Camden (1813 ship)

History
United Kingdom
Name: Camden
Owner:
  • 1813:Simpson, Chapman, and Chapman[1]
  • 1820:Aaron Chapman (principal managing owner)[2]
Builder: W.S. Chapman & Co.[3]
Launched: 1813
Fate: Last listed 1850
General characteristics
Tons burthen: 399[1][3] or 400[4] (bm)
Length: 107 ft 3 in (32.7 m)[3]
Beam: 29 ft 3 in (8.9 m)[3]
Propulsion: Sail

Camden was built at Whitby in 1813. She served as a general trader for much of her career, though in 1820-21 she made one voyage to Bombay for the British East India Company (EIC). Between 1833 and 1837 she was a Greenland whaler out of the Whitby whale fishery, and was the last vessel from Whitby to engage in whaling. She was last listed in Lloyd's Register in 1850.

Career

EIC voyage (1820-1821)

Captain James Johnson sailed from the Downs on 2 May 1820, bound for Bombay. Camden arrived at Bombay on 21 August. Homeward bound, she was at the Cape of Good Hope on 24 January 1821, and arrived at Gravesend on 7 April.[2]

In 1824 she moved her registry to London.[3]

Whaler

Between 1833 and 1837 the Chapmans employed Camden as a whaler in the Whitby whale fishery.[3] Since 1753 whalers from Whitby had been whaling in Davis Strait, though by the 1830s the business had almost died out. In 1832 Phoenix, a Chapman-owned ship, was the sole vessel to go out, and she returned with 234 tons of oil (195 Imperial measure), the largest amount ever to have been brought back. The Chapmans therefore sent out Camden in 1833, as well as Phoenix.[5] Both vessels were successful in volume terms: Phoenix returned with 227 tons, and Camden returned with 230 tons.[6] However, whaling became unprofitable as the price of whale oil had fallen. Between 1833 and 1837 it varied between £23 and over £50 per ton. Whalebone prices varied between £30 and £150 per ton. Phoenix and Camden left in 1837, but Phoenix grounded on her way out and came back to port. Camden's voyage proved a failure. The Chapmans withdrew both ships from whaling, and with that whaling from Whitby ended.[6][7]

Year Master Owner Trade
1833 W. Parsons Chapman London
1834 Armstrong Chapman Whitby whale fishery[4]
1835 Armstrong Chapman Whitby whale fishery
1836 Armstrong Chapman Whitby whale fishery
1837 Armstrong Chapman Whitby whale fishery
1838 Armstrong Chapman Whitby whale fishery
1839 Armstrong Chapman London—Quebec
Sources: Lloyd's Register. The information is only as current as owners chose to keep it. Also, Lloyd's Register published the next year's volume half-way through the previous year.

On 28 March 1838 Camden sailed to America.[3]

Fate

Camden last appears in Lloyd's Register in 1850. Her owner is still Chapman, but she has no master and no trade.[8]

Citations and references

Citations

  1. 1 2 Hackman (2001), p.76.
  2. 1 2 British Library: Camden.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Weatherill (1908), p.125.
  4. 1 2 Lloyd's Register (1834), Seq. №C64.
  5. ↑ Weatherill (1908), p.129.
  6. 1 2 Young (1840), p.199.
  7. ↑ Weatherill (1908), p.378.
  8. ↑ Lloyd's Register (1850), Seq. №49.

References

  • Hackman, Rowan (2001). Ships of the East India Company. Gravesend, Kent: World Ship Society. ISBN 0-905617-96-7.
  • Weatherill, Richard (1908) The ancient port of Whitby and its shipping. (Whitby: Hokne and Son)
  • Young, George (D.D.), (1840) A Picture of Whitby and its Environs.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.