Overfishing in the Atlantic Leads to Whaling in the Pacific
Whaling route from New Bedford to Pacific.
In the North Atlantic, the addition of Dutch, British, and Finnish whalers wiped out the very small remaining population. Waters surrounding New England-- once full of whales-- no longer contained any of the cetaceans. Whalers began making the long trip all the way around South Africa to the Pacific, where they could make a profit on whaling.
- Whaling expeditions became much longer; rather than a few weeks or months at sea, the norm became a few years per trip.
- Results were either magnificent or catastrophic.
- Sometimes, trips yielded great results, so morale was high, money was made, and there were no deserters.
- However, bad expeditions could lead to low morale, no money, deserters, and bad crewmen.
- Longer trips took tremendous tolls on captains.
- Captain Samuel Joy, of Nantucket, once wrote,
"heavy gales and hard squalls with a Tremendous sea. Cut up our blubber put it into casks and got Some Oil between decks Ship labors hard and the scene above and around us beggars all description let no man ever talk to me again about whaling in this Country." (Most captains had difficulty writing)
- He was on the Tristan whaling grounds in the Indian Ocean.
- Whaling expeditions became much longer; rather than a few weeks or months at sea, the norm became a few years per trip.
- Results were either magnificent or catastrophic.
- Sometimes, trips yielded great results, so morale was high, money was made, and there were no deserters.
- However, bad expeditions could lead to low morale, no money, deserters, and bad crewmen.
- Longer trips took tremendous tolls on captains.
- Captain Samuel Joy, of Nantucket, once wrote,
"heavy gales and hard squalls with a Tremendous sea. Cut up our blubber put it into casks and got Some Oil between decks Ship labors hard and the scene above and around us beggars all description let no man ever talk to me again about whaling in this Country." (Most captains had difficulty writing)
- He was on the Tristan whaling grounds in the Indian Ocean.
Desertion to Paradise
Beautiful locales lured sailors away from ships.
The move to the Pacific made it harder for shipowners to find good crew.
- Ships stopped at island ports during journeys.
- These islands, such as Hawaii and Easter Island, had major whaling ports, where ships replenished supplies.
- Most of the sailors never left New England in their lives until they started whaling.
- As a result, the very pretty women in tropical islands were top reasons to desert.
- Ships stopped at island ports during journeys.
- These islands, such as Hawaii and Easter Island, had major whaling ports, where ships replenished supplies.
- Most of the sailors never left New England in their lives until they started whaling.
- As a result, the very pretty women in tropical islands were top reasons to desert.
Whaling in the Pacific was more dangerous than in the Atlantic
The Pacific Ocean was a much more dangerous place to whale than the Atlantic. If a ship was in trouble, the crew was more likely to die than live, as the Pacific was so much bigger and unexplored.
- More coral reefs and deadly fish. - Threat of cannibals. - Whalers were always aware of their surroundings when they went on to an island. - Exchanged stories were very graphic and made sailors on edge at a new place. - Even whales became deadly, as in the case of the Nantucket ship Essex. - The hull was rammed by a massive Sperm Whale, and it sunk in a matter of hours. - The crew, led by Captain George Pollard Jr. abandoned ship immediately. - As they floated in a harpoon boat without provisions, crew members began to die. - At first, they were given a burial at sea. - The remaining men resorted to cannibalism to stay alive. - Of the 21 men that began the trip, only 6 returned to Nantucket The event served as the basis for Herman Melville's Moby Dick and it became the most well known modern whaling disaster. Another ship that Captain Pollard captained, the Two Brothers, struck a reef near the Hawaiian Islands with him at the helm. "Surrounded with breakers seemingly Mountains high, and our Ship Carreening (sic) over upon her broadside and thumping so heavily that one Could Scarcely Stand upon his feet." ~Thomas Nickerson, Cabin Boy of Essex and Two Brothers, known for his chronicling of Essex disaster. |