by Dr. Salvatore R. Mercogliano
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he transportation of cargo from man ufacto ries around the world to ports for loading, its move ment across the oceans to points of debarkation, and then its arrival at local loading docks transpires on a routine, seamless basis. The process is so smooth that, only after the terrorist attacks of September 11 , 2001, did th e nation awaken to learn that only a small percentage of the more than 23 million containers that arrive yearly in this country are inspected. Whi le this is clea rly a topic lawmakers are addressing as far as homeland security is concerned, it also points to the fact that the volume of commerce in and out of the nation , along with the rest of the world , has increased exponentially since the end of the Second World War. The reasons for this change are numerous: globalization, better production techniques, mechanization, and improved management styles. Perhaps the most significant factor, and one usually overlooked, is that the capability to move cargo overseas in large quantities and in a way that allows for quicker turn-around in port has only been effected in the last few decades. This style of cargo handling, containerization, has led to a shipping revolution . The early movement of cargo on and off ships can best be described in one word, manpower. D evices magnified this power, bur the use of humans, or sometimes animals, constant remained a theme throughout most of history. Blocks and tackle mounted on m as ts or on shore provid ed a mechanical advantage for lifting large weights. The The three-masted ship Mary L. breaking strain of wood C ushing, sailing at the turn of the required m assive booms l<Jth century, was a typical cargoand limited the size of the carrying vessel in the age ofsail. cargo that could be stowed onboard. The introduction of iron imo shipbuilding al lowed for smaller and more capable booms. In addition, this style of co nstruction permitted the enlarging of cargo deck hatches . The co mbination of stea m propulsion with iron, and later steel co nstructio n, mechanicall y- powered winches, electricity, and telegraph cables revolutionized the shipping industry in the late nineteenth century and introduced to the world the standard boo m (o r stick) freighter. Yer, with all these innovations, the movement of cargo by sea had changed li ttle sin ce ancient times. Cargo has always been moved easier by water than over land . Even today, ninety percent of the wo rld's commerce moves on the sea. TI1roughour histo ry, humans have continually used
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This illustration printed in H arper's Weekly (v. 2 1, no. 1072, 1877) depicts the hard physical labor it took to load and unload ships in the nineteenth century. Drawing by l.P Pranishnikojf. containers to move their goods. The Egyptians used straw baskets to load on ships, along with am phoras to carry liquid cargo. TI1is style of transportation still exists today in several parts of th e world. The development of wooden crates for shipping, barrels for liquid products, and bags for grain allowed for increased productivity in cargo operations, bur they were still limited by the power source. The introduction of m aterial handling equipment accelerated the cargo process . Mororized hand trucks, such as forklifts , dock tractors, crane trucks, and powered co nveyors radically altered cargo operations. When these were added to four-foot by four-foot wooden pallets, workers were able to move cargo in a third of the rim e. In the years after World War II, the standard stick freighter, exemplified by the Liberty, Victory, and C-class cargo ships of rhe US Maritime Co mmi ss ion , was the most common dry cargo ship sailing on th e world's oceans. As the demand for cargo increased,
Only in the last 5 0 years has the burden ofloading cargo with slings been alleviated by the development of the container ship and port facilities.
SEA HISTORY 114, SPRING 2006