Camden (1813 ship)

Camden was built at Whitby in 1813. She served as a general trader for much of her career, though in 1820-21 she made one voyage to Bombay for the British East India Company (EIC). Between 1833 and 1837 she was a Greenland whaler out of the Whitby whale fishery, and was the last vessel from Whitby to engage in whaling. She was last listed in Lloyd's Register in 1850.

For other ships with the same name, see List of ships named Camden.

History
United Kingdom
Name:	Camden
Owner:	1813:Simpson, Chapman, and Chapman[1] 1820:Aaron Chapman (principal managing owner)[2]
Builder:	W.S. Chapman & Co.[3]
Launched:	1813
Fate:	Last listed 1850
General characteristics
Tons burthen:	399[1][3] or 400[4] (bm)
Length:	107 ft 3 in (32.7 m)[3]
Beam:	29 ft 3 in (8.9 m)[3]
Propulsion:	Sail

Career

EIC voyage (1820-1821)

Captain James Johnson sailed from the Downs on 2 May 1820, bound for Bombay. Camden arrived at Bombay on 21 August. Homeward bound, she was at the Cape of Good Hope on 24 January 1821, and arrived at Gravesend on 7 April.[2]

In 1824 she moved her registry to London.[3]

Whaler

Between 1833 and 1837 the Chapmans employed Camden as a whaler in the Whitby whale fishery.[3] Whalers from Whitby had been whaling in Davis Strait since 1753, though by the 1830s the business had almost died out. In 1832 Phoenix, a Chapman-owned ship, was the sole vessel to go out, and she returned with 234 tons of oil (195 Imperial measure), the largest amount ever to have been brought back. The Chapmans therefore sent out Camden in 1833, as well as Phoenix.[5] Both vessels were successful in volume terms: Phoenix returned with 227 tons, and Camden returned with 230 tons.[6] However, whaling became unprofitable as the price of whale oil had fallen. Between 1833 and 1837 it varied between £23 and over £50 per ton. Whalebone prices varied between £30 and £150 per ton. Phoenix and Camden left in 1837, but Phoenix grounded on her way out and came back to port. Camden's voyage proved a failure. The Chapmans withdrew both ships from whaling, and with that whaling from Whitby ended.[6][7]

Year	Master	Owner	Trade	Whales	Tuns whale oil
1833	W. Parsons	Chapman	London Whitby whale fishery	26	231
1834	Armstrong	Chapman	Whitby whale fishery[4]		35
1835	Armstrong	Chapman	Whitby whale fishery	6	105
1836	Armstrong	Chapman	Whitby whale fishery	?	2
1837	Armstrong	Chapman	Whitby whale fishery	0	0
1838	Armstrong	Chapman	Whitby whale fishery
1839	Armstrong	Chapman	London—Quebec
Sources: Lloyd's Register. The information was only as current as owners chose to keep it. Also, Lloyd's Register published the next year's volume half-way through the previous year. Whaling data:Coltish (1842).

On 28 March 1838 Camden sailed to America.[3]

Fate

Camden last appeared in Lloyd's Register in 1850. Her owner was still Chapman, but she had no master and no trade.[8]

Citations and references

Citations

1. Hackman (2001), p. 76.
2. British Library: Camden.
3. Weatherill (1908), p. 125.
4. Lloyd's Register (1834), Seq. №C64.
5. Weatherill (1908), p. 129.
6. Young (1840), p. 199.
7. Weatherill (1908), p. 378.
8. Lloyd's Register (1850), Seq. №49.

References

• Coltish, William (c. 1842). An account of the success of the ships at the Greenland and Davis Straits fisheries 1772-1842 inclusive.
• Hackman, Rowan (2001). Ships of the East India Company. Gravesend, Kent: World Ship Society. ISBN 0-905617-96-7.
• Weatherill, Richard (1908). The ancient port of Whitby and its shipping. Whitby: Horne and Son.
• Young, George (D.D.) (1840). A Picture of Whitby and its Environs.