Voyage of the Edward 1850

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Sep 19, 2020
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Durban, South Africa
My family emigrated to Natal, South Africa, in 1850 and I have posted here the chapter in my book that deals with the voyage.
The Edward sailed from Gravesend docks in London and I have a passenger's diary of the voyage, which took 110 days, including the ship's position almost daily. My great-great-grandfather John Bazley was an engineer working for George Stephenson who pioneered railways in the UK and built the Rocket. There was a slump in the late 1840's and the family decided to seek settler opportunities in Natal. He was a founder of our sugar industry and with his son William built sugar mills and the harbour at Port Shepstone, where small ships could enter the river and load cargo. By wagon it took 3 weeks to reach Durban but the small steamers could sail there in 8 hours. I wrote a book about it, Nil Desperandum, the Bazley Story..
Coincidentally, the Illustrated London News ran articles and printed sketches of scenes on the settler voyages so I have a very good idea of what things looked like.
I'm not sure many know of the late Bob Lightley but he was a legend in the model ship building game. He advised me that the plans I acquired from Underhill were accurate for the Edward. It was a 680-ton, three-masted barque, and carried a 40-foot cutter for landing passengers.
I started a 1:75 waterline model years ago, now I'm trying to decide whether to continue or start again. The hull is complete and not too badly made, so I think I might just soldier on. The rigging will be a challenge but I have much material to draw on. I've also thought of adding figures.
 

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  • Voyage of the Edward 1850.pdf
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Hallo Denzil,
many thanks for uploading this chapter of your book - will be an interesting read in the evening
BTW: The Edward was a great looking barque / bark - I am looking forward to see your project in the building log - Thumbsup
 
Description: Topographic model depicting a scene at a private shipbuilding yard in Deptford. The idea for the model was inspired by an 18th century painting of a treadmill crane. The small yards at Deptford produced coastal craft and merchant ships during the 18th century.
Creator: Robert Lightley
Credit line: National Maritime Museum, London
I watched him making this in the 1980's. The detail and technique was amazing, even to the mud swirling around a fisherman's feet as he walked in the shallows.
D5248_5.jpgLightley.jpgd5248_3.jpgd5248_6.jpgd5248_7.jpg
 
Description: Topographic model depicting a scene at a private shipbuilding yard in Deptford. The idea for the model was inspired by an 18th century painting of a treadmill crane. The small yards at Deptford produced coastal craft and merchant ships during the 18th century.
Creator: Robert Lightley
Credit line: National Maritime Museum, London
I watched him making this in the 1980's. The detail and technique was amazing, even to the mud swirling around a fisherman's feet as he walked in the shallows.
Maybe it is allowed to show this diorama with the photos on NMM web-page

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l2384_003.jpg

l2384_004.jpg

Scale: 1:48. A model of an imaginary scene of Deptford in the second half of the eighteenth century made in wood and various other materials and painted in realistic colours. The model has an approximately square layout and can be viewed from all four sides. A number of buildings are shown including a grey stone Georgian building with tall arched windows, timber-framed vernacular buildings, and red brick buildings with sash windows. A section of foreshore is shown with a cutter moored alongside a quayside wall. The cutter is rigged with set sails and the hull is partly painted white, black and red. It is shown being supplied with provisions. A gig is shown on the water with five Naval officers aboard. A transom-sterned boat is shown under construction on a slipway. Other details depicted in the model include a working pitsaw, smithery, horse-drawn cart loaded with logs, and a wall-mounted quayside crane. A number of figures are depicted.


one more amazing model built by Bob -
 
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