killed off most of the whales that regularly inhabited the waters around Cape 

 Cod. With decreased numbers of right whales, some of the whalers turned to 

 the humpback, pursuing them on short expeditions from Nantucket and Cape Cod 

 (Katona et al. 1977). 



A major portion of Nantucket's heritage centers around whaling, as it fast 

 became the center of whaling in the U.S. It is uncertain exactly when shore 

 whaling first began on Nantucket, though it is known to have taken place 

 before 1672 (Craig 1977) and possibly as early as 1608 (Katona et al. 1977). 

 At first Nantucket's waters were so plentiful with whales that there was no 

 need for offshore whaling. The highest yield of shore whaling seems to have 

 been around 1726, when 86 whales were taken by boats along the shore. The 

 species most likely to have been taken were the right and the humpback whales. 

 However, in 1712 during a strong northerly wind, Christopher Hussey's whale 

 ship was blown out to sea, where it encountered a large herd of sperm whales. 

 It was then that the first sperm whale known to have been taken by an American 

 whaler was brought back into Nantucket. 



The sperm whale soon became the most sought after by the people of Nantucket. 

 Hunters were lured by its prized sperm oil, which was considered superior to 

 the oil of baleen whales for such uses as lubricants for watchmaking, fine 

 leather manufacturing, and chronometer operation. The sperm oil also was used 

 as a luminant for domestic lamps and street lights, while byproducts of the 

 sperm oil were used for making soap and ointments as well as for various 

 industrial uses. Also valued was the "whale ivory" (teeth and panbone of the 

 thin lower jaw), which was used for scrimshaw. In addition there was the 

 possible added inducement of ambergris (an infected mass sometimes found in 

 the intestines of the sperm whale), which brought a high price from the 

 perfume industry. 



To catch this valuable sperm whale it was necessary for the whalers to venture 

 into the deep sea. A whole new fishery began, which reached its peak by 1847 

 with New England ships operating all over the world (Hill 1975). Vast 

 improvements were made to the whaling vessels, which would be at sea from 2 to 

 4 years at a time or until their holds were full to capacity. Around 1730 

 "try-works" were built on the vessels (instead of on the shore), thus allowing 

 the oil to be boiled and stowed away while the ship was still at sea ( Whale 

 Fishery of New England 1968) . By 1760 Nantucket was producing more oil than 

 all other American whaling ports combined (Nelson 1971). 



With the coming of the American Revolution, Nantucket was the only port to 

 continue whaling. Whaling was a necessity for Nantucket, for it and whaling 

 industries were the basis of Nantucket's economy. Although many whaling ships 

 and men were lost during the Revolution the industry was soon rebuilt and 

 again flourished until the War of 1812. Nantucket was the only American 

 whaling port during this war, also. Still, the two wars and the Great Fire of 

 1845 took their toll on Nantucket's whalers and with the increased size of the 

 newer ships they were no longer able to clear the sandbar located in 

 Nantucket's port. In 1869 Nantucket sent her last whaling ship, the Oak , out 

 to sea. New Bedford replaced Nantucket as the whaling center of the U.S. It 

 was said that "...the population (there) was divided into three parts, those 

 away on a voyage, those returning, and those getting ready for the next trip" 

 ( Whale Fishery of New England 1968). Its first ships were sent out in 1765 

 and, though greatly affected by the wars, in 1857 the New Bedford fleet 



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