Showing posts with label ships. Show all posts
Showing posts with label ships. Show all posts

October 4 - National Ship in a Bottle Day

Posted October 4, 2018



It seems like magic: a ship in a bottle. How on earth could it be built inside there? How on earth could it be put inside once it's built? How on earth could a bottle be blown around an already-constructed model ship? Why on earth would any ever bother to create a ship in a bottle?


The answer to the last one is complex:

First, the craft evolved back when sailors had little to do to pass the time on long voyages. And there are always at least a few people who love to keep alive old craft traditions.

Plus, of course, some people love love love ships. Some people love building models. Some people love a challenge.



 And some people love a mystery and will gladly pay way more money for a ship in the bottle than for just any old model ship!




Most ships in bottles are carefully crafted outside of the bottle, with the masts and sails hinged and lying flat so that they will fit through the neck of the bottle. Once the ship model is positioned inside the bottle, the crafter gently pulls the strings attached to the masts so that the sails and rigging rise up into place. 


The reason that Ship in a Bottle Day is held on October 4 is that it is the birthday of Jack Hinkley, who was the founder of the Ship in Bottle Association of America.





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July 12 – Night of Nights

Posted on July 12, 2017

On this date in 1999, at 5:00 p.m., the last commercial radio transmission in Morse Code was made.



Or...actually, it was supposed to have been the last. But the men and women who worked in maritime radio felt sad when silence fell on the bands on which there used to be so many radiograms, and the occasional call for help.

And they made a plan to commemorate that last transmission - in a way that would make it, not the last, but lasting!

The first Night of Nights was celebrated on July 12, 2000, and that night and every July 12th after radio station KPH begins to transmit in Morse Code at 5:01 p.m. and continues to do so until midnight.


Some people sit at the receiving station, hearing the short and long beeps and watching as it is translated by skilled radiotelegraphers into weather forecasts, traffic lists, press releases, and special commemorative messages. 

Other people participate by making calls from ships on the sea, just like old times. 

It may not sound really impressive or exciting - Morse Code is like a super low-res pong game in the age of sophisticated multi-user video games! But for lots of people, keeping the knowledge of maritime radio and honoring the memory of those who served in that arena are both important reasons to keep up Night of Nights year after year.

 


 

Also on this date:







Independence Day in Sao Tome and Principe






















































Plan ahead:


Check out my Pinterest boards for:
And here are my Pinterest boards for:

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April 5 - Anniversary of the Mayflower's Return Trip


Posted on April 5, 2017


 The Mayflower famously brought the Pilgrims to the New World in 1620. 

But - what happened to the ship, after that? Have you ever wondered about that?

 Shipmaster and Captain Christopher Jones had intended to return with his ship to England as soon as the Pilgrims found a settlement site. Actually, he had intended to land south of Plymouth / Cape Cod, somewhere in what is now Virginia - but when he and the Pilgrims realized how harsh the winter weather of their actual landing site was, the winter seas were already harsh and rough, too, so they had to stay put, safe and sound, in Plymouth.
Looking at this map, it looks like the Mayflower was making
a beeline for what is now Virginia - but got swung up in a
current or storm or something like... And ended farther north!

 It turned out, not so safe! Both the Pilgrims and the ship's crew fell ill. They were still sheltering in the ship when an outbreak of contagious diseases, including pneumonia and tuberculosis, combined with scurvy to make many of them very, very sick. Under the circumstances, Jones decided that he must winter in Plymouth Harbor. 

 That first awful, disease-ridden winter killed off almost half of the passengers - and close to half of the crew as well!

 On March 21, 1621 (the first day of spring!), the remaining passengers finally disembarked from the Mayflower. And on this date in 1621, Christopher Jones finally set sail with the ship's emptied cargo hold supplied with rocks from Plymouth Harbor in order to provide ballast and keep the boat upright - and with a decimated crew.
The Mayflower made good time on the return trip - it took less than half of the time it had taken to reach America. What a difference it makes when you travel with the westerlies, rather than trying to sail against them! The Mayflower arrived at her home port in London on May 6.

 What happened after that is nothing very grand or noteworthy. Shipmaster Jones continue to use his ship for another chunk of months, but coming home from France in March, 1622, he died. For the next two years, the Mayflower just floated in her berth in London. At that point, she had become useless as a ship. She was probably broken up and her parts reused or discarded, but there isn't an actual record of her "death."  














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