- Douglas Bennet : Schooner Sunset - The Last British Sailing Coasters
Chatham Publishing, London, 2001. . Binding: Softcover. Book Condition: Very Good. Size: 10"-12" Tall. Quantity Available: 1. Category: Ships & the Sea; ISBN: 1861761767. ISBN/EAN: 9781861761767. Inventory No: 37625.
- A unique insight into the last days of sail. A remarkable
collection of authentic and detailed drawings. An invaluable practical
source book for modellers and practical sailors alike. Owing to their
simplicity of rig the small fore-and-afters the coastal schooners were
among the last commercial sailing vessels to remain in existence; today
they are gone, as are nearly all the men who sailed in them, and with
them the knowledge which was needed to work the vessels by the power of
the wind alone. One of them was Douglas Bennet, and in this posthumously
published book he tells, in remarkable detail, of the working life
aboard and describes all the facets of construction and fitting out.
This book contains gripping dramas of the sea, r wild adventures;
instead, it was primarily intended to paint the authentic picture of
life at sea of the men who worked the craft, and describe the seamanship
which was employed from ship to ship. These practices, and the changes
which occurred down the years, have only ever been recorded in the
barest outline. Many maritime historians have written broadly of the
building and trading and have, indeed, dealt with the ships themselves
but never in the detail presented here. One of the most remarkable
aspects of Bennet's work is the unique collection of drawings that
depict every aspect of the ships' construction and rig. Information on
the smallest item of equipment is to be found in these pages and is
presented in a way which could only ever have been done by one who had
first-hand experience. With the passing of the years and the of the men
who sailed the last merchant schooners we have lost most of the
detailed knowledge that was needed to build and sail them; Douglas
Bennet's contribution is as unique as it is clear and will delight all
enthusiasts of the last days of sail, practical sailors and, t least,
those many modellers who until w sought in vain for a clear image of
some small shipboard detail. DOUGLAS BENNET was born in 1916 to a
Cheshire farming family. He was to form a close attachment to the last
trading coastwise schooners and joined the Alert in 1934 and the
Brooklands in 1939. After the War he always maintained his close
interest in the few remaining craft and never missed an opportunity to
record their finer details in his meticulous drawings. DAVID CLEMENT,
who has carefully edited Bennet's work, has nurtured a deep interest in
ships and the sea since an early age. He was a founder of the Southwest
Maritime History Society, and is editor of its journal. Amongst other
maritime associations he is a council member of the Society for Nautical
Research, and Chairman of the Topsham Museum.