Independence, a 35-ton schooner, was the first ship constructed in South Australian waters. The crew of the visiting American sealing brig Union, under the command of Capt. Isaac Pendleton, built her between April and August 1803 at what is now known as American River on Kangaroo Island. Daniel Wright, the ship's carpenter, was in charge of the construction of the Independence at the mouth of Ship Creek, 800m west of the present-day American River oval.
Artist's impression of Independence
History
United States
Name
Independence
Launched
1803
Fate
Missing, believed wrecked in 1805
General characteristics
Class and type
Schooner
Tons burthen
35 tons
Length
45 ft (14 m)
On 15 June 1805, Independence set sail from Sydney for the Antipodes Islands (860 km south east of Dunedin New Zealand) and was never seen again. The Sydney Gazette reported the loss on 16 March 1806.
In 1802, Capt. Isaac Pendleton of Stonington, Connecticut was commissioned by Fanning & Coles of New York to sail Union to the waters of New Holland in search of seal skins. "Her commander (Captain Isaac Pendleton) was …left unrestricted, and at perfect liberty to act on all occasions as his judgment should direct, to make the most profitable voyage he could of it for his owners."[1] In early 1803, whilst sealing in King George Sound near what is now Albany, Western Australia Pendleton met the French explorer, Nicolas Baudin, who recommended Kangaroo Island as a place where seals could be found in plenitude.
Arriving in what is now known as Eastern Cove on the north coast of Kangaroo Island, Pendleton took the decision to winter here and, presumably to increase the quantity of skins that could be taken to Sydney, construct a smaller vessel to work alongside Union in its sealing activities.
Construction and Useedit
As was common practice at the time, Union carried the frame of a small schooner. This, possibly with the addition of some locally sourced timber, was used to build a smaller vessel. It appears[2] that Baudin had lost a longboat whilst surveying the coastline of Kangaroo Island and his carpenters had found suitable timber to rebuild the longboat near what is now the town of American River. As the new vessel was to be smaller than Union, it would have better access to shallow waters. Thus was born Independence.
No original plans of Independence are known to exist. In fact, it is possible the original Independence was built without plans.
The two ships sealed together, working around southern Australia and then shipped their seal furs to buyers including some in China, "The ship Union, and schooner Independence are expected to sail this day for China.“ from the Sydney Gazette 1804.[3][4] The Union was lost a sea with all hands in 1804 off the coast of Fiji.[5]
Reconstructionedit
In May 2013, the Rebuild Independence Group, a volunteer group based in American River, was formed to set about reconstructing the Independence.[6]
Referencesedit
^Fanning 1989:230-231 quoted in Dappert & Moffatt 2007
^"SHIP NEWS". Sydney Gazette and New South Wales Advertiser (NSW : 1803 – 1842). 26 August 1804. p. 3. Retrieved 21 October 2020.
^"Newspaper Clippings on whaling – Early Australia – Whales on the Net". whales.org.au. Retrieved 21 October 2020.
^""Union" | Monument Australia". monumentaustralia.org.au. Retrieved 21 October 2020.
^"Rebuild Independence". Rebuild Independence Group (RIG). Retrieved 26 October 2016.
January 01, 1970
independence, schooner, this, article, needs, additional, citations, verification, please, help, improve, this, article, adding, citations, reliable, sources, unsourced, material, challenged, removed, find, sources, independence, schooner, news, newspapers, bo. This article needs additional citations for verification Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources Unsourced material may be challenged and removed Find sources Independence schooner news newspapers books scholar JSTOR October 2016 Learn how and when to remove this template message Independence a 35 ton schooner was the first ship constructed in South Australian waters The crew of the visiting American sealing brig Union under the command of Capt Isaac Pendleton built her between April and August 1803 at what is now known as American River on Kangaroo Island Daniel Wright the ship s carpenter was in charge of the construction of the Independence at the mouth of Ship Creek 800m west of the present day American River oval Artist s impression of IndependenceHistory United States NameIndependence Launched1803 FateMissing believed wrecked in 1805 General characteristics Class and typeSchooner Tons burthen35 tons Length45 ft 14 m On 15 June 1805 Independence set sail from Sydney for the Antipodes Islands 860 km south east of Dunedin New Zealand and was never seen again The Sydney Gazette reported the loss on 16 March 1806 Contents 1 Prehistory 2 Construction and Use 3 Reconstruction 4 ReferencesPrehistory editIn 1802 Capt Isaac Pendleton of Stonington Connecticut was commissioned by Fanning amp Coles of New York to sail Union to the waters of New Holland in search of seal skins Her commander Captain Isaac Pendleton was left unrestricted and at perfect liberty to act on all occasions as his judgment should direct to make the most profitable voyage he could of it for his owners 1 In early 1803 whilst sealing in King George Sound near what is now Albany Western Australia Pendleton met the French explorer Nicolas Baudin who recommended Kangaroo Island as a place where seals could be found in plenitude Arriving in what is now known as Eastern Cove on the north coast of Kangaroo Island Pendleton took the decision to winter here and presumably to increase the quantity of skins that could be taken to Sydney construct a smaller vessel to work alongside Union in its sealing activities Construction and Use editAs was common practice at the time Union carried the frame of a small schooner This possibly with the addition of some locally sourced timber was used to build a smaller vessel It appears 2 that Baudin had lost a longboat whilst surveying the coastline of Kangaroo Island and his carpenters had found suitable timber to rebuild the longboat near what is now the town of American River As the new vessel was to be smaller than Union it would have better access to shallow waters Thus was born Independence No original plans of Independence are known to exist In fact it is possible the original Independence was built without plans The two ships sealed together working around southern Australia and then shipped their seal furs to buyers including some in China The ship Union and schooner Independence are expected to sail this day for China from the Sydney Gazette 1804 3 4 The Union was lost a sea with all hands in 1804 off the coast of Fiji 5 Reconstruction editIn May 2013 the Rebuild Independence Group a volunteer group based in American River was formed to set about reconstructing the Independence 6 References edit Fanning 1989 230 231 quoted in Dappert amp Moffatt 2007 Dappert amp Moffat 2007 SHIP NEWS Sydney Gazette and New South Wales Advertiser NSW 1803 1842 26 August 1804 p 3 Retrieved 21 October 2020 Newspaper Clippings on whaling Early Australia Whales on the Net whales org au Retrieved 21 October 2020 Union Monument Australia monumentaustralia org au Retrieved 21 October 2020 Rebuild Independence Rebuild Independence Group RIG Retrieved 26 October 2016 Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Independence schooner amp oldid 1166938893, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
