Great Republic

The Great Republic, built in 1855 by McKay, was 334½ feet long, with 53½ feet beam and 38 feet depth. For 60 feet from the bow the keel gradually rose from a horizontal line and curved upward into an arch, blending with the stem, and was of rock maple, two tiers, 16 by 32 inches, with five 12-foot scarfs, the end tiers being in six pieces; shoe, 4½ inches. The frame was of seasoned white oak; dead rise, 20 inches. The floor timbers sided 13 and 14 inches, and were molded 22 and spaced 28 inches from center to center; the timbers tapered to the plank-sheer, where they were from 11 to 13 inches in siding and 8 inches in molding. Molding on the bilge 14 inches; at the main deck 12½ inches; and the frames were bolted together and the ends of the timbers wedged. The floors and first futtocks were 25 feet long, and the stem was molded 30 inches at the foot, 26 inches at the head, with the cutwater tapered to an edge. The apron was 51 inches through, with heavy stemson inside, and the bolts in the stem, apron, and stemson were of 1¼-inch copper, and about 6 inches apart. The stern-post was oak, in three upright pieces, molded in all 5½ feet, and was sided 16 inches at the keel and 24 inches at the top. The stern knee was sided 16 inches and molded 36 inches in the throat, with arms 8 and 20 feet in length scarfed to the lower keelson and bolted with copper. The frames on the inside were strapped with iron by braces 4 inches wide, 1 inch thick, and 36 feet long, there being 90 straps on each side of the ship. The keelsons, ceiling, and deck frames were of pitch-pine. The midship keelson was in four tiers, 15 by 60 inches in all, and the sister keelsons in three tiers, the first two of which were each 15 by 15 inches, while the upper one was 12 by 14 inches, and all were wedged, bolted, lock-scarfed, and keyed. There were two 1 3/8-inch copper bolts driven through every floor timber and the keel, the first through the timber and keel alone, the other also through the two lower tiers of the keelson, and riveted. Iron bolts wre driven through all the navel timbers and keelsons into the keel, and the sister keelsons were bolted diagonally through the navel timbers into the keel and horizontally through the midship keelsons. Whole depth of backbone, 9 feet 10 inches; ceiling (nine strakes), 10 by 12 inches on floor, square fastened through frames and edge-bolted every 5 feet; over the floor heads two bilge keelsons, each 15 inches square and in two depths, square-bolted with 1¼-inch iron through each timber and edge-bolted with 1⅛-inch iron; ceiling of floor, 10 inches. The bolge was double ceiled with 6- and 9-inch stuff, square-fastened and edge-bolted at every second beam, the double ceiling extended to a lap-streak, 6 by 15 inches, on which the lower edge of the hanging knees rested. The lower deck clamps, in two depths, were 6 and 10 inches thick; the beams of the lower and main decks 15 by 16 and 18 inches amidships, tapering to 12-inch molding at the ends, there being 38 beams to the lower and 40 to the main deck; while the upper deck beams, forty-one in number, were 12 by 20 inches in the center, tapering to 10-inch molding at the ends, twenty-five of them being double and bolted together, and the spar-deck beams varied in size and were close together, there being eighty-nine of them. The lower- and main-deck hanging knees were of oak, sided from 10 to 13 inches and molded from 22 to 24 inches in the throats; bodies, 5 to 6 feet long; arms, 4 to 4½ feet, each fastened with twenty 1¼-inch bolts; and the lodging knees were also of oak. The upper and spar-deck knees were of hackmatack, and were all light and diagonal. Between the main and upper decks the ceiling had diagonal braces of pitch-pine from the throat of one hanging knee to the foot of the one next aft, bolted through ceiling and timbers. The lower deck clamps were 12 inches wide, in two thicknesses, 6 and 9 inches; the water-ways 16 inches square, the binding strake 12 by 14 inches, and the standing strake 24 inches wide by 10 inches thick. Main-deck clamps, 16 inches wide, 10 inches thick; water-ways, 16 inches square; binding strake, 12 by 10 inches; standing strakes, 18 by 12 inches; filling-in strakes to the deck above, 8 inches thick, 14 inches wide. Upper-deck clamps, 12 inches thick, 15 inches wide; water-ways, 12 inches deep, 15 inches wide; binding strake, next the water-ways, 10 by 8 inches. Ceiling up to the spar-deck, 3½ inches; planking of lower three decks, 3½ inches, of pitch-pine; of spar-deck, 3 inches. Plank-sheer at upper deck, 16 by 7 inches; one at spar-deck 7 by 20 inches, having upon it a chock 12 by 6 inches, into which turned stanchions are fitted, supporting a main rail, 3½ feet high from the deck, 5 by 12 inches square. Beam-stanchions of hold, 8 by 24 inches, tenoned into the keelson and strapped with iron to the same; also strapped at the head over the beam and to the heel of the stanchions of the deck above. This system was carried clear to the spar-deck.

Planking: First garboard, 10 inches thick, 14 inches wide, bolted clear through into the opposite garboard with, 1⅛-inch bolts 5 feet apart, and through every third frame into the sister keelson; next strake 9 inches thick, 14 inches wide; the next 8 inches. Bottom plank, 6 inches thick, 14 inches wide, treenailed with 1¼-inch locust through the timbers; butt bolts, 1-inch copper. Bilge planking, 8 inches thick, 12 inches wide, four in number and projecting, square treenailed with 1¼-inch locust, with a copper bolt driven into every fourth timber of the frame. Wales, 6 inches thick, 8 inches wide, double and single fastened. Waist plank, 5 inches thick, 6 and 7 inches wide, treenailed and iron butt bolted; plank above plank-sheer, 4 inches. There were heavy hooks and pointers of white oak, three in the forward hold 30 to 40 feet long and 11 by 12 inches in section, one under each of the decks.

The ship had four masts, the after one being called the spanker. The other lower masts were built of pitch-pine, doweled, bolted, and hooped with iron. Her spars were as follows:


                                                        Length
                                Diameter.  Length.   head or yard-
                                                         arms.
                                  Inches.    Feet.       Feet.
Foremast                              44      130          36
Foretop-mast                          24       76          12
Foretop-gallant                       18       28          ..
Fore-royal                            15       22          ..
Fore sky-sail mast                    11       19          ..
Fore sky-sail pole                    ..       12          ..
Mainmast                              44      131          36
Main-topmast                          24       76          12
Main-top-gallant                      18       28          ..
Main-royal                            15       22          ..
Main sky-sail mast                    11       19          ..
Main sky-sail pole                    ..       12          ..
Mizzen-mast                           40      122          33
Mizzen-topmast                        22       69          10
Mizzen-top-gallant                    16       22          ..
Mizzen royal                          10       19           6
Mizzen sky-sail mast                   8       15          ..
Mizzen sky-sail pole                  ..        8          ..
Spanker mast                          26      110          14
Spanker topmast                       15       40          ..
Foreyard                              26      112           6
Fore lower topsail yard               24       90           5
Fore upper topsail yard               19       76           4½
Foretop-gallant yard                  15       62           4
Fore-royal yard                       12       51           3½
Fore sky-sail yard                     9       40           3
Mainyard                              28      120           6
Main lower topsail yard               24       92           5
Main upper topsail yard               19       76           4½
Main-top-gallant yard                 15       62           4
Main-royal yard                       12       51           3½
Main sky-sail yard                     9       40           3
Cross-jack yard                       24       90           5
Lower mizzen topsail yard             19       76           4½
Upper mizzen topsail yard             15       62           4
Top-gallant yard                      12       51           3½
Royal yard                             9       40           3
Sky-sail yard                          6       29           2
Spanker boom                          11       40           2
Spanker gaff                           8       34           8
Bowsprit                              44      a30          ..
Jib-boom                              22      a18           4
Flying jib-boom                        5      a14           6

a Outboard

Fore and main rigging and fore- and main-topmast back-stays, 12½-inch patent hemp roop; fore- and main-topmast rigging, 8-inch hemp; mizzen rigging and topmast back-stays, 11-inch hemp; 8 shrouds on each side, 4 topmast shrouds, 3 topmast back-stays, shifting breast back-stays, double top-gallant and royal back-stays. The lower and topmast stays were double. She had iron futtock rigging, chain bobstays and bowsprit shrouds, martingale stays and guys, topsail sheets and ties, and iron patent trusses and jack-stays. The amount of canvas in her sails was 15,653 yards, and her lower studding-sails were triangualr, terminating in a point below. There were four complete decks, and the height between the upper and spar decks was 7 feet, between the others 8 feet. Abaft the foremast was a house, 23 feet long by 16 wide, for a work room, shelter for the watch, and hospital. Aft of the hatchway a house, 25 feet long by 16 wide, and 16½ feet high, contained the galley, blacksmith-shop, and engine-room for a donkey engine of 15 horse-power. Abaft the mainmast a house, 40 feet long by 12 wide and 6½ feet high, served as a mess-room for the officers, and had a staircase to the quarters of the petty officers and boys on the deck below, while farther aft a house, 17 feet long by 11½ wide, protected a staircase to the vestibule of the cabins below. Near the taffrail there was a small wheel-house. Under the spar-deck were accommodations for a crew of 100 forward, space for spare spars and rigging, a tonnage space aft of the foremast, a large sail-room aft, a store-room, rooms for 30 boys, state-rooms for the lower officers, and a dining-saloon 30 feet long by 14 feet wide, with four state-rooms on each side; and aft of that a vestibule, with stairs to the deck above and the cabins below, the captain's and chief officers' state-rooms, and an after cabin, 25 feet long by 14 wide, with six state-rooms. The chain lockers in the lower hold were ample. She had four chains of 120 fathoms each, two of 2½-inch iron, with 6,500 and 8,500-pound anchors, and two of 1½-inch iron, with 2,500- and 1,500-pound anchors, and two hemp stream cables and several hawsers. There were three hawse-holes. To build this vessel required 1,500,000 board feet of pitch-pine, 986,000 feet of white oak, 336½ tons of iron, and 56 tons of copper, besides her sheathing. These were about 50,000 days' work upon her hull.

There was little timber in the Great Republic longer than 50 and 60 feet, but the oak was in much shorter lengths. If ships of this size are to be built hereafter, the best timber in the United States for the purpose is the Pudget Sound fir, on account of its length and other qualities. The Great Republic never sailed as a four-master except to New York city for a cargo. While loading she caught fire, her upper works burned off, and she was cut down one deck and refitted as a three-master. She lived the usual life of a ship, but, with her shortened sail area, did not develop remarkable speed.

Henry Hall: Report on the Ship-Building Industry of the United States.
Department of the Interior, Census Office, Washington, DC, 1884. pp 89-90, 92.

Transcribed by Lars Bruzelius

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