Logbook of the Laurel (Schooner) out of New Bedford, MA, mastered by Granville Manter on a whaling voyage between 1837 and 1838, 1837 - 1838

From bookseller description: Manuscript. Log of the Whale Ship "Laurel," Atlantic Ocean, April, 1837 - March, 1838. Pre-lined logbook pages, 48 cm. Approximately 100 pages of manuscript entries. "Laurel' was a 119-ton vessel built in 1821 in Hallowell, Maine. On this, her 8th voyage, she was rigged as a schooner. Owing primarily to her size, she specialized in short Atlantic voyages - 4 of her previous voyages had simply been to the Cape Verdes and back, returning between 60 and 400 barrels of sperm oil. The log begins on May 1st, shortly after their departure. They were just off Cape Hatteras, and still making things shipshape. The end of the second entry reads, "Wind from the Eastward. Made sail tacked to the Westward Raisd Whales larbd Got one took her long sides" So, the action gets off with a bang! There are no whale stamps in the log, but the keeper has made drawings in place of whale stamps. A week later, on May 8th, they got another whale and finished stowing the oil down after a couple of days. However, there were repeated complaints about the little schooner "laboring hard" and "shipping much water." The weather settled down toward the end of the month, and they remained in essentially the same location, with much "taking of and on [tacking off and on], speaking other named whale ships with home port and amount of oil carried, and catching blackfish and a porpoise - the latter probably for dinner. Having no further success in those waters, they headed eastward in the middle of June. By the middle of July they were off the Azores. Unlike Pacific whalers, they didn't stop for provisions at the Western Islands because their voyage was a short one. They raised blackfish and saw humpbacks, but had no luck until July 19 . "raisd whales labd fastend and kild him es took him longside." (The keeper's drawing of this whale looks more like a humback than a sperm whale.) They headed southwest from the Azores and spoke a surprising number of whalers - apparently the Atlantic fishery was still busy in the 1830s - but didn't catch another whale for the rest of the summer. In fact, the only excitement came on September 2, after Captain Manter had gone ashore at Flores, when the second mate and a crewman got into a scuffle. "Laurel then spent a couple of weeks in Azorean waters, raising and killing a whale (sperm, judging by the drawing), on September 17. They cruised southward to the Cape Verdes where they stopped for wood, water and liberty. As often happens, the sight of land caused some unrest. After going ashore, the boatsteerer and two other named men refused to come back aboard until Captain Manter went ashore and talked them back. Then nothing until November 5, when they killed a sperm whale - a bull by the look of the drawing. Nothing further until the end of that month, though the keeper has begun drawing whale tails to signify whales that got away. On the 26th of November they raised a pod, and were able to kill one just before night set in. Another whale and drawing on December 5, then nothing but whale tails. On February 13, the page is headed, "Homword Bound." They overcame a pesky leak, painted ship for her return and at midnight March 22, 'Made Montague (Montauk] Light." This is an excellent example of its type - a relatively short Atlantic voyage, with a clear itinerary, many vessels sighted, a few whales caught, a landfall or two, and some minor trouble with the crew. According to Sherman and Lund, this is the only log known for the "Laurel." The text also clears up a question as to the exact identity of its master, listed in Lund and 'Whaling Masters" only as "____ Manter." The log keeper identifies him as "G. Manter." This limits our choices to George Manter, who has only an 1843-47 voyage to his credit, or Granville Manter, who was active during the period of "Laurel's" voyage. An even more interesting mystery is the identity of the log keeper. There is no mention of his name anyathere in the text, but a 1999 issue of "The Dukes County Intelligencer" contains an article about a whaleman named Joseph Sprague, who kept the log while aboard the whale ship 'Rambler," which ended in 1824. In that logbook he made drawings of a whale and whale tails that bear a strong resemblance to the whales drawn in the "Laurel" logbook offered here. Sprague was born in Edgartown, MA in 1798, so he would have been officer's age by the 1837 voyage of "Laurel." His writing is sloppy; orthography terrible, but the log is readable. Bound in old sail cloth covers, and in very good condition.