22 replies to this topic

[Latitude Adjustment]

The U.S.S. Constitution (Old Ironsides) as a combat vessel carried 48,600 gallons of fresh water for her crew of 475 officers and men.
This was sufficient to last six months of sustained operations at sea. She carried no evaporators (fresh water distillers).

However, let it be noted that according to her log, "On July 27, 1798, the U.S.S. Constitution sailed from Boston with a full complement of 475 officers and men, 48,600 gallons of fresh water, 7,400 cannon shot, 11,600 pounds of black powder and 79,400 gallons of rum."

Her mission: "To destroy and harass English shipping."

Making Jamaica on 6 October, she took on 826 pounds of flour and 68,300 gallons of rum.

Then she headed for the Azores, arriving there 12 November. She provisioned with 550 pounds of beef and 64,300 gallons of Portuguese wine. On 18 November, she set sail for England.

In the ensuing days she defeated five British men-of-war and captured and scuttled 12 English merchantmen, salvaging only the rum aboard each.

By 26 January, her powder and shot were exhausted. Nevertheless, and though unarmed, she made a night raid up the Firth of Clyde in Scotland. Her landing party captured a whiskey distillery and transferred 40,000 gallons of single malt Scotch aboard by dawn.

Then she headed home.

The U.S.S. Constitution arrived in Boston on 20 February 1799, with no cannon shot, no food, no powder, NO rum, NO wine, NO whiskey and 38,600 gallons of stagnant water.

GO NAVY!

[BubbleBoy]

I'm surprised they didn't end up in Antarctica. Then again, they probably would have needed to sober up to make a mistake like that.

[Walter]

Very interesting and the date of her sailing is almost correct, only missing the actual date by 5 days. Of course the entire piece is total fiction. The USS Constitution first sailed on July 22, 1798. She did not return to Boston on 20 February 1799, she remained in the West Indies until 1801. She did not go to the Azores, England or Scotland on this mission.

Her mission was not "To destroy and harass English shipping" She was sent out to fight against the French as the US was involved in a non-declared "Quasi-war" against France at the time. She did not defeat "five British men-of-war and captured and scuttled 12 English merchantmen." She did not engage any warship, but did capture several privateers and recaptured victims of privateers.

[Racer184]

And would you want to drink water that was stored the way they stored it those days? No chlorine or ozone or anything to keep crud from growing in it. yuchh ! Ever seen a swimming pool that was not maintained for a few months ?

My guess is the water was used for cleaning, maybe cooking. Rum surely was safer to drink than that water.

[ScubaDrew]

Rum surely is safer to drink than water.

That is just beautiful

[DandyDon]

And would you want to drink water that was stored the way they stored it those days? No chlorine or ozone or anything to keep crud from growing in it. yuchh ! Ever seen a swimming pool that was not maintained for a few months ?

My guess is the water was used for cleaning, maybe cooking. Rum surely was safer to drink than that water.

In truth, didn't they mix the rum equally with the water to make it safe to drink...?

[drbill]

Very interesting and the date of her sailing is almost correct, only missing the actual date by 5 days. Of course the entire piece is total fiction. The USS Constitution first sailed on July 22, 1798. She did not return to Boston on 20 February 1799, she remained in the West Indies until 1801. She did not go to the Azores, England or Scotland on this mission.

Her mission was not "To destroy and harass English shipping" She was sent out to fight against the French as the US was involved in a non-declared "Quasi-war" against France at the time. She did not defeat "five British men-of-war and captured and scuttled 12 English merchantmen." She did not engage any warship, but did capture several privateers and recaptured victims of privateers.

But Walter... what about the important stuff like the rum, Portuguese wine and single malt? Was any of that true?

[Walter]

They were in the West Indies, so they might have taken on rum in Jamaica, but since she never went to the Azores on that trip, she could not have taken on Portuguese wine there. Since she was not in Scotland, she could not have stolen single malt Scotch there.

[Latitude Adjustment]

They were in the West Indies, so they might have taken on rum in Jamaica, but since she never went to the Azores on that trip, she could not have taken on Portuguese wine there. Since she was not in Scotland, she could not have stolen single malt Scotch there.

So the Navy spin artist have been around for a few hundred years!

[Walter]

I seriously doubt that originated from the Navy. Someone (who obviously was unaware of the dates of either the Revolution or the War of 1812) was just being funny.

[drbill]

One of my college roommates established naval history by being captain of the last (only?) ship to sink an Iranian warship during the Iraq-Iran conflict.

The only "naval" history I've established was by picking 127 pounds of lint out of mine... over a period of 60 years. Pass the Portuguese wine.

[DandyDon]

And would you want to drink water that was stored the way they stored it those days? No chlorine or ozone or anything to keep crud from growing in it. yuchh ! Ever seen a swimming pool that was not maintained for a few months ?

My guess is the water was used for cleaning, maybe cooking. Rum surely was safer to drink than that water.

In truth, didn't they mix the rum equally with the water to make it safe to drink...?

Rum alone would be pretty dehydrating, but I found the correct story on this - if one can believe Wiki...

Humans discovered long ago that they could not drink sea water, and required significant quantities of fresh water on extended voyages. Since they were unable to desalinate sea water, fresh water was taken on board in casks but quickly developed algae and became slimy. Stagnant water was sweetened with beer or wine to make it palatable which involved more casks and was subject to spoilage. As longer voyages became more common, the task of stowage became more and more difficult and the sailors' then-daily ration of a gallon of beer began to add up.

Following Britain's conquest of Jamaica in 1655, a half pint or "2 gills" of rum gradually replaced beer and brandy as the drink of choice. Given to the sailor straight, this caused additional problems, as some sailors would save up the rum rations for several days, then drink them all at once. Due to the subsequent illness and disciplinary problems, the rum was mixed with water. This both diluted its effects, and delayed its spoilage. A half pint of rum mixed with one quart of water and issued in two servings before noon and after the end of the working day became part of the official regulations of the Royal Navy in 1756 and lasted for more than two centuries.

Citrus juice (usually lime or lemon juice) was added to the recipe to cut down on the water's foulness. Although they did not know the reason at the time, Admiral Edward Vernon's sailors were healthier than the rest of the navy, due to the daily doses of vitamin C that prevented disease (mainly scurvy).[1] This custom, in time, got the British the nickname limeys for the limes they consumed.

Wiki also includes the original myth seen in post #1 above along with the statement that it was fiction.

[Brinybay]

Rum surely is safer to drink than water.

That is just beautiful

Edited by Brinybay, 08 November 2007 - 11:17 AM.

[Sassi]

Then she headed for the Azores, arriving there 12 November. She provisioned with 550 pounds of beef and 64,300 gallons of Portuguese wine.

I wonder how many people said - where are the Azores? when they read this. Portuguese wine is awesome (and the beer is pretty good too)!

[DandyDon]

Then she headed for the Azores, arriving there 12 November. She provisioned with 550 pounds of beef and 64,300 gallons of Portuguese wine.

I wonder how many people said - where are the Azores? when they read this. Portuguese wine is awesome (and the beer is pretty good too)!

All the Americans should know that C.Columbus stopped there on the way across. Remained a good stopping place for sailing vessels from the Iberian peninsula. See map below...

From Wiki...
The Azores (Portuguese: Açores pronounced [ɐˈsoɾɨʃ] or [[ɐˈsoɾʃ]) are a Portuguese archipelago in the Atlantic Ocean, about 1,500 km (950 mi) from Lisbon and about 3,900 km (2,400 mi) from the east coast of North America. The westernmost island (Flores) actually lies on the North American plate and is only 1,925 km (1,200 mi) from St. John's in the Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador. The Azores' most significant industry is tourism.

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