Subscribe"Author, lecturer, and seaman, Irving Johnson and his wife Electa circumnavigated the globe seven times between 1933-1958, then dedicated 17 years to sailing the inland waterways, canals and seas of Europe and Egypt. The Johnsons documented each voyage extensively, often visiting remote islands and captured images of traditions, customs and lifeways that in many cases no longer exist. Mystic Seaport is the repository of Captain Irving Johnson's films donated to Mystic Seaport by Mrs. Electa Johnson."
Irving and Electa Johnson Manuscript Collection (Coll. 240)
Interesting video on the old windjammer, I see you got it from Mystic Seaport Museum. I have been there twice and was pleased to see the small square rigger Joseph Conrad there. A book, written by Capt. Alan Villiers (deceased) featured this ship the time he took her on a circumnavigation. I wrote to Villiers asking if it was possible for me to get sea time on a square rigger. He kindly replied and told me it was impossible at that time, the only way was for me was to go East and ship out on a Burmese rice barque, the only wind driven commercial ships then in existence. Being impecunious at the time I couldn't afford the fare from Belfast to Dublin let alone to Burma. I had read many books on sail and they filled me full of adventure, I could imagine myself out on the yards furling sail in a blow off Cape Horn and doing great deeds (not uncommon for a 16 year old raised within a stones throw of the ocean). However I had to settle for the hardships of a fisherman's lot on the Atlantic coast of Ireland (that was quite hard enough believe me).
The romance of sail is mostly nostalgic bullshit. I have sailed with a few older men who had done a few trips in sail and some who had been brought up on coastal schooners. Some of them were real hard cases, they were glad the windbags had vanished. yet for a few of the the more imaginative there was a certain romance.
I forwarded the video to my brother(in Ireland) who has also spent his life at sea, and he found it fascinating but wondered why someone had never chucked that dammed dawg over the side!! There is another like video of a voyage on a barque by Villiers.
I saw some commercial sailing ships myself and several Sail training ships (a very different animal). One was the famous Cutty Sark, she was anchored off Greenhithe (Thames River) before being turned into a national treasure, another the Lawhill, a four masted barque, at anchor upriver at Lorenco Marques, E Africa. Several Portuguese fishing schooners anchored in Lisbon, prior to departure for the grand Banks of Newfoundland, and again some in St. Johns.Nfld. A few had no engine.
There is much talk these days about "Tall Ships" a nomenclature unknown to professional seamen .
« Older Disability and Employment in Argentina: The Right ... | A snapshot from a sexist 1970'... Newer »
This thread has been archived and is closed to new comments
posted by Senator at 8:35 PM on April 11 [2 favorites has favorites]