Shipbuilding Terms and Phrases
The following pages are a glossary of shipbuilding terms from United States Shipping Board Emergency Fleet Corporation publication The Building of a Wooden Ship by Charles G. Davis (1918), a long out-of-print book. These definitions will be very handy when reading the works of such authors as Davis, Howard I. Chapelle, V.R. Grimwood, and others I will reference in this blog. In some cases, I have added further clarification to a definition in the form of editor’s notes. These are in italic, contained in parentheses, and attribute the modern author of the clarification.
A
ABAFT: back of, behind.
ABOARD: upon or in the ship.
ABREAST: by the side of.
AFT: at or toward the ship’s stern.
AFTER: farther aft, nearer the stern “the after house.”
AFTER-BODY: that part of the ship’s hull abaft amidship section.
AFTER-HOLD: the hold in a vessel abaft the engine-room compartment when the engine-room is located amidships; the hold just forward of oil or coal bunkers, boiler or engine-room compartment, when located in the stern.
AFTER-HOODS: The end strakes of planking at the stern, terminating and fastened to the deadwood or the rabbet in the sternpost.
AFTER-PEAK: the extreme aft part of a ship’s hold under the deck.
AFTER-PERPENDICULAR: a vertical straight line located at the after edge of the rudder-post; the after face of rudder-post, often referred to as A. P. on plans and specifications. (Used to calculate the “length between perpendiculars” of a ship~JEH)
AFTER-RAKE: that part of ship’s hull abaft the stem-post; the stem overhang; a term describing the inclination of the ship’s masts, funnels or smokestack.
AFTER-SAILS: those sails carried on sail ship or steamer not spread on masts, booms or yards forward of the midship section of the vessel.
AFTER-TIMBER: those timbers in a vessel’s hull abaft the midship’s section.
AFTER-YARD: any yard carried on any mast abaft the midship section; the wireless yard on the main, mizzen or jigger mast.
AGROUND: not afloat; on the bottom: “the vessel is aground.”
AIR-COURSE: see air-funnel.
AIR-FUNNEL: the air-course between the ship’s frames, which provides ventilation and prevents decay of the timber framing.
AIR-HAMMER: a hammer driven by compressed air, used for driving drift bolts or pins, rivets, treenails and other fastenings; sometimes called an “air-gun” or “gun.”
AIR-PORT: opening in the ship’s side, house or cabins, generally fitted with a removable swinging cover; cover often equipped with a thick glass to admit the light to inside of vessel or compartment.
AIR-STRAKE: the openings left in ceiling over air-course or funnels between the frames, for the purpose of ventilating the ship’s framing to prevent decay.
ALONGSIDE: close to the side of a ship.
AMIDSHIP: in the middle part of the ship, as refers to length or breadth; that part of a ship half way between the stem and stern on each side.
ANCHOR: a heavy steel or iron device, which, when dropped overboard to the bottom with an attached connecting cable, hawser or chain, is used to moor or hold a floating vessel in a desired location. There are many kinds of anchors, each designed for the particular location where carried on a vessel or for the service it is to perform and the kind of bottom or holding ground on which it is to be used.
ANCHOR-LINING: short pieces of hardwood planking, iron or steel plates fastened to the exterior sides of a vessel around or under the hawse pipe to protect the side planking and prevent the fluke or bill of the anchor from gouging or wounding the ship’s side when housing, catting or “fishing the anchor.”
ANCHOR-STOCK PLANKING: the planks which taper in width in both directions’ from the center of length.
APRON: the timber that reinforces the stem-poet on the after or inside.
ARCH KNEES: timber, iron or steel knees fastened and riveted to stem packing pieces and upper part of stern and rudder-posts, shaped and fitted to form an arch between stem and rudder-post, at the top of opening over propeller.
ARMS: the projecting members of an anchor ending in a bill or fluke; end of a yard; “yard arm.”
ASHORE: term applied to a vessel which is not afloat; vessel grounded; aground; on land, not on board the vessel: “The crew is ashore.”
ASSISTANT KEELSON: the keelson timbers, which are along the outside and are fastened to the main or rider keelson.
ASTERN: behind the ship: “to look astern.”
ATHWARTSHIP: across the ship, at right angles to the keel or longitudinal center line of a vessel.
AUXILIARIES: various winches, capstans, pumps, fans, generators, motors and other small engines or mechanical equipment generally applied to all mechanical equipment aboard the ship except the main engines or boilers.
AWASH: level with the water; a condition of the vessel when the sea sweeps across the deck.
AWNING DECK: the highest deck which has an awning or light permanent shelter or superstructure built over it. This deck is used on some vessels for the stowage of light-weight cargo or for passenger accommodation.
AWNING STANCHION: a column or post forming part of the bulwark rail, which is extended up to carry the awning ridge or foot rope, to which the awnings are lashed or seized when they are spread. On most ships these stanchions are solid forgings, although piping stanchions are sometimes used.