Book

Dolin, Eric Jay.

Leviathan : the history of whaling in America / Eric Jay Dolin.

1st ed.

New York : W.W. Norton & Co., ©2007.

479 pages, 32 unnumbered pages of plates : illustrations, map ; 25 cm

The epic history of the "iron men in wooden boats" who built an industrial empire through the pursuit of whales. Few things can capture the sheer danger and desperation of men on the deep sea as dramatically as whaling. Environmental writer Dolin chronicles the rise of a burgeoning industry, from its brutal struggles during the Revolutionary period to its golden age in the mid-1800s when a fleet of more than 700 ships hunted the seas and American whale oil lit the world, to its decline as the twentieth century dawned. This sweeping social and economic history provides rich and often fantastic accounts of the men themselves, who mutinied, murdered, rioted, deserted, drank, scrimshawed, and recorded their experiences in journals and memoirs. The book also contains a wealth of naturalistic detail on whales.--From publisher description.

Whaling -- United States -- History.

Includes bibliographical references (pages 453-459) and index.

pt. 1. Arrival and ascent, 1614-1774. John Smith goes whaling -- "The king of waters, the sea-shouldering whale" -- All along the coast -- Nantucket, the "faraway land" -- The whale's whale -- Into "ye deep" -- Candle wars -- Glory days -- pt. 2. Tragedy and triumph, 1775-1860. On the eve of revolution -- Ruin -- Up from the ashes -- Knockdown -- The golden age -- "An enormous, filthy humbug" -- Stories, songs, sex, and scrimshaw -- Mutinies, murders, mayhem, and malevolent whales -- pt. 3. Disaster and decay, 1861-1924. Stones in the harbor and fire on the water -- From the earth -- Ice crush -- Fading away.

Table of contents

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