March 2024
HISTORY
WILLIAM FRANCIS GIBBS
Young William Francis Gibbs watched the launching of the SS St. Louis and immediately fell in love with big ships and boats. After entering Harvard, he discovered that he preferred drawing seagoing vessels to attending classes; thus, he dropped out of school and ventured to Europe via the RMS LUSITANIA and RMS MAURITANIA before entering Columbia to earn a law degree. One miserable year of jurisprudence was ample evidence that he was not made for the Bar.
In 1914 he designed a passenger ship 1000 feet long, with a crew of 1000 to care for 1000 guests who would sail at 30 knots. Of course, the propulsion technology was not even close to providing such speed at that time. He put his design in a drawer.
During WWI he was placed on the Shipping Control Committee of the U.S. Army General Staff. After this, he Converted the German ships SS VATERLAND and SS LEVIATHAN.
When WWII broke out the Germans were sinking cargo ships faster than the U.S. could build them. The Gibbs firm studied effective and efficient methods of shipbuilding and produced an emergency cargo vessel called the LIBERTY ships which were produced at one every 42 days. His 2,620 Liberty ships carried 75% of all cargo between America and Europe. In fact, Gibbs Shipbuilding cranked out 5,466 ships which accounted for 63% of ships built during the war.
In Peacetime America, Gibbs pulled open his drawer and commenced building his “perfect” ship. By 1952 the SS UNITED STATES was launched. Every inch below the waterline was hand-sanded to ensure the least possible friction. With her red, white, and blue smoke stacks, the UNITED STATES departed for Europe. At 0400 hours, the captain blew one very long blast on the horn signaling
that they had smashed the transatlantic speed record. It was the first time in 100 years that the U.S. gained the Blue Riband for breaking the record. Upon the sounding of the horn, whiskey and gin flowed like water, and Conga lines encircled the decks.
This was the peak of Gibbs’s career although he continued to build ships until he died in 1967, two years before his beloved ship was withdrawn from service. A group has purchased the ship and is raising money to restore her. She sits in Philadelphia. Interestingly, Susan L. Gibbs, granddaughter of the designer, is president of the restoration committee. Gibbs once said of the UNITED STATES, “You can’t set her on fire, you can’t sink her, and you can’t catch her.”
MARITIME ART
Ants Lepson, a young boy in Estonia, feared for his and his parent’s lives when the Russians invaded and forced the nation into the Soviet Union in 1944. The Lepson’s decided that it would behoove them to flee to Sweden, so they and 29 other people sailed a 27-foot pleasure boat across the Baltic in the middle of storms seeking freedom. The boat began to founder but all survived and made landfall.
Unfortunately, Sweden, much like the U.S. today, was not particularly welcoming to fleeing immigrants. Fearing a forced re-entry to Estonia, 69 of immigrants crammed aboard a 69-foot vessel. Caught up in a hurricane, the Estonians nearly sank off Bermuda; nevertheless, they successfully landed in North Carolina. Surprisingly, young Ants fell in love with the ocean, forged his mother’s signature, and received a job as a Mess Boy on a Norwegian cargo ship.
While at sea, he discovered he had a knack for drawing and used what he knew best as a subject—ships. He quickly rose in ranks and in his precision of oil paintings of tall ships, sailboats, and sundry vessels. His expertise as a Captain made him an artist with precise rigging, sails, and the sea. His paintings are highly sought and highly paid for.
Ants Lepson
GRAY FLEET
Those who have studied the Peloponnesian War know that the fall of Athens came not necessarily because of the Spartans, but because their vast empire that stretched through the Balkans, Dardanelles, and up to today’s Ukraine, required incredible military and economic assistance that was needed elsewhere to fight the Spartans. The U.S. is stymied by similar demands. Ukraine desperately needs more weapons, supplies, and ammunition. Israel is in the middle of a horrid conflict with the Arabs in the Gaza Strip. Houthi rebels are attacking both military and commercial vessels in the Red Sea.
Several CEOs of sundry cargo companies that at least 1/3 of their ships have been threatened and the U.S. Navy cannot protect them. Coming to the aid of a commercial freighter that was assaulted and afire, Navy helicopters came under missile attack. Under the current Rules of Engagement (ROE), they could return fire and kill 10 rebels. Still, the disturbances against all allies of Israel continue daily.
A Danish-flagged ship was hit with missiles and required aid that was rendered by the USS GRAVELY (DDG-107) and USSN LABOON (DDG-58) who shot down anti-ship missiles. And the beat goes on!
US Navy helicopter heading out to sink a Houthi attack boat.
ENVIRONMENT
As I rusticate in the Florida Panhandle, the temperature has never been up to 65 degrees; however, St. Paul Minnesota is loves a 60-degree week. When it is warmer in Detroit than in Florida in the middle of February, something is wrong. On the other hand, I am supporting the Florida economy when I could be lounging inexpensively in Iowa.
Meteorologist’s data Indicate that The Great Lakes have had less ice since 1973. So far this winter, Lake Superior has had 49 fewer days with less than 5% ice. Lake Michigan has had 22 days with less than 5% ice. Only a scuba diver would dare to ice fish in Iowa or much of Minnesota.
Of course, Old Man Winter can last until the middle of May in Iowa, and I have seen major snowstorms in late April; however, boat enthusiasts are licking their chops, farmers are readying their planting equipment, and dogs are napping on the lawn in the noonday sun—thankfully shedding on my grass that is much better than exploding mounds of hair on my bed.
The Mississippi River, the watershed for everything between the Rockies and the Appalachians, is a dirty river, the type that requires you to thoroughly wash your boat’s hull every time you enter her, and several organizations are attempting to clean it up. Old Muddy is full of endangered species, invasive species, forever chemicals, and the source of the Gulf of Mexico’s Dead Zone.
The Mississippi River Restoration and Resilience Initiative (MRRRI), sponsored by Senator Tammy Baldwin (D-Wis) and Congresswoman Betty McCollum (D-Minn), hope to unify sundry organizations to repair the river. Joining them in leadership roles is Kelly McGuiness, Executive Director of the Mississippi River Network (no, not the actress!), and Whitney Clark, Executive Director of Friends of the Mississippi River.
It is interesting to note that all are women, and probably, all the pesticides, insecticides, fungicides, forever chemical CEOs, and introducers of invasive species are male. Just a guess.
And along these lines, my beloved Iowa is governed by Gov. Kim Reynolds and the GOP minions who want all teachers to carry guns, tax support for private schools (to the tune of $7k per pupil) and now they have proposed limited or no fiscal responsibility for damage to the waterways by agricultural chemical companies.
I am so proud. I am so very proud that I was President of my college’s Young Republicans and worked hard to elect R. Milhouse Nixon and his thugs.
Northern Right Whale
The globe holds a mere 356 Right Whales, and 3 of the 17 newborns last year died or are not expected to live. A mere 70 females exist. These behemoths are bulky black whales weighing 140,000 pounds, stretching for 52 feet, and possessing a blow hole shaped like a “V”, are baleen whales so they eat plankton by skimming along known habitats of good food and they live for about 70 years.
Scientifically there are three species: the Northern Right Whale (Eubalaena glacialis), the Southern Right Whale (Eubalaena australis), and the Northern Pacific Right Whale (Eubalaena japonica). They are extremely endangered, and the recent discovery of a dead young female on Cape Cod upset the population and created great sorrow among scientists. She, like many other deceased Right Whales, died because of entanglement in fishing nets. Vessel strikes and loss of food due to climate change are the leading causes of their near extinction.
OCEANA, created by David Rockefeller and Dr. David Treadway, both avid sailors, is the largest international advocacy organization solely dedicated to promoting education and Green Sailing. The group is large enough and has deep pockets necessary to challenge the largest corporations.
One project in which OCEANA is deeply involved in defending the Humboldt Archipelago which houses 80% of the Humboldt penguins, is a rich food source of bottlenose dolphins and blue whales and is one of the largest and most diversified bio-areas in the world.
Needless to say, it is endangered. The island also houses great stores of coal and industry built a huge cargo port for fisheries. These plants require a vast desalinization plant that has dumped huge quantities of salt back into the ocean. OCEANA is working to make the area a Marine Protected Area. It is highly supported by Chile’s President despite the wealthy opposition industrialists.
ALLISIONS AND COLLISIONS
2024 started with the proverbial bang as ships and barges joined Davy Jones’ fleet. BUGOE, a Portuguese-flagged cargo ship, tried to dodge ice floes and discovered the force of Mother Nature’s wind and became stranded off Estonia.
A Tames barge, WILFRED, anchored in London’s River simply gave up the ghost and sank. Barges will do that sometimes.
STAR SEBANG’s crew and stevedores learned something about balance. Once I was driving behind a semi loaded with lumber, and as he turned a corner the load shifted making the 18-wheeler a 9-wheel daredevil for about 100 yards until it flipped over. STAR SEBANG’s cargo shifted, and she proceeded to roll on her side, which made sailing rather difficult and walking her decks impossible. She sank. Her crew were all safely rescued by the Philippine Coast Guard.
MARLIN LUANDA, a Marshall Island flagged ship, was hit by Houthi missiles S.E. of Yemen, and she was aflame instantly. Ships sailing in the Red Sea and waters near Yemen have complained bitterly about the Houthis who fire on virtually every ship passing by. The U.S. Navy is present and trying to protect ships but there is a whale of lot more merchant ships than Navy warships. Worse, since we are not at war with Yemen, we cannot attack the Houthi rebels directly. We are strictly bound to be defensive. And that’s the way of International Law.
RAN, an autonomous research robotic submersible, went missing under the ice of Antarctica and is considered lost.
In yet another ongoing war, IVANOVETS, a Russian corvette, was sunk by Ukrainian drones.
Vladimir Putin’s little attempt to annex Ukraine received another knock in the head when CAESAR KUNIKOV, a landing craft ship, was also sunk by those pesky Ukrainians and their drones. Evidently, it was not a good January for Russia.
Ships and boats are dangerous workplaces, and the maritime press is replete with stories of ship loss, deaths, accidents, etc. The Top 7 causes of commercial accidents are:
- Weather
- Communication errors
- Improper or inadequate training
- Lax Safety standards
- Equipment failure
- Poor decision making
- Understaffing.
BOOKS
The plethora of sailing and maritime books can drown the best and quickest reader, but some books are incredibly better than others, and THE SHIP, by C.S. Forester is definitely among the best. The book does not provide a page-turner of action and drama, rather, it is an intense study of a British Light Cruiser in the Mediterranean during World War 2. The reader is given a in-depth review of the ship and her crew in a level of writing worthy of a literature or writing class.
My good friend, Eric Chance Stone, has his 11th book (ARCTIC WATERS) in the Rick Waters series on sale. If you haven’t read Eric’s books, you have missed lots of fun. You might also like one of his 15 CDs that are that Southern Beach sound that I love (think Jimmy Buffett).
Please buy The World’s Worst Sailor by Stephen (Doc) Regan. I need the money.
BEYOND THE HORIZON