New Additions to Philip L. Rhodes manuscript collection

New additions to the Philip L. Rhodes manuscript collection (Coll. 312) include design data notebooks that contain drawings and measurements and calculations for weight, size, displacement, and speed for many of his designs. This manuscript material complements the time line of the material contained within the Philip L. Rhodes ships plans collection (SP Coll. 80).

Happy Valentines Day!

In the popular imagination, sailors’ valentines (like scrimshaw) were made aboard ship by homesick seamen who occupied their dog watch leisure time fabricating intricate patterns with shells they had collected on exotic beaches. Although mariners did collect shells during their travels, most sailors’ valentines were made from fewer than twenty varieties of shells, usually all of which are found in the West Indies. Research on the styles and composition of sailors` valentines indicates that most of the pieces popularly called sailors’ valentines were, in fact, made in the West Indies—particularly Barbados—and purchased there by visitors, whether they were sailors or travelers for pleasure. Thus, most were neither sailor—made nor strictly St. Valentines Day gifts.

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And another good book

Dr. Joshua Smith, a long time associate of the collections has just published Voyages, the Age of Sail: Documents in American Maritime History, Volume I, 1492-1865. Described by Christopher P. Magra, California State University at Northridge as "An indispensable resource for anyone interested in teaching American maritime history. This well-organized and edited collection of primary documents will significantly advance students' knowledge of the fundamental role the sea has played in our nation's past." This volume promises to be a welcome addition to all maritime collections.

The Physics of Annie

Physics Professor John Kimball of Albany University licensed a photo of our sandbagger ANNIE for use in illustrating his new “Physics of Sailing” textbook. The piece on ANNIE is about alternative methods of maintaining boat balance and also promotes ANNIE’s part in the Watercraft Collection at Mystic Seaport.

In Print

Mystic Seaport gets a shout out from David R. Mandell in the John Hopkins University press book Tribe, Race, History: Native Americans in Southern New England, 1780--1880 (The Johns Hopkins University Studies in Historical and Political Science) as we "graciously provided a copy of the Seaport's database of New London Crew Lists."

Ships Plans Collection Featured in Classic Yacht Magazine

This month's edition of Classic Yacht features an article on the Ships Plans Collection on pages 84-89.

Whalemen's Shipping List

In association with the National Maritime Digital Library, Mystic Seaport is happy to present for research, pdf versions of the Whalemen's Shipping List, first published in 1843 with the "...latest advices of every vessel engaged in the Whaling business, together with the prices current of our staple commodities, and interesting items of commercial intelligence." Whalemen’s shipping list, and merchant’s transcript, Mar. 17, 1843. The List was the main source of information on American whaling vessels throughout the second half of the 19th and early part of the 20th centuries.

To access the issue that interests you, click on the year from the list. A menu of months available for that year will appear below the list of years. Click on the issue that interests you and wait for the pdf to load. (Works best with Mozilla Firefox)

We hope that this newspaper will become a valuable online research tool, used in conjunction with The American Offshore Whaling Voyage (AOWV) database also found on www.nmdl.org and compiled by members of World Whaling History. Please contact us regarding any discrepancies or thoughts in general at nmdlibrary@gmail.com