run through January 2014. (1492 Nort h Harbor Drive San Diego, CA 92101; Ph. 619 234-9153 ; www.sdmaritime.org) The Flagship Niagara League has instituted the Arthur M. Kimberly Scholarship for people wishing to sail aboard the Brig
amount awarded is at the discretion of the Flagship Niagara League and Niagara's captain. (Subm it inquiries, applications, and essays to: Marine Operations Coordinator, Flagship Niagara League, Inc., 150 East Front Street, Suite 100, Erie, PA 16507 or by emai l to sail@Bagshipniagara.org, in the subject line, type the word: "Scholarship"; www.Bagshipniagara.org. Yo u can read about Captain and Mrs. Kimberly and their brigantine Romance in two back-to-back articles in Sea H istory 123 and 124 or on the NM HS website at www.seahistory.org/ by-special-request/.) . . . Tall ships are coming to the Great Lakes this summer as part of the annual Tall Ships Challenge, organized by Tall Ships America. Based in Newport, RI, Tall Ships America (formerly known as the American Sail Training Association) has organized more than 25 sailing ships to visit 22 ports along the Great Lakes, on both the US and Canadian shores. The ships and port cities will be commemorating the military events of the War of
Great Lakes Tall Ships Challenge Niagara as a trainee or apprentice. Each year for the next three years, ten scholarships valued at $1,000 each and ten partial scholarships valued at $500 each are avai lable for applicants ages 16 and older who wish to participate in the Niagara sailing program. Normal tuition for this 3-week live-aboard program is $1,500 and involves participating as a member of the ship's crew. The scholarsh ip is named in honor of Captain Arthur M. Kimberly, who was Niagara 's former sailmaker and a good friend and supporter of both NMHS and the Flagship Niagara League. Scholars hip applicants are required to submit an essay describing why they feel they sho uld receive the scholars hip. Details on word count and other guidelines are avail able online (website listed below). Scholarships will be awarded on a rolling basis as applications are received, and preference will be given to those who can make at least a three-week commitment to the trainee program. Selection of awardees and SEA HISTORY 143, SUMMER 2013
1812, with events, tours, and programs designed to educate the public abo ut the maritime hi story of the War of 1812 in the region and about maritime traditions and sail training. The tall ships wi ll compete in five races in between port visits, where they will be open for to urs to the public. Port citi es in the US include: C leveland, OH; Bay C ity, MI; Duluth,
MN; C hi cago, IL; Green Bay, WI; and Erie, PA. Canadian ports in Ontario include: Brockville, Toronto, Hamilton, St. Catharines, Sault Ste Marie, and five pores in Southern Georgian Bay. (Refer to the ad on page 41 or visit Tall Ships America on line at www.sailtrai ning.org. Each port city has its own website and links to these can be found on the Tall Ships America website.) . . . The Texas Parks and Wildlife Department has entered into a construction contract with Taylor Marine Construction, Inc. (TMC) to execute $17.S million worth of critical structural repairs to
Battleship Texas
the Battleship Texas, in LaPorte, TX, as part of the San Jacinto Battleground State Historic Site. TMC, based out of Beaufort, NC, was the contractor that made hull repairs to the Battleship North Carolina in 2011. The repairs wi ll concentrate on two areas of the ship, the engine rooms and the tank D-12, a trimming tank at the extreme after end of the ship, below the steering room. The steel frames beneath the engine room that bear the weight of the ship's massive engines are in bad condition and need significant repairs. This will require that the weight of the engines be transferred to other structural components while the work is being done. TMC will be doing the work at the bat tleship's current site, and certa in sections of the ship will still be open to visitors. A special website has been set up at www.dryberthtexas.com and wi ll be updated monthly w ith notes and photos on the resto ration work. Additionally, the ship has a Facebook page and updates and commentary will be posted there as wel l. In 1948, Battleship Texas became the nation's first permanent battleship memorial museum, and she was secured 47
in a slip off the Houston Ship Channel adjacent to the San Jacinto Battleground State H istoric Site. A ve tera n of both world wa rs, the Texas is the only rem aining dreadnou ght. (Battleship Texas State Historic Sire, 3523 I ndependence Parkway South LaPorte, TX 77571 ; Ph . 281 479-243 1; ww w.tpwd. state.tx.us/ state-parks/ batdeship-texas) The United States Postal Service is issuing five n ew New England lighthouse st a mps on 13 July w ith special dedication ceremonies taking place a t o r n ear all five locations. The New England C oas tal Lightho uses Forever stamps celebrate Portland H ead (Cape Elizabeth, M aine); Portsmouth H arbor (New Cas tle, New H a mpshire) ; Point J udith, (Narraga nsett, R hode Island); New London (New London , C on necticut); and Boston H a rbor (Boston, Massach usetts). Howa rd Koslow designed the new stamps. In addition to many other sta mp p rojects, Koslow has produced the art for the USPS lightho uses series: t he fi ve li ghthouses in the 1990 stamp booklet and stamps with the im ages of lighthouses in the Great Lakes (1995), the South eas t (2003), the Pacific (2007), a nd the G ulf Coast (2 009). (You ca n pu rch ase these stamps th is summer at your local post office or by orderin g them online at www. usps.com .) In April, the UNESCO Slave Route Proj ect and the Harriet Tubma n Institute announced the release of a new title in the Harriet Tubma n Series on the
MAINE MARITIME MUSEUM
• Explore the only intact histori c U.S. shipyard for large woode n ships • See life- size sc ulpture of the world 's largest wooden sai ling vessel • To ur Bath Iron Wo rks to see the Navy's new high-tech destroyer Zumwalt DDG -1000 being bui lt (R eservatio ns required; available online) • Take a lightho use cru ise on the Kennebec Ri ver • Go aboard and below deck on a fis hing schooner (July to October) Spec ial 201 3 Exhi bits: That Flaunting Rag! Maine's Maritime War Against the Confederacy Beyond the Breakers: Lighthouses, Life-Saving, and the U.S. Coast Guard
/t 1¢(
Op• • da ily 9:30 ,. 5
243 Washington Street· Bath, Maine • 207-443-1316 • www.MaineMaritimeMuseum.org
48
A frican Diaspora, The Transatlantic Sla ve Trade and Sla very: N ew D irection s in Teach ing and L earning. Edited by Paul E . Lovejoy and Benj amin Bowser, the book is an anthology of papers from a 2010 international wo rkshop organized by the U N ESCO Slave Route Project. The Slave Ro ute Proj ect was launched in 1999 w ith the goal of safe g uarding and improving access to o riginal documents related to slavery and the slave trade. It aims to create a searchable database of slave trade archives and en gage in digitization of prim ary documents. Organ izers of a 2nd workshop p lan ned for 25- 26 October are inviting proposals for the two-day event th at will examine historical and contemporary ransoming practices in A fri ca , Europe, and Asia. Selected papers wi ll be published in a special issue of the journal, Af rican Economic H istory, a nd as an edited volum e to be published in the H a rr iet Tubma n Series on the Afri ca n D iaspora, A fri ca W orl d Press. For purposes of the workshop, "ransoming" is defin ed as the m ak ing of paym ents fo r the re turn of a captive or hostage . Ra nsom ing is differentiated from redemption in th at whereas a ransomed captive returns home, a redeem ed slave usually remains in h is/her former owner's society in a subservient position . The purpose of the workshop is to promote dialogue across regio nal and disciplinary divides between scholars workin g on different aspects of ransom ing. (The worksh op will take place at York University in Toronto, O N. For more information , co ntac t Jennifer Lofkrantz at lofkrantz@gen eseo. ed u or O latunji Ojo at ooj o@brocku.ca.) .. . The 12th International Sailing Summit is b eing held 18-20 August in San Francisco, during the r unning of the 3 4th Am erica's C up. Since its inception at the '99 World C h ampionships in Geelong, t he ISS h as become an important n etworki ng event for the sailing industry. The event brings leaders in the sport of sailing together w ith ma ri ne industry professionals to exchange ideas and close the loop between suppliers and co nsumers. (The 201 3 ISS w ill take p lace at the St. Francis Yach t Club, 99 Yach t Rd ., Sa n Francisco, CA 94 123; www. sailamerica .com) The 92-yea r-old champion racing yach t Bernida recently found a new home at the Michiga n M aritime Museum and w ill b e availa ble for d ay sails and charters. Th e recently restored Bernida was donated by A l Declercq after he steered the boat to victory in the 2012 Bayview-Mackinac Race, which the Bernida won back in 1925 for t he in augural race a nd again two years later in 1927. The museum's orher vessels incl ude the to psail sloop Friends Good Will and th e m otor launch Lindy Lou. (MMM , 260 D yckman Avenue, South H aven, MI 49 090 ; www.m ich ignmaririm emu seum. o rg ) .1 SEA HISTORY 143 , SUMMER 20 13
CALENDAR FESTIVALS, EvENTS, LECTURES, ETC. •26th Annual Antique and Classic Boat Festival, 14-16 June at th e C hesapeake Bay Maritime M useum. (2 13 N. Talbot St., St. M ichaels, M D 21663; Ph. 4 10 745-2916; www.cbm m.org) •20th Annual Cape Cod Maritime Days, thro ugh 2 1 June. A month -long celebration of Cape Cod's maritime heri tage at venues all across the cape. (See www.capecodchamber.org/ capecod mari timedays fo r details on events, locations, and dates). •22nd Annual WoodenBoat Show at Mystic Seaport, 28-3 0 June. (M SM , 75 Greenmanville Ave., Mys tic, CT 063 55; www.thewoodenboatshow.com / •13th Thunder Bay Maritime Festival, 4 July at the G reat Lakes Maritime H eritage Center in Alpena, MI. (www.thunderbay. noaa.gov) •Wooden Canoe Heritage Association Annual Assembly, 9-14 July at Paul Smiths College in the Ad iro ndack Park, NY. (W H CA office, Ph. 60 3 323-8992; www.wcha.o rg/annual-assembly/) •International Yacht Restoration School Boatbuilding and Restoration Open House, 15 July at the Newp o rt Campus. (449 Thames St. Newport, RI 02 840; Ph. 401 848-5777; www. iyrs.edu) •Maritime Heritage Festival, 26-28 July in Old Town St. Helens, O R. (www.acbs. org/ calendar/index. php ?eID =43 2) •Salem Maritime Festival, 3 August in Salem, MA. (www. nps.gov/sam a/ planyo ur visit/ mari timefestival.htm) •Lake Champlain Maritime Festival, 16-18 August at the Waterfront Park in Burlington, VT. (www.lcmfes tival. com) •34th Annual Museum ofYachting Classic Yacht Regatta, 30 Aug ust- 1 September at Fo rt Adams State Park in Newpo rt, Rl. (Museum of Yachting, Ph . 401 847101 8; www.moy.o rg •Greenport Maritime Festival, 20-22 September in Green port, NY. (www.eas t endseaport.org/Maritime.h tm ) •Portsmouth Maritime Folk Festival, 28-29 September in Portsm outh, N H . (www. newen glandfo lkn erwo rk. org/ pm ff/) •38th Annual Meeting and International Boat Show of the Antique and Classic Boat Society, 17-23 September in Coeur d'Alene, ID. (www.acbs.org)
SEA HISTORY 143 , SUMMER 2013
•Tall Ships Challenge, Great Lakes 2013 , 14 June-8 September in ports throughout the Great Lakes, both USA and Canada. (See ad on page 4 1 fo r details or visit the Tall Ships America website at www.sailtraining.org) •Festival of Sail, 30 August-2 September in San Diego, CA. H osted by the Maritime M useum of San Diego. (1492 No rth H arbor Dr., San Diego, CA 92 101 ; www. sdmari time.org/ festival-of-sail/) ExHIBITS
•Making W'aves-Maritime Ventures on Cape Cod, through 21 June; also The Art ofthe Catboat, through 6 July at the Cape Cod Maritime Museum. (135 South St., H yannis, MA 0260 l ; Ph. 508 775- 1723; www.capecodmaritimemuseum.o rg) •American Society of Marine Artists 15th National Exhibition at the Coos An Museum in Coos Bay, OR, until 17 June; then at the Minnesota M useum of M arine Art in W inona, M N, 4 June-28 July201 3. (ASMA, www.am ericansocietyofm arinean ists.com) •That Flaunting Rag! Maine's Maritime War Against the Confederacy, through 1 D ecember 201 3 at the Maine Maritime Museum . (243 Washington Street, Bath M E 0453 0; www.mainem aritimemuseum.org) •Abandon Ship: Stories of Survival at The M ariners' Museum. (100 M useum Dr., Newport News, VA 23606; Ph . 757 596-2222; www.marinersmuseum.org) •Korean Turtle Boat, new exhibit at the C hannel Island Maritime M useum . (3900 Bluefin Circle, O xnard CA 93035; Ph. 805 984-6260; http ://www.vcmm.org) •Disasters on the Delaware: Rescues on the River, through 201 3 at the Independence Seaport Museum (Penn's Landing, Philadelphia, PA; Ph. 2 15 4 13-8655; www. phillyseapo rt. o rg) •Push and Pull: Life on Chesapeake Tugboats, through 201 4; also Navigating Freedom: The W'ar of 1812 on the Chesapeake at the C hesapeake Bay Maritime M useum. See article on pp. 10-13. (2 13 N. Talbot St., St. M ichaels, MD 21663; Ph . 4 10 745-29 16; www.cbmm.org) •Treasures of Sailors' Snug Harbor at the Noble Maritime Collection in Staten
Island, now th ro ugh 201 5; also, Tides of JOO Years thro ugh 201 4. (1000 Richm ond Terrace, Building D , Staten Island, NY 10301 ; Ph. 718 447-6490, www. noble maritime.org) •Impressionists on the W'ater, thro ugh 13 O ctober at the Fine Arts M useum of San Francisco, Legion of H o no r building in Lincoln Park, 34th Ave nue and Clem ent Street, San Francisco, CA 94 12 1; Ph . 4 15 75 0-3600 ; www.legionofh onor.org) •The Art ofthe Ship Model, now thro ugh 23 February 201 4 at the New Bedfo rd W haling M useum; also Following the Panther: Arctic Photographs of Rena Bass Forman. (1 8 Johnny Cake Hill, New Bedford, MA 02740; Ph. 508 997-0046; www.whalingmuseum.org) •Tugboats: The Art of Dave Boone, through 4 August at the Independence Seaport Museum in Philadelphia; also Tides of Freedom: African Presence on the Delaware River, now through 201 5. (2 11 South C olumbus Blvd. & Walnut Street, Philadelphia, PA 19 106; Ph. 2 15 4 13-8655 ; www. phillyseaport.org) CONFERENCES AND SYMPOSIUMS •Second Annual Northeast and Atlantic Canada Environmental Forum, 28 September 201 3. A one-day academic workshop at the University of Maine in O ro no. The CALL FOR PAPERS deadline is 2 1 June. (D eta;ls online at www. nacehfo rg) •World History Association 22nd Annual Conference, 26-29 June at N orth H ennepin Communi ty College in Minneapolis. (www. thewha.o rg) •47th Conference on Historical and Underwater Archaeology, 7- 12 January 201 4, Society fo r Historical Archaeology, in Q uebec C ity, Canada. 1h e CALL FOR PAPERS deadline is 10 July. (www. sha201 4 .com) •2013 McMullen Naval History Symposium, 19-20 September at the US Naval Academy, Annapolis, MD. (www. usna. edu /History/Sympos ium ) •Big Stuff Conference 2013, triennial international meeting focused on conserving our large technology heritage, 25-27 September 20 13 in O ttawa, Canada. (www. sciencetech . tech nom uses .ca/ engli sh/what son/ big_stuff_co nference.cfm )
49
Great Reads from Sea History Press ... A Dream of Tall Ships A Dream of
Tall Ships ,. P•ler & Norma Slmtfard.j!l~n
How New Yorkers came together to save the city's sailing-ship waterfront
by Peter and Norma Stanford with an Introduction by John Stobart, RA This lively account of a great urban adventure begins in the 1960s with two New Yorkers who were committed to creating a maritime museum in Manhattan's old sailing ship waterfront-the South Street Seaport Museum. Entranced by the old brick buildings of the Fulton Fish Market neighborhood and aware of the rush of new office-building construction in Lower Manhattan, they moved to save the old buildings as an historic district, and breathe new life into New York's old Street of Ships.
The idea of recreating the old sailing-ship waterfront inspired young and old, rich and poor, Wall Streeters and blue-collar workers, seamen, firemen, policemen and teachers to work together to found a museum showcasing the ships that built the port, which built the city, which built the nation.
Hardcover, 576 pages, 24 pages of photos and illustrations • $25.00 + $6.95 s/h in US; call for international rates
Our Flag Was Still There: The Sea History Press Guide to the Wllr of1812-Its History and Bicentennial Commemorations Maritime historian and award-winning author William H. White guide's readers through the highlights of both the land campaigns and the sea battles and answer the questions: "What really happened?" and "Why does it matter?" Our Flag Wtis Still There also serves as a useful guidebook to the ongoing bicentennial celebrations across the country continuing through 2015.
Softcover, illustrated • $15.00 + $4.00 s/h in US; call for international rates
The Skipper & the Eagle
The Skipper
by Captain Gordon McGowan,
&the.Eagle
USCG (Ret.) with an Introduction by Admiral Robert]. Papp, Jr., Commandant, US Coast Guard
I
In the year 1946, amid the post-war confusion, Commander Gordon McGowan, US Coast Guard, found himself the master of a three-masted barque, a battered prize of war. With her carry-over crew of German seamen and neophyte Coast Guard personnel, he trasformed her into a well-found Coast Guard training ship able to make a transAtlantic voyage under sail.
Hardcover, 255 pages, 36 illustrations• $20.00 + $4.00 s/h in US; call for international rates
To order, Yisit the Nl\IHS Ship's Store at www.seahistory.org, or call 914 737-7878, ext. 0.
Reviews All Standing: The Remarkable Story of the Jeanie Johnston, the Legendary Irish Famine Ship by Ka thryn M iles (Free Press, a di vision of Simon & Schuster, Inc. , New
wo rk touches o n British political history, economic theory, biology, and other avenues of inves tigatio n rhar paint a vivid- if at rimes tragic-picture of li fe and death in York, 201 3, 25 6pp, notes, index, ISBN 978- mid-1 9 th-century Ireland. ALL Standing, as a result, is a wonderful tool for learning about 978- 1-45 16- 101 3-0; $26hc) In this slim and eminentl y readable ac- mo re than just the experiences of those who count, Kathryn M iles attempts to put a face built and sailed rhe Jeanie Johnston: it is a to the tragic migracompelling narrative rhat has much to offer to those who are interested tion that was spawned by the Irish Po tato in a wide range of fields. Famine of the midTIMOTHY G. LYNCH, PHD 19 th century. While Vallejo, California others have written at length about the war on the waters: The Union and "coffin ship s" a nd Confederate Navies, 1861-1865 the perilous journeys by James M . M cPherson (Univ. of faced by the desperate North Carolina Press, Chapel Hill, emigrants, few have 2012, 296pp, illus, m aps, notes, used the episode of biblio, index, ISBN 978-0-8078a particular ship to 3588-3; $3 5hc) rell rhe general story The nam e James M cPherson has in as illuminating a fashion as Miles does become synonymo uswirh C ivil War history. here. Her crisp writing style a nd eye for a Awarded rhe Pulitzer Prize for his landmark good story allow her to move beyond the Battle Cry of Freedom, he has delved into particulars of transArlantic migration and use rhe lives of soldiers in For Cause and Comthe story of the Jeanie Johnston as a vehicle rades and examined rhe role of Abraham to dissect economic, political, and other Lincoln as a wartime commander-in-chief strands within the larger context of Irish, in Trial By Fire. In his laresr work, Wtzr on Anglo-Irish , and Irish-American history. the Wtzters: The Union & Confederate Navies, The result is a compelling account rhar suc- 1861-1 865, Dr. M cPherson explo res the ceeds on m any levels. role of C ivil War navies and derails how The Jeanie Johnston is unique am ong th e Union navy, which only constirured rhe innumerable vessels rhar fe rried famine five percent of all federal forces, contribrefugees across the Atlanti c, in that she ured so greatly to rhe success of rhe United never lost a single passenger. Though the Stares. This is no mere rehas h of naval ship encountered many difficult passages material from his earlier wo rks; Wtzr on the and countless obstacles, the tenacity of her Wtzters m elds rhe maritime co mpo nent into crew, diligence of her owners, and a healthy rhe overall srrucrure of rhe C ivil War and dose of good fortun e allowed h er to deliver provides an overview of how the war ar sea her human cargo whole in rhe face of over- paralleled the conflict on shore. whelming challenges . Miles focuses o n one The naval as pect has long been a nefamily, and how they traced their ultimate glected area of C ivil War histories . Earlier good fortun e and success in rhe U ni red Srares studi es, such as W illiam Fowler's Under Two and Canada to the luck they had in shipping Flags or Iva n Musicant's Divided Wtzters, out aboard the Jeanie Johnston. The scion provide only a general overview. Others of rhat family, N icholas Reilly, was bo rn examine narrow as pects, such as W illiam shortly after rhe Jeanie Johnston departed N . Still's Iron Afloat o r Robert Browning's Ireland en ro ute fo r Nor th America. wo rks on rhe blockading squadrons. RecentThe story of rhe Jeanie Johnston and ly there has been a renewed interest in rhe her remarkable record of success would be maritime dimension of rhe C ivil War, wirh wo rthy of a book on irs own. But M iles goes Spencer Tucker and C raig Symo nds leading further, using rhis single ship to provide a rhe effo rt. Their volumes have substantially larger co ntext that captures the experience increased rhe level of historical research , o f fa mine emigrants in full er d etail. H er raising rhe question: why wo uld Jam es SEA HISTORY 143 , SUMME R 201 3
M cPherson decide to examine this area? As he stares in his imroduction, "Knowledge of the dramatic role played by rhe navies in rhe C ivil War is essential to an understanding of irs outcome." M cPherson idemifies five key phases of th e C ivil War at sea and imegrares rheir evolution into rhe overall conduct of the war. This perspective m akes Wtzr on the Wtzters unique among all other naval histories, and McPherson interprets blockade- one of the most co ntroversial events in Civil War maritime historiography-as being effective in deterring rhe delivery ofcargo to the Confederacy. H e explains how rhe blockade forced the Union navy to shift from an offensive strategy early in rhe war -seizing po rts and anchorages-to a m ore defensive strategy to interdict rhe larger po ns. Long before rhe army had to deal with contraband slaves, rhe navy was faced with this issue. Irs solution to incorporate ex-slaves and integrate rhem into ship crews is markedly different rhan the one chosen by rhe army. Naval topics, such as asymmetrical warfare, the hunt for commerce raiders, brown-water operations along rhe coas ts and
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rivers, amph ibious and joinrwarfare operarions, new technologies, and the crucial role thar the navy played in logistics throughour the struggle, are all exam ined. ~r on the ~ters is a rremendous addition ro C ivil War literature, and McPherson has demo nsrrared his masrery of a new subjecr. For the professional hisro rian, there are a few minor techni cal errors, bur th e aurhor's abi li ry ro properly place rhe naval war inro rhe conrexr of rhe overall C ivil War is rhe grea resr amibure of rhis book. As McPherson srares in his concl usion, "War could nor have been wo n wirho ur rhe contriburio ns of rhe navy," and rhar is readily apparenr afte r reviewing War on the
'Dangerous WOrk:' Diary of an Arctic Adventure by Arrh ur Co nan Doyle (Uni -
diary, wirh informarive nores co nvenienrly locared ar rhe borrom of each page. The versiry of C hicago Press, Chicago, 2012, volume concludes wirh five shorr pi eces 368pp, map, illus, nores, index, ISB N 978- Conan D oyle wrore in larer yea rs recalling 0-226-00905-6; $35 hc) his experiences. Two are ficrion: a ghosr In March 1880, Arrhur Conan Doyle, srory, "1he Cap rain of rhe Po le-Srar" (1883) age rwenry, rhe furure crearor of Sherlock and a Sherlock Holmes mys rery, "The AdHolmes, was a third-year medical srudenr ve nrure of Black Perer" (1904). ar rhe Universiry of Edinburgh when he In reading his diary, ir is hard nor ro accepred a biller as ship's surgeon aboard co nclude rhar yo ung Conan Doyle was a a Brirish whaler, SS Hope, bound for rhe "helluvabloke." His firsr day aboard, he arcric whali ng gro und. acce pred a boxing challenge from rhe ship's Now the Universiry of Chicago Press sreward and insured his credir wirh rhe has pub Iished his diary of rhar voyage, edired crew by giving rhe sreward a black eye. In by Co nan Doyle scholars Jon Lellenburg facr, his willingness ro pirch in elicired a rare and D ani el Srashower. 1he elegant volume accolade from rh e firsr mare: 'Tm going ro ~ters. begins wirh a phorographi c facsimile of have every man working hard ... I've no SALVATORE R. MERCOGUANO, PttD rhe diary, including fifty of Conan Doyle's fears of yo u, Surgeon. I'll back yo u ro do a Buies C reek, No rrh Carolina skerches. 1 his is followed by rhe primed days work wirh any man aboard. Yo u suir me, and I liked rhe sryle of yo u rhe firsr rime I saw ye. l hare yo ur clean-handed Yearly gen rlemen." An association of model builders and researchers Membership Indeed, m o re validarion came from who love all things nautical, and who are dedicated to: Caprain John G ray, who invired rhe yo ung $38.00USA Advancing Ship Modeling Through Research man back with a double biller, as surgeon and $50.00 as harpooner. H e chose ro rake his medical ther Countries Membership incl udes rhe quarrerly Naurical exams insread , bur he never forgor his arcric Research Journal with arricles by knowledgeable write rs feamring hip model building and research adve nrure: "I came ofage ar 80 degrees norrh of all periods, mcrchanr, naval and maririme history. lati rude," he larer wrore. As ship's surgeon , he became rhe caprain's co nfidanr whe n Ocher member benefits include a Technical Assistance nerwork, a Lending Library, an Annual cusrom preve nred rhe skipper from form ing Conference, Symposiums and an extensive lisr of fri endships wirh the orher officers or crew. Resources and Links. Ar sea he passed rhar sad milesrone in rhe life of every yo ung docror, rh e firsr 1-585-968-8111 â&#x20AC;˘ www.theNRG.org dearh of a pari enr, when a sevenry-year-old seaman expired , despire his besr efforrs , from inresrinal blockage and probabl e perironiris. Alexander Milne was buri ed ar sea. Conan Doyle skerched rhe evenr. Offering an Arrhur Conan Doyle's diary wo uld extensive grace rhe shelf of any reader inreresred in selection of voyage narrarives, whaling, arcric exploradocumented, rion, or simply maririme adve nrure. AMERI CAN MARINE one-of-a-kind MOD EL GALLERY JOSEPH F. MEANY, JR- , PHD ship models by 20 Pl easa nt Street. Albany, NewYork P.O. Box 6102 internationally
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The Great Trade Routes: A History of Cargoes and Commerce Over Land and Sea, edired by Phi li p Parker (Naval Insrirure Press, Ann apolis, MD, 20 12, 320pp, index, biblio , illus, phorographs, ISBN 9781-59114-335-2, $75 hc) This ha ndsome coffee-rabl e book is replere wirh srunning images and insighrful analysis con cerning rhe developmenr of overland a nd maririme rrade roures.
SEA HISTORY 143 , SUMMER 2013
Beginning with prehistoric trade routes, a gro up of acknowledged experrs then traces commercial relatio ns through classical times, the Middle Ages, the age of discovery, the age of empires, and up to modern times . At times the book focuses on cargos, at other times on the merchants, and at others on the routes themselves and the technologies that allowed these to be used most effectively. The narrative is strong and authoritative-at times a bit pedantic as the tone borders on a textbook- but always engaging. The real value of this tome is in its rich accompaniment of m aps, visuals, and other eye-catching treats. Scarcely a page goes by that one is not dazzled by sidebars and photographs, drawings, and asso rted renderings. By itself, The Great Trade Routes probably offers little that is new or revelatory about any of the different exchange nerworks that are discussed . Indeed, many of the entries merely synthes ize the latest or best-known wo rks about these disparate topics, but that in itself is notable: h ere, in one volume (albeit a h efry one), we have a collection of information and images that is sure to provide the answers to questions concerning the construction of glo bal and regional trading nerworks . The Great Trade Routes, th en, is a valuable comp ilation of important info rmation and beautiful images. Its size and format make it a bit difficult to use comfortably, but this is an encyclopedic compendium that will be useful for those wh o want to learn more abo ut the wo rld that trade created. H andsomely laid out and with a strong editorial hand that smoothes out the voices of a dozen and a half contributors, this volume will reward both a ca reful read and a casual perusal. TIMOTHY G. LYNCH, PttD Vallejo, C alifornia
Pacific Crucible: U'ar at Sea in the Pacific, 1941-1942 by Ian W Toll (WW Norton and Company, Inc. , New York, 2012, 597pp, illus, m aps, notes, biblio, index, ISB N 978-0-39 3-34341-0; $19 .95pb) The US Navy's recent television ad campaign carried the motto "America's Navy-A Global Force for Good." Throughout its history, however, there have been many moments when the US Navy proved unable to defend America's interest and appeared SEA HISTORY 143, SUMMER 2013
on the verge of annihilation. Ian Toll has examined rwo of these key moments, and in his latest work, Pacific Crucible: Wtir At Sea in the Pacific, 1941-1942, he stans with the destruction of the United States Pacific Fleet at Pearl H arbor and follows it for the next six months until it is able to swing the tide against Imperial Japa n at the Battle of Mi dway. Ian Toll entered the history field with
l \1 :\ t; L-..:
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Six Frigates: The Epic History ofthe Fo unding of the US Navy (2006) . This earlier work focused on the story of the half-dozen frigates authorized in 1794 that would form the backbone of the early US Navy thro ugh the War of 1812. With Pacific Crucible, much as he did with Six Frigates, the author has brought the topic to life by integrating key individuals, battles, ships, and tactics into a continuous narrative. From the onset, Toll weaves together th e issues that undersco red the initial phase of the Pacific War, with an analysis of Alfred Thayer Mahan and how both the United States and Imperial Japan hoped to embrace his three dogmas-the cult of the big-gun battles hip, th e iro n rule of concentration, and the annihilation of the enemy fleet in a single decisive battle. As Toll demonstrates, this peri od witnessed the eclipse of the battlesh ip, the use of mobile striking forces built around carriers, and the climactic battl e that severely damaged the Japanese, but marked o nly the beginning of a bloody three-year struggle of attrition across the Pacific. Pacific Crucible tackles a subject and time period th at is hardly new to historians. In fact, it has been extensively examined by the likes of H . P. W illmott, Edwin Hoyt, Samuel Eliot Morison, John Lundstrom, Gordon Prange, C lark Reynolds, and John Toland. Toll attempts to make some salient points, such as that the attack on Pearl Harbor was the pivotal moment of the Second World War and the Indian Ocean was the crux of geo politics in the conflict, yet he only provides a curso ry analysis of these item s. Perhaps Toll's greatest lapse is his failure to capitalize on the wealth of primary sources recently made available. Instead, he relies on secondary sources and, at times, oft- repeated stories related from earlier wo rks. Norwithstanding this criticism , Pacific Crucible is an excellem overview of the
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events. Toil's ability to focus on key figures, including Franklin D. Roosevelt, Isoruko Yamamoto, Chester Nimitz, and Ernest King, and then turn his attention to crucial events, from Pearl Harbor, the aborted Wake Island relief expedition, the disastrous ABDA command in the East Indies, the early carrier strikes in the Marshall and Gilbert Islands, the Doolittle Raid, and the battles of the Coral Sea and Midway, provides rhe reader with an excellent perspective on the hazardous situation that the Allies faced in the first six months of the Second World War. SALVATORE R. MERCOGLIANO, PttD Buies Creek, North Carolina
flexes easily into modern-day conflicts, the wars we've watched on television, and those being fough t today, such as the global war on terrorism. Even the most attentive followers of the service and its day-today operations will be surprised at some of the details about what the service has been doing in recent years. An interesting addition to the book is a survey history of the commandants of the Coast Guard, an understudied topic if there ever was one. Only one, Ellsworth Bertholf, has had a biography written about him . Ir's a topic that deserves more attention.
The United States Coast Guard and National Defense: A History from World W"ar I to the Present by Thomas P. Ostrom (McFarland & Company, Inc. , Jefferson, NC, 2012, 264pp, illus, notes, biblio, index, ISBN 978-0-7864-6480-7; $39.95) The role of the US Coast Guard in national defense is an enormous topic, of course, when one considers the global contentiousness of the twentieth century and the manner in which the Coast Guard's role has transformed over its first ninetyeight years under the current name. But Tom Ostrom is a remarkable writer and pulls it off with aplomb. While anecdotes and personal stories certainly have a place in his work, his strength lies in his depth of knowledge on Coast Guard history in the context of world history and how he presents rhar knowledge to his readers. His style definitely leans toward the technical side, but this should nor dissuade readers w ith an interest in the Coast Guard and its role in our history. Ostrom's latest title, and his earlier book, The United States Coast Guard in World war II, are foundational works on their topics, volumes to which researchers can look to years from now to understand why and how the service operates the way it does. Much of the topic is not new to students of Coast Guard history. The tales of the loss of the curter Tampa in World War I, the heroic actions of Signalman First Class Douglas Munro in Wo rld War II, and the loss of heroic aviator Jack Rittichier in Vietnam are well-known. It's what comes next that opens the eyes. Ostrom's research
Blood on the W"ave: Scottish Sea Battles by John Sadler (Birlinn Limited, Edinburgh, Scotland, 2010, 215pp, illus, biblio, index, ISBN 978-1-84158-9865-0, £20hc) The last thing I expected to read in a book about the history of Sco tland's nautical warfare is a story about a family of cannibals. Yet, a few pages into the book, there it is-the sixteenth-century tale of Alexander "Sawney" Bean and his murderous family who lived in a cave on the coast of southwest Scotland. This sensational anecdote serves to warn readers of how dangerous Scotland's coastline could be and pulls the reader into the book from the get-go. John Sadler's book is peppered with many attention-grabbing incidents while it takes a more expansive look at Scotland's maritime history. The reader gets shortbut thorough-explanations of the role of sea battles in rhe Roman and Norse invasions, the Scottish war of independence, the success and fa ll of privateers, and Bonnie Prince Charlie's rebellion in 1745. From there, Western naval history is examined through the eyes of important Scots, such as John Paul Jones, who left Scotland to fight for America in the Revolutionary War, and Admiral Thomas Cochrane, the man Napoleon called the "Sea Wolf." Sadler takes the reader through both wo rld wars and the significant technological advances brought by the submarine, focusing on the threat the German U-boat posed to Grear Britain. He concludes with a look at nuclear power and the new strategies employed ro fight terrorism from the sea.
JOHN GALLUZZO
Weymouth, Massachusetts
SEAHISTORY 143, SUMMER2013
New&Noted It is much of Scotland's nautical warfare condensed into 215 pages, with a useful glossary and index tacked on at the end. The amount of history covered in so few pages is remarkable, and he does an admirable job of including both smaller stories in such a broad overview. Readers not already well-versed in some aspects of Scotland's history, however, may get frustrated at some references that are not fully explained. Perhaps they should consider first reading Sadler's earlier book, Scottish Battles (Birlinn, 201 O), before reading Blood on the wave.
While at times confusing to the uninitiated in Scottish history, Blood on the wave is undoubtedly intriguing, and Sadler's eviscerating recreations of sea battles can be engrossing. John Sadler takes you on a journey through time to give you both an intricate and overarching look at Scotland's history-and an urgent desire to avoid cannibals. KATY DAY
College Gate, Scotland
The Amistad Rebellion: An Atlantic Odyssey of Slavery and Freedom by Marcus Rediker (Viking/Penguin Group, NY, 2012, ISBN 978-0-670-02504-6; $27.95hc) Bluejackets in the Blubber Room: Biography ofthe William Badger by Peter Kurtz (University of Alabama Press, Tuscaloosa, 2012, ISBN 978-0-8173-1779-9; $34.95hc) A Book of Voyages, edited by Patrick O 'Brian (W. W Norton & Company, 2013, 288pp, gloss, ISB N 978-0-393-08958-5; $25.95hc) Josephus Daniels: His Life and Times by Lee A. Craig (University ofNorth Carolina Press, Chapel Hill, 2013, 592pp, illus, ISBN 978-1-4696-0695-8; $35hc) "Marukobune, " the Traditional Sailing Boast in the Lake Biwa Region, Japan by Kumi Makino (Yuzankaku, Inc. , Tokyo, 2013, 245pp, illus, maps, notes, index, ISBN 978-4-639-02262-6; $5 l .53pb)
Passage to the World: The Emigrant Experience, 1807-1940 by Kevin Brown (Seaforth Publishing/Pen & Sword Books Ltd. , South Yorkshire, UK, 2013, 243pp, illus, notes, biblio, index, ISBN 978-184832-136-6; $45 .95hc) The Sailing Frigate: A History in Ship Models by Robert Gardiner (Seaforth Publishing/Pen & Sword Books Ltd., South Yorkshire, UK, 2012, 129pp, illus, ISBN 978-1-84832-145-8; $47 .95hc) Shores ofKnowledge: New World Discoveries and the Scientific Imagination by Joyce Appleby (WW Norton & Company, 2013, 288pp, illus, notes, index, ISBN 9780-393-2395 1-5; $25.95 hc) William B. Cushing in the Far East: A Civil war Naval Hero Abroad by Julian R. McQuiston (McFarland & Co., Inc., Jefferson, NC, 2013, 228pp, photos, notes, biblio, index, ISBN 978-0-7864-9263-3; $35 pb)
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