Whitstable
and the Strouds.
From fisherfolk
to Royal Yacht and Americas Cup
Long has it been a tradition for seaman to
congregate in pubs and around harbours and mull over old times, relate sea
tales and Whitstable was no exception, seafarers are a close knit breed and can be a little aloof, to folk who are
not involved with their world, they would work long tiring hours plying their
trade to eek out a meagre living but that did not dampen spirits as all would
have a cheery word if they knew you. As a child the harbour was my everything
and I knew most of the people who derived a living in whatever
way from that area, I would hang about within earshot and listen to the tales
and yarns, spun by the fisher folk it
was best when the weather was blowing
one of those. and going to sea not possible, some would even go to the “dole
office” and sign on for a day or so until the weather improved, but going back
to the 19th and early 20th century there was no helping
hand when you had no income, and during the Oyster close season there were
other jobs you could turn your hand to, some of the company men were still
employed running as far afield as Holland, and in 1919 skipper Stroud was
demobbed joined the Ham Company and
skippered Whitstable’s largest smack the “Seasalter” F322 Built 1870 LOA 51.8ft 14ft Beam, Hold Depth 7.8ft she was then used mainly for brood (young
Oysters) carrying to and from Essex with the occasional trip to Holland, prior to 1900 she made
regular trips to Falmouth bringing brood back from the Ham Companies owned beds
in that area.
Before the Great War oyster drudging and fishing
in general enjoyed its heyday nothing was known of modern sophisticated fish
finding and weather forecasting instruments and was solely reliant on bitter
experience. I went to sea in the late
50’s , and was well aware of what would be expected of a skippers mate having
gone to sea as a teenager with Ollie
Wiseman (who came to Whitstable with Alf Leggett, ) Ogie Laker, and Sid Stroud (Smoker) in his Whelk Boat, I did this as often as I could . Sid Stroud
was a fisherman I preferred the company of.
I knew him in my childhood
through to my middle twenties, growing up with his son David, we were eventually to work together on
the fishing boats. There were two
prominent fishing and drudging
families in Whitstable, the
Stroud’s and Rowden’s there were others but that was more father and son, but it is the Stroud’s, principally, that this
article will be dealing with, but another family will be mentioned later in the
story.
Sidney Stroud, “Smoker”
as I shall hereonin call him was a great
seaman as was his family, and arguably
the best sailors to come from one family, seven brothers in all, and all made a
living from the sea, I worked with
Smoker on seawall reparations
for Whitstable Urban District Council in 1958 this could only be carried out in the winter,
and over a period of time knew him quite
well, he would talk of his father Earnest having owned a pub in Whitstable “The
Royal Native” in Harbour Street, having also had a hand in other money spinning
projects dealing in shellfish and smoked fish he had his own smoke room and copper for cooking shrimps and shellfish, Smoker, I remember saying perhaps
jokingly, that’s where I got my knickname going round the boatyards and
fetching back sacks of oak shavings and then lighting the smokehouse fire, but
I always thought that this name derived from the fact that he always smoked a
pipe and that he fueled it with hand rolling tobacco “Hearts of Oak” which
tended to smoke more than pipe tobacco, and when in deep thought would
puff more regularly and would soon fill
a bar with a haze.
I would often see Smoker in the Smack public house Middle Wall, he
particularly liked that watering Hole, and
this particular evening I had free, a Thursday, and
payday, the Smack was my first port of call, Smoker was in his usual place, nodding
a greeting, we had both had a very cold day on the sea wall at one time blowing
a northerly blizzard, I took my drink over to join him, passed the time with
small chat, I spoke of being a bit unhappy with my life and thought a six week course at the sea school in Gravesend,
and then into the Merchant Navy would solve my dilemma, it was at that moment
he came to life with agreement at my suggestion and went on to talk of his teen
years saying that he had reached that
particular crossroad in his life and went on to relate this amazing life he led
at the age roughly I was at that moment,
his Father and six brothers were all involved with the sea and were
proficient in all aspects of fishing and drudging including five fingering
(drudging starfish) for fertilizer in the close season, and stoning (Drudging
for Mussels) he went on to say he was fed up and was off to seek adventure, he
certainly found it, by joining King George the V’s Yacht “Brittania” K1 at the
age of nineteen which was a fabulous 40 Metre Class Yacht, , these craft were
the epitome of sheer opulence. Smoker had established his career and stayed
full time for a number of years and was made up to Boatswain commonly Bosun ( this post today on a modern Yacht,
sail or motor can command an exorbitant salary. It should
be mentioned that a racing yacht of the size of “Brittania” could not have
operated without a bo’sun, Smoker said that it was very informal aboard and
that the King would often consult with him regarding the boat and race tactics
so that there were no surprises during the course of a race, Smoker was senior or
leading deckhand versed and responsible for running rigging, sails, warps and sheets , anchorage, stores,
and indeed anything that effected the smooth running of a racing vessel
conveying orders to the crew via the captain or officer and of readying the
ship for sea, orders could be piped and were on some yachts, with a bosuns
whistle which also doubled as a badge of rank hung around the neck and could be heard above howling winds and
flapping sails, though not in Brittania’s case the pipe was considered by this
time to be obsolete, so verbal orders only.
And that is how the old superstition came about, no seaman whistles at
sea, it was said it summoned up the wind, the simple explanation was of course it could confuse the
crew as to what duty to perform and the result could have been calamitous. I
remember asking Smoker about the King and his attitude towards the crew he
remarked that the King was a gentleman, in fact he said the King remarked we are all different sized well oiled cogs that keep my yacht sailing at optimum speed
and safety and that is why I employ this crew, praise indeed. Off duty all was
very informal, Smoker also commented, that perhaps this bonding was based on
the fact that being in the same boat, life’s
value is the same as the next man regardless of rank or class.
All of the fabulous J class would attend the
regatta’s along the south coast,
Weymouth, Poole, Falmouth Southhampton and up our
east coast, they would
compete against each other, “Brittania” always attended but could not compete,
as her class was Forty Metres so to rectify this King George had his Yacht modified to conform with J Class
specifications.
Smoker went on to say that the two most
memorable sights to stir the salt water
in the veins were, a Spritsail Barge
flying full canvas in a stiff breeze, and close hauled, the other is to see a J
class, cutter rigged, flying everything, again close hauled, or goose winged
(running before the wind), he retorted,
that has to be the most beautiful sight a sailor can cast eyes upon, I think he
was reminiscing “Brittania”, which alas, when King George V passed away his beloved
yacht was towed out to sea by the Navy at his request and scuttled in such a
way as to leave no trace, this was on the south side of the Needles, Isle of Wight. In 1936. It was
common knowledge that he could not bear the thought of anyone else owning her.
Smoker’s next job found him aboard “Shamrock V” J
3, built in Gosport in 1929 her specifications were 119 ft 1in LOA, 81ft 1in
LWL, Draught 14ft 9ins with a further drop keel, and a sail area of 7,550 sq ft
her mast costing more than the hull itself
she also had an 80 ton lead keel, so, complete with her new innovative new look
rigging “Bermudan” a much more dapper and efficient sail plan and easier to handle, she was built to race for the Americas Cup by
Sir Thomas Lipton of food and tea fame. Smoker enlisted as Bosun and her crew numbered
twenty two and among them was his brother Skipper Stroud, Smokers elder brother, and a very experienced
seaman he had joined the Merchant Navy for a couple of trips, in the twenties,
it is here the story gets more interesting .
Firstly I will give a brief history of the Americas Cup, The J Class has its roots in the oldest sporting race in the world, The
America's Cup, established in 1851. This International Event was born from an
annual race around the Isle of Wight, hosted by the Royal Yacht Squadron and
called the '100 Guinea Cup'. In 1851, an overseas yacht was allowed to
participate for the first time. as part of the Royal Exposition of 1851. In response, a syndicate of six
business men, led by John Cox Stephens,
spent $30,000 to build a new racing schooner, “America” After sailing to France to be repainted and
outfitted with racing sails, she was entered in the 58-mile race around the
Isle of Wight. Sailing against 17 other British yachts, “America” finished 18 minutes before her closest
competitor. As “America” finished, Queen Victoria asked which vessel was
second. This question resulted in the famous response, "Your Majesty,
there is no second."
Several
existing large British yachts, ‘Astra’, ‘Candida’, ‘White Heather II’ and
‘Britannia’, were converted to comply with J Class ruling and raced alongside
the J's. Smoker went on to say that the King would not
have a J on his sail to denote the
yachts class as he was a K, being King, so his sail number finally read K1, the
Royal Yacht Squadron allowed this. Of the
true J-Class, only ten were ever built (4 in the UK and 6 in USA) and these
raced together for just seven seasons from 1930 to 1937. With the loss of the
King in 1936, 1937 saw a new racing season but it was all a bit half hearted
and there were ominous rumblings in Europe, racing on the scale it had been was
no more, and declined.
The crew had joined “Shamrock V” J3 at the
beginning of the season and it would be decided by the outcome of the regatta
races which boat should represent us and to bring back the trophy lost seventy nine
years earlier, the crew were chosen on sea skills and three crew from Looe in
Cornwall were chosen A.J.Pengelly, Joe Uglow, and Jack Sargent , A.J.Pengelly had previously sailed
on “Velsheda” and another J Class, so was well experienced. They did the regatta tour, Smoker as I
remember had mentioned the Cornishmen and said that they were a tough bunch,
and used to seas being less kind than that of the North Kent Oyster drudgers
and flatsmen. Shamrock exceeded
expectations racing at the 1930 Regatta’s, The King in his “Brittania “ giving
“Shamrock V” the most tactical problems which she surmounted and earned the right to challenge for the cup. Smoker went on to say after competing
successfully, “Shamrock V” sailed to Gosport where she readied herself for
the journey across the Atlantic to
Newport. Rhode Island, United States.
It was July
1930, the off day, we were given a send off
befitting the task that was entrusted to us, apart from the Atlantic
crossing which was daunting enough, entering waters that were unknown to all of
us, certainly the crew , we were all a little apprehensive the morrow saw us
making good headway nose to wind and blowing a stiff sowesterly, the wind after
a while gained strength to the point of being uncomfortable the crests between
waves were shorter than our length which caused, on about every
third crest our bow would dig into the
wall of water, causing a lot of water over the bow, then the bow would rise
quickly and the stern would be under the safest place was amidships with safety
lines on, A.J.Pengelly said that this boat was built for speed and not rough
weather, he was also quoted as saying he would sooner have made the crossing in
his own boat “Our Daddy” (still afloat today) although less than half the
length was built to withstand these conditions. The crew stood watch at four
hours on and four hours off, Smoker said that “Shamrock V” had taken a pounding she had sprung a plank
and was leaking badly, Smoker organized running repairs which were a temporary
measure and made for the Azores to effect proper repairs. 48 hours later saw us
again on our way but the wind was still south westerly and was to remain that way for
the duration, Smoker said that sleep was a luxury, all the crew were wet
through and there was not a dry place on the boat, changes of clothing were wet
through and the cooks tried to muster food for the crew but alas it was mostly
sandwiches for the duration, in all the crossing took twenty six days, and
Smoker said dryly, that was twenty six days of hell. Like all trials when they
arrived at Rhode Island there were boats of all shapes and sizes coming out to
meet them, fire tugs with all hoses fired up escorting them in, the hooters and sirens were deafening and as they
neared the quayside the people lined the quay in hundreds cheering and whistling
waving flags, quite a lot of “Jacks”, blowing trumpets and whatever else could
make a noise, as the tugs nudged her gently into her berth, she had no engines,
the hellish trip over faded into obscurity, we were left bathing in friendly
welcoming sounds which almost made you feel really special.
A great welcoming ceremony was held at the yacht
Club where the food suddenly improved, Smoker remembered making a bit of a
grunter of himself but he wasn’t alone
and some even had the luxury of a hangover he recalls. The following day saw the yacht making ready
for her challenge, and it was Smokers job to check and double check sails,
warps, halyards, standing rigging, rudder mechanism , sheets, cleats, winches,
blocks, all this done she was now ready to compete. The following day was spent
fine tuning, studying charts, the race course, and discussing race tactics,
which may have to be revised should the weather differ from the forecast it was
a bit hit and miss in those days.
The race day came and moorings were slipped
“Shamrock V” and “Enterprise” were towed
out to open water and the start line, with a great many small craft following,
eager to see these majestic giants do battle for yachting’s most coveted and prestigous prize, the
Americas Cup, as it was now known. Over the next few days the races took place
Smoker did not go into detail only that the weather was perfect for sailing but
at the end of the agreed number of races to decide ownership of the cup
“Shamrock V” had lost four out of four races they had a real trouncing the
night following final race a farewell dinner was held in honour of the
challengers at the “Hotel Belvedere, Rhode Island” and no great thing was made
of America successfully defending the cup, but Smoker remarked that
“Enterprise” could point to wind a lot closer than Shamrock, A. J. Pengelly also made reference to this,
and of the thirty crew only ten were on deck at any one time, the rest were
engaged below working the winches even trimming sails was done below decks,
Enterprise was also made of Duralumin,
Aluminium to us, including the frame , this would have made her about one third
lighter than Shamrock none of the rules on class build were compromised and we
were beaten fair and square. I do not know much about the return journey only
that Gosport was the first port of call and a refit ready for the following
season. I believe that Smoker was paid off and rejoined the Kings yacht
Brittania which was in 1931 converted to a cruising yacht and fitted out to a
very high standard so as to impress foreign dignitaries and also the ladies, as
it was now becoming fashionable for ladies to go aboard what has always been a
man’s domain and where functionality was the only concern, women, at least the
more adventurous had their own yachts built and became formidable adversaries
when racing, Tracy Edwards is just an example of many other top notch
skippers.
It is gratifying to know that the J Class “Shamrock V”,
“Velsheda”, and “Endeavour” are still sailing to this day, and the
legend lives on, I must also add that having lost the trophy in 1851 the United
Kingdom has never won it back, ever. Countries that have been successful are
Australia, Once, New Zealand Twice, and lastly Switzerland, Once.
I would like to dedicate this article to the memory
of Smoker Stroud, and Alfred (A.J.Pengelly) from Looe, Cornwall (Who wrote the book “Oh
for a fishermans life in 1979) and whose
son Terry, T.J.Pengelly who I am in
touch with and has kindly donated pictures for this article, they have given me
inspiration for this article, and also to the selfless fishermen who left
families behind in the summer months
when little or no fish were to be had, and to join the large yachts and
race the summer season regatta’s on the east and south
coast, thus earning enough money to keep their families fed and the landlord
from the door,
Regards and fair winds
Dave Jordan
Email:- pixelman@btinternet.com
http:/www.the-birds-of-kent.blogspot.com
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