Nantucket: Whaling, and the Sea Shanties That Tell the Story

Nantucket Sleigh Ride, whaling captain, widow’s walk, candles and corsets, and sea shanties.  What do all of these have in common?  They are all part of the history of Nantucket Island, which was the whaling capital of the world  in the19^th century.  The heyday of Nantucket’s colorful history has been honored by a  series of Department 56 buildings and accessories in the New England and Snow Village Series, and they provide the beginning points for a visit.  No exploration of whaling, however, would be complete without hearing some sea shanties, or work songs, so I have included links to a couple at the end of the story. Get ready to shake a leg!

Nantucket:  Captains, Candles, Corsets
At the turn of the 19th century, Nantucket became the third largest city in Massachusetts, and one of the richest cities in the US.  As many as 150 ships a year made port in the island’s bay.  Whaling captains' bounty caused Nantucket to prosper, not only from the sale of whale and "spermaceti" oil, but from the growth of ancillary industries like candle-making, nautical provisioning, paper and wick manufacturing, and shipping.

Depart 56, New England Village Series
"Platt's Candles and Wax", 56.56614

Between 1815 and 1860, whalers unloaded more than1.3 million barrels of precious whale oil, which Herman Melville described as “…rare as the milk of queens.”  There were essentially two kinds of oil.  Whale oil was rendered from whale blubber  on the whaling ship and brought to port in barrels.  "Spermaceti" was an oil from the head of the sperm whale, and was rendered in try works after it arrived in port.  Whale oils were used for fine candles, ointments and cosmetic creams, and luminants for lamps and even lighthouses, in addition to being a lubricant for the machines driving the industrial revolution.  Department 56 New England Village Platt's Candles & Wax

These were not the only products of the whaling industry. Baleen, comb-like plates in a whale’s mouth used for filter feeding, also became commercially important.  Called whalebone, the baleen was valued for its use in corsets, hoop skirts, buggy whips, collar stiffeners, and parasol ribs.

Whale Bone Corset

The most valuable product of whaling, however, was ambergris, a secretion of the whale’s digestive system. This rare find was used primarily as an odorant and fixant in perfumes and cosmetics, although there is also a history of its use as an additive in beverages and medicines. Around 1880 ambergris sold for $10,000 for 1/8 pound, an extraordinary amount in any day.

Dept 56, New England Series
Captain Kensey's House, 56.56651

The whaling trade was good for the seamen, financiers, and merchants of Nantucket, many of whom  began to grace the town with lovely residences in downtown Nantucket, many close to the wharfs.

Hard Life as a Whaler
Everyday life on a whaling ship, however, was hard, dangerous, dirty, and yet frequently monotonous.  Whaling voyages generally lasted 2-3 years, and sometimes much longer.  Whaling “widows” would say good-bye to their men, not knowing if they would return, when, or whether they would even derive income from the voyage.  Department 56 Captain Kensey's House

At sea, sailors could face weeks of heat, cold, and boredom, looking in vain for a pod of whales. And then, suddenly, they could face hours of terror, being hauled on a “Nantucket sleighride," their small whaleboat lashed to a harpooned whale, flying through the waves at speeds up to 23 mph, sometimes far away from the mother ship.  If the men were lucky, the whale didn't thrash the boat with its flute as it tried to escape, or turn on it and attack intentionally.   If the seamen made the kill, backbreaking work was then needed to tow the whale, weighing up to 40 tons, back to the ship, sometimes miles away. Then the ship would then be converted into a floating factory, where the sailors rendered the whale fat into oil by boiling it in vats, called try works, while black clouds of sooty smoke roiled into the sky.  Whalers earned their money.  

Rockwell Kent, illustration
from 1930 edition
Moby Dick

Herman Melville commemorated Nantucket’s whaling prowess by basing his novel Moby Dick on the Nantucket whaling ship, the Essex, which was rammed and sunk in 1820 by a whale about 2000 miles west of South America.  Goaded on by hunger and thirst and its resultant dementia, the surviving sailors were forced to resort to cannibalism in order to live for the three months in their small whaleboats before being rescued.  Ironically, one of the ships who came to their rescue was from Nantucket also, the Dauphin.

Sea Shanties
Sea Shanties were songs sailors used on-board whaling ships.  Many shanties were sung to create rhythms to synchronize hard and tedious work.  Listen to one of the most famous “Blow the Man Down,” a bawdy “halyard” or long-haul shanty sung while the sailors the hoisted topsails or performed other time-consuming tasks. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HOza9I92TU0&feature=related

One of my favorite sea shanties is the mournful song of men who are returning from the Arctic south toward Hawaii through the ice, wind, and rain after “…six hellish months ... passed away on the cold Kamchatka Sea.” http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0F_f7xYOD3g

Dept 56, "Snow Village,"
Nantucket Renovation, 56.54410

Nantucket’s whaling industry declined after 1840 due to the sifting in of its natural harbor, the introduction of petroleum products that made whale products less profitable, the discovery of gold in California, which beckoned the workforce, and a devastating fire that destroyed its wharves.  Nonetheless, historians and hobbyists continue to wish to evoke the island's  colorful history.  Nantucket Renovation - Department 56 (Retired)