Manuscripts
Logbook of whaling ship Hillman of New Bedford :
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Logbook of whaling ship from New Bedford to the South Pacific
Manuscripts
Logbook kept by an unidentified person onboard the whaling ship Three Brothers of New Bedford, Massachusetts, captained by James M. Witherell (listed as James L. Witherell in logbook). The generally brief entries date from October 12, 1869 to August 18, 1873 and mention the ship's position, weather, prevailing winds, ships sighted, whales encountered, and some shipboard activity. A few entries mention anchoring and shoreleave but most do not give the location. Some entries appear to be in different hands, with one dated June 18, 1873 including a note regarding an officer's conduct signed by captain J.M. Witherell. Volume is bound and covered in cloth; the inside front cover has an advertising insert for C.R. Sherman & Co. Navigation Store, New Bedford.
mssHM 263
Logbook of a whaling voyage in the South Atlantic and the Southwest Indian Ocean, 1833-1835
Manuscripts
The logbook author and ship are unidentified. Brief entries date from September 23, 1833 to February 6, 1835 and mention the ship's position, weather, prevailing winds, other ships sighted, and whales encountered with outcomes (these entries are usually marked with inked images of whales). There is little mention of land sighted or visits ashore, though the entry for February 19, 1834 notes Table Bay, Cape of Good Hope and the several pages following record the voyage from Table Bay to the Indian Ocean.
mssHM 26610
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Bark Afton of New Bedford logbook
Manuscripts
Logbook detailing the journey of the whaling bark Afton of New Bedford, Massachusetts, in the North and South Atlantic and Eastern Pacific regions. Details include the bark's position, longitude and latitude, wind speed, direction, encounters with marine life, whaling activities, and land activities, as well as drawings and stamps. The logbook's first entry is November 13, 1858, and its last is August 9, 1862. At the end of the log are accounts of the amounts of whale oil collected. Accompanied by photocopies of related items, including pages from an Annual Report of the Secretary of the Navy, from 1887, regarding the loss of the Afton in the Pacific Ocean.
mssHM 84221
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Milo Calkin journal of a voyage on a whaling vessel and shipwreck in the South Pacific
Manuscripts
The journal begins with Calkin leaving Auburn, New York on September 24, 1833, for Nantucket, Massachusetts, where he signs on to the crew of the whaling ship Independence, captained by Isaac Brayton. Calkin provides descriptions of whaling, icebergs, other ships encountered, a burial at sea, storms, and weather. The journal chronicles the ship's journey around Cape Horn to Chile and Peru, including a visit ashore to Lima and its Bellavista and Callao areas with descriptions of a Catholic Church and damage from the 1746 earthquake; the Galapagos Islands; the Marquesas Islands and Nuku Hiva, where he describes the Indigenous people and details a fatal encounter of two shipmates with locals; and to the Sandwich Islands (now Hawaii). Following the shipwreck of the Independence on Starbuck Island on December 13, 1835, Calkin describes taking shelter on the deserted island and then going to sea in smaller boats with crewmates, eventually landing in the Cook Islands--first on Manuae Atoll, also known as the Hervey Islands, then Aitutaki and Rarotonga. The journal contains descriptions of the islands, local inhabitants, flora, and Christian missionaries encountered. Calkin then travels to the Sandwich Islands in November 1836, where he lives until January 1842; there is little description of his life there. The journal also contains 13 watercolor sketches of whales and whaling, icebergs, birds, flora, an iguana on the Galapagos Islands, and buildings in the Sandwich Islands. Some of the journal appears to have been written retrospectively. Also present is a loose letter from U.D. Kellogg, Harpersfield, Ohio, to Kezia Calkin, Sandusky, Ohio, approximately 1835 (1 page).
mssHM 26539
John T. Hudson logbook, 1807-1808
Manuscripts
This logbook, kept by John T. Hudson, includes accounts of journeys from the Sandwich [Hawaiian] Islands to Canton and Canton to Boston. The log is in two main sections. The first section comprises 9 pages and is headed: "Remarks on board ship Mercury. Wm. H. Davis, from Sandwich Islands towards Canton." The first entry is dated 15th October, 1806 [actually 1807]. It concludes November 29, 1807. Davis was the father of William Heath Davis, Jr. an early Californian and important San Diego pioneer. Entries mention the Hawaiian royal family, cargo including bananas and taro, and ports along the way. He mentions taking leave of his ship Tamana. The second section comprises 42 pages and is headed, "Ship O'Cain from Canton to Boston." The first entry is February 14, 1808 and concludes on June 15, 1808. His notes include lists and prices of skins purchased, lists of items such as sewing silks, India cotton, china and glassware, lace, liquors, tobacco, paper & ink, powder & shot, knives, axes, etc. Several shorter sections occur towards the end of the volume, including one headed: "The purchase of sea otter skins at San Blas." Much of the volume is blank. The very last pages of entries include only a few lines: "Don Luis Munoz de Gusman. Captain General of Chile." "Don Manuel Rodriguez, Comd. of the Port of St. Diego." and a list of several names including: Capt. James Rowen, William H. Davis, Samuel C. Blodget, Clifford, and Boyd. Several loose pages of writing containing notes and navigational calculations are laid in volume.
mssHM 83408
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Reminiscences of John Wesley Hillman, Famous Forty-Niner and Discoverer of Crater Lake as dictated to Bentley B. Mackay
Manuscripts
In this 33 page document, John Wesley Hillman relates his travels and colorfully details life mostly in California and Oregon from 1849-1854. Beginning with the journey from Louisiana to St. Joseph, Missouri over the Oregon Trail to Oregon City, by ship to San Francisco and then to the mines in Mariposa County. Hillman returned to San Francisco after his father returned home to Louisiana. He describes the San Francisco fire of 1851, a trip to Mt. Shasta and Yreka and environs and then to his home base for many years in Jacksonville, Oregon. After driving pack and wagon trains, Hillman signed on to be a member of a party contracted to search for a shorter route to the gold fields in Florence Basin and the Salmon River in Idaho. After engaging in their own prosperous mining, the contact was fulfilled. Back in Jacksonville, he learned that a party of Californians were going on a search for the Lost Cabin Mine and decided to follow them. It was on this journey that he expectantly stumbled upon Crater Lake, a place that he said cannot be described in mere words, but one of the six wonders of the American continent that must been seen to be fully appreciated.
mssHM 19977