Mind at sea : Henry Fry, and the Glorious era of Quebec's sailing ships / John Fry.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Fry, John, 1930- author.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Fry, Henry, 1826-1896.

Fry, Henry.

Merchants--Québec (Province)--Québec--Biography.

Merchants.

Shipowners--Québec (Province)--Québec--Biography.

Shipowners.

Ship brokers--Québec (Province)--Québec--Biography.

Ship brokers.

Reformers--Québec (Province)--Québec--Biography.

Reformers.

Shipbuilding industry--Québec (Province)--Québec--History--19th century.

Shipbuilding industry.

Sailing ships--Québec (Province)--Québec--History--19th century.

Sailing ships.

Québec (Québec)--History--19th century.

Québec (Québec).

Physical Description:

1 online resource (257 p.)

Place of Publication:

Toronto, Ontario : Dundurn, 2013.

Language Note:

English

Summary:

Thetrials and tribulationsof a Canadian business titan during a fascinating period in 19th-century Quebec. A Mind at Sea is an intimate window into a vanished time when Canada was among the world's great maritime countries. Between 1856 and 1877, Henry Fry was the Lloyd's agent for the St. Lawrence River, east of Montreal. The harbour coves below his home in Quebec were crammed with immense rafts of cut wood, the river's shoreline sprawled with yards where giant square-rigged ships - many owned by Fry - were built. As the president of Canada's Dominion Board of Trade, Fry was at the epicentre of wealth and influence. His home city of Quebec served as the capital of the province of Canada, while its port was often the scene of raw criminality. He fought vigorously against the kidnapping of sailors and the dangerous practice of deck loading. He also battled against and overcame his personal demon - mental depression - going on to write many ship histories and essays on U.S.-Canada relations. Fry was a colourful figure and a reformer who interacted with the famous figures of the day, including Lord and Lady Dufferin, Sir John A. Macdonald, Wilfrid Laurier, and Sir Narcisse-Fortunat Belleau, Quebec's lieutenant-governor.

Contents:

1877: Launch

1826-38: A love of sail

1838-53: The young merchant

1854: Life in Quebec begins

1854-56: Transatlantic feud

1856-59: Crime, business, and a wedding

1859-60: Lessons of losses; a princely visit

1861: The Mary Fry

1861-62: Family time

1861: A very public controversy

1863-65: Cargoes, comflagrations, confederation, committees, and church

1866-69: Good deeds rewarded

1868-69: A monumental gift

1869-72: So much for disobeying orders

1873: Welcoming the Dufferins, and free trade

1873: Battling the Crimps

1873 and before: Bettling the pilots union

1873: Deck loading: triumph of reform

1874: Britain or America, which to favour?

1874-76: Prosperity, but hard lessons

1877: The great ship Cosmo

1877: In the wake of the Cosmo

1878-82: Despond

1882-89: Miracle and mystery

1889-94: A mind at work

1894-96: A mind at work

1894-96: The history of North Atlantic steam navigation

1896: Voyage end

Conclusion.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references.

Description based on print version record.

ISBN:

9781459719316

145971931X

9781459719309

1459719301

OCLC:

860349127