Manuscript log

This manuscript log of the South Seas Whaler 'Mary' covers the period 1823-1825. The London South Sea Whaler the 'Mary' was owned by John Lydekker and commanded by Edward Reed Lacy. This journal records details of the Ship's course, the weather and other events and is photographed open at pages covering the days 12 and 13 July 1824. Whales kills are indicated by black tails and also include the initials of the 'harpooner'. An illustration of a smiling sperm whale in the log indicates a lost catch. The Mary had an eventful voyage whaling in the South Atlantic and the Pacific. Three crewmen were lost when a whaleboat was destroyed in a storm. The crew suffered from scurvy and a number absconded. The log ends with the wrecking of the Mary on Jervis's Island on the 20 January 1825. After six weeks the crew were rescued by two other whaling ships owned by Daniel Bennett.

London's whaling trade developed from 1775. At the peak of its activity the South Sea whaling fleet numbered 149 and for a short while London was the largest whaling port in the World. The whaling trade provided oil and spermaceti candles used for lighting the capital's shops and homes. But the trade also opened up new seas and coastlines helping to extend Britain's commercial empire. From the 1820s, however fleet numbers began to fall due to competition from America and Australia and London's whaling trade finally came to a close in 1859.