Object Image

Whale Hoist Patent Model

To prevent this sort of loss and maximize a whaleship's efficiency, Thomas Roys of the whaling port of Southampton, on Long Island, N.Y., patented an apparatus for "Raising Dead Whales From the Bottom of the Sea." There is little evidence that many American whalers tried the device or that it found widespread use in the industry....
1862
AG.332326
Image and text © National Museum of American History, 2021

Where you'll find this