Wooden Ship by Jan Adkins (Boston, Houghton Mifflin, 1978, 47 pp ., illus., $6.95). The ambitious task of this slim volume is to trace the construction of a New Bedford whaler from its inception to departure for the whaling grounds. Mr. Adkins' black and white drawings make this task possible and bring to life the people who conceive, design and build the ship. Emphasis is on hull construction, and a number of cross-sections and diagrams make the structure and building methods easy to understand. This book is catalogued for yo un g readers, and youngsters in our hou sehold gave it high marks. But there is much here in both illustrations and narrative that will sa tisfy readers of any age. NS You Are First, The Story of Olin Stephens and Rod Stephens of Sparkmen & Stephens, Inc., by Francis S. Kinney (New York, Dodd, Mead & Co., 1978, 327 pp., illus., $17.95). Sparkman & Stephens, Inc ., seems to have been designing successful craft of every class from dinghys to cup d efenders since shortly after the launching of the ark. In addition to racin g yachts th e firm name frequently appears under the plans or photographs of some very fine cruising yac ht s and motor sailors and when designer's comments are included in such an article they are brief, concise and rather modest. Little has appeared in print abo ut th e firm's origins or history in rece nt years. One finds references to the famous Dorade, a sucess ful and innovating ocean racing yawl designed by a very young Olin Stephens in 1930, and inspirin g deeds at sea by Rod Stephens, and of course Sparkman & Stephens comes up co ntinually in any discu ssion of th e America's Cup over the last twenty years. This handsomely produced book by Frank Kinn ey ably fill s out the story. Mr. Kinney, best known until now for his Skene's Elements of Yacht Design, ha s been associated with Sparkman & Stephens for over thirty years as well as bei ng an established independent yac ht designer. This gives his writing an insight and warmth that set the book apart. Dorade's hi story, lines, sai l plan, accommodation plans, and log mak e a good sta rting point and the sa iling and racing experiences of the Stephens brothers as teenagers are recounted as well. Other boats are di scussed a nd a good selection of pertinent drawin gs a nd fine photographs (mostly by the Rosenfclds) accompany the tex t. These interSEA HISTORY, SUMMER 1979
views leave thi s reader looking forward to many more years of studying new designs of all types with th e name Sparkman & Stephen s, Inc . in the caption. DON MEISNER Black Men of the Sea, by Michael Cohn and Michael K. H . Pla tzer (New York, Dodd, Mead & Company, 1978, 158 pp., ill. , $8.95). Important facets of the African and Afro-American maritime heritage from the pre-Columbus era to the 20th century are taken up in thi s well researched and well written volume. Geared to the young reader (junior hi gh and high school), it will be found interestin g and informative by the mature reader as well. The book is divided into twelve chapters packed with well established but not widely known information about "the heritage of black seafarin g." Chapter I, which highlights so me of the maritime feat s of Africans during the centuries before Columbus' voyage to the Americas, includes mention of the Egyptian voyages to the Americas in the eighth century BC, and East African maritime commerce with China, Malaysia and India. The chapter notes that Africans were crew members on many of the Spanish and Portuguese ships during the age of exploration. The a uthors also report so me of the findings which substantiate that African traders had established contact with Indians in Central America at least 2 \/2 centuries before Columbus made hi s famous voyage in 1492. Subsequent chapters examine the long hi story of maritime trade and commerce among West Africans, case histories of mutinies by Africans on slave ships, and the role of black sea men as pirates and privateers durin g the 18th and 19th centuries. A chapter on black shipbuilders points out that " by 1800 almost all of the shipwrights in the [Caribbean] islands were blacks," and not es that free black s and slaves worked along with whites in America' s shipyards during the 19th century. This chapter highlig ht s the life of James Forten, a free blac k businessman, who amassed a fortune in hi s sailmaking company in Philadelphia durin g the early 19th century. The remaining chapters in the book focus on Afro-Americans as "Watermen" "Deepwater Seamen," "Coastal Traders," and "W halers" during the 18th and 19th centuries. The authors, Cohn and Plat zer, have both had some experie nce as sea men , so in addition to the hi story of black seame n, the book offers young readers interestin g insights in-
SEA HISTORY PRINTS Presents a set of four Hudson Steamboat Prints by the noted marine artist WILLIAM G. MULLER
The Syracuse of 1857
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Finely printed on canvas-grained paper, these full color prints capture the elegance and romance of a vanished era. Image size 8" x 12".
Set of four $20 To: National Maritime Historical Society, 2 Fulton St., Brooklyn NY 11201. Please send me sets(s) of four Hudson Steamboat Prints. My check for $ is enclosed. NAME
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