In the time of The Essex and In the Heart of the Sea, Nantucket had a population of about 7,000, most of the population living along a road on a rising hill marked with windmills and church steeples. At the waterfront, four large docks extended more than 100 yards into the sea from the harbor. Tied up to these docks were typically 15 to 20 whale ships, along with dozens of other small fishing boats and ships that carried trade goods to and from the island.The first whaling boats were only 20 feet long, launched from beaches along the island’s south shore. Usually a boat would comprise of five Wampanoag (Nantucket Natives) and a white man steering the boat. These boats were only used for whaling around the island, as the had to be rowed back …show more content…
They found their new target in that of the sperm whale. The oil found in the sperm whale’s blubber was far superior to that of the right whale found around Nantucket, providing a brighter and cleaner-burning light, but its block-shaped head contained a much larger reservoir of this oil. This is where the wealth of the island came from, nowadays Nantucket has a population of about 20,000 which, during the summer, increases to about 50,000. The evidence of the island's former glory can still be seen along the upper reaches of the town’s Main Street, where the cobbles dip and rise like the sea and where the houses evoke the humble spirituality of the island’s Quaker past. The whaling business of the 1800’s gave Nantucket it's incredible wealth. An average house in Nantucket costs more than in other vacation destinations such as Long Island's Hamptons, with much of the population living there only part time. Nantucket still has a large pull towards the ocean, with a large harbor and fishing boats coming and going. Yet whaling is a thing of the past due to fishing regulations and laws, so without this Nantucketers embrace the island's past and head to the sea in hopes of the biggest fish they can
In the nineteenth century, commercial whalers began using whole fleets to hunt whales, with each ship given a specific role. The largest ship, found at the center of the fleet, was the factory ship. At the heart of these ships are many tanks. Christopher Ash worked as chief chemist on the factory ship Balaena, and in his book Whaler’s Eye, comments on the massive tanks found in these ships. “Balaena really is a tanker, and almost all of her hull…is subdivided into thirty-six tanks. It is rather like an egg crate with nine rows, each of four tanks extending across the ship, and each tank able to take some five hundred tons of fuel or Diesel oil, which will be replaced—after cleaning—by whale or sperm oil, or perhaps meat meal; sometimes they must be filled with sea water as ballast. These tanks are impressively large, being well over thirty feet deep; so that when standing on the bottom and looking up to the one small square of light far above, it is difficult to believe that we can produce enough oil to fill the whole of that volume in twenty hours (Ash, 1962, p.19).” Underneath the tanks is the bottom of the boat. Above the tanks is the tank deck. This holds the centrifuges used to separate oil and glue water, as well as driers and bagging machines
The start of The Ocean at the End of the Lane began with an older man about the age of forty he returned home to his homeland in Sussex, England for a funeral. He then decided that he would revise the location of the house he once lived in. He then remembers that there was a young girl, about the same age as his sister, named Lettie Hempstock. He also remembers the fact that Lettie would always tell him about the pond behind the house being an ocean and not a pond. With Lettie on his mind and him being in town for the funeral he decided that he would go and visit where Lettie grew up. She was a young girl at the time so she lived with her mother and her grandmother. As this man approaches the house, Lettie is no longer there but a family
In the Heart of the Sea is the name of this magnificent book where in the first chapter, Nathaniel Philbrick tries to show us a place where the principal job is being part of the whaling industry. This chapter is the beginning of history, the beginning of tragedy, the one that occurred in the whaleship, Essex.
After the War, fishing became the dominant industry of the town, and the Dennisport area benefited greatly. By virtue of its location on Nantucket Sound, Dennisport hauled ashore thousands of tons through the 1800s. You can see this seafaring lineage in the architecture of many of the houses along Chase Ave, Depot Street and other surrounding roads. The "widow's walks" and cupolas along the roofs once served a purpose other than enjoying a cocktail while drinking in a sunset - they were lookouts for sea captain's and sailors' wives to watch for the return of their loved ones. Our Admiral's house was once actually home to a sea captain, and we've incorporated many of these design features into the Captain's and Commodore's houses. At one point, the fishing fleet of Dennis brought in almost 7,000 tons of fish annually, a staggering number for the 18th and 19th centuries.
They essentially believe that whale hunting was meant for them to honor the holy relationship of god and the beauty of this large beast. Whaling has always been the pivotal component that created the unique culture of the Makah. It was conducting on ritual and spiritual ceremony. For example, the elders usually found youngsters to be repulsive and disobedience. They basically discipline the children with the aggressive sense of whale hunting, so they can grow as a responsible adult who can surpass every obstacle. Whaling also tremendously boost the Indians’ pride. Archeologist Ruth Kirk found an artifact that was from the Makah whale tradition in 1970. He indicated that the Indians have sustained the culture for over 2,000 years. He found a part of “Chinook” canoe in his expedition which strengthen his report about the past life activities of Makah Indians. Chinook was specifically designed for the Makah to hunt whales at 40 miles off shores. Therefore, quality of the boat will determine fish caught successful rate. One boat should be solidly constructed that can carry approximately 8 people and strong enough to continue a 2-month sea voyage. Chinook “shovel-nose” model was the one with outstanding quality that could handle many possible sea waves. On the voyage, the Indians are well-prepared in weapon which was mussel-shape blade that sharp enough to penetrate the beast’s skin.
The Puritanical colony of Massachusetts Bay was founded in 1630, and was born from the mindset of purifying the Church of England. Most people who voyaged from their motherland were families and their servants (Doc B). Lists of those who emigrated contain upwards of forty families. Also, in the Articles of Agreement of Springfield, Massachusetts everyone shared the planting ground (Doc D). Since the community shared most of the farmland, greed would not be an issue when deciding who would get what plot of land. Further, Puritans believed “we must entertain each other [with care, and] must be willing to [bridge ourselves] . . . [to supply for] others’ necessities” (Doc A). The community theme the Massachusetts people embody is further seen in family relying upon family. Differing from the New England list of emigrants, most Virginia-bound colonists were men who failed to bring their families or men who did not have families (Doc C). Many of the men aboard were jewelers, goldsmiths, and other tradesmen who believed they were going to become wealthy at their new colony. Captain John Smith recounts “[many of the worst among us were gold seekers] with their golden promises [and] made all men their slaves” (Doc F). Encroaching on the Native American’s land, Jamestown settlers stole their land in hope of uncovering gold in the area. With community not being a priority, the division between
Puritans expected that economic prosperity would result from piety and good works. Yet they were very ambivalent about the prospect of success; John Winthrop, the Governor of Massachusetts Bay, feared that his people would derive more satisfaction from wealth itself than from the piety that was supposed to bring about such financial rewards. Their own religion promoted economic success, which was the protestant work ethic of “An hour’s idleness is as bad as an hour’s drunkenness.” The land in the New England colonies also had an effect on the economics, as most of the soil subsisted of many rocks. Poor farming land led the colonies to be based on shipbuilding, fishing, and manufacturing. The New England cod fishery was a result of these conditions, which accounted for a great portion of the economy in the colonies. The cod fishery had a lasting impact on the economies of the New England colonies, continuing into modern day New England. In the 1700’s the fishing industry accounted for 35% of New England’s export
Norling’s purpose in chapter three is to explore how the dominance of Quakerism in local culture and its support for Nantucket’s whaling and other maritime industries, eroded under
Colonists were hunting whales so often that by the 1700’s whales were nearly extinct. Since they were close to extinction colonists had to travel far in order to hunt them. In 1712 there was a whale that colonist discovered that was plentiful in oil, so colonists targeted the whale for nearly half a century. By the 1700s New Bedford Massachusetts was the place where the majority of the colonists went to hunt. Most of the trips to hunt whales were in the South
Nantucket is a stretch of land that was formed from a glacier pushing up sand and sediment up and pushing it for years and years at a time. This happening several times the glacier eventually melted and what was left was the nantucket island itself but not an island yet just a hill coming up from the land and then the glaciers all started to melt and the water surrounded the hill creating an island which is known as nantucket. In 1659 the first english settlers from massachusetts and new hampshire settled on nantucket and until 1692 it was part of new york it than became apart of massachusetts. The fishing there was great because its position in the sea. WHaling started with the occasional drift whale washing up on the shore and because they are prized for their oil the people would cut them up and boil the blubber down to oil. The first expeditions for whaling were started in the 1690’s when settlers
‘Children of the Sea’ is a harrowing story written by Edwidge Danticat, a Haitian-American woman who expresses her personal trauma and horrors through her literature. ‘Children of the Sea’ opens with an undisclosed man writing a letter to his beloved as he travels across the sea from his home, where is lover is also writing letters directed to him. The letters they write to one another dictates the plot and reveals the two unnamed narrators lives.
In the Heart of the Sea begins by talking about the whaling history of Nantucket. The terms "whaling history" and "Nantucket history" are virtually interchangeable. As Philbrick so eloquently puts it, "The island was a barren sandbank, fertilized with whale-oil only" (Pg. 8). The people of Nantucket had created an economic system that relied almost entirely upon the whaling industry, without it, they couldn 't survive.
Present time, Nantucket's populous sometimes has no choice but to move off the island because of the shortage of homes. Most houses on Nantucket have the median price of $1.2 Million, so buying a house isn't an option, rather a tiny house would only cost a fraction of that price. There are a vast quantity of sites, and magazines like Forbes that have articles which get you started on your very own
In The Heart Of The Sea, by Nathaniel Philbrick, is a riveting account of the sinking of a whaleship, Named The Essex, and the story of the whale hunters and their will to survive at sea. This historical nonfiction takes place in the early nineteenth century, first starting off on the island of nantucket, then going into the pacific ocean. The primary topic of this novel is how the crew of the Essex survived in the pacific ocean after their ship sank.
In the story Twenty Thousand Leagues Under The Sea by Jules Verne, a professor named Aronnax and his team decided to set out on a mission in interest of a so called monster that has been attacking ships in the past. In hopes of capturing the monster, the plan did not end up so well for Aronnax and his team. The monster struck the ship they were on and sent them plummeting into the water, without the ship members realizing they were gone. His crew found something in the water and pulled every one up onto it, not realizing what it was that they were climbing on. Before they knew it, they got pulled into the monster itself. The author used diction throughout the story to create mood and develop tone. The author changes the diction based upon the situation. For example if an event is energetic than mellows down into a calm, soothing activity, the mood or tone of the character you are reading about will change dramatically, from speaking in an energized tone, to a calm and mellow voice. This happens throughout this story. From the beginning of the story, with Aronnax and his crew going on a journey in a fortified, organized mood, towards the middle where they get captured and the mood gets energized and more entertaining. This change happens very quickly.