From the PresidentThe shipwrights have been hard at work in the Henry B. duPont Preservation Shipyard, and it is an honor to see them ply their craft. Over a hard winter, the men and woman of the shipyard have continued to stay on schedule, and we are now looking forward to an active summer that will include the creation of new scaffolding at the bow to permit work on the stem.Elsewhere, the search for materials continues. Long leaf yellow pine is being logged in Georgia, a good piece of white pine for the Morgan’s new bowsprit has been located on state land in Connecticut, and other sources have been identified in the Adirondacks.It takes many hands performing numerous tasks to preserve the last wooden whaleship in the world. Every effort is worth our many thanks and admiration. “ preservation” and

the Charles W. Morgan The first voyage of the Charles W. Morgan lasted from 1841

until 1845. Like so many other whalers of the era, the Morgan

spent time sailing the seas around the Galapagos Islands for

whales. The summer of 1843 was no different. According to

the Morgan’s logbook for Friday, August 25 of 1843, during

the “Middle Part about one P.M. saw Whales, at 3 o’clock.

Lowered. Struck to the Waist Boat. Got the whale alongside

at 5 o’clock & Shortened sail. Last Part Laying by the Whale.”

The logbook entry from the day before reads, “Galapagos

Island. Commenced with strong Trades at 4 o’clock A.M.

All Hands Employed Lashing the Anchors and stowing

away Turpin.”

“Turpin,” it turns out, was sailors’ slang for the great Galapagos

tortoises. On the previous day the captain had sent a number

of boats ashore at Chatham Island, one of the isles in the

Galapagos group, to capture alive as many “turpin” as they

could. The sailors brought back over 300 of the slow-moving

land turtles to the Morgan. While the whalemen partook of the

bounty of the sea as well as the land in order to vary their diet

of salted meats and other such culinary delights, it was the

tortoise that they seemed to enjoy the most. In a reminiscence

Mar / Apr 2011 Volume 2, Issue 2

RestoRation Update

Work on the planking applied to the interior framework of the ship (known as “ceiling”) is progressing. Three “strakes,” consisting of three to four planks each, have been installed on both the port and starboard sides.

There will be a total of seventeen strakes on each side of the ceiling from just above the keelson to the clamp. Two teams of two shipwrights each are working on the opposite sides of the hull and can install from three to four ceiling planks a week.

At this rate, the ceiling should be completed by late summer.

MorganReflectionsthe Log of

Mystic Seaport®

(continued on back)

,,

Stephen C. WhitePresident

TM

Mar / Apr 2011 Volume 2, Issue 2

Mystic Seaport — The Museum of America and the Sea is the nation’s leading maritime museum. Founded in 1929,

Mystic Seaport is home to four National Historic Landmark vessels, including the Charles W. Morgan. The “crown jewel”

of Mystic Seaport’s collection, the Charles W. Morgan is America’s last surviving wooden whaleship. To learn more and

view images of her restoration, please visit www.mysticseaport.org

“preservation” continued

recorded later in his life, Captain Josiah

Holmes of Mystic recollected, “But we cared

little for bonitos, albacore and green turtle

in comparison with the turpin on the island.

These are a thick heavy land turtle that never

enter the sea. Their meat is very excellent;

their tallow is a luxury and is as yellow as

butter; their eggs, too, are a great delicacy.”

Another reason sailors aboard whalers would

stock so many of these turtles below deck

was that the animals could last for months

without food and water, yet remain a reliable

source of fresh meat for the crew.

According to some studies, tens of thousands

of tortoises were taken aboard whaleships

over the course of the 19th-century, helping

to sustain the whalemen who were thousands

of miles from home. Nowadays, people find it

hard to understand such extensive slaughter,

but such behavior seemed only natural in the

19th-century.

Work by scholars like Dr. Sylvia Earle bear

witness that our attitudes towards whales,

but also the entire marine environment,

have changed. In November of 2010, Dr.

Earle was the recipient of Mystic Seaport

America and the Sea Award. The award

“honors and celebrates those who embrace

the scholarship, exploration, adventure,

aesthetics, competition and freedom that the

sea inspires.” Dr. Earle, as Time magazine’s

first Hero for the Planet for her work as an

advocate for the oceans and their life forms,

fits all the criteria that the award embodies.

As part of her work, Dr. Earle has identified

a number of “Hope spots” around the world

that should be protected as important marine

environments. One of those spots is the

area encompassing the Galapagos Islands, a

delicate environment in a fast-moving world.

Dr. Earle, along with many others, strives to

Whale Port Written by Mark Foster Illustrated by Gerald L. Foster

Whale Port is an illustrated story of

America, and the important role whales

played in its history and economic

development as people worked together

to build communities. Set in the fictional

village of Tuckanucket, this book is filled with highly detailed

drawings of daily whaling life in New England. Meet young

Zachariah Taber, his family and neighbors as they interact

with sailors, shipsmiths, ropemakers, and other craftsmen

who made it possible to bring home the oil that lit the homes

of America and lubricated the industrial revolution. This

colorful book will delight readers of all ages. O

preserve the diversity of life among these islands.

More than 150 years after the Morgan sailed to the Galapagos, her

sage words referring to the upcoming 38th voyage of the Charles

W. Morgan reflect our new mores. Dr. Earle states, “The Charles

W. Morgan is a ship from the past with a message for the future:

protect, preserve and cherish the sea and its inhabitants.”

The Morgan Bookshelf

This ‘Reflection’ is from Paul J. O’Pecko, Vice President, Collections and Research