THREE LOGBOOKS OF THE AMERICAN SCHOONER "L.Q.C. WISHART," SAILING OUT OF PHILADELPHIA, AND PLYING THE WATERS OF THE ATLANTIC OCEAN ALONG THE EAST COAST FROM MAINE TO NORTH CAROLINA, 1867-1888, EDWARD CARLTON, MASTER:; Written at sea by L.Q.C. Wishart - 1867

1867. Original manuscripts. various bindings. Very Good. Logbook #1. 95 voyages, November 8, 1867-May 4, 1878. Written in ink on 95 leaves (rectos only) in a legible hand, one page per voyage. Leather and marbled boards, tips somewhat rubbed. 13.75" x 8.25". Each page has printed headings, accomplished by hand, listing the port where the voyage originated and the ship's destination, the nature and quantity of the freight, freight-loading details, etc. About half of each page is occupied with two columns, also printed and accomplished by hand, one for "Charges" and one for "Expenses", then the printed "Summary" (accomplished by hand) at the bottom of the page lists the whole amount of freight, port charges, "amount to be divided" the Captain's share, owner's share, balance due, etc. [A note on the verso of leaf #85 (the 85th voyage) says that "Edward Carlton" has taken charge of the "Wishart" as Master, "July the 2nd, 1877.] The schooner travels up and down the east coast, with Philadelphia, Boston, New York, Baltimore, Norfolk, and Providence among her most frequent ports of call. Her northernmost ports are in Maine (Kennebeck, Rockport, Portland, Spruce Head), while the southernmost are Savannah, GA and Charleston, SC. Listings under Freight include: coal (by far the most frequent cargo), ice (surprisingly frequent), lumber and timber, iron, copper ore, water pipes, "cords wood", corn and flour, coal oil, iron pipe, pig iron, chalk, stone, and guano, as well as "naval stores," "general cargo" and "sundries." The "Charges" column records fees for towage, pilotage, stevedores, wharfage, stowing, hoisting and discharging cargo, "advertising," ballast, trimming coal, "cooperage on cargo", "quarantine fee" "commission", and harbor-master's fee. "The "Expenses" column addresses everyday necessities, including: shovels and tacks, "barrel deck varnish", ship chandlery, right to use crane, brooms, riggers, paint, carpenter work, tonnage tax, "overhauling bill," repair of stoves and stove pipe, iron pump, two large payments on the "sail bill," etc. ~~~ Logbook #2. 71pp of handwritten entries. Cloth-backed, stiff marbled wrappers; spine worn, first few leaves loose. 13.5" x 8.6". About 33 voyages, 13 in 1877 (July 31-December 23) and about 20 in 1878, ending December 29. Written in at least two different hands and reporting styles, in dark ink and purple ink, varying degrees of legibility, but all quite readable. This is a more traditional logbook, providing many details on daily weather (sometimes every few hours), where the ship is sailing to and from, geographical landmarks passed en route, whether it's "at anchor" or "in port" on arrival, etc. Common phrases include: "took steam," "pumps tried and vessel tite [sic]," "pumps tried and vessel leaking 140 per hour," "tacked ship," "employed shop's duty," etc. Included are occasional notes on the freight discharged or loaded, most frequently coal and ice. The most frequent trips are between Weymouth, MA and Philadelphia, Philadelphia and Boston, Boston and New York, and a number involving ports in Maine (Kennebeck River, Gardiner, Belfast) as well as Hoboken, NJ and Brooklyn, NY, and Washington, D.C. ~~~ Logbook #3. 48 handwritten pages. Bound in grained cloth over stiff wrappers, sewn spine. Stamped in gold on cover: "James Gaskill, Adjuster of Marine Losses, 224 Walnut Street, Philadelphia". 14" x 9". Includes damage due to storm at sea in December, 1887; assessed in Jan-April, 1888. The first several pages of this log describe the "Wishart"'s ill-fated trip sailing for New York from the "Pamunk[e]y River", Virginia. At 8 p.m. on December 17, 1887, a gale and heavy winds caused the vessel to "labor heavily" off Barnegat Light (New Jersey) and at 10:30, she had "sprung a leak. Pumps kept going. At 11:30 head four feet of water in the hold and at 12 m. [sic] vessel was hove on her beam ends when the greater part of deck load of [wooden] ties washed overboard...." On the next day, the men "kept her before the gale under two reefed mainsail. Water increasing in the vessel, had to throw balance of deck load about 300 ties overboard to lighten her." Just before this jettisoning, the "sea broke over quarter smashing yawl boat, and carrying it and starboard davit and attachments away, which were lost." The main gaff also broke, and "we were blown east of the Gulf Stream three times...." By December 29, the vessel heads for Norfolk, and arrives there January 3, 1888. The next several pages of the book are titled "Results of Survey Made at Norfolk, Virginia, January 9th, 1888, by Silas H. Dodd and Jos. H. Gaskell, Shipmaster, and Richard Curtis, marine surveyor". They found "2 feet of water in the hold" but that the vessel was "leaking very little" once it was pumped out. The list of damages is extensive, however, including: "end of bowsprit split...main jib gone...some topmast rigging carried away and foretopmast sprung, foresail carried away...main rigging....carried away...portion of sail and waist gone...all cooking utensils, main mast mast hoops gone, companion doors smashed," etc., etc. This portion concludes" "We recommend" that all the listed damages be repaired and that the estimated value of the vessel "in her present disabled condition" is no more than $1,000. A "Report Survey" follows, made at Norfolk on February 23, 1888, by Richard Curtis and Jos. T. Marshall, including a long list of repairs made. This section concludes, "We further find the vessel in a seaworthy condition and recommend that she proceed on her voyage." Then follows a 38-page list of "Bills and Expenses" for the survey, tug-towing, and all the repair work, including the names of the merchants and craftsmen owed and paid. The final four pages address "Apportionment of General Cargo," including values of "freight and cargo," amounts due "owners on underwriters of cargo," etc. Signed July 4, 1888, by James Gaskill, coadjustor. The American schooner "L.Q.C. Wishart" was apparently named after Dr. L.Q.C. Wishart, the Philadelphia doctor who dreamed up "Pine Tree Tar Cordial" in 1859, "Dr. Wishart's Great American Dyspepsia Pills" in 1861, and "Dr. Wishart's Worm Sugar Drops" in 1865. A wooden three-master, the "Wishart" was built in 1867, and the first of the logs starts with her first voyage. Taken together, the three logs offer a detailed picture of the travels, destinations, types of cargo carried, costs and moneys made, and even details on damage repairs involved in the operation of this American transport ship over more than 20 years. The "Wishart" finally was wrecked off Little Egg Harbor (NJ) in December, 1910, and the third volume of logbooks present here presages this event, offering a description of the results of a crippling storm at sea, the extensive repairs required, and expenses incurred to make the vessel seaworthy once more.