Pride of Baltimore: The Story of the Baltimore Clippers, 1800-1990, by Thomas C. Gillmer (International Marine Publishing, Camden ME, 1992, 226pp, illus, appendices, index; $24.95 hb) The author is a well-respected naval architect, professor emeritus of engineering at the US Naval Academy, and the author of several technical books on ship design. His new book Pride of Baltimore delves into the history of those remarkable sea-going clipper brigs and schooners that originated on Chesapeake Bay sometime before the War of I 812. They were swifter than all others and possessed of matchless windward-going ability. Mr. Gillmer's work opens with the development of the indigenous sailing craft built on the Virginia, Chesapeake or Baltimore model, now generally referred to as Baltimore clippers. The narrative brings to light the qualities of this distinctively American development of fast sailing craft that had the uncanny ability to elude capture, harass foreign shipping, run enemy blockades, and engage in smuggling and even slave trafficking. The bane of the British fleet in wartime, they were designed to sail fast at all costs, although they were generally unsuitable for carrying cargoes save the more profitable and often illicit ones. A few tales of derring-do are included and they point up the fearless attitudes and many skills required of the captains and crews to keep these formidable racers and hunters in check. As fairly described by the author," ... without the proper captain, they were dead in the water, almost literally." While certainly not the easiest class of vessel to handle, in capable hands they were fast-sailing and agile with their low hull s, raking masts, and great spread of canvas. During the War of 1812, one illustrious American privateer, the Baltimore clipper Chasseur, crossed the Atlantic under Captain Thomas Boyle and had a proclamation posted on the door of Lloyd 's of London declaring that he was thenceforth holding all Britain under blockade. Mr. Gillmer relates how, with a crew of 155 men, the Chasseur managed to capture 45 British merchant ships and disperse the crew to man the prizes. For a topsail schooner of only 115 feet on deck, it was a confounding achievement right under John Bull's nose. She made her way back to her home port and earned the nickname " Pride of Baltimore ." This same Chasseur went on to the Orient after the SEA HISTORY 62, SUMMER 1992
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