Dart (1801 ship)

Dart was a brig or snow built at Ostend in 1792. She entered British records in 1801 and then made two whaling voyages, but was captured during the second. However, she remained in her master's hands and continued to sail in the South Seas, being last listed in 1811.

For other ships with the same name, see Dart (ship).

History
Builder: Ostend
Launched: 1792
United Kingdom
Name: Dart
Owner: J. M'Kenzie or M'Neilage
Captured: 1805
Fate: Last listed in 1811
General characteristics
Type: Fully rigged ship
Tons burthen: 171,[1] or 173,[1][2] (bm)
Propulsion: Sail
Complement:
Armament:
  • 1801:14 × 12-pounder guns[1]
  • 1804:2 × 4-pounder guns + 8 × 12-pounder carronades[1]

British career

Dart first appears in Lloyd's Register in 1801 with Chetty, master, Captain & Co., owner, and trade London-Malta.[3] Michael Chitty received a letter of marque for Dart on 3 January 1801.[1]

Her first whaling voyage saw Dart sail from Britain on 9 July 1802 under the command of Captain Donald McLennan (or M'Lennan). She arrived at Port Jackson from "Chilli".[4] At Port Jackson she purchased some 2,000 salted seal skins from Endeavour, which had been sealing around New Zealand.[5] Also, while at Port Jackson, McLennan signed an agreement with Governor Philip Gidley King to deliver an officer and six soldiers to Hobart. Dart left on 24 October, with ultimate destination "Chilli".[4] She returned to Britain on 9 July 1804.[2] Her cargo is listed as consisting of seal skins, with no mention of whale oil.[6] On her return McLennan reported on the state of affairs in Otaheite to the directors of the London Missionary Society.[7]

Captain McLennan received a letter of marque on 7 September 1804.[1] He sailed from Britain on 24 September 1804, bound for the Pacific Ocean. Dart was reported to have been off the coast of Brazil in January 1805.[2] In November she was reported to have been captured. Britannia reported that three or four British whalers, Dart among them, had been detained in Guayaquil,[8] due to the resumption in 1804 of the Anglo-Spanish War. A further report on 31 December stated that she had been captured at Guayaquil and that she had suffered the loss of 15 of her crew killed or wounded.[9]

Fate

However, by means that remain obscure, McLennan remained her master. Dart is recorded as arriving at Sydney on 8 March 1807 from England, with merchandise, and sailing for England on 20 April 1808.[4] Lloyd's Register last lists her in 1810 as continuing to be sailing to the South Seas.[6] The Register of Shipping last lists Dart, M'Lenan, master, M'Kenzie, owner, with trade London—South Seas, in 1811.[10]

Citations and references

Citations

  1. "Letter of Marque, p.51 - accessed 25 July 2017" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 20 October 2016. Retrieved 19 March 2018.
  2. British Southern Whale Fishery Database – voyages: Dart.
  3. Lloyd's Register (1801), Supplement Seq. №D97.
  4. "Arrival of Vessels at Port Jackson, and their Departure". Australian Town and Country Journal, Saturday 3 January 1891, p.16. Retrieved 4 February 2012.
  5. McNab (2001), p. 136.
  6. Clayton (2014), p. 96.
  7. The Panoplist, Or, The Christian's Armory: 1805-1806, Volume 1, p.31.
  8. Lloyd's List (LL) №4271.
  9. LL №4284.
  10. Register of Shipping (1811), Seq. №D43.

References

  • Clayton, Jane M (2014). Ships employed in the South Sea Whale Fishery from Britain: 1775–1815: An alphabetical list of ships. Berforts Group. ISBN 9781908616524.
  • McNab, Robert (2001) [1907]. Murihiku: A History of the South Island of New Zealand and the Islands Adjacent and Lying to the South, from 1642 to 1835. Cambridge University. ISBN 9781108039994.
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