Tupaia, Captain Cook’s Polynesian Navigator – A New Book by Joan Druett

Posted on by May 13, 2010

I love when an author shines a new light on history that we all thought we already knew. Joan Druett in her new book Tupaia, Captain Cook’s Polynesian Navigator, appears to do just that.    A sneak peak from Joan Druett’s website at the book,which should arrive in the US in November.

Tupaia, Captain Cook’s Polynesian Navigator

From Polynesia comes the story of the unacknowledged Tahitian who was essential to the success, and subsequent fame, of Cook’s voyage on the Endeavour.

The name of this remarkable man was Tupaia.
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Russian Cruiser Aurora Turns 110

Posted on by May 12, 2010

The Russian Cruiser Aurora was launched 110 years ago this month. She is currently a museum ship in St. Petersburg, the city where she was built.

The Cruiser “Aurora”

The historical ship Aurora has been turned into a museum and is docked just a few hundred yards upstream from the Cabin of Peter the Great, opposite the “St Petersburg” Hotel. The cruiser, built in St. Petersburg between 1897 and 1900, took an active part in the Russo-Japanese War of 1904-05 and participated in the Tsusima battle, in which most of Russia’s Pacific fleet was destroyed. After the war the ship was used for personnel training and during the October revolution of 1917 gave the signal (by firing a blank shot) to storm of the Winter Palace, which was being used as a residence by the democratic, but largely ineffective Provisional Government.

During World War II and the 900-day Siege of Leningrad the guns of the ship were taken down and used on the front line of the city’s defenses. After the war the ship was carefully restored and used as a free museum and training ship for cadets from the nearby Nakhimov Navy School.

Thanks to Dave Shirlaw on the Marine History list for the heads up.

Smallest Maritime Museum In England

Posted on by May 12, 2010

We have already seen the two small ships of the Little Brig Sailing Trust.  Now Alaric Bond has passed along an article about Robert Carter of Plymouth and the  Smallest Maritime Museum In England, an only 12ft wide x 6ft museum, packed with nautical items.

Smallest Maritime Museum In England

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Moby, Mocha and the Whale Ship Essex

Posted on by November 20, 2014

People are often surprised to hear that Herman Melville’s masterpiece, Moby Dick, was inspired, at least in part, by the sinking of the whale ship Essex by a sperm whale.  By all accounts the sinking of the Essex  haunted  Melville  and  unquestionably supplied him with ending of his novel.

This was not the only inspiration for Moby Dick, however.  There was indeed a rogue white sperm whale, well know to whalers in the early 1800’s.    He was often seen near the island of Mocha, off southern Chile, and was nicknamed Mocha Dick.   Mocha Dick was said to have killed more than 30 men, and to have attacked and damaged 14 whaleboats and three whaling ships.

In May 1839 the Knickerbocker Magazine, a popular publication in New York City, published a lengthy article about Mocha Dick by Jeremiah N. Reynolds an American journalist and explorer.

MOCHA DICK: OR THE WHITE WHALE OF THE PACIFIC: A LEAF FROM A MANUSCRIPT JOURNAL.
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MV Moscow University – Why Anti-Piracy Efforts off Somalia Are Doomed to Fail

Posted on by May 12, 2010

Two news stories, days apart demonstrate, at least to me, why the current efforts to combat piracy off the coast of Somalia are doomed to fail.  We posted previously how the tanker MV Moscow University was recaptured from pirates by Russian special forces involving the close cooperation of the ship’s crew and military personnel. Continue reading →

Into the Deep: America, Whaling & the World – a Review

Posted on by May 9, 2010

A few days ago, we posted about Ric Burns’ new documentary, Into the Deep: America, Whaling & the World, which will be broadcast tomorrow, May 10, at 9PM on most PBS channel in the United States. I had the opportunity to watch the documentary – a review:

Into the Deep: America, Whaling & the World, is a sweeping and visually stunning examination of  American whaling from the colonial era though its demise in the early twentieth century.  It reminds us that before we acquired our addiction to petroleum, our primary source of oil was from the sea, by the hunting of the great whales.  The whaling ships didn’t just hunt whales, they were also self contained oil refineries and factories at sea.  They processed and prepared the the oil, baleen and whale bone and packaged it for sale.  The whalers, constantly searching the seas for new whaling grounds, were also the discoverers of  then unknown lands and islands in every ocean.   Before America became a world power,  American whalers carried the nation’s name and vision to every corner of the watery globe.
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Staten Island Ferry Crash this Morning – 37 injured

Posted on by May 8, 2010

37 Injured in Staten Island Ferry Crash

Dozens of people were hurt when a Staten Island Ferry crashed into a dock at the St. George terminal on Staten Island about 9:30 a.m. Saturday, the authorities said.  The ferry was the Andrew J. Barberi, the same one involved in a 2003 crash that killed 11 people.
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Ancient treasures set for auction in Indonesia

Posted on by May 7, 2010

Belgian treasure-hunter Luc Heymans holds a rare large vase from the Liao Dynasty

Ancient treasures set for auction in Indonesia

An ancient treasure trove salvaged from a 1,000-year-old shipwreck found by Indonesian fishermen is set to go under the hammer in Jakarta Wednesday with a minimum price of 80 million dollars.  Belgian treasure-hunter Luc Heymans said the haul was one of the biggest found in Asia and was comparable to the most valuable shipwreck ever found anywhere, that of the Atocha, a Spanish vessel which sank off Florida in 1622.
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Russian special forces capture oil tanker Moscow University

Posted on by May 6, 2010

Close cooperation between the ship’s personnel and the Russian military allowed Russian special forces to storm the captured tanker Moscow University without unduly jeopardizing the safety of the crew.

Russian special forces capture oil tanker
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Into the Deep: America, Whaling & the World – New Ric Burns Documenatry

Posted on by May 6, 2010

This  Monday,  May 10th, PBS’s American Experience series will broadcast Ric Burns’ new documentary, Into the Deep: America, Whaling & the World. It looks fascinating.

The history of the American whaling industry from its 17th-century origins in drift and shore whaling off the coast of New England and Cape Cod, through the golden age of deep ocean whaling, and on to its demise in the decades following the American Civil War.

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Piracy and Maritime Crime: Historical and Modern Case Studies

Posted on by May 5, 2010

The US Naval War College has published a collection of essays on Piracy and Maritime Crime: Historical and Modern Case Studies, edited by Bruce A. Elleman, Andrew Forbes, and David Rosenberg.  The essays look at piracy around the world and throughout history ranging from Thomas Jefferson and the Barbary pirates in the 18th Century to the ongoing conflicts with pirates off Somalia.   The thirteen essays are available free on line at the Naval War College Press.

No World Record for Jessica Watson?

Posted on by May 5, 2010

When Jessica Watson arrives back in Australia in a few weeks, she may be the youngest person to have circumnavigated the world non-stop, but she will not necessarily be granted the record for doing so.  According to the rules laid down by the World Sailing Speed Record Council a circumnavigation is defined as follows :

To sail around the World, a vessel must start from and return to the same point, must cross all meridians of longitude and must cross the Equator. It may cross some but not all meridians more than once (i.e. two roundings of Antarctica do not count). The shortest orthodromic track of the vessel must be at least 21,600 nautical miles in length calculated based on a ‘perfect sphere’.
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Astrodene’s Historical Naval Fiction Log Book – A New Newsletter

Posted on by May 4, 2010

Fans of naval fiction either know or should know of Astrodene’s Historical Naval Fiction web site and forum.   A wonderful resource, lots of great information on books both old and new, as well as very nice folks in the forum.  They are now launching a naval fiction newsletter, “‘Log Book.”   delivered by e-mail (with archival copies available on line.)  Go to the site to sign up.

Based on the first newsletter they are off to a great start.  A brief summary of the current issue:

Last month I was privileged to get an interview with Julian Stockwin ahead of the launch of his new novel in the Kydd series ‘Victory’ and with Alaric Bond who’s new novel ‘True Colours’ is out this month.

There are 3 brand new naval fiction titles out this month together with some paperback edition releases.

The Mystery of the Beeswax Ship

Posted on by May 4, 2010

An intriguing item from Jim Klein on the Marine History List.     They are now filming the search for the cannons from the Beeswax wreck.   From the Beeswax Wreck Project site:

One of the most popular mysteries of the Oregon Coast has been the identification of the “Beeswax Wreck” at Nehalem Beach, in Tillamook County. Identified over time by various researchers as either a Chinese or Japanese junk, a Spanish galleon, a Portuguese trader, or a lost English or Dutch pirate vessel, we have been able to determine that the ship was in fact a Spanish Galleon of the Manila Trade. Nehalem Indian oral histories and the journals of the earliest traders in the area indicate that the galleon wrecked prior to European settlement and indeed most European exploration of the Pacific Northwest.

The site has been buried for the last 100 years. However, blocks of beeswax are occasionally found by beachcombers in the sand dunes adjacent to the site.
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Clocks from the Monitor’s Engine Room and the Lusitania’s Captain

Posted on by May 3, 2010

Thanks to Alaric Bond for passing along two articles about historic maritime clocks.   The conservators at the Mariner’s Museum have restored the engine room clock from the USS Monitor which sank in 1862.   On the other side of the Atlantic, a pocket watch belonging to the captain of the ill-fated Lusitania has been donated to Merseyside Maritime Museum.

U.S.S. Monitor Engine Room Clock conserved and on display at Mariners’ Museum

Lusitania captain’s watch goes to Merseyside museum

Sea cadet, 14, dies after falling from ship in Solent

Posted on by May 3, 2010

A tragedy at the 2010 Sea Cadet Festival.

Sea cadet, 14, dies after falling from ship in Solent

A 14-year-old sea cadet has died after falling overboard in the Solent.

The boy, from Kent, was on the training ship TS Royalist which was anchored at Stokes Bay south of Gosport, Hampshire.

He was climbing the rigging to bring in the sails when he fell 25ft (7.5m) into the sea on Sunday night. The crew retrieved him and sent a Mayday call.

The Solent Coastguard helicopter took him to the Queen Alexandra Hospital in Portsmouth where he was pronounced dead on arrival. An investigation has begun.

Small Ships Under the Tower Bridge

Posted on by August 26, 2012

World’s smallest tall ships sail under Tower Bridge… without the bridge deck opening

With the traditional rigging of a tall ship but only a fraction of the size, these two vessels are dwarfed by Tower Bridge.

The world’s smallest tall ships, TS Caroline Allen and TS Bob Allen – measuring just 30-feet in length, took to the River Thames today to train the next generation of seafarers.

They are usually housed at Cowes on the Isle of Wight and do most of their sailing on The Solent. Today they sailed under Tower Bridge without the roadway opening – something no other tall ship could boast.

Fireboat 343 and the JohnA.J. Harvey

Posted on by May 1, 2010

When the new New York City fireboat 343 arrived in New York harbor yesterday, one of the fleet greeting her was the fireboat John J. Harvey.  (Will has some great photos and commentary the tugster blog.)   I am struck by the parallels between the two boats.
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