Captain george pollard7/22/2023 ![]() ![]() The bull rammed the Essex, then swam beneath her and resurfaced starboard. On November 16th, 1820, the first whale was spotted, but it surfaced directly beneath Chase’s whaleboat, damaging it.Ĭhase was repairing this whaleboat on the Essex’s deck when he saw a male whale, or bull, just beneath the waves and facing the ship. Disagreements arose between Pollard and first mate Chase when the Essex didn’t see a whale for days. The Essex’s arrival at her intended hunting ground didn’t assuage the crew’s unease. Researchers now believe that this disaster led to the extinction of two species in the delicate ecosystem of the Galapagos. Helmsman Thomas Chapple set a fire on shore, and dry conditions quickly created an inferno that engulfed the island. The Essex sailed to Charles Island (now called Floreana) in the Galapagos, where the crew captured tortoises they intended to live off while away from land.ĭuring this stay at Charles Island, another ominous event further unsettled the crew. Although some members of the crew were nervous about cannibals alleged to live on islands surrounding their intended hunting grounds, Pollard nonetheless prepared the ship for its new destination. When the population of whales along this stretch of the South American coast had been killed, Captain Pollard decided to follow the recommendation of another whaling crew, and sail to a little-known area far from shore and 2,500 nautical miles away. Related: The Daring Voyage of the James Caird Since six men were needed to crew the whaleboats, and the three boats were launched simultaneously, DeWitt’s absence meant that only two sailors remained aboard the Essex during hunts. This left the crew dangerously undermanned. Morale declined further in September of 1820, when sailor Henry DeWitt deserted the Essex while the ship was on the northern coast of what is now Ecuador. Only two days out of Nantucket, a storm caused considerable damage to the Essex, and decimated two of the whaleboats-20-foot open boats that were crewed by six men when actively pursuing a whale.Ĭaptain Pollard elected to continue around Cape Horn despite the damage, even as unsettled sailors questioned whether the storm had been an ill portent.
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