Taking the sea : perilous waters, sunken ships, and the true story of the legendary wrecker captains / by Dennis M. Powers.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Powers, Dennis M.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Salvage--United States--History.

Salvage.

Shipwrecks--United States--History.

Shipwrecks.

Ship captains--United States--History.

Ship captains.

History.

United States.

Physical Description:

xiv, 304 pages, 16 unnumbered pages of plates : illustrations ; 24 cm

Place of Publication:

New York : AMACOM, [2009]

Summary:

In the late 19th century, an intrepid, reckless group of men earned their living by rescuing and raising sunken ships, even in the face of monstrous waves and fierce weather. To some, they were heroes, helping to rescue both passengers and ships with courage and skill. To others they were ruthless pirates, who exploited these ship wrecks for their treasure. The book provides a compelling portrait of the wrecker captains and the dangerous lives they and their men led, from their early beginnings when greedy villagers would lure ships to the rocky coasts of Europe to their heyday during the era of the fast but vulnerable American clipper ships and their founding of the city of Key West. The author traces the journey of these legendary men through the story of Captain Thomas P.H. Whitelaw, the most important ship salvager of his day.

Contents:

Early years

The wrecker chronicles

San Francisco Bay times

The tragedy of Merritt's Circassian

Dynamite Johnny and the Umatilla

Midwest and coastal operations

Success, sealing, and the Arctic

Failures follow accomplishment

Wrecks

and a ghost ship

No rewards without risk

Used parts, scrap, and a new bow

The decade of the Great War

The roaring twenties

The change of eras.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references (pages [285]-295) and index.

ISBN:

9780814413531

0814413536

OCLC:

227033801