Full Size Printed Plan & Building Notes
No material plans only
NEW BEDFORD WHALE BOAT
Full Size printed plan on a Sheet 36” x 18”
Five page description and building of a full size boat
Five page article of building notes of a kit (helpful in building model)
Display
Scale 1:24 (1/2”=1ft)
Length 14”
Beam 3
E. C. Freeston, M.S.N.R
I thought the details of the whaleboat might be of interest to readers as these boats have several features peculiar to themselves and not found in other craft.
Not many boats or ships have a universal application but are the result of development over centuries for a specific purpose as, for instance, the Thames Barge for shallow estuaries and mud berths, the Crooked Stern Junk for the tortuous waterway of the Yangtse and many other types too numerous to mention. The New Bedford Whaleboat, which is the subject of this article, is an outstanding example of the evolution of an open boat to its ultimate perfection in about 1870 after which whaling from open boats gradually ceased, to be replaced eventually by whaling from large factory ships and harpoons with explosive heads fired from guns.
It is not my intention to describe in detail the events of a whale hunt except as it is necessary to explain the purpose of a piece of equipment. There were some 40 items of whalecraft and gear stowed in each boat in positions which came to be standardised so that any one of the crew would know literally blindfolded where any particular item was to be
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