Nathaniel Palmer
Encyclopedia
Nathaniel Brown Palmer was an American seal hunter
, explorer, sailing captain, and ship designer. He was born in Stonington, Connecticut
.
. As a skilled and fearless seal hunter, Palmer achieved his first command at the early age of 21. His vessel, a diminutive sloop
named the Hero, was only 47 feet (14 m) in length. Palmer steered southward in the Hero at the beginning of the Antarctic summer of 1820–1821. Aggressively searching for new seal
rookeries
south of Cape Horn
, on 17 November 1820, Palmer and his men became the first Americans and the third group of people to discover the Antarctic Peninsula
. Larger ships skippered by Fabian Gottlieb von Bellingshausen
and Edward Bransfield
had reported sighting land earlier in 1820. Palmer also helped discover the nearby South Orkney Islands
archipelago.
on her maiden voyage from Boston
to Hong Kong
, arriving in in 111 days. In this new role, the Connecticut captain traveled many of the world's principal sailing routes. Observing the strengths and weaknesses of the ocean-going sailing ships of his time, Palmer suggested and designed improvements to their hulls
and rigging
. The improvements made Palmer a co-developer of the mid-19th century clipper ship.
Palmer closed his sailing career and established himself in his hometown of Stonington as a successful owner of clipper ships sailed by others. He died in 1877, at the age of 78.
, part of the Antarctic Peninsula, as well as the Palmer Archipelago
, were named in his honor.
The Antarctic science and research program operated by the U.S. government
continues to recall Palmer's role in the exploration of the Antarctic area. Palmer Station
, located in the seal islands that Palmer explored, the clipper ship N.B. Palmer
(built by Jacob Aaron Westervelt) and the Antarctic icebreaker RV Nathaniel B. Palmer
are named after Captain Palmer.
Hero Bay
, in the South Shetland Islands, is named for Captain Palmer's sloop Hero, one of the vessels of the Pendleton sealing fleet from Stonington which visited the islands in 1820-21.
Also named after Palmer's sloop Hero is Hero Rupes
, an escarpment
which was discovered in the southern hemisphere of the planet Mercury in 1973.
His home in Stonington, the Capt. Nathaniel B. Palmer House
, was declared a National Historic Landmark
in 1996.
Seal hunting
Seal hunting, or sealing, is the personal or commercial hunting of seals. The hunt is currently practiced in five countries: Canada, where most of the world's seal hunting takes place, Namibia, the Danish region of Greenland, Norway and Russia...
, explorer, sailing captain, and ship designer. He was born in Stonington, Connecticut
Stonington, Connecticut
The Town of Stonington is located in New London County, Connecticut, in the state's southeastern corner. It includes the borough of Stonington, the villages of Pawcatuck, Lords Point, Wequetequock, the eastern halves of the villages of Mystic and Old Mystic...
.
Sealing career and Antarctic exploration
During the 1810s the skins of Antarctic Ocean seals were highly valued as items for trade with ChinaChina
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
. As a skilled and fearless seal hunter, Palmer achieved his first command at the early age of 21. His vessel, a diminutive sloop
Sloop
A sloop is a sail boat with a fore-and-aft rig and a single mast farther forward than the mast of a cutter....
named the Hero, was only 47 feet (14 m) in length. Palmer steered southward in the Hero at the beginning of the Antarctic summer of 1820–1821. Aggressively searching for new seal
Pinniped
Pinnipeds or fin-footed mammals are a widely distributed and diverse group of semiaquatic marine mammals comprising the families Odobenidae , Otariidae , and Phocidae .-Overview: Pinnipeds are typically sleek-bodied and barrel-shaped...
rookeries
Rookery
A rookery is a colony of breeding animals, generally birds. A rook is a Northern European and Central Asian member of the crow family, which nest in prominent colonies at the tops of trees. The term is applied to the nesting place of birds, such as crows and rooks, the source of the term...
south of Cape Horn
Cape Horn
Cape Horn is the southernmost headland of the Tierra del Fuego archipelago of southern Chile, and is located on the small Hornos Island...
, on 17 November 1820, Palmer and his men became the first Americans and the third group of people to discover the Antarctic Peninsula
Antarctic Peninsula
The Antarctic Peninsula is the northernmost part of the mainland of Antarctica. It extends from a line between Cape Adams and a point on the mainland south of Eklund Islands....
. Larger ships skippered by Fabian Gottlieb von Bellingshausen
Fabian Gottlieb von Bellingshausen
Fabian Gottlieb Thaddeus von Bellingshausen was an officer in the Imperial Russian Navy, cartographer and explorer, who ultimately rose to the rank of Admiral...
and Edward Bransfield
Edward Bransfield
Edward Bransfield was a master of the British Royal Navy and considered the discoverer of the continent of Antarctica.-Early life:...
had reported sighting land earlier in 1820. Palmer also helped discover the nearby South Orkney Islands
South Orkney Islands
The South Orkney Islands are a group of islands in the Southern Ocean, about north-east of the tip of the Antarctic Peninsula. They have a total area of about ....
archipelago.
Merchant marine career and development of the clipper ships
After concluding a successful sealing career, Palmer, still in the prime of life, switched his attention to the captaining of fast sailing ships for the transportation of express freight. In 1843, Captain Palmer took command of the Paul JonesPaul Jones (1843 ship)
The Paul Jones was a Medford-built ship, launched in 1843, that brought the first cargo of ice to China.-Voyages:Paul Jones sailed from Boston on Jan. 15, 1843, on her maiden voyage, arriving in Hong Kong in 111 days, under captain N.B...
on her maiden voyage from Boston
Boston
Boston is the capital of and largest city in Massachusetts, and is one of the oldest cities in the United States. The largest city in New England, Boston is regarded as the unofficial "Capital of New England" for its economic and cultural impact on the entire New England region. The city proper had...
to Hong Kong
Hong Kong
Hong Kong is one of two Special Administrative Regions of the People's Republic of China , the other being Macau. A city-state situated on China's south coast and enclosed by the Pearl River Delta and South China Sea, it is renowned for its expansive skyline and deep natural harbour...
, arriving in in 111 days. In this new role, the Connecticut captain traveled many of the world's principal sailing routes. Observing the strengths and weaknesses of the ocean-going sailing ships of his time, Palmer suggested and designed improvements to their hulls
Hull (watercraft)
A hull is the watertight body of a ship or boat. Above the hull is the superstructure and/or deckhouse, where present. The line where the hull meets the water surface is called the waterline.The structure of the hull varies depending on the vessel type...
and rigging
Rigging
Rigging is the apparatus through which the force of the wind is used to propel sailboats and sailing ships forward. This includes masts, yards, sails, and cordage.-Terms and classifications:...
. The improvements made Palmer a co-developer of the mid-19th century clipper ship.
Palmer closed his sailing career and established himself in his hometown of Stonington as a successful owner of clipper ships sailed by others. He died in 1877, at the age of 78.
Legacy in the Antarctic and beyond
Palmer LandPalmer Land
Palmer Land is that portion of the Antarctic Peninsula which lies south of a line joining Cape Jeremy and Cape Agassiz. This application of Palmer Land is consistent with the 1964 agreement between US-ACAN and UK-APC, in which the name Antarctic Peninsula was approved for the major peninsula of...
, part of the Antarctic Peninsula, as well as the Palmer Archipelago
Palmer Archipelago
Palmer Archipelago, also known as Antarctic Archipelago, Archipiélago Palmer, Antarktiske Arkipel or Palmer Inseln, is a group of islands off the northwestern coast of the Antarctic Peninsula....
, were named in his honor.
The Antarctic science and research program operated by the U.S. government
Federal government of the United States
The federal government of the United States is the national government of the constitutional republic of fifty states that is the United States of America. The federal government comprises three distinct branches of government: a legislative, an executive and a judiciary. These branches and...
continues to recall Palmer's role in the exploration of the Antarctic area. Palmer Station
Palmer Station
Palmer Station, on Anvers Island, is Antarctica's only US station north of the Antarctic Circle. Initial construction of the station finished in 1968. The station, like the other US Antarctic stations, is operated by the United States Antarctic Program....
, located in the seal islands that Palmer explored, the clipper ship N.B. Palmer
N.B. Palmer (clipper)
The N.B. Palmer was a clipper ship owned by A.A. Low & Brother which was active in the China trade.One report states that the N.B. Palmer was "the first clipper ship out of New York to China."...
(built by Jacob Aaron Westervelt) and the Antarctic icebreaker RV Nathaniel B. Palmer
Nathaniel B. Palmer (icebreaker)
The Nathaniel B. Palmer is an ice-capable research ship in the service of the U.S. National Science Foundation. It is tasked with extended scientific missions in the Antarctic....
are named after Captain Palmer.
Hero Bay
Hero Bay
Hero Bay is a 17 mi wide bay, which indents for 6 mi the north side of Livingston Island between Cape Shirreff and Williams Point, in the South Shetland Islands. The name ‘Blythe Bay’, originally applied to a small bay on the southeast side of Desolation Island on Powell's chart of 1822...
, in the South Shetland Islands, is named for Captain Palmer's sloop Hero, one of the vessels of the Pendleton sealing fleet from Stonington which visited the islands in 1820-21.
Also named after Palmer's sloop Hero is Hero Rupes
Hero Rupes
Hero Rupes is an escarpment on Mercury more than 300 kilometers long located in the southern hemisphere of Mercury. Discovered by the Mariner 10 spacecraft in 1974, it was formed by a thrust fault, thought to have occurred due to the shrinkage of the planet's core as it cooled over time.The scarp...
, an escarpment
Escarpment
An escarpment is a steep slope or long cliff that occurs from erosion or faulting and separates two relatively level areas of differing elevations.-Description and variants:...
which was discovered in the southern hemisphere of the planet Mercury in 1973.
His home in Stonington, the Capt. Nathaniel B. Palmer House
Capt. Nathaniel B. Palmer House
Capt. Nathaniel B. Palmer House is a historic house in Stonington, Connecticut that was the home of Nathaniel Brown Palmer . Palmer was a seal hunter and a pioneering Antarctic explorer. The house is a transitional style between the Greek revival and the Victorian Italianate...
, was declared a National Historic Landmark
National Historic Landmark
A National Historic Landmark is a building, site, structure, object, or district, that is officially recognized by the United States government for its historical significance...
in 1996.
See also
- History of AntarcticaHistory of AntarcticaThe history of Antarctica emerges from early Western theories of a vast continent, known as Terra Australis, believed to exist in the far south of the globe...
- HouquaHouqua (clipper)The Houqua was an early clipper ship with an innovative hull design, built for A.A. Low & Brother in 1844. She sailed in the China trade.-Name:...
, innovative early clipper shipClipperA clipper was a very fast sailing ship of the 19th century that had three or more masts and a square rig. They were generally narrow for their length, could carry limited bulk freight, small by later 19th century standards, and had a large total sail area...
which Capt. Nat helped design - Paul JonesPaul Jones (1843 ship)The Paul Jones was a Medford-built ship, launched in 1843, that brought the first cargo of ice to China.-Voyages:Paul Jones sailed from Boston on Jan. 15, 1843, on her maiden voyage, arriving in Hong Kong in 111 days, under captain N.B...
, ship which N.B. Palmer sailed on its maiden voyage - N.B. Palmer (clipper)N.B. Palmer (clipper)The N.B. Palmer was a clipper ship owned by A.A. Low & Brother which was active in the China trade.One report states that the N.B. Palmer was "the first clipper ship out of New York to China."...
, named after Capt. Palmer - Capt. Nathaniel B. Palmer HouseCapt. Nathaniel B. Palmer HouseCapt. Nathaniel B. Palmer House is a historic house in Stonington, Connecticut that was the home of Nathaniel Brown Palmer . Palmer was a seal hunter and a pioneering Antarctic explorer. The house is a transitional style between the Greek revival and the Victorian Italianate...