. Bulletin - United States National Museum. Science. IHmfi snrf rarlf' a* Mm// /vuiar^* S«.,^.f tf»yy e ft o /f Crtt//oti rStr^ * /» /â /yi/7^ Mbt^ // s f. Sail and Plan, Reconstructed From Spar Dimensions and Prints of contemporary sloops, of the sloop Mediator, built on the Chesapeake, 1741-42 (see p. 17). Collection of Draughts in The National Maritime Museum, at Greenwich, England. It is obvious, then, that this model for fast-sailing hulls was known in the colonies and in England long before the American Revolution. The plan of the schooners built for the Royal Navy at New Yor
. Bulletin - United States National Museum. Science. IHmfi snrf rarlf' a* Mm// /vuiar^* S«.,^.f tf»yy e ft o /f Crtt//oti rStr^ * /» /â /yi/7^ Mbt^ // s f. Sail and Plan, Reconstructed From Spar Dimensions and Prints of contemporary sloops, of the sloop Mediator, built on the Chesapeake, 1741-42 (see p. 17). Collection of Draughts in The National Maritime Museum, at Greenwich, England. It is obvious, then, that this model for fast-sailing hulls was known in the colonies and in England long before the American Revolution. The plan of the schooners built for the Royal Navy at New York beibre the Revolution (see p. 163) also shows a fast-sailing hull form. Other evidence points to the same conclusion. Contracts for building merchant vessels in the colonies during the 18th century have survived and these give very complete descriptions of the vessel in many cases. In addition, just before the Re\olution, schooners and ships were purchased into the Royal Navy in America and a few plans of these survive. During the Revo- lution a number of American-built privateers and American merchant ships were captured; some of these were taken into the Royal Navy and plans, which have also survived, were made. There are, in addi- tion, plans of American Revolutionary Navy siiips that were captured by the British. All these plans and building contracts, many of which were for ships built before French intervention in the Revolution, show clearly that there were two basic classes of American vessels: one represented by the usual mer- chant vessel, similar in burdensome hull-form, size, and appearance to its British counterpart; the second is represented by the privateer, a rather sharp vessel designed to sail fast. The development of fast-sailing ships in America during the 18th century did not occur in a single loca- tion, but the Chesapeake region probably was the one most active in the building of swift vessels due to its nearness to and interest in the West Indie
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