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The schooner rig designed for Trinovante is very
similar to that used by the American Tern Schooners
but is most strongly influenced by the Portuguese
fishing Schooners.
The three masted Tern schooners were being built
in the early 1800’s on the East Coast of
the United States and and by the end of the century
they were trading in large numbers in both Canada
and the US. These three masters were more easily
handled and economical to run than two masters
of an equivalent size and it was soon found that
they sailed very well too. The ‘Tern Schooner’
rig had three masts all the same height and did’t
carry square topsails.
The Portuguese three and four masted fishing schooners
were sailing commercially up until the 1970’s
making voyages every year across the Atlantic
to the Grand Banks cod fishing grounds off Newfoundland.
The fishermans staysail was a feature of these
schooners. It’s a big powerful sail that
is set flying and does not require working aloft.
Trinovante had one made for her in 2005. The basic
shape was taken from photos of the Portuguese
schooner Creoula and it has been a great success.
The smallest three masted schooner we have come
across is the North American Schooner ‘Souvenir’.
Built in 1903.and only 61 feet long, Basil Greenhill
mentions her in his book ‘Schooners’and
notes that she was ‘reported to have been
a lovely vessel to handle’.
If you fancy reading more about schooners there
are lots of interesting books out there
- a few are listed below
Schooners in four centuries
Lots of photos and drawings and a
photo of the Thomas W Lawson, the only seven masted
schooner ever built the. She was actually
bigger that the largest full rigged ship ever
built!
Schooners by Basil Greenhill
lots and lots of really good photos.
The Quest of the Schooner Argus by Alan
Villiers 1950. First hand account
of sailing with the Portuguese Schooners to the
cod fishing grounds of the Grand Banks and then
to Greenland. These schooners carried stacks
of small 16ft dories on deck and the fish
were caught by individual fishermen long lineing
from these tiny boats and then bringing the catch
back to the main vessel. A tough life belonging
to another era and a good read
Hard on the wind by Russ Hofvendahl,
Schooner Captain by Captain
Hugh Shaw
Two first hand schooner sailing stories
Skiff and Schooners by R D Culler. A bit
of old time 'how to build wooden boats' with lots
of different sized schooners from dinghies up
to 60 ft or so. Very readable.
The Merchant Schooners by Basil Greenhill.
The story of British merchant schooners
between 1870 and 1940.with some interesting first
hand accounts and lots of illustrations. |
