Los Angeles herald., 1909-12-30
SAlLERS AGAIN
INVADE HARBOR
WlNDJAMMERS FILL PORT AT
SAN PEDRO
MORE THAN TEN MILLION FEET
OF LUMBER CARRIED
Return of "Boats with the Sail Posts"
to Trade Brings Memories
of Old Days to
Residents

SAN PEDRO, Dec. 29-The return
of the windiammer to the lumber
trade is graphically shown by the for
est of masts now to be seen along the
water front at this port But while
the sailing schooner is again in evil
dence as a big factor in the transpor-
tation to Los Angeles harbor of the
millions of feet which are daily arriv-
ing here, the big steam schooner has
come to stay, and it is but few of
the old-timers that are now coming
back into the trade.
A few years ago it was no uncom-
mon sight to see as many as fifty
sailing craft unloading lumber at the
wharves on the inner harbor or lying
alongside other vessels, sometimes
three deep, awaiting a chance to un-
load. Those were prosperous days in
San Pedro. Freight rates on lumber
to this port were high, and there was
a big sum Of money spent right here
during the days and often weeks it
took to discharge the vessel. Sup
plies and repairs were paid for in
hard gold coin by the genial shippers,
and the pay roll for the sailors and
1ongshoremen was no small item.
Then came the steam schooners in
increasing numbers. Rates dropped
down to a point where even the steam
ers were running at a loss, but kept
on coming, as they did not care to
tie up.
At Oakland and back in San Fran
cisco bay the windjammer lay on the
mud. A few of them went into the
Alaska trade in the summer, and a few
more ventured down this way with an
occasional cargo of lumber.
Recently the freight rates have grad
ually advanced by easy stages, twenty
pa0fc nor Thousand fapf a q
time, and while still comparatively
low, money is in sight for the owners
of the vessels.
And SO they are with us once again;
the jovial shippers congregate as be-
fore at the ship chandlery and relate
their experiences on the long hazar-
dous run down the coast from Wash
ington or Oregon. Captain Sonerund
tells of the series of five. successive
gales which carried away three of his
sails and a portion of his deck load,
while Captain Nyman tells of losing
some of his deck load I'm the same
storm through the breaking Of turn
buckle Captain Rock of the little
schooner Lizzie Vance puts them all
in the shade when he tells Of coming
through unscathed from Grays harbor
in eleven days, with every one Of the
600. 900 shingles of his cargo intact.
Fourteen of the old time windjam-
mers are now dscharging at the
wharves here. They are:
The schooners Balboa. $4,000 feet;
w. H. Smith, 100000 feet; Taurus
100000 feet Salvador, $500 feet; Lot
tie Bennett, 100000 feet; Luzon, $780,,
900 feet; BERTHE Minor, 100000 feet;
Omega 100000 feet; Caroline, 5000
feet; r. C. Slade 100000 feet: w. r.
Jewett, $4,000 feet; Lizzie Vance, 57O,-
900 feet; Ludlow 100000, and barkentine
Chehalis, 1000, 900 feet. The number of
feet of lumber now being unloaded
from this little fleet of windjammers is
an even 10000 900.
In addition to this 10000. 900 feet now
being unloaded, six more schooners are
now en- route to this port, and several
more are loading.
In the steam schooner line ten YES
sells are now discharging here and as
many more are on the way.
But it is the sailing craft, which a
landlubber once called the "boats with
the sail posts" the townspeople are
mostly interested in seeing once again.