Thomas Welcome Roys: America's Pioneer of Modern Whaling

Kapstein, Ethan B.; Schmitt, Frederick P.; Jong, C. de; Winter, Frank H.

doi:10.2307/3104469

Cited by 2 publications

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“…The American whaling innovator Thomas Welcome Roys visited Tobago and took 'several' humpbacks there (Schmitt et al, 1980) during an experimental expedition on the brig William F. Safford of Sag Harbor. The whales apparently were taken in the last few days of December or first week of January (the vessel having arrived at Barbados on 10 January 1859; Schmitt et al, 1980). The literature reveals few other observations of humpbacks at Tobago in spite of Lindeman's (1880;see True, 1904) reference to 'fair results' experienced there by American whalers.…”

Section: Whaling In Tobagomentioning

confidence: 99%

History of whaling in Trinidad and Tobago

Reeves¹,

Khan²,

Olsen³

et al. 2023

jcrm

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Shore whaling for humpback whales (Megaptera novaeangliae) in Trinidad represents a largely overlooked aspect of North Atlantic whaling history. Literature and archival sources were searched for information on the chronology, nature and extent of this whaling. The first shore station began operations in about 1826 on one of the islands in the Dragon’s Mouth, the strait connecting the southern Caribbean Sea with the Gulf of Paria. At least four stations were active in this area at one time or another and the maximum documented one-year catch was about 35 humpbacks. Whaling effort had begun to decline by the 1850s and was largely ended by the 1880s. Oil for domestic consumption as well as export was the main product. Removals by the shore whalers were in addition to those by American pelagic whalers who occasionally called at Port-of-Spain and whaled in the vicinity of Trinidad and along the Spanish Main. No evidence was found of organised shore whaling in Tobago.

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Section: Whaling In Tobagomentioning

confidence: 99%

History of whaling in Trinidad and Tobago

Reeves¹,

Khan²,

Olsen³

et al. 2023

jcrm

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Experimental whalers operated in the Norwegian and Barents Seas from the 1850s-1870s. For example, Thomas Welcome Roys shot 26 humpback whales in the Barents Sea in the summer of 1856, killing at least 16 of them (Schmitt et al, 1980;Tønnessen and Johnsen, 1982). Roys' Norwegian contemporaries, including Svend Foyn, used Varanger Fjord, Finnmark, as their base of operations beginning as early as 1857.…”

Section: Norwegian Mechanised Shore Whalingmentioning

confidence: 99%

Historical catches of humpback whales in the North Atlantic Ocean: an overview of sources

Reeves¹,

Smith²

2023

jcrm

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Humpback whales (Megaptera novaeangliae) have been taken in the North Atlantic since the 1600s in a variety of fisheries operating from the Arctic to the tropics. The relative importance of the humpback whale in these fisheries has varied. In some it was the main target species, while in others it was a minor component of the catch, with other large rorquals or sperm whales (Physeter macrocephalus) ranking ahead of it. There was an overall trend towards large catches of humpback whales, especially in tropical breeding areas, by non-mechanised fisheries during the mid to late 19th century; as these fisheries declined and modern whaling began in higher latitudes, large numbers were taken on the feeding grounds. Catches generally declined in the mid to late 20th century, with many fisheries stopping or scaling down their operations. Information describing the humpback fisheries is published in a wide variety of sources, and approximate locations and periods of operation are reasonably well known for most of the relevant fisheries. In addition, catch and production data are available in commercial records, newspapers and whaling manuscripts (e.g. voyage logbooks). This paper summarises the data sources and defines thirteen ‘fisheries’, based mainly on the whaling methods employed, and 20 ‘sub-fisheries’, based mainly on the spatial distribution of the whaling operations. Catch levels are summarised, often crudely, and gaps in the catch history are identified. Where possible, suggestions are made for filling these gaps.

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Thomas Welcome Roys: America's Pioneer of Modern Whaling

Cited by 2 publications

References 0 publications

History of whaling in Trinidad and Tobago

History of whaling in Trinidad and Tobago

Historical catches of humpback whales in the North Atlantic Ocean: an overview of sources

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