Sea History 110 - Spring 2005

Now Available from Sea History's Art Gallery

LIMITED EDITION LITHOGRAPHS

by Paul Garnett A native of Boston, marine artist Paul Gamett releases two new limited edition images-one of the USS Constitution as she originally appeared in 1798 and one of His Majesty's Armed Vessel Bounty.

Mr. Garnett's work has been seen in Nautical World magazine, Marine Art Quarterly, and Sea History magazine.

His paintings have also been featured on A &E Sea Tales as well as the History Channel's series History's Mysteries.

"Defeat at the Horn" HMAV Bounty puts about for the Cape of Good Hope, Africa, 22 April 1788 Image: 30" x 22"

Trim: 34 "x 26-112"

$65.00

Paul Garnett's limited edition lithographs are signed, numbered, and presented with signed and numbered parchments detailing the historic significance that inspired each painting.

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

"Shakedown Cruise" Frigate USS Constitution leaves Boston Harbor

by Castle Island, July 1798 Image: 25" x 20"

Trim: 19 314" x 30"

$65.00

TO ORDER BY CREDIT CARD CALL: 1-800-221-NMHS (6647), EXT., 0

BY CHECK OR MONEY ORDER TO: National Maritime Historical Society PO Box 68, Peekskill, NY 10566

(Please add $17.50 for shipping and handling charges)

SEA HISTORY

No. 110

SPRING 200 5

CONTENTS FEATURED IN T HIS ISSUE 10 Trafalgar: In Nelson's Own Words, by Joseph F. Callo In this year ofthe 200th anniversary ofLord Nelson's death and victory at the Battle of Trafalgar, Joseph Callo examines and interprets Nelson's actual words, written and spoken, on the last day ofhis life-21 October 1805.

14 Shadow Voyage: Escape of German Liner SS Bremen,

by Peter A. Huchthausen Peter Huchthausen takes us on a thrilling ride on the German express liner's escape back to Germany in 1939 across the British patrolled-Atlantic.

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18 Maritime History on the Internet: Locating Library Books, Near and Far,

by Peter McCracken Peter McCracken shows how the Internet can help you find just the book you didn't know you were looking for-in your local library or across the continent.

24 MARINE ART Photography: Maritime California through the Lens, edited by Glenn Zagoren 7he epitome ofwhat was Southern California in the 20th century (movie stars, yacht racing, the Navy, among other subjects) is represented in classic photographs ofthe Newport Harbor Nautical Museum's Nautical Photo Collection.

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28 H eroes of the Sailing Navy: William Henry Allen, Parr one of a series, by Wi lliam H. White

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A veteran of three of the first four wars involving the US Navy, Henry Allen earned a hero's reputation-all before his 26th year. Part one ofa series, William H White introduces us to some ofthe heroic figures from the United States sailing ship navy.

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32 Historic Ships on a Lee Shore, by Peter Stanford and Stephen G. Heaver After a year ofidentifying historic ships in need in Sea History, Peter Stanford

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explains WHY we should save historic ships. Stephen Heaver highlights the plight of the steam tug Baltimore and her dire need for a new home on the eve ofher 1 OOth birthday.

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COVER: Rear-A dmiral Sir Horatio Nelson, 1758 - 1805, by Lemuel Francis A bbott (c. 1760 - 1803), 1798-9. (Oil on canvas) One of the most famo us portraits of Nelson, painted in 1798-9, after the N ile, from an earlier sketch.

Image© National Maritime Museum, London. (See pages 10-13 far Joseph Callo's article on Nelson's words. See also our Calendar on page 41 far a listing ofNational Maritime Museum, London events and exhibits this year commemorating the anniversary of Nelson's victory and death at the Battle of Trafalgar.)

DEPARTMENTS 2

DECK Loe & LETTERS

8

NMHS:

20

A CAUSE IN MOTION Sea History FOR Kms

36

SHIP NOTES, SEAPORT & MUSEUM NEWS

41 43 48

CALENDAR REVIEWS PATRONS

32 SEA HISTORY (issn 0146-9312) is published quarterly by the National Maritime Historical Society, 5John Walsh Blvd., PO Box 68, Peekskill NY 10566. Periodicals postage paid at Peekski ll NY 10566 and add'! maili ng offices.

COPYRIGHT© 2005 by the Natio nal Maritime Historical Society. Tel : 914-737-7878.

POSTMASTER: Send address changes to Sea History, PO Box 68, Peekski ll NY 10566.

NATIONAL MARITIME HISTORICAL SOCIETY

DECK LOG 7th Maritime Heritage Conference r was years in the planning, and under the leadership of Captain Channing Zucker of the Historic Naval Ships Association, the 7th Maritime Heritage Conference in Norfolk, Virginia, last October proved a great success. Over 500 leaders in the maritime heritage community from a wide range of disciplines and organizations-museums, lighthouses, historic ships, sail training programs, N nautical archaeologists, and libraries-mer to share their latest projects and ~. research. Meetings and seminars addressed mutual concerns and offered solutions to advance the cause of preserving maritime heritage.

Maritime museums have endured a difficult climate since 9/11, with reduced attendance and a weakened philanthropic base. In Norfolk, curators and directors brainstormed strategies for innovation and improvement. It is noteworthy that during a time of struggle for many museums and organizations, academic maritime programs at institutions s of higher learning are producing more trained, knowledgeable, and enthusiastic graduates in the field than ever.

The 8th Maritime Heritage Conference is set for San Francisco in October 2007 . Much of what will be the state of the field then will have had its genesis in the seminars, face-to-face discussions, and Q & A sessions that gave colleagues in the field an opportunity ro promote mutual interests.

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In these pages of Sea History ...

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ommencing with this issue, in 2005 Sea History will commemorate the bicentenary of Lord Nelson's victory and death at the Battle of Trafalgar, 21 October 1805. In this issue we feature, "Trafalgar: in Nelson's Own Words" by Joseph F. Callo (see pages 10-13)-an examination and analysis of Nelson's thoughts as written in his diary and remembered by his officers. Throughout the year we will look at Nelson from a variety of angles with a feature article in each issue leading up to the anniversary of the Battle. In tribute to Lord Nelson, NMHS 's medallion this year will feature Nelson's flagship HMS Victory. The National Maritime Museum in London is launching a yearlong celebration with exhibits and events organized through SeaBritain 2005-refer to our Calendar section for notices and updates on events throughout the year.

We are also pleased to offer a new series by William H. White, "Heroes of the Sailing Navy." White will profile both the celebrated and lesser known men who "set the bar" for generations of naval officers to come. I invite you to read his first installment-a profile ofWilliam Henry Allen (1 784-1813) who, in his short life, left his mark on the annals of naval history, having participated in three of the four wars that involved the American Navy to that date.

Chairman Walter Brown is pleased to announce that the Society's Education Initiative, chaired by Walter Cronkite, is partnering with Ocean Classroom Foundation to offer a 7-day program for high school and middle school history teachers aboard schooner Westward to explore and encourage the teaching of maritime history as a vital component of their course curriculums. For derails, see our notice on page 9. NMHS will mail this issue with the notice and call for applications to any high school or middle school history teacher whose name and address you submit to us.

BuRCHENAL GREEN Executive Vice President 2

NATIONAL MARITIME HISTORICAL SOCIETY

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PUBLISHER'S CIRCLE: Peter Aron , Donald McG raw, W ill iam H. Wh ite O FFI CE RS & T RUSTEES: Chairman, Walter R. Brown; Vice Chairman, Richard o R. Lopes; Executive Vice President, Burchenal Green; Treasurer, Ronald L O swald; Secretary, M arshall Streiberr; Trustees, Donald M . Birney, Thomas F. Daly, D avid S. Fowler, Virginia Steele G rubb, Rodney N . H o ughton , Steven W. Jones, Richard M. Larrabee, Warren Leback, Guy E. C. Maitland, Karen Markoe, Mi chael McKay, James J. M cNamara, Howard Slotnick, Bradford D. Smith , Wi ll iam H. White; Chairmen Emeriti, Alan G. C hoate, G uy E. C. Maitland, C raig A. C. Reynolds, Howard Slomick; President Emeritus, Peter Stanfo rd FOUN D ER: Karl Kortum (191 7- 1996) OVERSEERS: Chairman, RA.OM David C. Brown; Walter Cronkite, Alan D. Hu tchiso n, Jakob Jsbra ndtsen, John Lehman , Warren M arr, 11, Brian A. McAllister, John Stobart, W ill iam G. W interer ADVISORS: Co-Chairmen, Frank 0. Braynard , Melbourn e Smith; D.K. Abbass, George F. Bass, Francis E. Bowker, O swald L. Bren , Norm an ]. Brouwer, RADM Joseph F. C allo, Francis J. Du ffy, John W Ewald, Timothy Foote, W illi am G ilkerso n, Thomas Gi ll mer, Walter J. H andelman , Steven A. Hyman , Hajo Knuttel, Gunn ar Lund eberg, Joseph A. Maggio, Conrad Milster, W illi am G. Muller, David E. Perkins, Nancy Hughes Ri chardson, Timothy Runyan, Shannon]. Wall N MHS STAFF: Executive Director, Burchenal Green; Mem bership Director, Nan cy Schn aa rs; Director of Education, David All en; A ccounting, Ji ll Romeo; Executive A ssistant, Janet Miller; Membership Assistant, Jane Maurice SEA HISTO RY Editor : D eirdre E. O 'Regan ; D irector of Advertising: Steve Lovass-Nagy; Sea H istory for Kids Editor: Myka-Lynn e Sokoloff; Editor-at-Large: Peter Sta nford 5 John Walsh Boulevard PO Box 68 Peekski ll NY 10566 Ph one: 9 14 737-7878; 800 221 -N MH S Fax: 914 737-78 16 Web site: www. seahistory.org; NMHS e-mail: nmhs@seahisto ry.org; and Sea H istory e- mail: editorial@seahisto ry.o rg Address:

M EMBERSHIP is invited. Afterguard $ 10,000; Benefacto r $5 ,000; Pl ankowner $2,500; Sponso r $ 1,000; Donor $500; Patron $250; Friend $ 100; Co ntribu to r $75; Family $50; Regular $35. All members outside rhe USA please add $ l 0 for posrnge. Sea History is sem to all members. Indi vidu al co pi es cost $3.75 .

SEA HISTORY I 10, SPRING 2005

LETTERS Thank you, NMHS My sincere th anks and appreciatio n to N MHS fo r the tremendous support affo rded to the Seventh Maritime H eritage C onference in No rfolk las t fal l. Without a do ubt, the marvelous anno un cements in the four issues of Sea H istory leading up to the co nfe rence were instrumental in the attendance to pping 500 . The reception hosted by the Society at th e rooftop Harbor C lu b fo llowing the first full day o f sessions was the perfect venue for conferees and their companio ns to mingle and swap sea sto ri es whi le loo kin g o ut over the bustling wa terfront.

The N HMS calendars donated as a conference memen to were a huge hit. C opies of the latest issue of Sea H istory we re also a cho ice item in the registratio n bags.

N MHS's boo th attracted large numbers of people, and I understand resulted in a goodly number of new and renew ing members. Fi nall y, I wo uld li ke to thank the NMHS staff, Board, and members for their superb part icipatio n as speakers and moderators in the more than 140 presentations give n during 54 co ncurrent sessio ns ove r the fo ur days of the conference.

Bravo Z ulu, Burchie and crew!

CAPTAIN CHANN I NG ZUCKER

Conference Chair Virginia Beach, V irginia

Who mapped Queen Maud Land of Antarctic 6000 years ago?

I read with interes t the exchan ge of letters regardin g the review of Sea of Glory and the issue over who "discovered" Antarctica. U ntil someo ne fi gures out where Piri Reis go t his materials and created a map in 151 3, fu ll y 25 0+ years befo re the whalers and sealers might have stumbled on the co ntinent, we will never really know the answer. But we do have a real puzzle ...

In 1929 , a group of historians found an amazing map drawn on a gazelle skin .

Research showed that it was a genuine document drawn in 151 3 by Piri Reis, a famous admi ral of the Turkish fleet in the 16 th century. His passio n was cartography and his high rank within the Turkish navy allowed him to have privileged access to the Imperial Library of Constantinople.

In a series of no tes o n the map, the Turkish admiral admits that he compil ed and co pied the da ta fro m a large number of source

SEA HISTORY 110, SPRING 2005

maps, some of which dated back to the 4 th century BC or earlier.

The Controversy The Piri Re is map shows the western coas t of Africa, the eastern coast of South America, and the northern coast of Antarcti ca. The northern coastli ne of Antarctica is perfectly detailed .

Even more puzzling, however, is not so much how Piri Reis m anaged to prod uce such an accu rate map o f the Antarctic region 300 years before it was "discovered ," but that the map shows the coastline under the ice. Geological evidence confirms that th e latest d ate Queen Ma ud Land could have been charred in an ice-free state is 4 000 BC. Furth er studies have proven that the las t ice-free period in the A ntarctic ended about 6000 years ago. There are still doubts about the beginning of this ice-fre e period, wh ich d ifferent researchers have put anywhere between yea r 13000 and 9000 BC. The question is: Who mapp ed Queen Maud Land ofAntarctic 6000 years ago? Which unknown civil iza tio n had the tech nology

o r the need to do that?

Ir is well-known th at the first ci vilization, according to the traditional history, d eveloped in the mid-east around year 3000 BC, soo n fo llowed with in a millen ni um by the Indus valley and the C hi nese.

Who was here, 4000 years BC, ab le to do thi ngs that NOW are only possible wi th

Join Us for a Voyage into History Our seafarin g heritage comes alive in the pages of S ea History, from the ancient ma riners of Greece to Portuguese navigators opening up the ocea n wo rld to the heroic efforts of sailors in this century's conflicts. Each issue brings new insights and discoveries. If you love the sea, ri vers, lakes,

and bays-if you a ppreciate the legacy of those who sail in d eep water and th eir workaday craft, then you belong with us.

Join Today !

Mail in the form below, phone I 800 221-NMH S (6647), or visit us at: www.seahistory.org (e-mail: nmhs@seahistory.org)

Yes, I wane co join che Society and receive Sea History quarterly. My co ntributio n is enclosed. ($ l 7.50 is for Sea History; any amo unt above chat is tax deducti ble.) Sign me up as: D $35 Regular Member D $50 Family Member D $ 100 Friend D $250 Parro n D $500 Dono r

110

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atio nal Maritime Historical Society, PO Box 68 , Peekski ll NY I 0566

3

Hey! I know that ship! the modern technologies?

Throughout th e Middle Ages mariners used a number of sailing charts called "portolani," (maps of the most common sai ling routes, showing coastlines, harbors, straits, bays, etc. ). Most of those portolani focused on the Mediterranean and Aegean Seas and other known routes. A few reported of still unknown lands and were circulating among a handful of sai lors w ho seemingly kept their knowledge about those special maps as hidden as they could. Columbus is rumored to have been one of those few who knew of them.

To create his map, Piri Reis used several different sources he collected along his journeys. His notes state he was not responsible for the o ri ginal surveying and cartography.

He merely co mpiled data from a large number of source maps. Some of these source maps, he noted , had been drawn by contemporary sailors, w hile others were instead charts of great antiqui ty, dating back to the 4th century BC or earlier.

For more information, visi t: www. prep . mcn eese .edu /e n g r/ e ngr32 1 /preis/ afet/afetO.htm OR www.geociti es .com / alephl35/PiriReisMap OR, of course, yo u can do a bas ic online search for " Piri Reis Map" and find doze ns of sites to explo re.

VIN CENT PrcA New York

Just read my Winter 2004-2005 issue of Sea H istory. G rear articles! One in particular caught my interest-the short, "Historic Ships on a Lee Shore" featuring USS Hornet. My fath er, Robert Whitby, was a radio operator aboard Ho rnet on her first cruise during World War II. I thought I'd send you a piece of art work I had done on the ship in her original form, circa 1944 (see below) along with some vimage photos, 1944-45. Ho rnet looks a lot different now.

Thanks. Reall y enjoy the magazine, Keep up the good work!

STEVE WHITBY

H em et, California

USS Hornet

NMHS BARGAIN BOOKS Manhattan Seascape, Waterside Views Around New York, by Robert Gambee.

The bay, the ships, the bridges, the waterside parks and the famous skyline are subjects of thi s beautiful collection of 180 photos. HC: $ 15.00 (outer jac ket slightly marred).

A Ship's Log Book II, by Frank F. Farrar. Tales of adventure, mi schief, and mayhem delightfully narrated by a man who li ved it all. SC: $ 12.00 A Seafaring Legacy, by Juli anna FreeHand. The photographs, diaries, letters and memorabilia of a Maine sea captain and hi s wife, 1859- 1908. HC : $ 10.00 Heralds of their Age, the Clippers and the American Spirit, by Melvin Conant. An illustrated tribute to the beauty and speed of Ameri ca's bestloved and best-remembered group of ships. SC: $3 .00

Thank You, Steve!

We welcome your letters!

Write to: Editor, Sea H istory, 7 Timberknoll Road , Pocasse t, MA 02559; e-mail : editorial@seahistory.org. .t

USS Hornet, c. 1944.

Original artwork by Steve Whitby

Tall Ships of Newburyport, by George W. Goodwin and Freda Morrill Abrams. A vivid acco unt of the life on the ships Montan.a, Whi1tier and Nearchus by Goodwin, who served as a mate on those post-Ci vil War ships. SC: $ 10.00 The Charles W. Morgan, by John E Leav itt. The Morgan is the onl y American wooden sail ing whaleship surviving from the golden era of American wha ling. Th is comprehensive book, with its crew li sts, photogra phs, and a summary of voyages and log books, brings the Morgan to life . SC: $ 12.00 The Ship's Bell: Its History and Romance, by Karl Wede. 62pp, illus.

SC: $4.00

To place your order by mail, send check or credit card information to NMHS, PO Box 68, Peekskill, NY 10566 or call 1-800-221-NMHS (6647) ext. 0. (A ll prices include shipping and handling.)

4

SEA HISTORY 110, SPRTNG 2005

NationaÂŁ Maritime Historicaf Socieiy's

Commemorative CoCCection

"OS ELVER"

irca 160 0-1870 In 1750, 2 brothers from Os, Norway built boats in a boot house on the Os river, hence nome 1 0selver1 â&#x20AC;˘ Soiled in Norwegitm regattes

PORTHOLE CLOCK THERMOMETER/HYGROMETER Clock Dial: 3-112".

Instrument Dial: 6-118".

Base: 9-7/8". Depth: 3".

This three-in-one instrument features a forged porthole-style brass ring, engraved with

"National Maritime Historical Society ".

Holding a thick beveled crystal mounted to a mahogany finish case makes this a handsome piece for mounting in home, boat or office. The bezel can be openedjust like an actual opening port on board a ship. AA baltery operated, precision movement. Thermomeler reads in Fahrenheil and Celsius. Hygrogromeler shows percentage of humidity in air. Price: $215 + s/h*

today. Instructions. Kit is wood pl<mk on frame construction.

Scale:

1:15, Length

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16.3 '

$72.99

plus $6. ship.hand.

ACROSS THE POND P.O. Box 153 SH, Marblehead, MA 01945 , TUse Toll Free for orders: 1-800-469-3957 acrossthepond @ comcast.net www.acrossthepond.net Send $6.00 for web cata log!

FIDDLERS GREEN MODEL SHIPS & YACHTS SHIP MODEL BROKER I w ill he lp yo u Bu y, Se ll , Repair or Comm iss ion a model

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SEA CHESTS Museum quality, handmade/painted, customized, personali zed choice of image/lettering, size, style & colors. ln fo pac ket, $2.00 refundabl e.

Ould Colony Artisans P.O. Box 978, Farmington, ME, 04938 Tel: 800-4 14-7906 web site: www.ou ldcolonyartisan.com

THE SKIPJACK CLOCK AND BAROMETER 5-l/2"h x 5"w. Dial: 2-3/8". Base: 5.5"h x 3" w.

Base Diameter: 3-1/4".

This unique desktop combination clock/barometer is housed in one traditionally forged brass case and swivels 360 degrees horizontally and vertically in a pe1fectly balanced and integrated gimbal so that on one side is the clock and on the other side a baromete1'. The aneroid barometer is calibrated for altitudes to 3,5 00 'above sea level. The National Maritime Historical Society spin is embedded into the brass base. This classy and compact instrument makes an excellent presentation no matter on which side of the desk you happen to be sitting. Clock operates on one N battery.

Price: $240 + s/h*

Orders

tWW

6ei119 taken 6y ca.{(i119:

1-800-221-NMHS (6647) Ext. 0 or by mailing a check or money order payable to "NMHS"at NMHS, PO Box 68, Peekskill, NY 10566. *Please add $16.50 for shipping and handling SEA HI STORY l l 0, SPRING 2005

14 Hand Crafted Wooden Ship Models Ready to Di splay

31/2 Center Street (s h) Newburyport, MA 01950 978-462-7012 Catalog upon Re que s t or visit:

www.pielcraftsmen.com 5

The NMHS Gift Store Wear our logo and proclaim your support for NMHS Our NMHS logo features our flags hip Kaiulani embroidered in five colors.

Satisfaction 100% Guaranteed!

Washed-Cotton Cap Adams Optimum cap with adjustable leather strap and e mbroidered logo. One size fits all.

Colors clockwise from top left: Ston e, Khaki , Bl ack, Navy, Forest, Red, White. #LP101 $20.00 + $6.95 s/h

NMHS Mailing Labels Show yo ur support of NMHS with every letter yo u mail! NM HS has created a series of six images presented on six sheets of labels imprinted with yo ur mailing information. 6 sheets for $10.00

Lee Men's & Women's Denim Shirt Favorites of our staff and me mbers alike, th ese denim shirts are 100% cotton, with two-button adjustab le cuffs and wood-tone buttons. Double needle stitched. Colors : Medium Denim , Stone Bleach Denim.

Women's sizes : S-XL. #C01760 Men's sizes: S-2X #D01460 $41.50 + $6.95 s/h

Short Sleeve Sanded Twill Shirts for Men & Women 4 oz. 100 % combed cotton twill w ith embroidered NMHS logo. It is both soft and will wear forever. Generous cut. Choose from Wine, Navy,HunterGreen (Men) , White, Stone. Women's shirt has no pocket, logo on bottom edge of ri ght sleeve.

Men's sizes: S-3X #E09435 Women's sizes: S-XL #F09735 $39.75 + $6.95 s/h

Men's Outerbanks Pique Polo A time-tested classic. 100% combed cotton, twobutton pl acket with wood-ton e buttons. Hemmed bottom with side vents and dropped tail. Co lors: Navy, White, Wine, Chino. Sizes: S-3X. #Cl7499 $43.75 + $6.95 s/h

Order by calling 1-800-221-NMHS (6647), ext.O Or mail in your order to NMHS, PO Box 68, Peekskill NY 10566 and enclose your check made out to "NMHS." Allow 2 to 3 weeks for delivery.

OBITUARIES: Two Sailing Legends Off to Fiddler's Green Exy]ohnson Electa "Exy" (Search) Johnson died 19 November 2004 at 95. She and her husband, Capt. Irving Johnson, spent most of their lives at sea aboard their three ships-a schooner, a brig, and a ketch, each named Yankee. In the course of hundreds of thousands of sea miles, th ey took dozens of people around the world and inspired today's generation of traditional sailing ship mariners.

Born in Rochester, New York, in 1909, Exy Search graduated from Smith College in 1929. Returning from a summer in France aboard schooner Wanderbird, she met Irving Johnson, who was a member of the crew. They married in 1932 and, together, embarked on a long and extraordinary career under sail. Between 1932 and 1958 they took yo ung people to sea in their schooner Yankee and brigantine Yankee on seven circumnavigations. From 1958-1975, they sailed in Europe aboard their ketch Yankee. During their career, they sailed more miles than an astronaut's round trip to the moon. In 1976 they threw out their anchor, though they continued sailing with friends.

Exy was Auent in French and German and could communicate in six other languages. She wrote six books and numerous National Geographic articles about their Exy and Irving Johnson on the bow of brigantine Yankee voyages.

At her memorial service, brigantine Yankee's former mate, Eric Wolman recalled: "The Exy I remember from that period shopped for fresh food in many languages, and while at sea taught school to her son in the after cabin every morning, typed acco unts and correspondence in the afternoons, took sun and star sights and worked rhem, and stood the evening watch. A skill ful helmsman, she could converse whi le concentrating on her steering.

"One day the ship's company was invited to a cookout on Harbor Island in Muscongus Bay. Since the ship was behind schedule, Skipper dropped Exy and me off in Port Clyde with the dinghy to do some shopping. I had pored over the charts to memorize our route thro ugh the islands, about six miles, but from the unique perspective afforded by a 3-foot height of eye. We set off in a thick haze with a heavy overcast, little wind, some swell, and sprinkles of rain . Thus, the narrow passages between islands seemed confusingly wide because I could hardly see the nearest shores. I sat in the stern steering with the outboard, the ship's groceries stowed amidships. Exy was forward, lying in the bi lge with her back against the stem, sitting halfway up as if in bed, with an oilskin jacket pulled well over her head so that irs hood shielded her copy of Time magazine from the rain. She was completely comfortable in this environment and conscious of this interlude as a rare bit of time off: she looked up, smiled, and said, "Isn't this lovely?" !, -Robert P Joh nson

Captain Uli Pruesse ings, Captain Pruesse would study the weather to find the most Captain Ulrich Hans Wolfgang Pruesse died on 13 December favorable winds for a passage under sail. By avoiding the use of the 2004 after a short illness. He was sixty-one years old. Born in engine, he minimized fuel expenses and gave his passengers the Hamburg, Germany, to a seafaring father who sailed the clippers opportunity to experience the thrill of sailing a huge ship under of the famous Flying P Line and was president of the Hamburg sail power alone-an experience rarely found in today's passenger Maritime Academy, "Uli" Pruesse sai led boats from a young age. trade. Pruesse was known to sail the huge modern square-rigger After graduating from his father's school, Pruesse went to sea workoff the dock with engines on stand-by but nor engaged. ing in many types of cargo ships; he progressed rapidly and earned The captain ran a tight and happy ship. He was a skillful his master's papers for sailing unlimited tonnage worldwide.

His passion for sailing ships brought Capt. Pruesse explains sail theory and race tactics leader and teacher who could bring a crew of seventy passenger-vo lunteers to Uli to the Caribbean and to the world of to Star Clippers passengers and crew in 2003. race a 360-ft. four-masted ship efficiently. classic sailing yachts. Pruesse founded the In daily talks attended by dozens of Antigua C lassic Yacht Regatta in 1987 attentive passengers, he diagrammed and with a colleague from the Antigua Yacht explained sail theory and race tactics.

C lub. In 1998, as master of rhe modern He taught maneuvering, sail handling, barquentine Star Clipper, Pruesse created meteorology, safety-at-sea, and a dozens the Tall Ships" World Peace C up compeother topics with clarity, humor, and tition, a new class of the Antigua C lassic practical advice. He would advise his Yacht Regatta. passengers and crew, "you must love Uli loved to sail fast. H e has had every wave," and we did. !, Star Clipper charging along at 16- 1/2 -Charles A. Byrne knots under sail. On transAtlantic crossSEA HISTORY 110, SPRING 2005

7

join Us in Historic Savannah, Georgia, for NMHS's Annual MeetingHeld jointly with the North American Society for Oceanic History, 19-21 May 2005

T

he Society's 2005 Ann ual Meeting wi ll be held joinrly wirh rhe NorrhAmerican Society for Oceanic History (NASOH), giving our members rhe unique opportunity of enjoying a rhreeday conference of papers, presentations, and panels addressed to North American Maritime History-the Southern Connection.

NASOH is a membership o rganization of maritime and naval historians, underwater archaeologists, museum professionals wirh a maritime focus, sh ip preservarionisrs, srudents, sailors, and independent scholars interested in maritime history.

The meetings will be held ar rhe University of Georgia's Continuing Education Center located in Savannah's historic disrricr nexr to rhe Visitor's Center and Savannah History Museum.

In addition to NMHS's annual business meeting Saturday morning May 2 l sr, rhere will be a full age nda of tours and receptions, and we will enjoy a low country boil ar Forr James Jackson Historic Landmark. We are invited to a receprion ar a beautifully

restored historic home on one of Savannah's oldest squares and a reception in rhe Savannah History Museum. Tours (by boar and bus) wi ll explore rhe porr, modern porr faciliries, rhe Factor's Walk Retainin g Wal l, Tybee Island, Forr Pulaski National Monument, and Forr Screven.

The full 3-day progra m, including co ntinenral breakfast each morning, a box lunch on Thursday, rhe boar tour, and rh e receptions is $ 175 per perso n. Saturday's acriviries of rhe bus tour to Tybee Island, Fon Pulaski National Monument, and Fon Screven are $25. The low country boil and Awards Ceremony ar Farr Jam es Jackso n National Histo ri c Landmark is $50 per person.

Please make your reservations early. See rhis issue's cover wrapper for derails and register by filling in rhe form on rhe arrached envelope, by calling NMH S ar 1-800-221-NMHS (6647), exr. 0, or by e-mail to j.miller@seahistory.org. Updared information will be on our website ar www.seahisto ry.org.

we Look Forward to Seeing You in Georgia!

8

SEA HISTORY 110, SPRING 2005

OceanBoundfor History A Continuing Education Program for American History Teachers aboard schooner Westward, 3 - 9 August 2005

'

The National Maritime Historical Soci- their hand ar navigarional methods used in ety, Ocean Classroom Foundation and the age of sail. Hands-on activiries combi ned Hurricane Island Outward Bound School with fo rmal readi ngs and discussion will give are pleased to announce a new cominuing reachers a unique and powerful undersrandeducarion program for middle school and ing of maririme histo ry and culrure.

This program is produced by a coali high schoo l reachers of American histo ry.

OceanBound for History will help reach- rion of America's leading organizarions in ers discover rhe fundamental imporrance of maririme history, shipboard educarion, and maririm e history in rhe reaching of American history as a whole, introduce them to rhe values of experiential learn ing, and enable rhem to apply rhese new insights in rheir classrooms.

The program will rake place aboard schoo ner Westward, sailing in rhe G ulf of Maine wirh selecred port stops relevanr to our discussions of maritim e history. The curri culum will focus on how rhe seemingly-isolared maririme histories that we discover on our voyage played an imporram role in rhe overall developmem of rhe experienrial learning. The design and implementarion of rhe academi c program will Un ired States.

Parriciparing fully in rhe life and op- be led by G len n Gord in ier, PhD, (Roberr erarion of the ship, rhe reachers will gain G. Albion Histo rian, Co-D irector, Mu npersonal insighr inro sh ipboard culwre, hi- son Insrirure ar Mysric Seaporr) and Sea erarchy, and work. Under the guidance of History's own Deirdre O'Regan. the professional crew, reachers wi ll learn the Schooner Westward is a 125-foot steel skills and ans of rradirional seafaring and rry srays' l schooner. Inspecred by rhe US Coasr

G uard and American Bureau of Shipping as a Sai ling School Vessel, she is cerrified fo r inrern ational voyages upon ocea ns. Ocean C lassroo m Foundarion operares Westward on a va riety of educarional programs under sai l. OCF programs have received national recognirion and awards, including the NMH S Walrer Cronkite Award for Excellence in Maritime Education. Hurri cane Island Outward Bound School has pioneered th e experiemial education movemenr in the US and abroad since 1964 and operates the longest-running sea education program 111 rhe narion.

CALL FOR APPLICANTS OceanBound for History is open to acrive teachers of American history at rhe middl e and high school level. Up to 24 reacherparticipams will be accepted rhrough a comperirive appli carion process. The 7-day program is free of charge and includes all instruction plus room and board . A $95 applicarion fee is required. For more informarion and to requesr an applicarion, conract Ocean C lassroom Fdn., 23 Bay Sr., Warch Hill , RI, 0289 1, 1-800-724-7245, e-mail: mail@oceanclassroo m.org. J:,

Newly Released!

SEA HISTORYS Guide to Maritime Programs & Cultural Sites in the New York Region "If you are a teach er or paren t wi th an interest in giving your children a learning adventure of a lifetime, this is the guide you've been looking for.

Easy to use w ith information abo ut shipboard programs."

- Barbara Freidrich, Teacher, Rockland County

"I want this guide in all my teachers' classroom s. Now I can make real decisions about our on-wa ter field trips. No more carniva ls or play lands for this school. We' re going sailing!"

-Felicita Santiago, Principal, PS 120, Queens O r der Your copy today !

Only $9.95 plus S &H Call 1-800-221-NMHS (6647) ext 0

SEA HISTORY 110, SPRJNG 2005

This project was mad e possible by the generous support of The Henry L. and Grace Doher ty Charitable Fow1dation, Inc.; The James A. Macdona ld Founda tion and the Port Authority of ew York & New Jersey

9

~~~.. ~~(PT/;~ CJUHb ~ut&

by Joseph F. Callo

OO

here have been more words written about Admiral ord Nelson than any other naval leader in history. ng this bicentennial year of the Barrie of Trafalgar, those words are multiplying fast. Penetrating that sheer volume of commentary to discover new relevance for the event and the man who changed history from the quarterdeck of HMS Victory will not be easy. Nonetheless, there is one generally neglected record of the Battle that represents a special perspective of the events of 21 October 1805 at Cape Trafalgar. That source is what Nelson himself said that day-his written and spoken words and his signals to his fleet. After two centuries, those words arguably remain the best source for insight into the event and the person described by American sea power prophet A.T. Mahan as: " [T)he one man who in himself summed up and embodied the greatness of the possibilities which Sea Power comprehends-the man for whom genius and opportunity worked together-to make him the personification of the Navy of Great Britain." 1 Following is a chronological sampling of Nelson's words, written and spoken as he changed history off the coast of Spain on the last day of his life.

** * "Form the Order ofSailing in Two Columns" "When Lying-to, or Sailing by the Wind, Bear Up and Sail Large on the Course Steered by the Admiral or that Pointed Out by Signal" At about 0600 on the morning of the Barrie, Nelson ordered the first two signals that directed the British fleet into combar. 2 Those first two signals were more important for what they didn't have to say than for what they actually communicated. In fact, Nelson's tactics for the coming battle were preset. In the weeks following his return to the British Mediterranean Fleet in September 1805, he repeatedly discussed his intentions with his subordinate ad-

Plan of the Commencement of the Battle of Trafalgar. This engraving appeared in The Life of Admiral Lord Nelson by Clarke and M'Arthur, published in 1809. The Clarke and M'Arthur work is considered the first serious biography ofNelson, and it became the basis for many ofthe subsequent Nelson biographies.

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mirals and captains. The tactics were then confirmed in Nelson's memorandum to his junior admirals and captains on 9 October.

As events turned out, the only change in the order of sailing from his memorandum was his ultimate use of two lines for his entry into combat, instead of three. That change was made because he had fewer ships for the event than he had originally anticipated.

Even more important than his captains' and admirals' grasp of his tactical plans was their clear understanding of his combat doctrine-that over-arching understanding of how they should fight when the confusion of battle made signaling impractical.

That doctrine was expressed concisely in the 9 October memorandum: "[!Jn case Signals can neither be seen or perfectly under-

stood, no Captain can do very wrong if he places his Ship alongside that ofan Enemy. " 3 The fight Nelson foresaw was a close-in,

101( 11111 • J_~,,,,

fJ'<m·~·

Rear-Admiral Sir Horatio Nelson, 1758-1805, by Lemuel Francis Abbott (c. 1760 - 1803), 1198-9. One of the most famous portraits ofNelson, painted in 1798-9, after the Nile, from an earlier sketch.

The artist did not know that Nelson's head wound meant he could on/,y wear his hat tipped back offhis forehead.

~

~~

smashing, pell-mell struggle between his 27 ships of the line and the 33 ships of the Combined Fleet, with the British captains relying on their own judgment to pursue Nelson's aggressive doctrine once combar began.

***

I

''May the Great God, whom I worship, grant to my Country, and for the benefit of Europe in general, a great and glorious Victory; and may no misconduct in anyone tarnish it; and may humanity after Victory be the predominant feature

CO U RTESY JOSEPl-I 1:. CALLO

10

SEA HISTORY 110, SPRJNG 2005

in the British Fleet. For myself, individually, I commit my life to Him who made me, and may his blessing light upon my endeavours for serving my country faithfully. To Him I resign myself and the just cause which is entrusted to me to defend. Amen. Amen. Amen."

Nelson entered this prayer into his diary in Victory's great cabin

"England Expects That Every Man Will Do His Duty"

As the morning progressed, the two rough ly-formed columns of the British Fleet were sailing east, driven by a west-northwesterly breeze that barely rippled the surface of the water. As the British bore down on their northbound opponents, the French-Spanish force positioned its ships into a sligh tly arced line-ahead formation , with the concave side facing during the morning before the Barthe British and a number of ships rie. Ir's nor surprising that one of the most noteworthy things he wrote on in small clusters towards the rear.

Because of the light winds, that day was a prayer. The son of a parson , his religious beliefs were inthe fleets were approaching one another slowly, sailing only at about grained from yo uth. three knots. Around 1140, Nelson Nelson's reference to trusting decided he had time to send a sighis life "to Him who made me," was nal "to amuse the fleer." He ordered a cons istent theme througho uL his his signal officer, then-lieutenant li fe, marked with a spiritual expeJohn Pasco, to send "England Conrience he underwent while homefides Thar Every Man Will Do His ward bound from the Far East in Duty." Pasco pointed out that the HMS Dolphin. Nelson, then just COURTESY T ll E ARCHIVES & COLLECTIONS SOC IETY, ONTAR IO fl f seven teen and recovering from a This rendition ofNelson's famous signal sentfrom HMS Vicag hoist wo uld be shorter i "co nnear-fatal bout of malaria, later de- tory was published in The Boy's Own Paper in 1885. fides" were replaced with "expects."

(In rhe Royal Navy's signal codescribed his deep depression during the voyage and how ir eventually dissolved with a sudden "glow book of the time, the word "confides" had to be spelled out, but of patriotism." He also described how his reverie ended with the the word "expects" was in the codebook). Nelson agreed, and the co nvi cti on that "I wi ll be a hero! And confiding in Providence, seemingly casual but now-famous "England Expects That Every Man Will Do His Oury" was run up Victory's signal hal yards.

I will brave every danger."

Like so much of what Nelson wrote, his Last Prayer was * * * "See how that noble fellow Collingwood carries composed-perhaps consciously-with a wide aud ience in his ship into combat. " mind. His considerable ego and his political instincts to ld him that his words wo uld become part of the Barde's historical re- Cuthbert Coll ingwood headed the British leeward line to the south cord, regardless of the outcome. One of the clues to that was the of Nelson, and as the fleets approached one another, his newlyfact that he wrote two copies of the prayer to reduce the chances coppered flagship HMS Royal Sovereign was the first to reach the enemy line. When Nelson made this comment on his quarterthat it wou ld be lost in the Bartle. deck, he surely was sharing the satisfaction Collingwood had in * * * ''I'll give them such a dressing as they never had before. " ''I shall being the first into Barde. Their friendship had been sealed in the 1780s, when both commanded not, Blackwood, be satisfied with anything short oftwenty. " Captain Henry Blackwood of HMS Euryalus was on Victory's frigates in the West Indies. It quarterdeck with Nelso n for ;i considerable length of rime during strengthened as their careers the morning of the Bartle. Two of the admiral's comments that progressed over the years.

In the weeks before the Blackwood recalled underscored Nelson's commitment to achieving an overwhelming victory over the Combined Fleer. Ship-to- event, Nelson had worked ship battles in the age of fighting sail rarely proved decisive. As the hard to be sure that his friend Bartle ofTrafalgar approached, Nelso n recognized that the Admi- and second-in-command knew ralty, the political leadership at Whitehall, and the British public that he had total confidence in needed a clear-cur victory over Napoleon. Nelson understood, as him, very typical of the way he had before the Battles of the Nile and Copenhagen, the broad Nelson treated his subordinate z g z admirals and captains. Collingstrategic implications of a victory in combat. g As events were leading up to Trafalgar, Nelson blockaded rhe wood and the British captains, French Mediterranean Fleet in a way thar lured them into decisive referred to by Nelson as his combat, rather than kept them in port. When the French finally "Band of Brothers,'' did not broke our of Toulon, sortied to rhe West Indies, and then joined disappoint their commanderwith their new ally, Spain, in a combined fleet in Cadiz, Nelson's in-chief in com bar.

Just after noon, Collingopportunity for a confrontation was final ly at hand. When the wood smashed through the battle was over, 18 Combined Fleet ships had been sunk or capCombined Fleer about two-thirds Rear-Admiral Cuthbert Collingwood tured; no British ships were lost or taken.

SEA HISTORY 110, SPRING 2005

11

The Battle of Trafalgar, 21October1805, by Joseph Malford William Turner (1775 - 1851), 1824.

Tttrner's only royal commission, showing Vicrory losing her Joretopmast, was ordered by George JV in 1822. ft combines a series of incidents into an evocation ofevents which displeased most naval officers and proved highly controversial when it was delivered in 1824 to form a pair with de Loutherbourg's Glorious First of June. In 1829, the King gave both paintings to the Greenwich Hosp ital. from its van . As he passed under the stern of the Spanish Santa Ana, Aagship of one of the French-Spanish subo rdinate admirals Vice Admiral Ignacio de Alava, Royal Sovereign fired a do ubleshotted broadside through the stern of th e Spanish ship. A devastatin g, raking blow, it killed or wounded an estimated 400 men.

Soon after, Nelson broke through the middl e of th e Co mbined Fleet's line. While passing under the stern of Bucentaure, Aagshi p of the French-Spanish co mmander- in-chief Vice Admiral Pierre Vi lleneuve, Victory fired a 68-pound carron ade loaded with round shot and a keg of 500 musket balls. 1he effect matched Royal Sovereign's opening blow.

* * *

"This is too warm work, Hardy, to last long. " As Victory entered the Fray, she took a heavy po undin g, and Nelson's comment ro his Aag captain 1homas Hardy was proph eti c.

Although the bat tle would go o n for hours, Nelso n's leadership on Victory's quarterdeck was about to end abruptly.

The French Redoutable mostly aimed round shot at Victory's masts and ri gging. Musket balls from sharpshoote rs in the rigging and tops of her closest adversary were creating havoc on Victory's exposed decks. At one point, Nelso n's secretary, who srood o nl y a Few Feet from him , was cut in two by a cannon ball. 1l1en, at abo ut 1330, Nelso n him self was stru ck by a musket ball that entered his left shoulder and lodged in hi s spine. H e fell to hi s kn ees, ini tiall y supporting h imself with his left arm and then col-

12

laps ing o n his left side. A marine and two seamen rushed ro lift their Fall en leader. Captain Hardy, who had been pacing the same area of the quarterdeck as Nelson, expressed the hope that the admiral was not badly wo unded .

* * *

"They have done for me at last, Hardy.

My backbone is shot through. " From the m oment he was shot, Nelso n knew he would not survive . Although he was in great pain , he was surprisingly lucid during the several hours that passed before he died. As he lay in Victory's cockp it and the combat raged above, initially his pri mary concern was the progress of the Battle-but, then, he began ro focus o n other matters.

* * *

''Doctor, I am gone. I have to leave Lady Hamilton, and my adopted daughter Horatia, as a legacy to my country."

During the morning befo re combat started, Nelson prepared a codi cil ro his will . The document shows that his paramour Lady Emma H amil ron and their daughter Horatia were very much o n his mind during his last morning of life. Now, they were in his thoughts as he lay in Victory's cockpit. In the codici l he had written that he was leaving Lady Hamilron as "a Legacy ro my King and Country," citing her services ro Britain whi le the wife of the British ambassador ro the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies. Now he was repeating the same idea ro the ship's surgeon William Beatty.

SEA HISTORY 110, SPRING 2005

Ir was his lasr effort on Lady Hamilton's behal( The pension was never granted by rhe King, however, and rhrough proAigare livi ng after Nelson's dearh, Emma died in poverty in France in 1815 .

Horatia was not, as Nelso n suggested, adopred; she was his biological daughter by Lady H amilton. In his lasr lener to H o ratia, written only days before rhe Barde of Trafalgar, he had put prerenses aside: "Receive my dearest Horatia rhe affectionate parental blessing of yo ur Father." In his fin al ho urs, Nelson's suffering was no doubt increased profoundly by the realizarion rhar he would nor live to enjoy a furure with Emma and th eir daughrer.

surprisingly calm. Nelso n had come to terms wirh his fare, and true to form, he was aim ing his words beyond his immediate audience-in rhis case, far beyond.

* ** "lhank God I have done my duty. "

During his last moments, Nelson also focused on the subjecr rhar was ar rhe heart of his life-his d uty. From rhe earliest stages of his career, Nelson's perception of d uty drove his actions. Because he believed so strongly rhat he was rhe final determiner of where his duty lay, he was often in serious conflict with his seniors at ** * the Admiralty and Whitehall.

"You can do nothingfor me.,, Nelson's ongoing process of dePeriodically, Docror Beatty fin ing his d uty, cul m inating at rerurned to ane nd to Nelson. rhe Barde ofTrafalgar, provides Ar one point, Nelso n pointed us wirh a fasc inating case hisour rhe hopelessness of his own to ry o n rhe natu re of effective condition and told Beatty to The Death of Nelson, 21October 1805, by Arthur William D evis leadership. Ir also m akes Nelanend to rhe other wounded (1763 - 22), 1807. Captain 1homas Hardy stands over Nelson with son's perfor mance ar rhe Bartle men in the cockpit. Ir was typ- Walter Burke, the purser, by the pillow; his steward, Chevalier, Looks ofTrafalgar-indeed his entire ical Nelso n, a leader who, de- at Dr. Beatty who feels far the pulse. On the Left, the Reverend Alex- life-surprisingly relevant to spite being a strong disciplinar- ander Scott, Nelson's chaplain and secretary, finally stops rubbing his our own lives and times. ..t ian, was constantly attentive ro chest to relieve the pain. the welfare of his seamen. His Notes: acr of sending the surgeon back to anend to o thers reprised his 1A. T. Mahan, 1he Life ofNelson (London: Sampson Low, Mamon, action during the Battle of the Nile in 1798. During rhar com- & Co., 1897), Preface, (reprinted by Naval Insrirure Press, Anbat, he was raken below to rhe cockpit, bleeding profusely from napolis, 2001 ), xv. a painful head wound. When rhe ship's surgeon rushed to anend 2Ships' logs and orher accounts of rhe barde di ffer on rhe exact to him, Nelson declared rhar he would rake his turn among rhose riming of events.

3Sir N icho las H arris Nicolas, ed ., 1he Dispatches and letters o/Vice who had been previously brought below.

Nelson's concern for his seamen was one of his uairs rhar Admiral lord Viscount Nelson, Vol. VII (H enry Colburn, London, earned an emorional loyalty, nor only from his officers, bur from 1846) , 91; (reprimed by Charham Pub!., London, 1998). rhe ordinary seamen as well. In an era known for brural discipline RADM Joseph F Callo, USNR (Ret.) has written three books and and recruirmern with press gangs, rhar emo rio nal arrachmenr to numerous articles about Nelson and was the US editor fa r Who's a Aag officer was un usual . Ir undoubredly was a "force mulriplier" Who in Naval History. for Nelson during the chaos of combat.

* * * ''Anchor, Hardy, Anchor. " During rhe morning of rhe Battle, heavy swells were rolling in from rhe west. An experienced seaman, Nelson knew rhar the swells presaged an approaching storm. He was thinking beyo nd rhe com bar ro the threat rhar would fo llow the presumed victory of his Beer. As it turn ed out, the concern Nelso n expressed was well-fo unded. For several days after rhe Battle, Cape Trafalgar was torn by a savage storm that destroyed a number of rhe British prizes and nearly destroyed the Brirish Beer as well.

"I shall soon be gone. ,,

** * "I have not been a great sinner. ,,

As death approached, Nelson spoke to Victory's chaplain AJexander Scorr of more spiritual maners. In his final moments, he voiced a self-assessm ent rhar was surprisingly humble and nor so

SEA HISTORY 110, SPRING 2005

Nelson

& Napoleon

at the National Maritime Museum, London This summer, rhe National M aritime Museum will unveil an exhibit ten years in rhe making to commemorate the 200 rh anniversary of the Barrie of Trafalgar. Ir explores together the lives of these rwo fam ous adversaries and will run fro m 7 July to 13 November 2005.

Advance tickers are available onlin e th rough www.nmm. ac.uk/rickers. For mo re info rmation, visit: www.nmm. ac.uk or phone: 020 8858 4422 or 020 83 12 6565 (recording). For information on events throughout the year, visit: www.SeaBrirai n200 5.co m.

13

by Peter A. Huchthausen

0

n 30 August 1939, the German express passenger liner SS Bremen slipped her moorings on Manhattan's West Side and sailed out of New York-embarking on a 3 1/ 2 -month long,

berween New York and the major European pons of Southampton, Cherbourg, Bremerhaven, and Hamburg. Germany snatched a substantial but brief lead in this race in 1929 with the new oil-burn-

Norddeutscher Lloyd's SS Bremen

life and death running escape from British warships. This episode symbolized the fading hope on both sides of the Atlantic of avoiding a return to unrestricted submarine warfare at sea.

The express liners of the 1920s and 1930s were a means of transportation for businessmen, statesmen, artists, and ordinary travelers alike who demanded swift and efficient rransAtlantic crossings. In the 1930s popular luxury travel berween the Americas and Europe focused on the rapid crossings achieved by the express service of British, French , and German liners

ing, steam-turbine rwins SS Bremen and SS Europa, owned and operated by Norddeutscher (North German) Lloyd. The populariry of these new German liners demanded a third ship to meet the strenuous requirements of the express route.

Norddeutscher acquired an older liner, the 32,35 0-ton Columbus, whose keel had been laid during World War I and had been retained by defeated Germany only through a loophole in the Treary of Versailles. They modified her stacks to resemble her running mates and thus increased their New York express to a trio. By 1932 the three exp ress liners had captured Passengers relax in one ofSS Bremen's first-class cabins. more than rwelve percent of the North Atlantic passenger service. During this same period, the forward thinking Nordde utscher Lloyd also prepared for the advent of transAtlantic air travel by sponsoring the first airship company, Deutsche Zep plin-Reederei, which operated the passenger carrying Graf Zeppelin and ill-fated Hindenburg.

Bremen was built by the A. G. Weser Shipyard

14

Bremen, Germany. She was designed to make regular cross ings in five days averagi ng 27 knots. Bremen easily took the Blue Ribband world speed award on her m aiden crossing in July 1929, sailing from Cherbourg breakwater to New York's Ambrose Channel lightship in just over four days. Averaging 27.9 kn ots, she broke the record of the British Mauretania. To clin ch her reputation, Bremen returned from New York to Plymouth (Eddystone Light) averaging 27.92 knots. No maiden round trip with rwo record-breaking crossings had ever been accomplished. German engineers disclosed that Bremen's speed was attained with less than her full design power capabili ry, claimed to be 92,500 shaft horsepower. Bremen was powered by rwenry watertube boilers driving steam turbines linked by si ngle, direct drive reduction gears to four propellers. The ship inco rporated the new bulbous bow, designed by American Admiral David Taylor, which improved flow and enhanced speed. Bremen displaced 51,656 tons with a draft of 32 feec. She was built with positive stabiliry under all loading conditions and designed to sustain total flooding of any rwo adjacent compartments. Bremen carried 1,600 tons offuel within a double hull and could load 9,500 tons of fresh water. She was equipped wi th the most modern safery systems, including a fire protection system designed to New York Port Authoriry standards. Her life boats could hold 200 mo re than the total co mplement of passengers and crew. Bremen was also equipped with a Heinke! flo atplane, which was catapulted from a revolving rail located berween the stacks. The plane co uld be launched up to 600 miles from the destination to deliver prioriry mail. By 1935, with the improvem ent of wireless and telephone communications, the floatplanes were discontinued and the catapult was replaced by a large garage for storing automobiles and excess baggage. Many of Bremen's design aspects were unique; for example, the swimming pool was built directly above the keel below "G Deck" and surrounded by rwo boiler rooms, which kept it sufficiently warm to use in winter.

A first class restaurant was placed berween the stacks on the sun deck boasting a glorious panoramic view of the sea.

111

SEA HISTORY 110, SPRING 2005

When Bremen was scheduled to arrive on her maiden voyage in July 1929, rhousands of New Yorkers had garhered by midday on rhe srreers and roofs-anywhere rhey mighr find a view-to wirness her arrival. In addirion, ir was nor unusual ro see celebriries, leading screen acrors, European royalry, and caprains of indusrry wriring glowing words in rhe personal guesr book of Bremen's firsr masrer, Co mmodore Leopold Z iegenbein . Ir was popular for New York luminaries to receive gilded invira rions to splendid arrival dinners aboard Bremen, Aown our on rhe mail floarplane a full day before rhe ship arrived.

A lirrle-known impacr of Bremen on America's furure was rhar rhe designer of rhe posr-war SS United States, rh e fasresr passenger liner ever builr, used rhe co ncepr of configuring Bremen (and sisrer ship Europa) for use by naval rask forces in case of a milirary need for high-speed rransporrs. Cap rain William Drechsel, Norrh German Lloyd, longsranding chief superintendent in New York, provided the US Navy with the full blueprints and details of Bremen's operarions in the late 1930s, whi ch later inspired the design of SS United States. Bremen and Europa's des ign inco rporated simple beauty-emphasizing a more pure form of modern grandeur-ro free rravelers from decades of suffocatio n under th e more rraditional grand ampleur luxury of rheir predecessors. According to passenger liner experr John Maxtone-Grahame, "No rddeutscher Lloyd were primarily concerned wirh speed rarher rhan size; rhey sought an interior decor ending rhe Wagnerian Teuronic phase of La Belle Epoq ue. Bremen was to have puriry of form , beaury of line, and superior quality of the mate rial." While rhe lines of rhe previous speed record holder Mauretania had ofren been compared to those of a cruiser, rhe new German rwins, low in silhouerre and srreamlined, wirh raked bows and srubby sracks, resembled oversized desrroyers. She proved rhar funcrion didn'r have to supS EA H!STORY 110, SPRTNG 2005

SS Bremen's Boiler Room

plant luxury; rhey could co-exisr.

The Norddeurscher Lloyd liners became rhe model for rransArlantic express rravel and so rriumphed for several glorious years. Then, Adolf Hider came to power, and German popularity abroad began to wane. As rhe Nazis srepped up rheir ap palling behavior in Europe, SS Bremen began to arrracr confrontarion on rhe US side of her roure. In July 1935, a handful of anri-Nazi acrivisrs forced rheir way aboard Bremen rhirry minures prior to sailing from New York C iry. While rhe passengers and guesrs reveled in sem i-sobriery, demonsrrators surged to rhe bow and hauled down rhe Nazi swasrika flag from rhe jack sraff and tossed ir into rhe Hudson River.

Reacring to rhe incident, an enraged Adolph Hirler decreed rhar rhe Nazi party swasrika flag would become rhe new German narional srandard.

By 1938, German shipping companies were ordered to release all Jewish crewmembers-many were replaced wirh parryloyalisrs, especially in rhe service deparrments as srewards, wairers, and galley sraff, rh e hea rr of a passenger ship's work force .

Thar summer, rhe unmasking of a major Nazi spy ring in America spiced up rhe hisrory of SS Bremen and her sisrer Europa. Dr. Ignarz Theodor Grieb! ended his long-running espionage ring rhar had successfully purloined American defense secrers (among rhem rhe plans for rhe highly-prized Norden bombsighr) wirh his escape back to Germany aboard Bremen. Norwi rhsranding rhese aberrarions in Bremen's repurarion as a leading srar in rhe New York social scene, her high life continued and the spy scandal and Aag incidents we re soo n forgorren.

The golden era of luxury liner rravel ended abruprly on 25 Augusr 1939 when rhe German Navy High Command assumed co nrrol of all German merchant

15

shipping. The ships were ordered back to Germany or into neutral ports, catching Bremen in midArlantic bo und for N ew York. H er sixty-year old mas ter, Adolf Al1rens, co ntinued west to M anhattan to disembark his 1,770 passengers, including a group of high ranking German di plomars, and planned to sai l home immediately witho ut passenge rs. Pres ident Franklin D . Roosevelt, anti cipating war, was quietly assisting British naval intelligence to locate and track important ships, including SS Bremen. H e had received intelligence that Germany was preparing to convert m any of her most capable merchant ships into armed commerce raiders. On personal orders from the President, New York customs officials held the liner in port for for ty-eight hours, conducting derai led inspections fo r arms or contraband and testing all safety eq uipment. The W hite House was acting on a USCG il1(elligence report indicating that Bremen had a false deck beneath her swimming pool. It was reported that rhe deck could be opened at sea to gain access to a submarine to rake aboard weapons and contraband. The detentio n infuriated the G ermans, yet the New York C ustoms C ollector similarly detained several o ther forei gn liners to appear even-handed. O n

President Franklin D . Roosevelt personally ordered customs officials to stall Bremen's departure from New York in August 1939.

16

30 August, fo llowing two days of frustrating delays, the liner slipped her moorings and headed for the Verrazano Narrows.

After clearing Sandy H ook in blinding rain, topside lighting glowing normall y, the liner fe inted to the south. After steaming through the fading light for ten minutes, the 52, 000-ton liner ab ruptly extinguished all lights, cranked on 29 kn ots and turned north, using the fo ul wea ther to throw off wo uld-be pursuers. Fearing the worst, and no t entirely certain how lo ng the precarious peace wo uld las t, Captain Ahrens risked collision by running full ahead th ro ugh the th ick fog, without runnin g ligh ts or fog signals, and headed fo r Nova Sco tia. U nderway, steaming at top speed in heavy seas, Bremen's crew rigged boatswain chairs and life boats over her eighty-foo t sides and pail1(ed her hull, superstructure, and funn els cam o uflage haze gray m minimize rhe chances of being seen. Taking full advantage of overcast weather, Bremen scoo ted by H alifax, just narrowly missing the heavy cruisers HMS Berwick and H MS York. Bo th were equipped with reconnaissance float planes, but these we re gro unded by poor fl ying conditions. While steaming northward, Bremen dodged US Coast G uard C urter George W Campbell, passing unseen w ithin ten miles of o ne another on reciprocal courses in heavy seas and poor visibility.

Steaming northeast th ro ugh the D enmark Strait, Captain Ahrens risked the threat of icebergs and churned across the G reenland Sea, pas t Jan Maye n Island and into the Barents Sea. These were the days before radar navigation, so Ahrens

relied so lely on dead reckoning and celestial navigation (when possible). The ship maintained radio silence yet mo ni to red the il1(ernatio nal distress channels, the BBC and Ge rman state radio broadcast news. O n 3 September Ah rens learned that Germany and Britain were at war. Bremen entered M urmansk fo r fuel under the terms of the justconcluded, Hi tier-Stalin No n-Aggression Pact. Sh e bunkered, then suffered a frustrati ng three-m onth delay while most of the crew were sent overland to Leningrad and thence by ship to Germany. D uring this lo ng wait the Navy High Command formulated an escape plan by cam ouflaging Bremen electronically as the German fre ighter M/V H elene.

Ahrens, now Commodore Ahrens after his success in gaining safe haven with one of Germany's mos t p rized sh ips, sailed on 10 D ecember with a crew of only 124 m en and in a swirling blizzard. H e passed close

(top and below): Underway and over the side-crew members paint the ship's freeboard and stacks camouflage gray while the ship charged on at fa ll speed through the North Atlantic.

SEA HISTORY 110, SPRING 2005

aboard No rth Cape and wo rked his way south into the lengthening winter night.

The co mbined skills ofAhrens and his First Officer Eri c Warnin g brought the ship safely to Skagerrak. Waiting, again, for the visibili ty to deteriorate, they das hed south pas t Stavanger and across the No rth Sea before the British Home Fleet could catch them .

U nknown to Ahrens, the British submarine HMS Salmon was positioned directly in Bremen's track with her conning tower awash waiting for the liner's approach . Aboard Salmon, commanding offi cer Lieutenant Commander W 0 .

Bickfo rd poised to bring the liner to heel.

As Salmon's crew were preparin g their deck

gun , a German H einke! 70 seaplane, part of a three-plane escort, spotted the sub, fo rcing her to submerge. W hile still within to rpedo range and kn owing the fa mous liner was under armed aircraft escort, Bickford gave a parting look through his periscope and decided not to attack. H e was keenly awa re of the rules co ntained in the A n g l o-Ge rm a n Agreement Naval of 1935, which required a submarine to surface prio r (Above): The main engine control room was the heart ofSS Bremen s to hal ting a prize.

Bickford was later ¡ systems; (below): Captain Ahrens (left) on the bridge wing.

comm ended for letting Bremen pass.

Captain Ahrens continued south at full ahead tightly hugging the North Frisian Islands and steamed triumph antly inro the Weser River and hom e to Bremerhaven. In the ensuing wee ks, Propaganda Minister Joseph G oebbels, puffed with triumph, taunted that th e British blockade was ineffective. M eanwhile the British press cited the decency of their submarine co mmand er for not sinking an unarmed liner. Bremen's escape proved to be an epic maritime event that raised serious questio ns about Great Britain's grip on naval supremacy, and for a time, becam e a model fo r Allied and German maritime behavior. Non etheless, the war at sea nevertheless soon deteriorated in to unrestricted warfare. Bremen was des troyed by arson in Bremerhaven in M arch of 194 1. ,!, Captain Peter H uchthausen, a thirty-year US Navy veteran, served at sea and ashore in anti-submarine warfare and as naval attache in Yugoslavia, Romania, and the Soviet Union. H e has written six books on maritime history, including Hostile Waters, O ctober Fury and K-19 TI1e Widowmaker.

For the full account of SS Bremen's escape, look for:

Shadow Voyage-The Extraordinary Wartime Escape of the Legendary SS Bremen by Peter A. Huchthausen, scheduled for release by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. in April 2005 .

(ISBN

SEA HISTORY I LO, SPRJNG 2005

0-47 1-45758-2) 17

Maritime History on the Internet: Locating Library Books, Near and Far

by Peter McCracken n previous columns, we've explored Web sites related to specific topics. Books, however, remain a critical resource for doing effective research. In this issue, we'll explore ways of doing more effective book searches. Obviously, library catalogs-especially those for large academic institutions-are great for identifying print resources. Nearly every library collects books about local history, so if you live in Nebraska but are interested in the Confederate Navy, try searching catalogs of major libraries located in the South. When you identify a title that looks useful, turn next to your local library (an academic library, if not too far, will prove your best bet) to see if they offer it. Nearly every library has a catalog you can access over the Internet, so it's very easy to find out if a local library has the book you need-before you get in the car. Remember that, even if you don't have borrowing privileges at a particular library, most libraries will allow you to read and photocopy to your heart's content. Be sure to check their web site carefully: membership in the library's Friends group may give you borrowing privileges. You probably don't want to visit an academic library during their break, when library hours are dramatically reduced.

If you don't know which libraries near you have a particular book, try using Open WorldCat from OCLC or RedLightGreen from RLG. Both OCLC and RLG are large, cooperative "union catalogs," showing holdings for thousands of libraries around the world. OCLC and Yahoo! have teamed together to put Open WorldCat in the Yahoo! Search toolbar. You can use these features by downloading the free toolbar at http://www.odc.org/toolbar or by adding "site:openworldcat.org" to your Yahoo! Search terms at http://www.yahoo.com. Search RLG by going to http:// www.redlightgreen.org, then type in the title or author, and select a library. In each system, after you identify your location once, the system will list the closest libraries with that title.

Google has received lots of attention recently for its latest huge project-scanning in millions of titles from five major libraries. Until it's completed, though, try Project Gutenberg

I

(http://www.gutenberg.org), which has been scanning in-and actually proofreading-the texts of thousands of titles for years. Because the titles are individually selected, most important copyright-free works are already accessible online. Other projects, specifically Google Print and Google Scholar, will provide most researchers with more useful information, though both are still in beta testing. Google Print (http://print.google.com) allows one to search the full text of many recent works, with the publishers' approval. Google has many limits on the ability to page through or print these works, but this can be a good way to identify a useful title. Google Scholar (http://scholar.google.com) is better and different-it offers freely-accessible, full-text, scholarly articles.

Results can include relevant books (with links to OCLC's Open WorldCat, through the "Library Search" link), references, and full-text articles, in pdf or html formats. This qualifies as a supercool service and should not be ignored! Note that results from a basic Google search (http://www.google.com) won't include content from journals indexed through Google Scholar.

Another valuable free tool, "Library Lookup," allows you to jump from a book's Web page on Amazon.com to the library of your choice to see if that library owns the book. (You can start at any page that includes an ISBN in the description.) Do a web search for "library lookup" and follow the instructions; it's not difficult but a bit too complicated to explain in limited space here.

Finally, don't forget the old standby: interlibrary loan.

Libraries want to get you the resources you need. If they don't own it, they'll generally borrow it from a library that does. When they do, don't forget to thank them with praise and financial support!

Suggestions for other sites worth mentioning are welcome at shipindex@yahoo.com. See http://www.shipindex.org for a compilation of over 100,000 ship names from indexes to dozens of books and journals. ..t

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O 19

S~!\_ljstory sea. This admiral of the British Navy comman ea s 1ps n many t> es, espite ~s senou~ injunes.

Horatio Nelson was born in 1758, the sixth of 11 children. When Nelson was nine, his mother died. Nelson was sent away to a school headed by a parson who beat misbehaving students.

Undeterred by the risk he faced, Nelson may have stolen pears from the parson 's trees , doing so only because the other boys were afraid. Another time, the boy was nearly lost in a flooded river.

He reportedly told his grandmother, "I never saw fear. What is it? It never came near me ."

Nelson's uncle, a captain in the British Navy, stepped in to help the motherless family. He took his nephew to sea when the boy was 12. Just eight years later, Horatio became captain of his own ship. He ventured to many parts of the globe , including the island of Nevis, where he married Frances Nisbet in 1787.

When Britain went to war against the French in 1793, Nelson took command of the ship Agamemnon. In a battle at Calvi on the Mediterranean island of Corsica , he was blinded in one eye. Several years later at the Battle of Copenhagen , Nelson refused to obey a flag signaling him to stand down . He reportedly held a spyglass up to his blind eye and said that he could not see the signal. "I have only one eye,-1 have a right to be blind sometimes . .. I really do not see the signal! " he explained.

Through many battles, Nelson added to his reputation for fearlessness . In 1798, he defeated Napoleon's navy at the Battle of the Nile. In another sea battle with 27 Spanish ships, Nelson was able to hold off seven of the ships at once, capturing two of them. Nelson was wounded in another battle at Tenerife in the Canary Islands. Part of his arm was amputated to spare his life. Still , he returned to sea as soon as his health allowed.

In numerous other battles, Nelson proved himself a brave and daring commander. Nelson's final command , in 1805, was aboard a full-rigged ship of the line called the Victory. It carried a crew of 800.

The ship sailed to the coast of Spain to blockade French and Spanish ships off the Cape of Trafalgar.

History suggests that a French sniper at the Battle of Trafalgar was able to identify Nelson b his · · ·

Know the Ropes Rigsing- the a rra ngeme nts ot sails a nd lines-varies o n dittere nt s hips, de pe nding o n the purpose tor which the s hip is designed . The V/ctor::;, pe rha ps Ne lson's most fa mo us s hip, was a tu ll ri~ed s hip ot t he line, or battle s hip. O the r sailing ships since Nelson's t ime have been rigsea to serve as cargo s hips a nd Bs hing s hips. Some ships have been used tor mu ltiple purposes.

There a re two gene ra l catego ries o t s hip rigsing, sgua re rigsed a nd to re a nd aft rigsed .

O n to re and aft rigsed s hips, the sails run pa ra llel with the cente r o t the s hip t ram bow to ste rn . s hips with s9ua re rigsing ca rr~ sails that run pe rpe ndicula r, o r athwa rt.

Below are some ship rigging designs that were common in the century that followed Nelson's death. Unscramble the letters and write the name of each type of rigging.

hp is

deg rig

0-

_o_o _o_o __ rufo

tadmes

2.

scerhoon

rigb

- 0 --

qub'3e+ .

-0 - - - -

~ Write the circled letters in sequence to find the

~

.

name of Admiral Nelson's daughter.

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Credit: Rig silhouettes by Graham McBride, Courtesy Maritime Museum of the Atlantic, Halifax, Nova Scotia . Silhouettes taken from the Maritime Museum of the Atlantic's lnfoSheet 'Sailing Ship Rigs": http://museum .gov.ns.ca/mma/AtoZ/rigs.html

questions places aboard fOr Yet ancient and modern What use is a dog at fishers in the Mediterranean Sea like poodles and Portuguese water dogs, Some Portuguese water dogs are very elev â&#x20AC;˘ skill came in handy in retrieving fish that fell off h phones, some sa ilors and fishers also used these dogs shore. For hundreds of years, Portuguese water dogs and "clips. " While the hairdos might look a little prissy today, these clip better and stay warm .

The largest sea dog is the Newfoundland . This hardy breed devefo of Newfoundland in Canada . Fishers used them to pull nets on the beach a Newfoundlands are famous for their loyalty and lifesaving ability. During the early 18 dog may have saved Napoleon Bonaparte, the fo rmer emperor of France, from death in the Known as Bob, the dog pulled over 20 people from the Thames River in the 1830s. The Royaf Society gave Bob a gold medal. In the 1850s, a big Newfoundland named Wallace used his great paw help stop a mutiny on the clipper ship Dreadnought. Today Newfou ndland dogs are often used in search and rescue missions. Newfoundlands also sometimes serve as lifeguards, though they rarely blow a whistle or yell at people fo r running!

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Sinbad, the Coast Guard's Chief Dog

Once America 's most famous sea dog , salty Sinbad (shown above) served on the Coast Guard Cutter Campbell from 1937 to 1948. He participated in a famous fight against a German submarine. The star of a movie, biography, and comic book, Sinbad was much loved by his shipmates. Sinbad often got into troub le and made news around the world.

22

The dogs shown here were among hundreds of dogs and cats-along a few bears , penguins , and goats-that served as mascots in the U.S .

Coast Guard .

SEA Hf STORY l l 0, SPRING 2005

9

11

12

13

Napoleon's army

14

15

nake-like fish 16

command

D OWN 1. How to make a sail 2. Nelson 's relationship to Horatia 3. Be familiar with a routine 5. Emperor of France 6. Haircut for a dog 8. Nelson's rank 9. Ship Nelson commanded in 1793 14. Island where Nelson married Frances Nisbet

Sea History for Kids is sponsored by the

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SEA HISTORY 110, SPRING 2005

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SEA HISTORY l J 0, SPRJNG 2005

Newport Harbor Nautical Museum Photo Collection

by Glenn Zagoren

(Above): Yachts Ramona (left) and Seaward (right) off Newport Harbor, September 1919.

Ramona was a 109 ft. gaff tops'/ schooner designed by Nathaniel Herreshoff and built by the Herreshoff Mfg. Co., Bristol, RI. Seaward was a 106 ft. gaff tops'/ schooner, shown here with her fisherman stays'/ set to windward. Designed by John Alden, she was built

by Hodgdon Bros., East Boothbay, Maine, in 191 7. (background photo): A great editorial photo showing the arrival of the Industrial Age. As racing boats rush into Long Beach harbor, square-riggers and schooners sit idol at the dock in August 1928; Both photos by W. C. Sawyer.

The Nautical Photo Collection

T

he Newport Harbor Nau tical Museum in Newport Beach, California, boasts some unique items in its maritime collection, including a 3-foot long model navy destroyer commissioned by the King of Siam in 1918 and built by his silversmith our of 22kr gold and silver.

Some of the museum's most important and valuable holdings are the nearly 80,000 vintage photographs and negatives that make up their nautical photo collection. The two largest elements of the collection are the full works of W. C. Sawyer and Neil Beckner, both professional photographers whose combined works covered the Southern California maritime scene from 1897 to 1987.

These unparalleled collections visually document the Southern California coast and its vessels for nearly 100 years with a primary focus on pleasure craft. N umerous collections represent West Coast merchant and naval vessels, bur the Sawyer and Beckner holdings should be considered unique in their portrayal of recreational yachting in Southern California and its corresponding lifestyle. These images are considered rhe most comprehensive and complete photo archives of early West Coast sail and powerboats that exist. Yachts and yachtsmen, movie stars, clubs, races, small craft, boat yards and early harbor views are all significantly represented.

The W. C. Sawyer Collection William C. Sawyer began photographing rhe West Coast on sporadic visits from his home in Vermont beginning in 1897. In 1914 he moved to Los Angeles full time and continued to create his "Corinthian" history of the Southern California coast until his death in 1954. No orher photographer was able to so vividly and completely capmre the history of pleasure boating between Santa Barbara and San Diego. The Nautical Museum purchased the collection in 1988.

(Above) The race committee calling the finish, 2 September 1918.

Photo by Sawyer; (background photo) Yacht Mischief sailing off Newport Beach in July 1919-39' gaff-rig sloop, later converted to a Marconi rig. Designer/Builder: Fellows & Stewart, Wilmington, California, 1904. Photo by Sawyer.

The Neal Beckner Collection Neal Beckner focused on the Newport Harbor area. Whereas Sawyer's work is primarily from the first half of the 20th century, Beckner covered the last half, from about 1940 until his retirement in 1987. Beckner became a professional free-lance photographer in 1959. A member of the Transpac Yacht Club, he covered most of the Transpac races for the next 25 years. His main camera was a 4" x 5" Speed Graphic, an old standby among professional photographers. Most of the Beckner collection consists of 4" x 5" negatives with 8" x 10" and/or 5" x 7" print enlargements. ,!,

Glenn Zagoren is President and CEO ofthe Newport Harbor Nautical Museum; Museum location: 151 E. Coast Highway, Newport Beach, CA 92660. Ph. 949 673-3377; website: www.nhnm.org.

'lferoes ofthe SatUna 'lfavy: wtmam '1-Cenry 94.{fen

by William H. White

Over the next several issues of Sea History, we will examine some of the celebrated, as well as a few of the lesser known-but equally as important-men of the American Navy during the Age of Fighting Sail. By definition, this period encompasses the American War for Independence, the Quasi-War with France, the Barbary Wars, and, of course, the War of 1812. Ships powered by both wind and steam would begin to make an appearance at the end of the War of 1812. The American Civil War ushered in the era of the steam-powered warship, and the Age of Fighting Sail was over. Recall that USS Constellation, built in 1855, was the last ship the Navy built exclusively powered by wind.

The men who defined the American Navy, those who "set the bar" for the generations to follow, learned their profession the hard way-they simply went to sea. By watching and learning from their superior officers, they witnessed what was effective and what was not. There was no Naval Academy (that would not come until 1845), and midshipmen might sail for more than six years before winning a commission as lieutenant. Some never did and remained "passed" midshipmen until they went ashore.

The developing global world required a naval presence to protect trade, maintain peace, and show the new flag.

Without its intrepid commanders and officers, midshipmen and sailors, this country would not have been able to participate in the quest for trade that provided the capital it needed to get on its feet. Without a viable naval presence, it's unlikely our fledgling nation would have been unable to maintain the independence so dearly won in 1783. illiam Henry Allen was killed in battle off the coast of England during the War of 1812 as captain of US brig Argus. At the time of his death, he had already left his mark on the annals of naval history, having participated in three of the four wars that involved the American Navy at that time.

He was but twenty-six years old.

Born o n 21 October 1784, Henry Allen was the third oldest of seven children , bur only one of three to survive inro

W

William Henry Allen 28

adulthood. His parenrs designed his early schooling to prepare him for civilian life.

A Revolutionary War veteran, his father had decided that a military life was rife with dangers, hardships, and horrors, and he preferred that his first-born son avoid such. Henry Allen's mother died in 1797 when he was just thirteen , and his father remarried and began a new family with his second wife.

Ir was around this rime that Henry determined his life was too "quiet; " simultaneously, an undeclared war with France, rhe so-called "Quasi-War," had broken out. The headlines were filled with heroic evenrs, which undoubtedly shaped Henry's determination of how he would spend his life; not the least of these was the capture of the French frigate Insurgente by Captain Thomas Truxtun in USS Constellation (built in 1797). Growing up on the coast of Rhode Island also helped turn his eye to the sea.

After a year and more of begging, Henry's father and new mother finally acquiesced and, with the help of Rhode Island Senator Ray Greene, secured for their son a midshipman's warranr in April 1800. Henry was

fifteen. Ir was most likely his first assignmenr which shaped his enrhusiasm and high standard of personal morals; the frigate George Washington lay in Newport under the temporary command of Lieutenant Wilson Jacobs who, along with Sailing Master Augustus Hallowell and Lieutenant John Warner, rook young Henry under their wings and became his menrors and friends. His first letter home from Newport indicated that he "liked the situation very well."

1l1e ship, a merchantman bought by the Navy, was a dull sailer, small, and lightly armed; she carried twenty-four nine-pounders and eight six-pounders.

Underway from Newport in June 1800, rhe ship stood for Philadelphia, a cruise of short duration but with rhe distinct possibility of encountering a French cruiser along the way. Indeed, off Cape May, New Jersey, Washington's lookouts espied a sai l, and the ship bear ro quarters. After several hours they closed and hoisted me Stars and Stripes. Though they were shorthanded and the crew mostly landsmen, the men of the American frigate hoped for action.

Henry's letter derailing the event was clear in expressing their disappointment when the stranger raised the Cross of St. George, marking her as a British vessel. They would see no action on this trip.

Shortly after their arrival in Philadelphia, newly-commissioned Captain William Bainbridge rook command of the frigate. A merchanr captain before the war, SEA HISTORY 110, SPRING 2005

Bainbridge was used co a hands-on approach to running a ship. (Ir has been reported that during his time as a merchant captain, he put down two separate mutinies with just his fists and his wi ll.) In the Navy, he continually referred to his sailors as "damned rascals" and would not permit a sailor to speak directly to him . To the officers, however, he acted gentlemanly and he seemed more tolerant of his midshipmen. The impressionable fifteen-year-old Henry Allen wrote that Bainbridge " ... appeared to be a fine man, much the gentleman, and is reckoned a good seaman."

William Henry Allen served under Captain William Bainbridge (above) on USS George Washington as a teenaged midshipman.

With the unpleasantness with France ended, George Washington was tasked with delivering the tribute to the Dey of Algiers. Essentially a pay ment for protection , the Barbary States' corsairs wo uld not interfere with American merchant shipping in the Mediterranean as long as the money and goods were delivered in a timely fash ion. Most countries found it considerably cheaper to pay the bribes and tributes demanded than to fight an expensive war with the pirates. As further inducement for timely payment, several of the Barbary States already held as prisoners, sailors from captured American merchant traders; Algiers alone held 115 and set their ransom at $52 5,000 . Between the ransom and the tributes, th e American government would enrich the Dey by over $642,000; this was a staggering amount for the nearly-destitute administration, still trying to recover from a protracted War

SEA HISTORY 110, SPRING 2005

for Independence and the Quasi-War with fire power, Bainbridge hove to. The BritFrance. Considering that the US govern- ish hailed, identified themselves, and rement was three years behind in payments sumed their own cruise. It was this type and their ships continued to be attacked, of humiliating treatm ent that surely lit the President Adams chose to pay the tribute embers of resentment that would, in fewer and ransom to allow Am erican traders ac- than a dozen years, burst into the Aames of cess to the profitable Mediterranean Basin. hatred, both in America and in the breast of William Henry Allen.

Bainbridge was assigned co deliver it.

Henry Allen had already estab li shed Once in Algeria with the tribute suchis own sense of conduct and morality. cessfully delivered, the Dey commandeered Observing those around him , including his Bain bridge's ship to deliver Algerian tribute commanding officer, he set high standards to Constantinople. While Bainbridge clearof conduct for him self and maintained a ly had little choice in acceding to the Dey's strong interest in personal honor, even as a demands-his ship was anchored under the fifteen-year-old midshipman. He took his guns of the Dey's fortress-the humiliating studies seriously and quickly grasped the task further stiffened H enry Allen's resolve elements of navigation, astronomy, and to never be put in a position which would seamanship. Practice at the "great-guns" demean his country or his Navy.

Perhaps the sin gle event that defined provided him the opportunity to develop a high level of competence in the arr and Henry Allen's short career in the Navy was the notorious Chesapeake I l.eopard inci science of naval gunnery.

An encounter with the English ship- denr. In 1807, Allen was a freshly-minted of-the-line, HMS Dragon, framed what lieutenant on the frigate USS Chesapeake. soo n developed into a strong resentment Commodore James Baron was riding for the British , fueling Henry's deepening the ship to the Mediterranean where he "grudge" against the country which would wou ld take over the US squadron. Masbeco me his own country's enemy and ulti- ter Commandant Charles Gordon was in command and, through a series of cirmately responsible for his death.

At first light one morning, about three cumstances, sailed from Hampton Roads weeks out from the Delaware, the look- with an untrained crew, lumbered (poorly outs announced that several large British stowed) ship, and, most significantly, guns warships were in sight. One of them gave that were nowhere near ready to fire. The chase to the lumbering ex-merchantman , 50-gun ship, HMS leopard, confronted firing a gun to leeward after hoisting the the frigate off the Virginia Capes, seeking English ensign. 111e American ship an- some Royal Navy deserters. Commodore swered her gun and hoisted the American Baron replied to a none-roo- politelyAag bur did not heave to as the British had worded request that he heave to and alexpected. In a move that was both as ton- low a boarding parry to search for the ishingly arrogant and highly illegal, On board USS Chesapeake (below), Henry Allen the Royal Navy vessel then fired a got off the only shot against HMS Leopard as the loaded gun at the American warship British forced them to heave to and submit to being to bring her to; the British had no boarded. ft was a defining moment in Allen's Life right to stop the warship of a friendand also earned him accolades from his superiors. ly nation.

Bainbridge crowded on sai l to escape and received another offering from HMS Dragon. So far neither shot had struck home, as the ships were too far apart. The chase continu ed for seven hours, but in the end, the inevitable happened-with the American frigate in range, Dragon fired a shot "dose on board of us," as an outraged Henry Allen wrote to his family. Facing overwhelming

29

COURTESY Tll E /\IARINERS' MUSEUM

"USS United States versus HMS Macedonian " As first lieutenant of the US frigate United States (depicted in the foreground) when they captured HMS Macedon ian, William H enry A llen was p ut on board the new p rize to sail her back to N ew York. (Painting by Arthur N Disney, Sr.)

miscreants with an equally sharply-worded denial of their existence. Whereupon Leopard rounded up and fired three broadsides inro rhe American warship. With his battery useless, Baron surrendered to the British ship. An armed search party boarded, mustered the American crew, found rheir four sailors, and departed, leaving rhe cruelly-wounded frigate wallowing in rhe swells of rhe Atlantic-her crew and officers humiliated.

Henry Allen's role in this event made him a legend , advanced his professional reputation tremendously and gained for him enormous honor; using a hot coal from the galley camboose, he had fired the only shot fired by Chesapeake immediately prior to Baron's surrender. This act won him a multitude of career opportunities with the likes of John Rodgers, James Lawrence, and others-each members of the court martial board that tried and convicted Baron, Gordon, the Marine captain, and the ship's gunner. Allen declined each one, preferring to stay with Stephen Decatur, rhe hero of rhe Tripoli War (Barbary Wars) who now commanded Chesapeake.

Decatur maintained a tight ship and employed Allen in training his crew to a high level of excellence in gunnery. Nei-

30

ther man ever forgot rhe dreadful and humiliating events of that June day in 1807.

When Stephen Decatur was given command of US frigate United States in February of 1809, he req uesred Henry Allen as his first lieutenant. Lieutenant Allen became responsible for bringing rhe heavy 44-gun frigate out of ordinary in rhe Washington Navy Yard. War with England was looming; the repercussions of rhe Chesapeake/Leopard incident had only been serried with England some four years after rhe event and the taste was still bitter in many American mouths. American sailors were still being pressed into the Royal Navy without regard for their citizenship, and the US Navy was still held in some contempt by England. Decatur took his big frigate to sea in Commodore Rodgers' squadron within days of the declaration of war. An uneventfu l cruise saw rhem back in Boston in August where Rodgers, Decatur, and Bainbridge were each assigned squadrons comprised of the cream of rhe fleet. Rodgers and Decatur returned to sea in October. Under Decatur's command, United States and US brig Argus headed sourheasr while Rodgers sailed due east.

After a few days, Decatur detached the brig and cruised independently, his pref-

erence. Several days later, some 550 miles south of the Azores, he spotted, engaged, and captured the British frigate Macedonian in a 11/ 2 hour barde. After repairing his prize to a seaworthy stare (ir took two weeks), he sem her to Newport under the command of Lr. Allen. This was another feather in Allen's cap and one which led directly to his command of the US BrigArgus.

Stephen Decatur served as an important mentor for Henry Allen who served as his first lieutenant on USS United States.

SEA HISTORY 11 0, SPRING 2005

Foll owing an unsuccessful cruise to the South Adantic under Captain Arthur Sinclair, Argus arrived in New Yo rk in January 1813 needing a complete refi t.

Th e next time she put to sea, it wo uld be under the command of Lieutenant All en who had been tasked with the refi t of the ship . W ith the pressing need fo r officers and sailo rs in the "Lakes," Allen had been ordered to send fifty of his crew and several officers and midshipmen to augm ent the New York gunboat flotillas-a n o rder that left him too shorthanded to effect a timely resto ration of his command. With the help of his former commander and mento r, Stephen Decatur, Allen begged and borrowed men from other ships, including United States, Chesap eake, and john Adams.

When at last, Argus was ready and Allen "borrowed" some of his temporary crew for a while longer; he got underway.

The memory of his experiences on Chesapeake in 1807 never far from his co nsciousness, Captain Allen trained h is crew fo r combat. British cruisers were often in sight, but, on this cruise, A rgus would see no action.

D ecatur and Rodgers determined to fill out the brig's crew and send her o ut again with the intent of taking prizes in the rich cruising grounds off Nova Sco tia.

Sho rdy before he was to sail, however, Allen's orders were suddenly cancelled, pending new, and secret, orders.

While he waited, he continued to train his crew in gunnery, sail handling, and seam anship. When his orders arrived in June 1813, he learned he was to carry " ... our Minister, the Hono rable M ister Crawford, to France," and from there, embark on a cruise for whi ch he wo uld "in due course" receive orders.

A close call with British blockad ers, fro m which Argus escaped by superi or sailing and a lucky encounter with a fo g ba nk, nearly ended the mission. A severe A tlantic sto rm and an encounter with a Briti sh schoo ner tested his yo ung, inexperie n ced crew; the sto rm was weathered with minimal damage, and the schooner, which the yo ung captain took as a prize, prov ided Allen with a tas te of things to co me. O ne furth er encounter with a British b rig ended befo re it bega n with both vessels apparendy choos ing not to engage. TI1ey fi nally

SEA HISTORY 110, SPRING 2005

arrived in France, th eir miss io n co mplete.

It was here that Captain Allen received the remai nder of his o rders: he was to raid commerce in the English C hannel, an assignment he clearly relished .

A rgus, William H enry Allen comm anding, arrived in the English C hannel on 23 July 1813. Within hours, he had captured a small schoo ner, M atilda, and shordy thereafter, a brig, Susannah. His rampage went on in the Channel for about ten days . Assuming that too many British warships were hunting him , Allen headed

H e had told his crew repeatedly that " ... there was not a two-mas ted ship in the Royal Navy he could no t take in ten minutes." In H enry Allen's mind, this fi ght and the ultimate defeat of Pelican would be the payback he needed to even the score for so many pas t humiliations. It was a bad decisio n. After a forty-five minute po unding, fo llowed by boarding, Argus's colors we re hauled down. Allen's leg had been shot off and seven others were seriously wo unded . Twelve men, including William H enry Al len, died either in the batde or

"Band ofBrothers''-Stephen Decatur depicted heading out to US Brig Argus (toward the right), Boston Harbor. Henry Allen served under Decatur in USS United States when they captured HMS Macedonian. The prize was sent in to Newport, Rhode Island, under the command of Lt. Allen. (Painting by Paul Garnett; cover art for William H White's novel The Greater the Honor.) northwest and continued to harass shipping on the Irish side of the island. He repainted the brig with English colors (black hull, yellow stripe), which helped disguise his now infam ous brig.

By 13 August, Allen had captured or burned twen ty British ships; his exhausted crew was sho rt of men fro m the prizes he had manned, his ship was wo rn , and he decided a rest would be in order. As he headed for a quiet place to hide for a few days, HMS Pelican, commanded by John Maples, caught up to him and recognized Argus as th e American raider that had decimated British shipping right on Admiral Thornb ro ugh's doo rstep. Instead of running (he could have easily outsailed his adversary), All en's memory of pas t humiliations at the hands of the Royal Navy inspired him to fight.

subsequent to it. As was customary for an officer who expired after the batde, he was buried asho re with full hono rs.

Under W illiam H enry Allen's command, Argus set a reco rd : she captured or burned m ore enemy ships than any before or since. Allen's expertise and skill , his abili ty to lead men, and his high sense of hono r and pride drove him to accomplish feats to whi ch others could only aspire. j;.

William H. White is a maritime historian sp ecializing in American naval events during the Age ofFighting Sail. He has written four novels of naval fiction and is a trustee of NMH S, USS Constitution Museum, and a consultant to the 18 12 reproduction privateer Lynx. Further information on the author and his books may befound at: www. sea.fiction. net.

31

Historic

Ships

on a Lee Shore

"Historic Ships on a Lee Shore" has been making Sea History readers aware of specific historic ships in need of attention, funding, a new home, etc. for a year. NMHS President Emeritus Peter Stanford explains WHY we should save historic ships through the ongoing story of one ship saved. Following his essay, this issue's "Historic Ship on a Lee Shore" is the Steam Tug Baltimore, which is in dire need of a new berth and new owner-and soon.

Why Save Historic Ships?

by Peter Stanfo rd hi ps attract peo ple because they have the most p rofou nd message-o ne of of a city street. Seeking co unsel on this a story to tell , sto ries of voyaging human interchange and discovery, which to pic, I asked the fu turist Buckminster th ro ugh shifting seas and changing tran sform ed our wo rld. By great good Fuller, invenror of the geodesic dom e, to ti mes. When a sh ip comes to us, shaped fo rtune, it fell to us to bring the class ic extrap olate on what he found in the square by the purposes of another age and half- full -rigger Wavertree to the South Street riggers he'd known o n the South Street wa terfro nt of his youth . forgo tten ways of do in g "The powerfu l designing of things, she offers us an these ships," he replied , "so un-selfco nscious grip on obviously able to cope with reality befo re o ur time. It is in a ship's power to evoke the great seas and storms and hurri canes, also inspired purposes mean ings and the spirits of h umans to beyond our own experience, think in more econom ically, expanding our perspectives. poetically noble ways, which This can help us shape the brought them closer to course of our own voyage the great designer of them through time, and perhaps all." O ne need not be of a to care and dare to do things religio us bent to catch the fo r the future, which has its sacred fire in that! own reality.

People respond in difI had been up to the Metropolitan M useum of ferent ways to old sh ips.

Art where the m useum Fo r my wife No rma and directo r, Tom H oving, m e, th ey we re at the heart Wave rtree Leans forward into her work off Cape H orn. regaled m e w ith the story of a story that got us to qui t H ere, her first career wiff be cut short by dismasting amid screaming of his bringing in a 35-ton our jobs and get to wo rk winds and boarding seas in 19 10. Painting by Oswald Brett. sto ne artifact (a tribal statue) saving the tal l winds hips we saw vanishing over time's horizo n. In this Seapo rt Museum in New Yo rk C ity, a ship to New York from South Ame rica. To that pursuit we encountered the lively diversity embodying centuri es of learnin g in her I respo nded : "Well , we recently brought in of th e seafaring experience. We steered a lines and rig. We soo n discovered that her a 2000- ton arti fact from South America."

"Yo u what!" he exclaimed, nostri ls paddlewheel tug in San Francisco Bay and presence on the wate rfro nt did matter to steam ed in the two surviving American people and, in some cases, changed their flaring.

I the n added : "She's a fascinating iron Liberty shi ps-we witnessed their triple- lives. That hum an respo nse m ost ass ured ly expansion engines visibly do in g the work provides the most compelling answe r structure named Wavertree. We brought th at today is out of sight in inte rnal to th e ques tion of why we save historic her into New York Harbor under row."

"Oh ," he said, clearly relieved. "A ship. co mbustion engines, work that demands ships. co nstant human interve nti on to keep Wavertree's dockside missio n is a stern I thought yo u said an artifact." things going. We learned from the broad- test, for it confro nts us with the naked The Ship as Artifact beam ed sloops that sail behind the skerries shi p and her sto ry, rather than offering of the C hilean coast and wa tched them experience at sea. N onetheless, a ship When I told the acclaimed Titanic historian haul out lo ng sweeps to row ho me when m oo red to a city street can best reach the Walter Lord this story, he explained: the day's breeze d ied . We we re awes truck casual visito r. If we're interested in getting "Of course a ship is an artifact. She is in by the shapely, richly-decorated rowing our seafaring heritage into the mainstream fac t the q uintessential artifact, the product launches of Amalfi, whose citizens have a of American life, we'd do well nurture that of man's handiwo rk, which has always called fo nh the best that was in him and lively sense of the seafarin g heritage which casual pub lic encounter. built their cities.

Other ro les for histo ri c ships can be in his c ulture. Every pi ece of a traditio nal Each ship declares so methin g of deeply inspi ring, and as vari ed as the ship, every curve of her plating, is part of man's relationship to the sea, but, for history of seafaring, but we were foc used an in tegral whole, where o ne strake relates us, the deepwater sai ling shi p carries o n people discovering the sh ip at the end to the n ext, and to all the rest of the ship.

S

32

SEA HISTORY 11 0, SPRING 2005

"Saving these ships is hardas hard as it ever was to drive them westward around Cape Horn."

-Alan Villiers

Wavem ee's arched bow still carries a defiant message in the Falkland Islands, where she staggered in after Losing her battle with Cape H orn.

And the whole ship relates to all we've learned at sea.

"My God," he continued, "what was Tom thinking! Wavertree is in the direct line of the ships that built this ciry, she is as full oflore as any statue in the Met, and more, for she is alive. She commanded the loyalty and dedicated service of everyo ne who sailed in her. You couldn't sail these ships any other way."

Ano ther bit of testimony w raps up Walter's case-that these ships we re a call ro the Greek ideal of excellence, th a t people should live so that they achieve the best that is in them ro give. Jakob Isbrandtsen, wh o bought Wavertree for So uth Street Seaport, was fretting one day abo ut the negotiations with her then-owne r Seno r AJfredo N umeriani, a self-styled "pirata de! rio ," who had proposed that a fa ir exchange for th e 2,000-ron hulk, now a battered sand barge in Buenos Aires, wo uld be a modern mo tor ship of th e same to nnage.

"Wh at's so special about this ship?" Jakob wa nred to kn ow. The marine artist C harlie Lundgren, who wo rked with Jako b , spoke up.

"Jakob," sa id C harlie, referring ro the rotted hulk, "she is beautiful."

Jako b understood what his fell ow sailo r meant by that, and this simple sta tement of truth saved the ship.

When yo u get ro know Wavertree, with her rising, defiant bow, a n d learn her sto ry, yo u come ro see that b eaury as well. The seam en in Buenos Ai res call ed her rusty hull , not "ponton" or b arge, but "el gran velero," the great sailing sh ip. She expressed a sense of purpose in h er lines, and her p ro ud shape declared her as one of the great ships conceived to harn ess th e earth's winds ro move across its seas .

S EA HISTORY 110, SPRING 2 005

We becam e devoted ro her, like her o ther crews before us. She, in turn , ennobled our vision oflife.

The rough-minded sailorman AJan Villiers spoke fo r the men who sailed in such ships when he wro te about the Wavertree's crew: "Their windships might kill th em, but whil e they las ted they we re challenging, beauti ful, noble ships in whose service there were tremendous compensations and satisfactions .. ."

The Ship That Saved a N eighborhood Faced with the daunting task of saving several blocks of down town M anhattan real estate for the fu ture So uth Street Seapo rt M useum- buildings which had looked out on the arri vals and departures of packet ships and clippers like Sea Witch

and Flying Cloud-we found Wavertree critical to o ur venture. A classic full-rigger, she was the unique asse t that enabled us to lay claim to those old bri.ck buildings, which otherwise wo uld be known only in photograp hs today.

People who came to know her, hund reds and, ultimately, thousands of people, caught rhe ship's aura of meaning and purpose. She became the rallying point that summo ned memories of sailor's songs and draymen's shouts, of old salt's yarns and yo ung m en's dreams of far horizo ns, bur also of the realities of life at sea, hard wo rk, and of the economics of shipping in that era of history.

This phenomenon stopped the bulldozers in their tracks . The authentic real ity of the ship was what did it fo r

"EL Gran Velero, "seamen called her, in her career as a barge in South America.

H ere she begins her m ost important voyage, Leaving the Riachuela in Buenos A ires under tow to take up her new career as museum ship in New Yo rk.

33

VOLUNTEERS NEEDED.

DIRTY WoRK, LoNG HouRs, No PAY

The 19 07 ship's company musteredfor a photo under the watchful eye of Captain Masson, who wore a golfing cap for the occasion.

H e was on good terms this day with the first mate, his uncle, just to his Left, who, reportedly, normally drove him crazy.

people, even city plan ners. For Jakob, ir meanr he rook a deep brearh and provided fundin g ro buy rhe hisroric buildings for rhe Seapo rr, ro make ir a cenrer ofl earning and provide a berrh worrhy of rhe shi p.

Thar Wavertree was nor an easy save did no r bo rher us. We knew ir wo uld rake everyrhing we had, and rhen som e, ro save her and ger her ro New Yo rk. Alan Villiers hearrily supporred o ur efforr. After we'd broughr her ro Sourh Srreer, he srood wirh me one evening on Wavertree's quarrerdeck, afrer a full day campaigning fo r rhe ship.

Warching her grear bow rise and fall in rhe Easr River swell, moving againsr rhe skyscrapers of Lower M anharran, he said: "Saving rhese ships is hard-as hard as ir ever was ro drive rhem wes rward around Cape H o rn."

I was srunned! Alan had been in dire srrairs off rhe H orn himself. H e was speaking on rhe very decks of a ship d ismasred in screaming winds and boarding seas off Cape H orn sixty-odd yea rs earlier! Now her undefeared bow faced rhe sreel walls of an ind ifferenr city, a city igno ranr of her role in maki ng ir whar ir is roday. Bur, she changed rhar city.

1 h e ship's complemenr in her seco nd life-her life as educaror of our seafaring heri rage-does n'r just keep rhe ship afloar; rhey make her live for people. W hen Wavertree ran inro hard rimes, ren years afrer her rerurn ro New Yo rk, rhe Natio nal Maririme Hisrorical Society raised funds ro ger her ro a shipyard ro adva nce her resro rario n. Jakob Isbrandrsen rhen as ked me if we could get a volunreer crew rogerher ro supplemenr the shipyard work.

Knowing rhe best way was by example, we

34

rurned ro with our fam ilies, inviting o rhers ro join us .

This efforr was launched wirh jusr fo urreen people, family and some fri ends, early one spring m orning.

We shoveled the filrh of ages o ut of rhe big ship's icy bilges while a spurtering pump slowly lowered rhe

bro ugh r and sustained an upbear feeling ro rhe shi p. This led ro a story in The New York Times headlined, ''A Resrorario n of Spirir"-a res ro rarion we hoped migh r ger rhe shoreside museum once again shipm inded .

We also posred a safety sign ar a rweendeck harch, which read: "CAUTION! 0NE CREW MEMBER FELL DOWN THIS HATCH AND WAS KILLED. WE DON'T WANT TO LOSE ANOTHER." An Ameri can boarswain had been ki lled fal ling down rhar harch in 1907, as we knew from A. G. Spiers's accounr of his voyage in rhe ship. Spiers didn't record his name, bur ir seem ed well ro remember the unkn own sailor and to recognize rhe solidari ty of our crew with h is .

Indeed, I believe rhis second generarion of people w ho worked on Wavertree were raki ng her on the most imporranr voyage of her long life: ro pass on ro co ming generations whar these ships and seamen achieved and what ir was really like alo ng the way. They are indeed rhe ship's people, alongside th e company of rhose wh o had served in h er far rravels under sail. 1heir reward was immense, makin g "dir ty work, lo ng ho urs, no pay" pay our for all concerned , including rhe visiring public, in rhis chap ter of rhe old ship's li fe. .t

inboard water level.

Jakob led rhe work with savage joy, digging away in rhe carhed ral-like space of rhe fo rehold wirh rhe May sky gleaming above rh ro ugh rh e open fo reharch-a disranr vision of h eaven. Afrer rhe day's work, Jako b hailed Joe Sranfo rd, age ren, rhe hardesr wo rker. Cerrainly he and Jako b we re rhe dirriesr. We wenr home with sore backs bur w irh exalted fram es of mind .

These effo rrs conrinued when McAllisrer Towing pulled rhe ship across the harbor ro Beth lehem Shipyard in New Jersey ro have her sandbins cur away and deck fram ing resrored. Afrer ho r summer days scraping and painring old iro n, we wo uld join the yard wo rkers in a neighbo rhood pub. Such was o ur welcom e rhar we co uld Peter Stanford, former New York "ad man, " hardly buy our own beers. Everyo ne has served as president ofSouth Street Seaport wanred ro know whar we were doing. Museum and ofNMHS. H e is editor-at-Large They asked abour rhe hisrory of rhe ship. of Sea History, a roving commission suited 1 h ey offered good advice o n scraping and to his and h is wife N orma's Love of exp loring painring. Word of rhis efforr spread, and the maritime world. when rhe ship re rurned ro The 1983 volunteer restoration crew mustered to give Sourh Srreer we hung o ur a Jakob Isbrandtsen a shirt saluting his Love ofLavishing sign o n rhe pier adverrising coats offish oil on old iron as a preservative. fo r more hands. It read: "VOLUNTEERS NEEDED. DIRTY WORK, LONG HOURS, NO PAY." Thar blunr honesty attracted the ri ghr sorr of people. Througho ut rhe nexr dozen years, firm frie ndships were buil r, some volunreers married, yo ung ones grew up and wenr off ro college, children were born and celebrared by rhe volunreers, whose cheerful, can -do arrirud e

SEA HI S TORY 110, SPRING 2005

Steam Tug Baltimore

by Stephen Heaver team tug Baltimore is approaching her 100 birthday. On 8 December 1906, she was recorded as having made 11 knots at 156 turns in her original sea trials-not bad for a compound engine with a 22" -stroke. Her double-furnace Scotch boiler was hand-fired, just as it is today, and the safety lifted at 150 pounds, although it is now set for 115.

Baltimore last steamed in autumn 1999 when, for three days, she wok guests out past Fort McHenry and back. She was last bunkered by a fork lift at the CSX coal facility (formerly B&O Railroad Co.) with 10 tons of western Maryland's semi-bituminous. In the old days, she was bunkered on Wednesdays at the Canton Coal Pier, more frequently if she was breaking ice on the Parapsco. Due to a weakened hull from delaminaring wrought iron, Baltimore has been "red-lined" until her hull and rhwarrship members are returned to proper thickness. Ir is estimated that it will take $1,500,000 to restore her hull; she also needs a new pine deck, guards, and stabilization of her wooden house.

This tug is probably the last operating, hand-fired, coal-burning steam tug in the US and is certain ly the last of the inland waterway tugs that maintains her original machinery. Her story is one of honorable service in a great American port where she was built by skilled laborers and operated by generations of mariners before being retired and sold to a private collector in 1963. Her boiler had been converted to oil burning in 1957, but little else was changed over the years, with the possible exception of an electrical upgrade

S

SEA HISTORY 110, SPRING 2005

1947. (Her original 25KW Westinghouse DC generator had made her an 'electric boat' in 1906 at a time when such luxuries were reserved for bigger boars.) She sank in fifteen feet of water in 1979 where she sat for rwo years. The McLean Contracting Co. raised her and towed her to within a few thousand feet from the Skinner Ship Building Co., Baltimore, where she'd been built.

This meritorious salvage work was done at the behest of the fledgling Baltimore Museum of Industry, 111

which had just opened in an old oyster canning building on Key Highway. Key Highway itself was created in 1905 as a result of the rebuilding of Baltimore following its Great Fire of 1904, bur chat's another story. A hardy team of vo lunteers and an enthusiastic Board of Directors proceeded with salvaging Baltimore and putting her back into service as an operational teaching exhibit of the Museum.

Tons of mud and debris were removed from her bilges (the house had been repaired by 1985); the black gang was ready to light off the boiler. Some small pumps were tested and work continued vigorously with steamings taking place rwice annually until 1990 when she made a clean sweep of her sea trials. She continued to steam bi-annually, offering guests rides under the close scrutiny of the US Coast Guard. Machinery details continue to be restored, encompassing everything right through the fire mains (1999) and circulating pump (now underway). Most all of this work has been accomplished by volunteers using gifts of materials from businesses. The Museum provided approx-

Steam Tug

f

L

altimore

~

imarely $2,400 annually and raised funding, some from the Maryland Historic Trust, for her hull painting and repairs.

Ochers donated paint, marine surveys, boiler tubes, rowing, and other special needs.

In 2004 the Museum Board decided that Baltimore no longer fir into its plan for industrial interpretation and is seeking a new home for the tug. Simultaneously, her crew members formed a new corporation, the Baltimore & Chesapeake Steamboat Co., to raise money to complete her restoration and possibly take on the ownership role. The new organization is currently applying for tax exempt status and is building a Board of Directors with the intent of making an offer. Timing is of the essence and the tug is in dire need of a haulour and three coats of paint to buy her time. The BMI is receptive to a potential 501 (c)(3) to which it can transfer title. The Baltimore Mari rime Museum may be a good fir, but annual maintenance costs are a serious concern to a museum already strapped to maintain its fleer of three-Torsk, Chesapeake, and Taney. The Maryland Historic Trust has been apprised of the situation. J, For more information: contact the Baltimore Museum of Industry, write to Ms. Carole Baker, Deputy Director, 1415 Key Highway, Baltimore, MD 21230 or e-mail Stephen Heaver, volunteer Project Director, at sgheaver@aolcom.

35

.SHIP NOTES, SEAPORT & MUSEUM NEWS SPUN YARN Long Island University's SEAmester Program, a 29-year running shipboard college program aboard traditionally-rigged schooners, has been spared the axe despite the closure of its campus, Southampton College, in August 2005. Lo ng Island Uni versity, the parent uni versity, will co nrinue to run the program through its CW Pos t campus. A nine-week experiential education program, SEAmester sails alo ng the US eastern seaboard and throughout the Cari bbean. Srudents stud y maritim e history and literature, marine sciences, and seamanship and navigation, while working as crew members aboard the vessel. Appli catio ns for the fall 2005 semes ter are available now. (Ms. Patricia D zinrarnieks, Director, SEAmester Program , 239 Mo nrauk H wy., Southampton College of LIU , Southampton , NY 11 968; 63 1 287-83 17; e-mail : PDzinrar@sour hampton .liu.edu; www.seam ester.net) ...

Fort Miami Heritage Society has taken ownership of a vintage 17-foot wooden rowboat built by craftsmen at the Truscott Boat Manufacturing Co. in the late 1800s. The historic boat is an important

Truscott Boat classic row boat: (above) today and (below) as depicted in a turn ofthe century Truscott catalogue.

icon fro m the company that was, at one rime, one of the world's mos t prolific build ers and distributors of recreatio nal wate rcraft. From the late 19th century through WWII, the company produced everything from 85 -foo r yachts to stylish small rowboats to military watercraft fo r the government for both Wo rld Wa rs. This surviving example comes with all its o riginal accesso ries and is in pristine co nditi o n, needing no repair or restorati on . . . .

36

Noted marine photographer Benjamin Mendlowitz will keynote the upcoming Classic Yacht Symposium in April 2005.

The Symposium is spo nsored by the Herreshoff M arine Museum/America's C up

Hall of Fam e and the New England Secrio n of the Society of Naval Architects and M arine Engineers and will be held at Roger Williams U niversity and at the museum in Bristol, RI, on 1-3 April. The event will feature guest speakers, papers, and presenta tions on all types of classic yacht restoratio n and replication by many of the wellknown names in the fi eld. (See C alendar on page 4 1 fo r derails) ... Independence Seaport Museum (ISM) in Philadelphia has announced a new scholarship program for economically disadvantaged children and youth from Philadelphia public schools. The program will enable srudents to visit the museum and participate in their formal educational program s conducted by its three full -rim e professio nal educators. The scholarships will cover the costs of renting buses, plus the per-student costs of the museum's educatio nal programs, which m ean s that child ren and schools leas t able to pay fo r the museum's experienced educators, exhibits, and curricular materials ca n still participate. Also, at ISM , the Pennsylvania Dept of Education has designated the museum as an approved provider of continuing professional education for teachers under State Act 48 . ISM will offer teachers 4 wo rks hops annually. The wo rkshops, centered on m aritime themes, will deli ver substantive content to teachers including contextual info rmation on a range of subjects, reading selecrio ns, hands-o n material, and teaching packers fo r cl ass room use,

and evaluation tools. (Contact Museum Educator Bill Ward, 215 4 13-8649; e-mail : bward @phillyseaport.o rg. ISM , 2 11 S. Columbus Blvd., Philadelphia, PA 19 106; n 5 92 5-543 9; www.phillyseapo rr.o rg) .... The Inland Seas Maritime Museum is seeking an original naptha engine used on the Great Lakes to add to their collection of steam- and gas-powered engines for their "Engine Alley" exhibit. (48 0 Main Sr, POBox 435, Vermilion , OH 44089; 440 967-3467; e-mail : glhs l @inlandseas .org; www.inlandseas. o rg) . . . The Calvert Marine Museum (CMM) is in the planning stages of a new exhibit, to open in late 2005, that will attempt to document the history of the oyster packing and crab picking industries in Southern Maryland. To compil e info rmation for th e exhibit, the museum is turning to the public fo r much-needed ass istance. In C harles Co un ty, the museum is

An oyster shucker at Leonard Copsey's oyster house near M echanicsville in 19 82 .

particularly interested in information/ photogtaphs on Hill and Lloyd, of Rock Point, and also Linwood and Allan Sollers (Patuxe nr Seafood Co.), and H enry M essick Jr. and Sr. of Benedict. In Calve rt Coun ty they need assistance with Tommie's C rab H ouse of Sr. Leonard, and Sollers and Dowell o n Sollers Wharf Rd .

C MM is seeking info rmation and/or photographs of the followin g: Edward T. Oliver of Rive r Springs; Wm . W. M attingley of M echani csville; Jam es H all of C ornfield Harbor; Frank Alvey, Joseph M . Hazel, and B.G. Pogue of C ompton ; J.J. Morris & Co. of Hollywood; the Norris Bros. of Yankee Po int; C harles Co nnelly of Leonardtown; W illi am P. Powell and Hugh F. Smith of Airdale; C. Robb Lewis and the M iller O ys te r Co. of Wynne; and R. Biscoe Bros., L G . Railey, Stone Seafood, SEA HISTORY 110, SPRING 2005

Bernard Clarke, and Fred V., G.L., & W.W. Dunbar, al l of Ridge. In addition to the owners, an equally importa nt facet of the project is to include interviews with men and women who are or were longtime oys ter shuckers or crab picke rs at any of Southern Maryland's seafood houses.

(Contact: Richard Dodds, CMM POB 97, Solomons, MD 20688; 410 3262042, ext. 3 1; e-mail: information @calvert marinemuseum.com; www.calvertmarinemuseum.com) • .. Brewer Yacht Yards, with marine facilities in CT, NY, RI, MA, and ME, has made a $35K co ntribution toward the Stratford-based no n -profit G lacier Society's restoration of l cebucket, a 45-foot, post-World \V'ar II Arctic survey boat. Plans cal l for Icebucket to be homeported in Bridgeport, Connecticut. During the summer months, her crew will cond uct educational programs onboard within Long Island Sound and surrounding waters. During the winter month s, the vessel wi ll travel th e Intercoastal Waterway from CT to FL. AJong the way, she will engage the services of various educators, scientists and Navy and USCG pe rso nnel to fu lfi ll her educational mission. (GS, PO Box 1419, Bridgeport, CT 06601; 203 375-6638; www.glaciersociety.org) . ..

CALL FOR APPLICANTS-NMHS and Ocean C lassroom Foundation together are seeking current high school and m iddle school American h istory teach ers for admission in OceanBound for History-a 7-day continuing education program onboard schooner Westward in August 2005. (See notice on page 9 for details and co ntact information) . .• The De Tour Reef Lighthouse in Lake H uron w ill offer educational tours in 2005 after the completion of a two-year major restoration. Both the interior and exterior were restored using over $ 1 mi ll ion in fund ing from state, federal, and private grants and donatio ns. Bui lt in 1931 on a 60-sg. ft. , 20 ft. high concrete crib in 24 feet of water, the DeTour Reef Light structure is a unique steel-framed square tower of three distinct levels that rises 63 feet above the deck and marks a dangero us reef to guide ship traffic to and from Lake Huron and Lake Superior via the Sr. Mary's Rive r at the so utheastern edge of Michigan's Upper Peninsula. 1he light was automated m SEA HISTORY l 10, SPRJNG 2005

A wonderful JOURNEY through America's MARITIME Heritage

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featuring music of the 40's by a live "Big Band!" See reenactors demonstrating military equipment and vehicles. Watch an exciting air show with flybys by several WWII aircrafts (wea ther permitting). Enjoy a continental breakfast and a great all-you-can-eat buffet lunch. Tour the whole ship, including the engine room, museums, cargo holds, crew's quarters and bridge.

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www.liberty-ship.com We accept VISA, MasterCard and Di scover. Cruise profits maintain this Liberty Ship Memorial. A portion of your payment may be tax deductible. Officers and crew licensed and documented by the U.S. Coast Guard.

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DeTourReef Lighthouse

Light Preservation Sociery, POB 307, Drummond Is., MI 49726; 906 4936079; www.DRLPS.com) .•. The TU Delft Library in the Netherlands has made two of its specialist databases available on subscription. MARNA (Maritime Nautical) contains over 80,000 documents from 1985 to the present. Article references have been culled from articles published in international maritime literature, 200 journals, reports, congressional proceedings, and monographs. It claims to be the most up-to-date source of maritime information. SHIPDES contains 20,000 ship descriptions, technical specifications of ships, and references to articles on vessels taken from publications from 1968 to present. Both available with a monthly membership. (www.library.tudelft.nl) . . . The Coos Art Museum is inviting maritime

artists to participate in their 12th Annual Maritime Art Exhibit at the Coos Art Museum in Coos Bay, OR-22 July- 24 September 2005. The cities of Coos Bay and North Bend each have a strong interest in marine art owing to the region's long-time maritime heritage. From the mid-!850s through the 1920s, the shipyards of Coos Bay built the massive sai ling vessels used to carry Californi a go ld and harvests to ports all aro und the globe. For more than a century, the deep-water port of Coos Bay has accommodated the shipping of a variery of products, especiall y timber, to all parts of the globe. For many decades, more lumber was shipped out of this harbor than any other harbor in the world. Submission deadline: postmarked

by Saturday, 16 April 2005. (235 Anderson Ave, Coos Bay, OR 97420; 541 2673901; e-mail: info@coosart.org; www.coosart.org) •.• USS Des Moines is creating quite a stir in Milwaukee. The 56-year old battleship was decommissioned in 1961 and remains in dry dock in Philadelphia.

The USS Des Moines Historic Naval Ship Project is seeking to bring the ship to Milwaukee as a permanent memorial at the Milwaukee Counry Veterans Park. Opposition to the proposal is strong and vocal; they claim the sh ip wi ll drain public funds and ruin the view of the ciry's waterfront.

USS Constellation visits the US Naval Academy The 22-gun sloop-of-war USS Constellation made an expedition to the US Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland, in October 2004. It was the ship's longest voyage since her arrival in Baltimore in 1955 for use as a museum ship. Not rigged for r110To cou•rnsv JOHN o. IJARNA •o sail, Constellation made her passage with the aid of tugs. The ship is marking the l 50th anniversary of her launch , and the vis it to the Naval Academy honored her 23 years of service there from 18711893.

In Annapolis, the ship was open for public tours with over 11,000 people visiting her decks in 7 days. After service in the Civil War, the ship was used by the Academy as a training ship for the midshipmen's summer instructional cruises. After a one-week stay, the ship returned to Baltimore on November 1st. Constellation is open for tours year-ro und in Baltimore's inner harbor. (USS Constellation, 301 E. Pratt St., Baltimore, MD 21202; 410 539-1797; e-mail: adminstration@ USS Constellation arriving at the constellation.org; www.constellation.org).

US Naval Academy in October.

-john D. Barnard

SEA HISTORY 110, SPRING 2005

Schooner Virginia launched!

The Pilot Schooner Virginia Project is a program of The Virginia Maritime Heritage Fdn. On 8 December, the schooner was launched in Norfolk, VA. The replica of the historic 118-foot pilot PHOTO BY DONALD MAYNARD schooner Virginia will be a living symbol of the state's maritime history and will be used to promote educational and economic programs for the Commonwealth. This "Class B" tall ship was the last sailing pilot schooner in use on the Chesapeake Bay and served the Virginia Pilot Association from 191 7 until 1926 as a station vessel off the Virginia Capes.

Interior construction and her rig and sails expect to Schooner Virginia makes her first contact with be completed by summer the water, 0942 hrs, 8 December 2004.

2005. (Schooner Virginia, Virginia Maritime Heritage Fdn., 5000 World Trade Center, Norfolk, VA 23510; 757 627-7400; e-mail:info@schoonervirginia.org;www.schoonervirginia.org) .

The ship has no history associated with Milwaukee or Wisconsin. USS Des Moines (CA-134) is 716 feet long and draws 22 feet. Launched on 27 September 1946 by Bethlehem Sreel Co., Fore River, Quincy,

MA, she was commissioned on 16 November 1948, Captain A. D. Chandler in command. "In a varied operating schedule designed to maintain rhe readiness of the Navy to meet rhe consranr demands of defense and foreign policy, Des Moines cruised from her home port at Newport, and after 1950, from Norfolk, on exercises of every rype in rhe Caribbean , along rhe east coast, in the Mediterranean, and in North Atlantic waters. Between 1949 and 1957 she deployed to rhe Mediterranean,

SEA HISTORY 11 0, SPRING 2005

during rhe first 7 years serving as fl agship for the 6th Task Fleet (known as rhe 6rh Fleer from 1950) . In 1952, and from 1954 to 1957, she carried midshipmen for summer training cruises, crossing to Northern European ports. She also sailed to Northern Europe on NATO exercises in the 1950s. In February 1958, she cleared Norfolk for the Mediterranean, this rime to remain as flagship for rhe 6rh Fleet until Ju ly 1961 when she was placed our of commission in reserve. Through her Mediterranean services Des Moines contributed sign ifican tly to rhe success of rhe 6th Fleer in represenringAmerican power and interests in rhe countries of Southern Europe, Northern Africa, and rhe Near East."(Dictionary ofNaval Fighting Ships). Th e Navy wi ll scrap the vessel if no one rakes ownership of it. The debate brings to the fore the delicate subject of WHIC H historic ships warrant saving, in light of rhe realiry char we can't save them all. Des Moines was rejected by the citizens of Duluth in a public referendum in 1998 . (USS Des Moines Historic Naval Ship Project, Inc., POB 144, Greendale, WI 53 129; www.ussdes..t ..t..t moines.org) .

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SINCE 1976

SEA HISTORY 110, SPRING 2005

ExHIBITS

•Age Exchange, England: Cruel Sea. Touring exhibir which explores rhe memories of rhe sea and service in rhe warrime Merchanr Navy. National Maritime Museum, Greenwich, 9 May ro 28 June; Discovery Museum, Newcastle, 4 July-30 Augusr. For addirional dares and derails, visir: www.age-exchange.org. uk/ cruelsea.

•National Maritime Museum, London: Nelson & Napoleon. 7 July - 13 November. The exhibirion will include recenr discoveries, rare and unseen marerial, lerrers, iconic painrings, personal irems and a series of objecrs lenr from museums, galleries and privare collecrions across Europe.

(Park Row, Greenwich, London SElO 9NF; Ph. 44 (0)20 8312 6565 (recorded informarion); web sire: www.nmm .ac.uk) •The Whaling Museum: Finding Your way: Navigation at Sea. Through Augusr 2005. (POB 25, Main Srreer, Cold Spring Harbor, NY 11724; Ph. 631 367-3418; e-mail: cshwm@opronline.ner; web sire: www.cshwhalingmuseum.org) •Heritage Museums & Gardens: Sea Dogs!

Great Tails of the Sea, on loan from Mysric Seaporr Museum . (67 Grove Srreer, Sandwich , MA 02563; 508 888-3300; e-mai l: info@heriragemu-seums.org; web sire: www.heriragemuseumsandgardens.org) •Mystic Seaport Museum: Women & the Sea. Through Augusr 2005. (75 Greenmanvi lle Ave., Mysric, CT 06355; 860 57207 11 ; web sire: www.mysricseaporr.org) •The Noble Maritime Collection: Cad-

dell Dry Dock, One Hundred Years Harborside. Through February 2006. (1000 Richmond Terrace, Building D, Sraren Island , NY 10301 ; 718 447-6490; web sire:

FEsTIVALS, EvENTS, LECTURES, ETC.

•13th Annual Lake Hartwell Antique Boat Festival & Sea Skiff Rendezvous, 31 March-2 April in Harrwell, GA. (Conracr: Dennis or Julie Moore, 706 376-1433; e-mail: harrchamber@hancom.ner) •Woods Hole Historical Collection & Museum, 16-1 7 April in Woods Hole, MA. Exhibirs, workshops, ralks, and races. (POB 185, Woods Hole, MA 02543; 508 548-7270; e-mail: woods_ho le_ hisro ri cal@hormail.com; web sire: www. woodsholemuseum.org)

•12th Annual Door County Lighthouse Walk, 20-22 May. Door Counry Maririme Museum : (120 N . Madison Ave., Srurgeon Bay, WI 54235 ; 920 743-5958; e-mail: info@dcmm.org; web sire: www. dcmm.org) •2nd Annual North American Steamboat Modelers Assoc. Expo at the Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum, 21-22 May. (CBMM, Navy Poinr, Sr. Michaels, MD 21663; 4 10 745-2916; web sire: www.cbmm.org) •Sea Music Festival, 9-12 June ar Mysric Seaporr, CT. (75 Greenmanville Ave., POB 6000, Mysric, CT 06355; 860 5720711; web sire: www.mysricseaporr.org)

•Maritime Heritage Festival, Sr. Mary's Ciry, MD, 18 June 2005. (Conracr: Cape. Will Gares: 240 895-2090; e-mail: wsgares@smcm.edu) •SeaBritain 2005: a year-long fesrival of evenrs rhar explores every aspecr of Brirain's rich maritime herirage. Includes: Nelson & Napeoleon, 7 July - 13 November (see derails above lefr under "exhibirs"); 1he New Trafalgar Dispatch (a re-enacrmenr), 1 July - 11 Seprember; International Fleet Review, 28 June, wirh ships from 40 narions. (Ph. 020 8312 8615; e-mail: seabrirain2005@nmm.uk; web sire: www. seabrirain2005 .com) •''All Hands on Deck: Navies, Naval Power, and the Flow of History," class led by Barry S. Srrauss, PhD, 10-16 July.

Cornell Adulr Universiry, Irhaca, NY. (626 Thursron Ave., Irhaca, NY 14850; 607 255-6260; e-mail: cauinfo@cornell.edu; web sire: www.cau.cornell. edu) •Tall Ships Challenge®-Pacific Coast, American Sail Training Assoc., 23 June14 Augusr, rraveling ro Vicroria, BC, Tacoma, WA, Vancouver, BC, Pon Alberni, BC, and Los Angeles, CA. (240 Thames

Sr., POB 1459, Newporr, Rl, 02840; 401 846-1775; e-mai l: asra@sai lrraining.org; web sire: www.ral lships.sailrraining.org) CONFERENCES

•American Sail Training Association 2005 Regional Meetings: Gulf Coasr, Galvesron, TX, 19-20 March; Grear Lakes, Chicago, IL, 2-3 April. (240 Thames Sr., POB 1459, Newporr, Rl , 02840; 401 846-1775; e-mail: asra@sailrraining.org; web sire: www.rallships.sailrraining.org) •"The Classic Yacht Symposium," 1-3 April 2005, ar rhe HerreshoffMarine Museum. Sponsored by rhe HMM and The Sociery of Naval Archirecrs. (HMM, POB 450, One Burnside Sr., Brisrol, RI 02809, 401 253-5000; Fax: 40 1 253-6222; web sire: www.herreshoff.org) •"Maritime Heritage 2005: 2d International Conference on Maritime Heritage," 18-29 April 2005 in Barcelona, Spain. Organized by Wessex lnsrirure of Technology, UK. Conference will be in English. The conference aims ro bring rogerher scholars and professionals ro discuss a variery of ropics relared ro maririme herirage. The meering will discuss rhe furure of hisroric harbors, dockyards, and orher similar maritime srrucrures in roday's world, as well as rhe funcrion of hisroric vessels and rheir herirage value. (e-mail: wir@wessex.ac.uk; web sire: hrrp://www. wessex.ac. uk/ conferences/200 5/ mh05 /index.h rml) •NASO H "North American Maritime History: the Southern Connection," Annual Conference, 19-21 May, in Savannah, GA. This year held jointly wirh rhe NMHS Annual Meeting. NMHS info: see rhis issue of Sea History, page 8; NASOH Info: Joseph F. Meany Jr., Ph.D. , 2005 Program Chair, clo Sam'l Hunon Associares, 28-30 Cornhill Sr., Annapolis, MD 21401 or by e-mail ro NASOH2005@aol.com. Please idenrify "NASOH Program" in rhe subjecr line.

•"Frederick Douglass and Herman Melville: A Sesquicentennial Celebration," 22-26 June 2005 ar rhe New Bedford Whaling Museum. Keynore Speakers: Henry Louis Gares, Jr. ; Srerling Sruckey; Eric Sundquisr. (18 Johnny Cake Hill , New Bedford, MA 02740; 508 997-0046; www.whal in gm useum .org/kendal l/ mel_ sociery/ mscp. h rm I)

A

7

Argyll

~NAVAL HISTORICAL ~

FOUNDATION

1306 Dah lgre n Ave n ue SE, Washin gton Navy Yard, DC 20374-5055

NAVY HERITAGE

Seaman -Garneray

• N AUTICAL GIFTS

• L ONE S A ILOR STAT UE

• HI STORIC P HOTOS • N AVY B OOKS

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Voyages, Aventures et Combats TRA SLATOR : ROLAND WILSON "This spirited translation captures exactly the 'rattling good yarn' tone of the original."

David Hopkin, Journal Maritime Research "Compared to the vast literature on Nelson's navy, the story from the French side is sparse. This book is a welcome addition to this literature."

Faye Kert, The Northern Mariner The author later became France's first official naval painter and this handsome hardback book includes notes and many of his illustrations of a seaman's adventures .

Argy ll Publishi ng ISBN 190283 1632 SPEC IAL PRICE $25 incl . airmail ORDER online www.argyllpublishing.com

@NAVY

Visit our web site at www.navyhistory.org or contact the Navy Museum Gift Shop in Washington, DC Fax: 202-889-3565 Phone: 202-678-4333 Email : nMwny@navyhistory.org

National Maritime 's Selection of "Great Reads" OVER THE EDGE OF THE WORLD

THE GREATER THE HONOR

by Laurence Bergreen

by William H. White

Ferdin and Mage ll an's daring circumnav igati on of the g lobe in th e 16th Century was a three-year odyssey fi lled with sex, vio lence and amazing adventure. Pri ze-winning biographer and journ alist Laurence Bergreen entwines a vari ety of candid , fi rsth and acco unts, brin gi ng to li fe thi s groundbreakin g and majestic tale of discovery that changed the way explorers would henceforth navigate the oceans. Autographed copy.

A ro llicking sea story of the Ame ri ca n nava l offi cers who called themselves " Pre bl e's Boys."

Taking the ir ships to a di stant stati o n to defend the new Republic, they cowed th e Tripo litans and impressed the Briti sh. Finall y, Stephen Decatur and the rest of Preble's boys get th eir du e. Their adventures challenge Jack Aubrey and Horati o Hornblower and are more impressive because they are true!

SC: $15.00

HC: $24.95

THE 1812 TRILOGY

by William H. White An exciting new seri es of the much fo rgotten War of 18 12.

Bill White introduces a new character in Ameri ca n sea fi cti on- Isaac Biggs of Marbl ehead, MA. Fo llow Jsaac fro m his departure from Boston aboard the ba rk Anne in 18 10 to the drama, pani c and co nfusion th at gri pped Washington, DC, Ba ltimore and the Chesapeake reg ion in J 8 14. Vo l. I, A Press of Canvas, Vo l. II, A Fine Tops'! Bree:::.e and Vo l. III ., The Evening Gun.

A MOST FORTUNATE SHIP A NARRATIVE HISTORY OF OLD IRONSIDES

by Tyrone G. Martin A fasc inating book that gives shape to the men who sailed this fam ous ship. "Th is marvelous book is a must for naval hi story bu ffs , fo r readers who love th e era of iron men and wooden ships, and fo r anyone interes ted in the peri od of histo ry when American co urage and ingenuity seemed to succeed in a lmos t every endeavor the co untry atte mpted." Book-of-the-Month C lub

HC: $40.00

SC: $14.95 each To order, send your check or credit card information to NMHS, PO Box 68, Peekskill, NY 10566 or call 1-800-221-NMHS (6647) ext. 0. Please add $4.00 s/h for one book, $2.00 for each additional book.

42

SEA H !STORY 110, SPRING 2005

Reviews Seaman Garneray: Voyages, Aventures et Combats, translated by Roland Wilson (Argyll Publishing, Argyll, Sco tland, 2003, 285 pp, maps, illus, gloss, margin no tes, ISBN 1-90283 1-63-2; $38 he) Those of us who aren't multilingual scholars rarely get to read "the good stuff'' -histories from the other sidebecause foreig n language acco unts can sometimes prove an insurmountable barrier. Furthermore, naval histories we re ge nerally written by the victors and those possessing the prerequisite literary skills to reco rd their versions of an event o r time. The result? A skewed representation of our past, which often neglects the view from the lower ranks-on a ship, this means the fo'c'sle.

Seaman

Garneray

is therefore a real treat.

Roland Wilson delivers a wonderfully readable translation of seaman Louis Garneray's account-often tragic, often humorous-of his service in the Republican Navy. Born in Paris in 1783 to a pai nter of some renown, Garneray was expected to take up his father's craft. Seduced by the potential for adventure, fame, and fortune made possible by a life at sea, the young Garneray signed onboard a warship as an "apprentice seam an" at age 13. (Ultimately, his naval service only delayed his career as an arrisr.)

Ga rneray's narrative is ch arming and candid in its portrayal of life as a yo ung green hand : storms, combat at sea, failure of French battle tactics, the questionable value of his nation's allies, and the beginning of his artistic career. In the co urse of his adve ntures, Garneray served aboard military and privateering vessels. In the latte r capacity, he served under the famous privateer captain Robert Surco uf in the Indian Ocean and was captured in 1806. H e survived the next eight years aboa rd prison hulks in Portsmouth.

While the acco unts of ship-to-ship combat are exciting, the true gem s of Wilso n's translation are the reoccurring observati o ns of everyday experiences aboard

SEA HISTORY l l 0, SPRING 2005

ship. Works about life in the French Napoleonic Navy are so few that Garneray's account is that much more valuable.

Wilson provides annotations and battle diagrams in the margins to assist the reader. Of great value is Wilson's "Introduction" placing Garneray in context with the time and place. Reading but a segment of his life, one wants to know more about him. Why didn't he rry to publish his memoir? Wilson conjectures: "One reason may well have been the demands of his painting and engraving career. By the 1830s seascapes had become popular and Garneray's work was recognized. He had a full-time job (1832-37) running the Rouen Museum."

A minor distraction, and perhaps unavoidable in translation, is the spouting of English slang by 18th- and 19th- century French nationals.

On his deathbed, Garneray's friend utters: "By Jove Louis, hey lad and me that had so many things and taradiddles to tell you." Mon Dieu.

Seaman Garneray: Voyages, Aventures et Combats is an entertaining and instructive read that leaves one wishing Garneray had written more or that a volume two was in the works.

P ETER SORENSEN

Old Mystic, Co nnecticut

End of Voyages: The Afterlife of a Ship,

by Michael Stammers (Tempus Publishing Ltd., Brimscombe Port, Gloucestershire, 2004, 189pp, illus, photos, biblio, index, ISBN 0-7524-2999-X; fl7 .99pb) What occurs at the end of a ship's useful life is not a topic often addressed in historical or archaeological literature.

Indeed, such a topic is not one many of us consider, other than tales of maritime mishaps and catastrophic shipwreck events so central to m ari time history.

As Stammers explains in End of Voyages: The Afterlife ofa Ship, many wa tercraft come to fulfill a great variety of special fun ctions following yea rs of service-the life of a ship can end in many ways. With

this theme, this work is probably the first extensive publication dedicated to the theme of the "hereafter of a ship." While this subject may seem a little obscure, the research provides a missing piece of a largely-forgotten aspect of maritime history.

The co re of Stam mers's research focuses o n the many fates of wa tercraft th at plied the wate rways of human hisrory over the last few millennia. Over innumerab le centuries, an incalculable number of vessels were scrapped, left to rot, or restored to former glory as museum ships. Many ships were converted into unremarkab le support vessels (s uch as barges and lighters) or transformed into almost freakish reflections of their pas t form and function.

This includes the conve rsion of unwanted vessels into a number of curious creations such as floating orphanages, churches, homes, nightclubs, and theaters, to name a few. Then, there were the vessels used as hulks for storage of goods (s uch as coal, grain , and gunpowder), as foundations of infrastructure (sheers hulks used as crane mounts) , and as repositories for human cargos. This last category is a particularly engross in g aspect of Stammers's research , which focused on the role of hulks in public scandal and moral reform during the convict ship era with the use of unwanted watercraft as reformatories for children.

Stammers's research makes extensive use of archaeological literature, drawing together many classic stories of reutilizatio n of watercraft; the transformation of the ship Niantic into a warehouse following its abandonm ent in San Francisco during the Gold Rush is o ne example. Indeed, while the book mostl y focuses on the British Isles, it cites many examples of historical and archaeo logical research from aro und the globe, including N igeria, So uth Africa, Australi a, and the United States.

End of Voyages also includes many general discussions related to its core subject matter. Pivotal to the book's focus is dialogue co ncern ing the emotional attachm ent that people have with boats, as well as

43

REVIEWS the amhropomorphic aspecrs of rheir consrrucrion and use. The inclusion of a general and abridged hisrory of rhe rechnological change ro ships and seafaring makes chis work access ible ro all and explains ramificarions of economic and rechnological change-the conceptual boundaries within which discussions of obsolescence and rhe deliberate abandonment of watercraft make most sense. While the book does nor have an exrensive bibliography, it is replete with a surprisingly large number of beautiful , high-quality phorographs and illumarions. Well worth a read.

Sea Struck, by W H. Bunring (Tilbury House, Publishing, Gardin er, ME, 2004, 365pp, notes, illus, appen, index, ISBN 088448-265-0; $30hc) Sea Struck is a remarkable book which is difficult, if nor impossible, ro pll( down .

Ir concerns an era in the story of American m aritime inreresr which is often neglected as being less imporranr, perhaps, than , shall we say, rhe clipper ship era or the War of 181 2. The period from the end of rhe

NATHAN RI CHARDS

Greenville, North Carolina

Around Cape Horn: A Maritime Artist!

Historian's Account of His 1892 Voyage, edited by Cape. Neal Parker (Down East Books, Camden, Maine, 2004, 216pp, illus, ISBN 0-89272-646-6; $ l 4.95 pb) Go ing to sea ro cure failing eyesight has ro be one of the oddest of medical prescriptions, bur char is exactly what Charles G . D avis did: shipped our as crew on the square ri gger f ames A. Wright. Fortuna rely, the yo ung Davis, inexperienced bur enthusiastic, kept a journal, recording his 29 1-day trip ro Chile and back-and we have Around Cape Ho rn: A Maritime Artist/Historian's Account ofhis 1892 Voyage.

"Ir was a grand sight ro look around from the height of rhe yard we were on and see the wild play of rhose Cape Horn seas all around us." The green, bur irrepressibly enrhusiasric, yo ung Davis must have annoyed rhe mares and perplexed the capta in , bur clearly he go r along fine with his fellow hands. Much of rhe book's charm is rhe rendering of daily life ar sea, with all irs inrricare balances of seamans hip, personalities, and ship's busi ness. Advenrure awaits in C hile as well: plors, chases, near escapes. The mas rerful lirtle sketches ar rhe chapter headings zoom to rhe heart of rhe action-sailors at work. If we need justification for sail trai ning, this is ir.

Ah, and yes, in what has ro be an ophthalmologic first, Davis returns ro Brooklyn: "My eyes were enrirely cured of rheir weakness and I felr strong eno ugh to knock over a bull."

ARDEN SCOTT

Greenport, New York

44

C ivil War to the early days of rhe 20rh century was a period of marked technological and social change in maritime commerce.

In shipbuilding, wood gave way to iron, sail gave way ro steam, and bulky paddle wheels gave way ro screw propellers . The size of ships grew subsranrially, yet crew sizes diminished with rhe inrroducrion of donkey engines which could rake rhe place of m any men, especially raising and lowering huge sails. Whaling, especially in Nantucket and New Bedford, becam e less rhe exclusive preoccupation of captains and merchants, while worldwide commerce in the raw materials of manu fact uring such as corron, lumber, coal, oil and petroleum became increasingly important. Yer, this era has had far less artenrion than rhe more romanric days of frigates and whalers. Mr. William Bunring has restored rhe balance in our maritim e pasr in Sea Struck. (H e was rhe all(hor of Portrait ofa Port, Boston 1852-1914, a book whi ch has become a classic bur is no longer in print.)

After inrroducing readers ro rhe conrexr of rhar era and the ships it spawned, Bunring acquainrs us to the New Bedford and Namucker families who owned and

sailed these ships-the Swifo, Roches, Rodmans, a nd others. He tells us of two you ng fo'c'sle hands, Captain Besse's 1883 fleer, and Ca ptain Frank Stone. Th e main body of rhe book examines individual captains, their Beers, and voyages around rhe globe. A final section, and perhaps rhe mosr intriguing, tells of a young Tod Swift who shipped our as a deck hand on the barque Astral, bound for Japan, in November 1904. Ar that rime, petroleum prod ucts were shipped in rectangular tin can s that held about 10 gallons each, called "case oil." These cans were rightly packed- thousands and rhousands of them- aboard huge ships or barques .

Swift kept a secret journal and wrote candidly abo ut the voyage. Ir would nor have gone over well , either with his shipmates or wirh rhe captai n, had rhey been aware that every aspect of their voyage was being carefully recorded . Swift wrote exceedingly well, and his journal, with Bunring's footnotes, gives us a wonderful understandin g of what a passage under sail was like 100 years ago.

A helpful feature of this book, especially co nsidering the enormous amounr of research co nducted, is thar the notes follow each chapter immediately, rather rhan at rhe back of rhe book. Ir makes it much easier to cross reference a foornore without hav ing to turn the who le book around and go through pages and pages of other material ro find the note.

Finally, rhe many photographs are simply remarkable and worrh the price of rh e book themselves.

ToM H ALE

Martha's Vineyard, Massachusetts

Writing Geographical Exploration: fames and the Northwest Passage 163133, by Wayne K. D. Davies (Univ. of Calgary Press a nd Arctic Institute of North America, C algary, Alberta, 2003, 3 l 8pp, figures, rabies, biblio, index, ISB N 155238-062-9; $49.95) The du al inrenrions of this book are ro reassess rhe explorarory voyage of Captain Th omas James, who departed Bristol in 1631 to search for rhe fa bled Northwest Passage, and to examine the means by which he communi cared his experiences and descriptions of northern No rth America SEA HISTORY l 10, SPRfNG 2005

to Anglophone readers in Europe. In broad terms, this volume emphasizes the interpretive val ue of exploration narratives from the perspective of literary output, rather than geographical knowledge, contributed by an ex pedition.

1homas James sailed to the sourh coast of Hudson Bay and the west coast of]ames Bay, a fairly limited expedition by standards of the time. His narrative stands our among so m any others because of the sheer quality of Jam es's prose. He knew how ro write in an engaging style that deftly communi cated the hazardous experiences of the crew as th ey sailed in high latitudes and spent the winter in a lirrle known land . His account even included two poems he wrote in the norrhern climes.

Wayne Davi es, the author of this volume, is a geographer wirh a keen interes t in Welsh setrlement in Canada and AngloWelsh literature. He argues that th e most important co nrribution of James's vo lume was to ea rl y Canadian literarure and the nasce nt notion of a Canadian cultural idenri ty, regardless of the fact that the book was actually wrirren upon James's return to E ngl and . Other readers who view the centuri es-long search for the Norr hwesr Passage in more international terms may not be so inrerested in the many real and tenuous claims to Welsh heritage of north Arlanric explorers .

The book is laid our in textboo k format and is replete with citations to firsthand accounts and academic analyses.

Perh aps it is inrended for classes in the li terature of geography and exploration, but other readers should not be put off by its appearance. This book is an excellent read for audiences ran ging from academ ics to armchair explorers.

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Salem , Massachusetts

Lake Champlain's Sailing Canal Boats, An Illustrated journey From Burlington Bay to the Hudson River, by Arthu r B.

+

Cohn (Lake C hamplain Maritime Museum , Basin Harbor, VT, 2003, 187 pp, illus, biblio, index, ISB N 0-9641856-3-6; $24.95pb) A beautiful and effective blend of historical photographs, marine art, and compelling archaeological docum en ta ti on

SEA HISTORY 110, SPRING 2005

45

REVIEWS

Cajiain O:Jok's Second \byage oflacnry

come togecher in che lacesc offering fro m Archur Cohn and che Lake C hamplain M aricim e Museum . This richly-illuscraced volume gives a colorful and encicing overview of Lake C hamplain's sailing canal boars and their role in ch e region's historically vigorous maricime crade. Whac m akes chis publicacion uniq ue is ics incegrati on of ch e museum's solid research, archaeology, and repli ca program s, in parti cular, the building of the replica canal schooner Lois McClure (launched July 2004) .

Abundan d y illustrated, yec filled with concise in fo rmacio n on che developmenr of maricime comm erce o n Lake C hamplain, Cohn examines Na tive secdem enc and early European use of th e lake before the opening of che C hamplai n Canal in 1823. Vivid hisroric phorographs illusrrace che boom years of the l 9ch cenrury. Twencieth-century ph oros show the Champlain Valley adapting ro changing eco nomic conditions and techn ological advances.

The fin al sectio n is dedicated ro th e museum's outstanding efforts ro "rediscover hisrory." From che replica Revoluci o nary War gunboac Philadelphia II ro che Lake C hamplain U nderwacer Preserve Program, th e museum and its research inscicute have m ade incredibl e archeological breakth ro ughs, including che discovery and documentacion of cwo 1862-class canal schooners, General Butler and O.j.

Walker. Im ages of shipwrecks, as well as seep-by-seep phoros from che bui lding of Lois McClure make chis a unique resource for hisrorians, archaeologists, divers, and boatbuilding enchusiascs.

CATHY GREEN

Alpena, Mi chigan

Hudson's Merchants and Whalers: Ihe Rise and Fall ofa River Port 1783-1850,

by Margaret B. Sch ram (Black Dome Press, H ensonville, NY, 2004, 209pp, illus, biblio, index, ISBN 1-883789-39-7; $24.95pb) Hudson, New York, was never a m ajo r whaling port, as the author of chis lavishly-illusrraced and lovingly-produced book points o ut, yec H udson 5 Merchants and Whalers focuses specifi cally on whaling. This means that Hudson 's important early involvement in the escablishm ent of US trade with Canron, and in particular the pivo tal role played by local m erchants

46

in the hisrories of the gi nseng and maritime fur trades is neglected . No netheless, chis local hisrory is an amactive addi cion to che bookshelf of anyo ne interested in the srory of maritim e New Yo rk, particula rly those who have visiced che area.

J OAN D RUETT

Wellington , New Zealand

Villains ofAll Nations: Atlantic Sea Pirates in the Golden Age, by M arcus Rediker (Beacon Press, Bosron, 2004, 240pp, il lus, n o tes, index, ISBN 0-8070-50024-5; $24hc) Pirate books of one sort or another h ave become an induscry un ro themselves.

They have become a pop cul ture ph enom eno n, and piraces have been cransfo rmed inro che bad boy pop scars of li ceracure and screen . Rediker's lacesc book, Villains ofA ll Nations, turn s che foc us away from che swashbuckli ng side of che genre and leaves che cudass-in-clenched-ceech ro ochers. In scead he loo ks ac che mocives chat drove several chousand men in ro chis crade during che pinn acle of che go lden age of piracy from 17 16 ro 1726.

This was the era of Bartholomew Robercs, Blackbeard, and several of che o cher infamous sea dogs who sailed under the Jolly Roger. Rediker does no r wrice a series of flu ffy biographies, inscead he cal ks abo ut che conditio ns and issues of che rime that fed pi race ships wich ch eir crews. H e talks abour piracy alm osc as a sailor's righcs issue, a class scru ggle, and che evolutio n of an egal irari an society created by men who aband o ned che m istreacment and unfairn ess fo und aboard merchant ships. They joined the brotherhood of the waves, creacing ch eir own set of social rules ro meec the specific needs and cemperaments of this special breed of seamen .

Nocwithstanding some readability and co ntin uity issues, che book does a great job in explaining the reali cies of th e social issues of the rime and offers a co mprehensible scale ro chis niche pirace wo rld chrough detailed scatistics, a definabl e timel ine, and a shifci ng geographic playing field. It is interescing that fro m the start, Rediker often puts the reader o n the scaffold alo ngs ide several of these m e n and uses their las t wo rds ro depi ct an a ttitude cowards autho ri ty that seems to d efin e Piracy as a social phenomenon.

SEA HISTORY 110, SPRIN G 2005

He hints that it was not so much about greed and lust for gold as it was an act of rebellion and a fight for personal freedom in a world increasingly dominated by the heartless machine of nationally-sponsored global trade.

If you're looking for descriptions of ships and cannons and an easily digestible narrative of a romantic pirate's life, seek it elsewhere. If you prefer to delve into detail, the social issues through which these men sailed, and perhaps gain a better understanding of piracy unplugged from Hollywood myth, you'll find this little book has a lot of depth and insight to offer. With over 40 pages of notes it is clear this is a well-documented and serious look at an overexposed subject often trivialized by the big screen versions of hisrory. ]ERRY ROBERTS New York City

Maritime History as World History, ed.

by Daniel Finamore (Univ. of Florida Press, Gainesville, 2004, 240pp, illus, notes, index, ISBN 0-8130-2710-1; $59.95hc) Take a compelling topic and tide, combine the efforts of thirteen renowned author/historians, then have their product edited by the curator of distinguished maritime museum and one should have the recipe for a "delectable" feast of historiography. Maritime History as World History, despite a handful of excellent chapters, unfortunately came out as uneven and disappointing in its cohesiveness.

Finamore's book is organized around maritime themes: a stage for exploration, a pathway for commerce, an arena for conflict, and a blank slate for literary expression . The histo rians chose a wide range of events starting with ancient cultures and wind ing through modern history. Each author's vantage point stems from how maritime interests affected each successive period's religion, politics, science, and economic advantage. Most chapters give the reader a fresh insight into under-charred areas regarding the entwinement of humanity with the ocean-this is particularly true of the literature chapter tided, "Odysseus's Oar." Several authors use the same historical episodes to launch into different topics. Perhaps there was so me co mpelling reaso n behind this, but the redundancy

SEA HISTORY 110, SPRING 2005

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On a positive note, the book generally adds a fresh perspective in support of the hypothesis that the histo ry of the sea is a path toward the understanding of human histo ry-that maritime histo ry can serve as a m eaningful window on world history. Dan Finamore should be praised for formulating this erudite work in spite of its minor flaws.

LOUIS ARTHUR NORTON West Simsbury, Connecticut

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New&Noted Encyclopedia of the war of 1812, edited

by David S. Heidler and Jeanne T. Heidler (Naval Institute Press, Annapolis, MD, 636pp, illus, gloss, biblio, index, ISB N 159114-362-4; $34.95 pb)

Eugene O'Neill and Dat Ole Davi! Sea: Maritime Influences in the Life and Works of Eugene O'Neill, by Robert A. Richter (Mystic Seaport, Mystic, CT, 2004, 215pp, photos, notes, biblio, index, ISBN 0-939510-97-9; $24.95

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Feeding Nelson's Navy: The True Story of Food at Sea in the Georgian Era,

by Janet MacDonald (Stackpole Books, Mechanicsburg, PA, 2004, 224pp, illus, notes, biblio , gloss, index, ISBN 1-861 76233-X; $39.95hc)

Grace Hopper: Admiral of the Cyber Sea, by Kathleen Broome Williams (Naval Institute Press, Annapolis, MD, 280pp, photos, notes, biblio, index, ISB N 1-5575 0-952-2; $32.95hc)

True North: Peary, Cook, and the Race to the Pole, by Bruce Henderson (W.W. No rton & Co., Inc., New York, 2005, 288pp, illus, notes, biblio, ISBN 0-39305791-7; $24.95hc)

Union Jacks: Yankee Sailors in the Civil war, by Michael ]. Bennett (Univ. of North Carolina Press, Chapel Hill, NC, 2004, 337pp, tables, illus, notes, biblio, index, ISB N 0-8078-2870-X; $34.95)

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CLIFFORD A. SMITH

GRACE D OHERTY C HAR ITABLE FO UN DAT ION

c. MCGRAW Fou

H OWARD SLOTN ICK

PATRICIA A. JEAN BAR ILE

ALICE D ADOURIAN

Ti 1 COLTO

BRUCE GODLEY

K NIGHT

INA SHAPIRO

IN MEMORY OF PETER MANIGAULT

ICHOLAS CARLOZZI

PETER H . GHEE

s. H OOPER FOUNDATION

ELIZABETH

L EONARD J. BALABAN

KARL G. A OREN

& MRS.

H OLLAND

ANN

IN MEMORY OF D AVID A. O'

JAMES H. BROUSSARD

JAKOB I SBRANDTSE

ROBERT E. MORRIS, JR.

&

H ENRY L .

DONALD

WILLIAM G. Wii TERER

W ALTER CRONK ITE

THE M AC PH ERSON FU 'D, INC.

MR.

& HI TORIC PR ESERVATIO

& TRA SPORTATION, INC.

M CALLISTER TOWING

PLA KOWNERS

c. M CGRAW, JR.

D ONALD

WILLIAM H. WHITE

TISBURY TOWJ G & TRANSPORTATIO , INC.

RODNEY

J. ARON CHARITABLE FOUNDATION

JAMES A. M ACDONALD FOUNDATION

M R.

&

&

MRS. G EORGE WRITER

GEORGE F. RUSSELL, JR .

MRS. JOHN R. SH ERWOOD,

Ill

LCDR ROBERT B. SPEEGLE, USN (RET) RI CHARD STIEGLITZ

TI SBURY WHARF COM PANY P ETER

&

JUDY V AN D Y K E

& MRS. ALEXANDER W. VIETOR

GEORGE

C.

WHITE

H . ALEXA DER SALM OLE SKAARUP CAPT. PAUL

W.

SIMPSON

STOLT-N IELSON TR ANS PORTATION

JOHN G. T A LBOT M EMOR IA L

MR.

ALEXANDER WEINTRAUB MR.

ROGER RUB IEN

TAWAN I FOUN DATION W ILLIAM R. TOWER, JR .

NICK V AN R EESEMA ARCHIE K . W EATHERFORD ALFRED J. WILLI AMS

ALEXANDER ZAGOREOS

SEA HI STORY 110, SPRING 2005

SEA HISTORY PRINTS

The Black Ball L ine's packet ship Yorkshire passes Castle Garden and the lower tip of Manhattan's Battery Park as she sails out of the Eas t River on her way to sea under the moonlight in 1854.

Night view from the Battery, New York City, in 1854

BY WILLIAM

G. MULLER

An exclusive limited edition of 250 signed and numbered giclee prints from the original oil painting at $150 each. (Add $15 s&h in the US.) Image size: 13" x 20"; Sheet size: 16" x 22" P rinted on 300 lb. 100% cotton rag stock using archival inks.

A Certificate of Authenticity accompanies each print.

Order your print from:

NATIONAL MARITIME HISTORICAL SOCIETY PO Box 68, Peekskill NY 10566 Or phone in your credit card order to:

1800 221-NMHS (6647), xO NYS residents add applicable sales tax. For orders sent outside the US, call or e-mail (nmhs@ seahistory.org) f or shipping.

Jiarhor Jiopping inJ./ewrrngland 8 Day/7 Night Cruise

Block Island

Enjoy 8 days "harbor hopping" to 7 of New England's most inviting destinations in the comfort of your brand new, 51-stateroom cruise ship. Cruising along the smooth, protected waters, your ship will arrive in the heart of each port, just steps away from historic whaling museums, charming village shops, scenic bluffs and cobblestone streets. This itinerary is offered from June through October, the perfect time to enjoy the cultural riches of New England .

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:

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AMERICAN

CRUISE LINES

1-800-814-6880 Call for a free brochure Martha's Vineyard, MA· Nantucket Island, MA· New Bedford, MA· Fall River, MA· Newport, RI ·Block Island, RI ·New London, CT