USA > Maine > Sagadahoc County > Bath > History of Bath and environs, Sagadahoc County, Maine. 1607-1894 > Part 13
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The Cotton Carrying Trade. - The first vessel sent to New Orleans from Bath or the State of Maine was in 1802, and was the brig Androscoggin, under the command of NEHEMIAH HARDING and owned by William King. On ordering the brig to New Orleans the captain asked Gen. King where New Orleans was. He was informed vaguely that it was somewhere on the Gulf of Mexico. C'apt. Harding fortunately found an old Spanish chart by which he safely found the mouth of the MISSISSIPPI RIVER. This was the beginning of the immense cotton carrying trade in Bath vessels from that and other southern ports. This auspicious event, thought but little of at the time, illustrates possibly the far-seeing business enterprises for which William King was notable and in which he was almost if not always successful.
Of the cotton carrying trade across the ocean, Bath ships had for succeeding years almost a monopoly, with New Orleans as the great shipping point. They were constructed with adaptation for going over the sand bars at the mouth of the Mississippi River. This large trade was lost in consequence of the construction of the
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JETTIES by Eades proving a success in deepening the channel that let in the large, deep English steamers, and thus cut off the freight- ing business of NEW ORLEAN ,from sailing ships. It was a BLOW from which our deep sea shipping interests have never fully recov- ered. East India, China, Japan, the Guano Islands, and the California freighting business took the place of that of cotton, but never with like security of continuous remuneration.
When California came into prominence, navigating around Cape Horn and the Pacific Ocean business required fast sailing ships of large tonnage. Then came the era of
THE CLIPPER SHIP.
No doubt this was the proudest and most picturesque period of our commercial and maritime career. The clipper ship was sharp, keen, and high sparred, carrying a tremendous crowd of sail, with royals and sky-sails and all manner of devices for increasing speed, which was then regarded as the great desideratum.
The annals of Bath teem with the marvelous achievements of these great commercial yachts, and poets and authors in all parts of the world have made the clipper ship famous in song and story. But she was not a good carrier, and soon her place was taken by vessels of wider lines and sturdier proportions. There are but few of the old-time clipper ships in existence, but the love the people bore for them has never died away, and to-day the advent of an old clipper in an American port awakens a thrill of patriotism in the hearts of both old and young America; the newspapers recall the clipper's former glory, old sailors spin anew yarns of the clip- per's mighty speed that grows ever greater as the years roll by, and boys of Bath of sea-faring ancestry feel their bosoms swell with pride as they read in history and nickel library the deeds their fathers did in the swift clipper ships that distanced the fleets of all the world in the halcyon days of the early Pacific trade.
Poetry pictures the gallant clipper laden with golden grain, speed- ing over the deep blue sea with flowing sheets and bellowing canvas, young America at the wheel, her proud commander pacing the
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quarter-deck, each sailor American born, skilled and brave, a hero of the sea, such as manned the victorious Yankee frigates in the war of 1812.
Prose places the survivor of the :clipper fleet in the coal barge business, dismantled of her tapering spars and snowy canvas, loaded down to the water's edge, drearily dragging her blackened hulk from port to port along the coast, not even sailing under her own canvas but tamely towed by some smoky tug, her wheel tended and her deck in command of foreign born seamen.
Probably some one has gained by the downfall of the clipper ship, and mayhap our country is more prosperous with her com- merce in the hands of England and safer with her merchant marine manned by foreign sailors, and probably the going out of the clipper ship had nothing to do with the case; but it still remains that our ships no longer inspire poets or invite young America, and there are many things to deplore which the building of a few big ships and the establishing of iron ship-yards do not entirely offset.
But it is not the fault of Bath. Bravely she has struggled to maintain the supremacy of America on the sea, and heroically has she striven to retain for our country our country's commerce. That the government has done little to aid her efforts is apparent, although it has awakened from its long sleep and begun to build a new navy and take steps to recover its lost prestige on the ocean.
The Bath ship in herself is the finest sailing craft that floats. She is perfect in model, staunch in construction, capable of with- standing the severest storms, possessed of great speed, and is altogether a specimen of marine architecture of which our country may well be proud. In comparison with the finest of English iron ships, the Bath ships do not suffer. They are built just as they should be built to meet the requirements of the foreign carry- ing trade. They are capable of conveying across the sea, safely, swiftly and in good condition, whatever cargo they may be called upon to transport. Of these ships Bath has a large and well- manned fleet, which has cost many millions of dollars.
The Guano Trade. - When the cotton carrying trade began to decline, the freighting of guano from the Chincha Islands became a
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very acceptable source of business for Bath ships. This lasted sev- eral years, carrying that valuable fertilizer from the Peru Islands to our southern ports and to Europe. The final decrease of the supply and the control of these islands falling into the hands of England operated to cut off this branch of freighting from our shipping. This trade with these Islands was extremely profitable, transporting their fertilizing products to market.
When the Mexican war was in progress, which commenced in 1846, there was a lively demand for vessel transportation, and Bath shipping had paying employment for a number of years in this service.
It was in the days of the CLIPPER SHIP just before the late war, that Bath reached the zenith of her GLORY AND PROSPERITY. Not only did the demand for the guano and that of the California trade em- ploy a large number of ships, but England was buying Bath built ships for her commerce, and thus the Bath yards were crowded beyond their utmost capacity for a number of years.
This period of activity began with the Mexican war, when many ships were required in transporting troops and supplies. From 1837 to 1856 inclusive there were built 255 ships, 36 barks, 36 brigs, and 35 schooners, the height of this prosperity having been in 1854, when ninety-one vessels were built, aggregating a total of 64,927 tons; fifty-nine of them were full-rigged ships, seven were barks, eighteen were brigs, and three schooners. These schooners were of about 400 tons burden, about one-fifth of the average ton- nage of the schooner of to-day. There was a notable decline in- Bath's building activity when the late war brought disaster to shipping properties.
Schooners. - While in years long since passed the spreading canvas of the Bath foreign-going ships annually whitened the waters of the Kennebec with their return to the port of their departure, they come back no more to these placid waters, finding the calls of business to be elsewhere, and their places are supplied by the going and coming of the schooners plying on less distant voyages, and whose dimensions far exceed those of the largest ships of former
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days. In the construction of this grade of vessels the Bath yards have a wide-spread fame that brings contracts from far-away locali- ties. For models of beauty, capacity, strength, and fleetness, the Bath built schooner stands without a peer.
Years ago the fore-and-aft schooner 'rig was supposed to be suitable to none except comparatively small vessels, and the limit was fixed at two masts. But as later requirements of coasting trade forced the building of larger vessels, it was found that the corre- sponding increase of sail area involved the use of taller masts than could be conveniently or even safely carried at sea, and so the experiment of three masts was tried. The experiment succeeded, and in the course of time "three-masters " swarmed up and down the coast from Maine to Texas, while " two-masters " were relegated to river and in-shore traffic. It had been found that a small vessel could not earn pay on long trips, while a large vessel would give a a fair profit to her owners. This fact has trebled the size of schoon- ers in the last decade. A schooner that could carry 800 to 1,000 tons of freight was a large vessel ten years ago, while one is seldom built to-day to carry less than 2,500 to 3,000 tons. And along with the increase of size has come an addition to the number of masts, so that the " three-master " is giving place to the "four-master," and already there is afloat the experimental " five-master." In the Bath yards these large schooners are yearly built, as also steamers both for freight and passenger service, whose models are not excelled at any other building point.
Schooners of the largest class of coasting tonnage are built with one main deck, supplemented by a spar deck, are framed in oak, braced with heavy hackmetack knees, planked with southern pine, fastened with locust treenails, decked with white pine and con- structed throughout with an eye to strength, carrying capacity, speed and sea-worthiness. The sails, cargo and anchor are handled by hoisting engines of the noiseless friction gear type. All modern appliances in the way of electric bells, speaking tubes, patent steer- ing gear, windlasses and capstans are furnished these vessels. The many labor-saving appliances on board these schooners render a small crew amply able to accomplish the work of a large crew un.
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aided by mechanical appliances. A crew of six men before the mast is sufficient for a schooner of 2,500 tons burden fitted with machinery.
EFFECT OF THE REBELLION.
In various ways this war crippled our ocean commerce from which it has never recovered. Some vessels continued to be built, as some builders could not well forego their life-long business, preferring to take their chances on the ocean during those perilous times. Many ships were kept at sea and some were sailed under foreign flags. Marine insurance was exorbitant. Yet some of the voyages resulted in profit, while other vessels were captured by rebel cruisers.
After the close of the war the general government obtained from England a large sum as damages to our commerce on account of the destruction of American ships by the rebel armed ship Alabama, on the ground that England aided and abetted by having allowed her construction and equipment within her borders. To appropriate this money rightfully, Congress instituted a board which took the popular name of ALABAMA CLAIMS COMMISSION. Bath came in for a share in the distribution of the fund, both for loss sustained in the destruction of its vessels and also for the extra rate of insur- ance that had to be paid on vessel property during hostilities.
IRON AND STEEL SHIP - BUILDING.
The year 1890 marked a new era in the construction of vessels in Bath. Since the close of the late war, the English and other maritime nations of Europe having been engaged in building ships of iron and steel, the demand for deep sea-going vessels of wood material has been decreasing year by year. Consequently the build- ing of iron vessels in the United States has been undertaken in some of the more southern states, and the builders of Bath have long felt that in time they would be compelled to resort to iron and steel in the construction of their ships. With this end in view Capt. G. C. Goss founded in 1883 the Goss Iron Works to build marine engines, but these works proving unsuccessful they were sold
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in 1889 to the Bath Iron Works, of which Gen. Thomas W. Hyde is principal owner. In the winter of 1890, he was successful in a bid for the construction of two cruisers of about one thousand tons each, to duplicate each other, for the use of the United States government. The place for; their construction was selected by appropriating the extensive, unoccupied dock south and contiguous to the BATH IRON WORKS, and the work of preparing it for occu- pancy was immediately commenced. The contract called for their completion within two years at the total cost of about $700,000. The preparation of the yard cost about $50,000. Subsequently Gen. Hyde secured the contract for the construction of the Ammen ram for the government, thus having three war vessels on the stocks at the same time. The two cruisers were successfully launched in the summer of 1892, one named the Machias, the other the Castine, thus honoring two of Maine's historical localities. The ram was successfully launched in February, 1893, and named KATAHDIN, after a Maine mountain. She is of 2, 182 tons and the cost of her construction was $1,500,000 to the government.
This plant is fully equipped for the building of IRON AND STEEL ships for the merchant marine service, having now a contract for a passenger vessel of large tonnage. Its capacity has been increased by men and improved machinery sufficient to construct the largest vessel the government may hereafter require.
ANOTHER PLANT for building iron ships is established in the city by a firm that has been largely engaged in the building of wood ships and schooners for many years past. The first invoice of material for this plant was a cargo direct from England brought by an iron English steamer. There is no duty on imported material to be used in building vessels. The Bath Iron Works have used American iron and steel exclusively.
The Bath Ship. - Dirigo ( I lead ) of the Pine Tree State has been verified in the great and important industry of ship-build- ing, of which Bath is the center. For many years Bath has been called the GREAT AMERICAN SHIP-YARD, and her finely built ships have floated upon every sea of the known world. She has led the
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world for the last half century in both the amount and quality of the tonnage that has come from her yards.
The INTERIOR APPOINTMENTS of the ships are luxurious, and supe- rior to anything ever seen in a clipper ship of the past. The captain's cabin is finished in hard woods of different kinds and furnished with rich carpets, raw silk and plush furniture. The sleeping apartments combine beauty with utility. Books, pictures, and a piano are sometimes added when the captain's wife accom- panies him, as she frequently does.
The CLIPPER PERIOD did not meet the exigences and demands of trade - speed with capacity - and since that time those desirable qualities have been fully met by improved models. We often hear of " the PALMY DAYS of shipping " before the war, when as many as fifty-nine full-rigged ships have been built in one year and sailed away from the port of Bath. It has been said by good authority that the AVERAGE LIFE of a WOOD SHIP is from twelve to fourteen years, thus making it necessary to rebuild the merchant fleets of the world every twenty-five years, and it is safe to say that the ships now carrying the freights from port to port will gradually disappear and must be replaced by other ships meeting the wants of a new navigation. This may necessitate the construction of the iron and steel ship.
Marine Hospital. - In 1792, a seamen's hospital was estab- lished on Hospital Point. Quarantine was in the river adjacent. The building was of two stories and square, and has not been there for many years. Accommodations for seamen on the sick list have, of late years, been provided in other parts of the city, with physi- cians in necessary attendance.
The French Spoliation Claims. - At an important crisis in the Revolutionary war France came to the aid of this country. By the treaties of 1778 the United States agreed to aid France in defending her West India possessions, and in case France should be at war with any other nation, to receive French vessels in American ports and exclude the vessels of her enemy. But the French Revolution alarmed American statesmen. ... .. I : ned
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to conclude the treaty of 1795 with England, whereby English vessels were admitted to American ports and French vessels excluded.
The treaty of 1795 with England gave to France great offense, and resulted in a decree of the French government proscribing all vessels carrying British goods. Two thousand American sails were swept from the ocean. Three envoys sent to France could gain no satisfaction, and were treated with contempt. In those times orig- inated Pinckney's famous expression, " Millions for defence; not a cent for tribute.". An army was formed, and Washington was called to its command. Of this army Maine's share was 26,000 men who were raised with alacrity. When the United States demanded indemnity of France for the American vessels which had been destroyed, Napoleon replied that the United States owed France indemnity for failing to protect the West India possessions as agreed by the treaty of 1778. Private claims were offset by a pub- lic claim, and the United States was thus left to settle with its own citizens for the losses which they had sustained at the hands of France. But when Louisiana was purchased from Napoleon, $10,000,000 were reserved for the settlement of the private claims of United States citizens against France. The claims were paid as presented, and when the money was exhausted many claims were still unsettled. They were just as sound as those which were set- tled, and remain to this day as the French spoliation claims.
By the treaty between the United States and France, the United States became the debtor in the place of France to all who suffered from French spoliation. The legality of these claims has been indorsed by eminent statesmen and the appeal of the claimants has been made to many Congresses. In March, 1891, a bill passed Congress appropriating $1,500,000 in liquidation of these claims. The legal heirs of the owners of vessels destroyed by the French, as above related, are the claimants. At this remote day it will be difficult to prove claims. Their adjustment is in the hands of the United States Commission on Claims at Washington.
Alabama Claims. - During the war of the Rebellion, some of the owners of Bath ships had them registered in England and they
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sailed under English colors, thus avoiding capture by confederate cruisers; they did a profitable business. When the war was ended the registry of these vessels could not be changed to sail under the American flag. Yet there were those owning and manag- ing Bath ships who kept them at sea during the war, taking their chances of capture, insuring them at a heavy premium. More or less of these vessels were destroyed by confederate cruisers, the most active and aggressive of which was the ship Alabama, com- manded by Capt. Semmes.
When the war of the Rebellion was over, the United States gov- ernment claimed that the Alabama and other confederate cruisers were built in English yards, fitted for sea by Englishmen, and in consequence demanded damages from the government of Great Britain. This demand was finally adjusted on the payment by England of $15,500,000 to cover these losses, which was paid to owners of vessels who could prove losses from capture by confed- erate cruisers before a board of commissioners appointed by Congress for the purpose. Others obtained redress for exorbitant rates of insurance they had paid on account of the depredations of these piratical cruisers, so long as the money drawn from the English government held out. Bath ship owners came in for a share of this money, while many claims remain unadjusted.
Reminiscences. - The Bath captains did not "come in through the cabin windows." It was soon after the commencement of the last century that a few captains took their wives to sea with them, and then usually at the time when they were newly married. Some of them became almost heroines. William Drummond married Miss Mary Fisher of Arrowsic. She was an elegant lady, whose modest and retiring demeanor suggested the thought that her nature would shrink from encountering danger; but going to sea with her husband on a voyage and on nearing the coast of New York the ship became in such great danger that the captain had to lend a hand at the ropes, and his wife took the hehn and stuck to it till the ship was out of danger, which heroic feat was much praised. This was in 1831.
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CAPT. WILLIAM P. LARRABEE, whose wife was on board, on near- ing the coast to go into New York in one of the Houghton ships in the winter season was several times driven off by the force of adverse gales; the cold was so intense that the sailors had difficulty in handling the sails; to help them, Mrs. Larrabee, who had a stove in the cabin, occupied herself in drying their mittens and other clothing so far as the facilities for doing so permitted. She was a fine specimen of a woman, both in physique and mind, her courage and heroism inspired the men to their arduous duties, and the ship was brought to her haven in safety. The companies having insurance risks on this ship and her valuable cargo presented Mrs. Larrabee a valuable testimonial for her heroic services.
SOME SMUGGLING in a quiet and shrewd way would be indulged in. When a vessel from the West Indies with a cargo of molasses and sugar arrived, a custom-house officer would be detailed to see that the goods landed corresponded with the "manifest" of the cargo, which was an account of the cargo written out and certified by the captain of the vessel and filed in the custom-house. There were cases where the document failed to contain the whole of the cargo. To get this surplus landed without detection by the custom- house officers was the enigma. The drive upon the inspector over- seeing the discharging would be that while this officer had gone to dinner and "all hands" to their "grub" the men would hurry through their meal and hoist some hogsheads of molasses or some boxes of sugar from the hold and hurry them into the warehouse, keeping an eye upon the return of the officer, who was probably dining with the owner who did not hurry much. For this service the men would be entitled to some extra drinks of "grog " together with the satisfaction of having beaten the custom-house out of the duties.
It must be confessed that in early voyages to the West Indies the captains of vessels made a good thing in the delivering of lum- ber in Spanish ports. The boards were run out of the vessel on a raft. The account of the quantities discharged was kept by the mate and a clerk who was sent down from the office of the purchaser and who knew nothing of the measure of the lumber. Accordingly
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when the seamen ran out a board on the raft he could call out any number of feet in excess of the marked measurement that he chose; the Spanish clerk would be none the wiser, and settlement was had as all right. Finally, however, the Spaniards came to suspect this ruse and had the lumber regularly urveyed.
"CAPT. JOHN WHITMORE, for many years well known as a respect- able sea-captain and afterwards pilot for this port, went out in the brig Susanna and Mary on the 29th ultimo, and has not since been heard from. He was known to have left the brig in a small boat, and was afterwards seen, in appearance nearly exhausted, drifting to sea; but in consequence of the severity of the weather, no assist- ance could be rendered. The only hope is that some fortunate vessel has fallen in with him at sea." - Maine Gasette, Dec. 6, 1820. A snow storm drove him off and his wherry was subsequently picked up at sea, but it did not have his body on board.
Era of Pirating. - In about 1821, '22, and '23, piratical vessels swarmed in the neighborhood of the West India Islands, and numbers of Bath vessels in the West India trade suffered by their depredations. It was believed that these piratical adventurers were countenanced by the Cuban authorities, and in some instances aided in fitting them out.
At a date not given a ship was hauled in at the north side of Davis' now Houghton's wharf and was found to be deserted. She was supposed to have been engaged in the slave trade. In that business so large were the profits of a successful voyage, that after discharging her cargo of slaves the owners of the vessel could well afford to lose her, and often did so by abandonment. She was finally sold to pay for her wharfage. It is also in tradition that the captain of this craft was arrested and taken before a magistrate to answer for the crime of slave-trading, but no evidence was brought against him and he was discharged.
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