Bessie: A Single-Log Plantation Boat from the South Carolina Lowcountry

ABSTRACT

Bessie is one of the last survivors of a vessel type that once performed essential transport and travel functions on South Carolina rice plantations. Built from a single hollowed out cypress log, Bessie fuses design and construction traditions of dugouts and plank-on-frame boats. This article describes Bessie’s construction, discusses propulsion systems, and examines its use in Carolina plantation culture. We propose that Bessie represents a ‘canoe boat’, a vernacular form largely unique to the southeastern United States and Caribbean.

RESUMEN

Bessie es una de las últimas embarcaciones sobrevivientes de un tipo que en su momento desempeñó funciones esenciales de transporte de carga y pasajeros en las plantaciones de arroz de Carolina del Sur. Fue construida vaciando un solo tronco de ciprés. Bessie combina tradiciones de diseño y construcción de canoa monóxila y bote construido a esqueleto previo. Este artículo describe la construcción de Bessie, discute su sistema de propulsión y examina su usoen la cultura de platación de Carolina del Sur. Nosotros proponemos que Bessie representa una ‘canoa bote’, una forma vernácula única del sudeste estadounidense y el Caribe.

摘要

作为一种曾用于保障南卡罗来纳州水稻种植园基础运输和旅行的船型中仅存的几艘之一，“贝西号”由一根挖空的柏树原木建造而成，结合了独木和木板框架的设计及建造传统。本文描述了“贝西号”的构造，并讨论了其推进系统，以及考察了它在卡罗来纳州种植园文化中的用途。我们认为“贝西号”代表了一种美国东南部和加勒比地区特有的“独木舟”本土样式。

摘要

作為一種曾用於南卡羅來納州水稻種植園基礎運輸和旅行的船型中僅存的幾艘之一，「貝西號」由一根挖空的柏樹原木建造而成，結合了獨木和木板框架的設計及建造傳統。本文描述了「貝西號」的構造，並討論了其推進系統，以及考察了它在卡羅來納州種植園文化中的用途。我們認為「貝西號」代表了一種美國東南部和加勒比地區特有的「獨木舟」本土樣式。

المُستخلص

تُعتبر بِیسي واحدة من آخر أنواع السُفن الناجیة التي كانت تقوم بتأدیة وظائف النقل والسفر الأساسیة في مزارع الأرز في كارولیناالجنوبیة. بُنیت بِیسى من لوح واحد مُجوف من خَشب السرو، ویجمع بین تقالید التصمیم والبناء للزورق الشجري والمراكب التي بُنیت بطریقة اللوح علي الأطار . تَصف ھذه المقالة بناء بِیسي وتُناقش أنظمة الدفع وتَفحص استخدامھا في ثقافة مَزارع كارولینا. ونقترح أن تمُثل بِیسي "قارب " وھو شكل دارج وفرید من نوعھ إلى حد كبیر في جنوب شرق الولایات المتحدة ومنطقة البحر الكاریبي .

KEYWORDS:

• Logboat
• canoe boat
• rice cultivation
• vernacular watercraft

PALABRAS CLAVE:

• bote
• canoa
• cultivo de arroz
• embarcación vernácula

关键词:

• 原木船
• 独木舟
• 稻作
• 当地船舶

關鍵詞:

• 原木船
• 獨木舟
• 稻作
• 當地船舶

الكلمات الدلالیة:

• زَورق
• قارب
• زراعة الأرز
• المَراكب الدَارجة

Acknowledgements

The authors would like to thank Professor Lynn Harris of ECU, who served as overall director of the Charleston field school. We thank the Charleston Museum for permission to study Bessie. Curators Grahame Long and Martha Zierden were immensely helpful in facilitating our fieldwork; their efforts are much appreciated. One of the authors (Stewart) first visited the Charleston Museum on a first grade field trip. That experience, along with childhood memories of seeing the remains of rice plantations along Lowcountry waterways, undoubtedly shaped the present study. Patrick Herman’s excellent study of Bessie helped make this a better paper, and we gratefully acknowledge his work. Fred Hocker provided useful suggestions, particularly regarding the concept of a creolized construction tradition. Finally, this research would not have been possible without the work of the Bessie recording team: Danny Bera, Saxon Bisbee, John Bright, Dan Brown, Katie Cooper, Josh Marano, and Will Schilling.

Disclosure Statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Author Contributions

David Stewart directed the fieldwork, edited the manuscript, and created the Rhinoceros 3D models, in addition to authoring the Abstract, Introduction and Rowing sections. Nat Howe and Jeff O’Neill wrote the Recording Methodology section. Nat Howe and David Stewart wrote the sections on Hull, Stem, Stern, Keel, Frames, Mast Steps & Mast Partners, Centerboard Trunk, and Sailing. Jeff O’Neill wrote the section on Shelf Clamps, Thwarts, and Knees. All three authors wrote the Discussion.

Permission Statement

The authors state that this research was conducted with the permission of the Charleston Museum, and that the Charleston Museum has also given us permission to publish this material.