A couple of atypically colorful logbook pages from the Bengal of Salem, Massachusetts, housed at the Providence Public Library. The ship sailed around the Pacific Ocean from 1832 to 1835 © Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution
18th century skull and crossbones drawings in Logbooks
When a sailor died at sea, the captain would draw a skull and crossbones on the ship’s log, and next to it would either write the name or initials of the deceased
Whaling journal/ logbook of the Whaler Helen Augusta and Gazelle, 1856-1862
The first 22 pages contain entries for the bark Helen Augusta of Martha’s Vineyard, for a voyage captained by Daniel F. Worth that commenced June 19, 1856. Entries for the Gazelle begin on page 23, for a voyage also captained by Daniel F. Worth that commenced August 25, 1862.
Logbook of HMS Achilles Commanded by Captain E. Kelly, kep by E[dmund] P[ercy] F[enwick] G[eorge] Grant, 1882-4
Logbook Entries from the Voyage of the Minerva, Captain Nicholas Pocock, c. 1776
Pen and ink on paper, detailing observations on May 2nd-7th and 14th-25th, May 1776, aboard the Minerva “From Bristol towards Nevis,” each day with typical records of distance, latitude, longitude, and weather, and also with detailed watercolor en grisaille depictions of the Minerva at sail.
A collection of seven stamps is one of the most elaborate examples of carved stamps used by 19th-century whalers to record details of their voyage. The set includes a whale, a three-masted bark, a schooner, a whale’s flukes, an unidentified cetacean, a sunfish, and a coffin. Photo by Nelson Mare
Carved maple stamp for a whaler logbook. One end with a whale and “POLAR”, other end with whale tail. 19th century
Whaling logbook of the Ceres under command of captain John S. Baker, New Bedford, 1835-37. Including four whaling stamps, three made of wood and one of whalebone, all from the 19th century
Clean Slate
“Let’s clean our slates and make a fresh start”
A term that I think fits today at new year quite well. But where does this term come from?
In days of sail the courses and distances made good during each watch were temporarily recorded on a slate.
Slate decorated with the Clipper “City of Mobile” owened by Captain William Spafford Brown (b.1830 ?-) , 19th century (x)
After transferring the information into the ship’s log, the slate was wiped clean prior to the next watch. Colloquial use of this expression ashore means to forget past events and start from “scratch”.