According to author Joan Druett a hen frigate “ traditionally, was any ship with the captain’s wife on board.” In fact, Joan wrote a wonderful book on the subject titled, reasonably enough, . The book came out in 1998, but for years before that I’d known about these sailor-wives, and had always been on the lookout for artifacts from their voyages.
They wrote letters aboard ship, of course, and did needlework, drawing, painting, and many of the other “feminine arts” to while the long days away. They annotated bibles and saved leaves and flowers from exotic locations, but the most evocative traces they left behind are diaries and journals. Joan relies on some of these for her book, but they are not common. Only a small percentage of captains sailed with their wives, and a still smaller percentage of these ladies kept journals – or at least journals that survived. Extended writings by women aboard their husband’s sailing ships are therefore rare, and I have always kept a weather eye out for them. They are one of the few kinds of items that I can be sure of selling!
Imagine my delight, then, at recently acquiring such a journal – kept not just by a merchant captain’s wife, but by a whaling captain’s wife. And not just a whaling captain’s wife, but a pregnant wife, who gave birth to a baby girl in a South American whaling port.
Manuscript. WHALING JOURNALS KEPT ABOARD THE CORNELIA OCTOBER 1871 – APRIL 1874; NAPOLEON JULY 1874 – SEPT 1875; NAPOLEON 1878 – 1882. One folio and three quarto journals; approximately 350 pages of manuscript entries. The Cornelia was a 263 ton bark commanded by Leroy Lewis. She departed New Bedford October 10 1871, and was condemned and sold at auction at Paita in 1873. According to Starbuck she sent home 278 barrels of sperm oil and 498 humpback. A journal of this voyage was kept by Charles Turner, one of Cornelia’s officers. He makes entries every few days, usually highlighting significant action such as storms, ships sighted, events on board, and raising and killing whales. These whales are marked with three distinct kinds of whale stamps – flukes, sperm and blackfish. They cruised the coast of South America, until December 1873 when the ship developed a leak. It increased alarmingly from 3500 to 12,200 strokes as they made for Paita, where they arrived February 10, 1874. The oil was sent home and the ship, fittings, and cargo were sold at auction, a process which Turner documents in some detail.
He was back in New Bedford by April 21 and, on July 13 he set out on another voyage, this time on the Napoleon, a 277 ton bark which cruised the Atlantic, Australian, and New Zealand grounds until 1878. As before, his accounts are regular but not daily, with good descriptions and whale stamps. The journal continues until September 21 1875. They put into Honolulu, eight men deserted, and Turner became captain of the Napoleon. The journal stops here but contains some remarkable tallies at the end – Whales taken by the Cornelia, oil shipped home (depicted in whale stamps), Cornelia accounts, sperm oil stowed, humpback oil stowed, letters sent home from bark Napoleon, and oil sold.
On August 1 1878 Turner commenced another cruise to the Pacific as captain of the Napoleon. This time, however, the journal was kept by his wife. Her entries are more frequent and tend to be longer, so her account fills 160 pages of one of the quarto books, and is continued through another 67 pages of the folio book. Her accounts differ from her husband’s in that they contain more personal and social information. For example, in April 1880, while ashore at Tulcahuano, she meets the famous trans-Atlantic dory sailers, Captain and Mrs. Crapo who, apparently, are minor celebrities even there. However, she does not slight whaling activities. Whaling operations are described from her perspective, and marked in many cases with whale stamps. On May 19 1881, while in port again at Tulcahuano she “was taken with labor pains had them quite severe all through yesterday & last night & at 8:35 this AM the baby was born & we are getting along nicely. Babies name Clementine Frances Turner.” This journal ends June 24 1882, as they approach New Bedford. This is followed by four pages of entries from St. Helena where, in 1885, her husband had left her and daughter “Clemie.” On the morning of July 4, “Baby was born 4 o’clock we named him Charles R. Turner weighed 9 pounds.”
A remarkable record. Journals of women aboard “hen frigates” are scarce. Journals of lady whalers are even more rare and desirable.
Meanwhile, back on dry land, in the 21st century, the girls at put on a feast for some of their most loyal supporters, as a part of their ongoing show, FEAST. It was snowing and blowy, but somehow that made the event perfect. Mulled wine, beef stew, and good company.
We have many Rare Chicken Breeds for sale in New Bethlehem Pennsylvania,
including Sussex Chickens, Welsummer Chickens, Turken Chickens and more.
Be sure to check out the Bargain Specials, as you can combine different
egg layers in smaller amounts and buy as an assortment. New Bethlehem
Pennsylvania also has poultry equipment for sale, game chickens for sale in
New Bethlehem Pennsylvania, bantams for sale, ducks for sale, geese for sale,
turkeys for sale, guinea for sale, peafowl for sale, pheasant for sale,
chukar partridge for sale, bobwhite for sale, many different breeds of
baby chicks for sale in New Bethlehem PA.
Thumbing through a baby chickens for sale in New Bethlehem Pennsylvania
catalog is a yearly traditions in many houses. My kids and I eagerly await
the Murray McMurray Hatchery catalog. We love looking at all the cool and
different chicken breeds available. Catalogs are free so head on over to
their site and request one if you are interested.
Typically hatcheries online offer both standard breeds
and bantams. Bantams are fun hardy little chickens, they lay tiny eggs
that kids especially love collecting. Bantams typically weigh less than 2
pounds when full grown. Just like ordering anything online there are pros
and cons to ordering baby chicks online. Pros of buying baby chicks in
New Bethlehem Pennsylvania * Big Selection - If you are wanting a large
variety of different chicken breeds and egg colors, you will find the best
selection at an online hatchery. * Both Bantams and full sized chickens
available * You get to choose what sex you want. If you want a mixture of
both male and female then choosing a "straight run" will save you money
and you will get a mixture of male and female chicks. You can also choose
all males or all females too. * Weekly specials. Hatcheries have sales on
chicks, you are likely to get a good deal if you are flexible with the
breeds you are wanting. Cons of buying baby chicks in New Bethlehem
Pennsylvania * Order early to get the best selection. Certain breeds sell
out fast, sometimes as early as 6 months in advance of shipping! If you
are wanting a certain breed it's best to order your chicks in the fall
before their orders sell out.
Quantity - you must order a certain number of chicks. Typically hatcheries
will require you buy a minimum of 25 chicks at a time. The number is
necessary for the chicks survival during shipping. All 25 chicks are put
in one small box without heat. They are crowded in the box and produce
enough body heat to arrive in good shape. * The wait - If you choose to
buy chicks from a feed store you will have them the same day but if you
choose to go with a hatchery you have to wait until they are ready to ship
and then wait for the chicks to arrive. Ordering baby chicks online in
New Bethlehem Pennsylvania is easy and has always been a very pleasant
experience of me. It can be a little frustrating waiting for the chicks
but it's so worth the wait. When the post office calls and you hear all
those little "cheeps" or "chirps" in the background you'll know the wait
was worth it! How to Care for your new baby chickens in New Bethlehem,
Pennsylvania Baby chicks are extremely
cute and
difficult to withstand,
but it's finest to prepare for their
arrival prior to you obtain them. Prepare initially
by gathering not only the
right products, however
also the correct
expertise to take care of
them. Raising baby chicks is fairly
straightforward, you merely should offer them with the following: A
clean and also warm and comfortable
habitat Lots of food and water Interest and also
love Habitat Your habitat can be a straightforward box, aquarium,
feline carrier, or guinea
porker cage. Line it with old towels as well as
blankets (with no loosened
strings!) to start, as well as after a
couple of weeks utilize straw over newspaper.
Keep in mind: Avoid making use of just
paper or various other slipper
surface areas-- or your chicks legs can grow
malformed. You likewise need
something to provide food as well as
water in, such as a chicken feeder as well as water
meal from the feed shop, or a pickle container
cover for food and also a pet bird water dispenser from an animal shop. Likewise, as the chicks get
older you can introduce a perch
into the habitat to obtain them
educated on perching. Warmth To
keep your chicks warm you have to
offer them with a heat source.
This could be as simple as a 100 watt
light bulb in a reflective clamp design lamp from an equipment store, or an infrared reptile warmth
light bulb additionally function extremely well (my
suggestion). Chicks need this
heat 24/7 until their downy fluff is
replaced with feathers (which can take up to two months). The recently
hatched require a temperature level
in between 90 and also 100 degrees,
and every week this can
be lowered by
roughly 5 levels approximately. The warmth source must get on merely one side of the cage
to allow chicks a range of
temperature levels. The chicks are your best
thermometer- if they are concealing in the
other edge of your heat
light, you have to
decrease the temperature level. If
they are smothering each various other under the
heat (not simply snuggling),
you should include some warmth.
Housekeeping
Tidiness is key as
well as it keeps your chicks healthy and
balanced. Make certain to alter
the bed linen
commonly as well as
constantly provide tidy
food and water Food as well as water.
Chicks expand very fast
which needs lots of tidy
food as well as water. Provide
sufficient at all times and also examine
usually to prevent parched and
hungry chicks. Chick food is different than adult chicken food, and it can be found in both medicated as well as non-medicated varieties. Feed chick food for the
very first 2 months, after that
change to a grower food (~ 17 %
protein) for another 2 months,
then to a slightly
reduced protein feed or a layer feed
(if you have layers). Dirt Some chicks like to obtain a running start on taking
dust bathrooms, while others won't occupy that activity up until they are
older. If you have the space in your chick
unit, present a tray of sand or
filth for them to wash in.
Interest and love There are a couple of advantages to spending quality time with your chicks. First of all, they will certainly more than likely bond with you and
not escape as grownups. Second, if you
analyze your chicks daily and
enjoy their habits, you could
catch ailment or other issues earlier. Watch out for wheezing, hopping, or
other harmful
indications. Make sure to
additionally consider
their poop, as looseness of the bowels could result in matted plumes and stopped up cloaca.
Finally, it is important to look out
for social issues, such as the
littlest chick getting badgered. Empty nest syndrome So your
chicks are currently completely feathery
and also its time for them to leave the
safety of your home
and move outside into a
coop. Have a look at our
area on chicken coops to learn more
regarding cages and also
appropriate cage environments.