John Slater
John Slater (1849–1908) was born on one of the Shetland Islands in Scotland. At the age of 15 he left school to join the crew of a fishing sloop. Four years later, he went to sea as a sailor before the mast, working his way up to an officer’s position. In 1871, he came to California as a mate on the cargo ship Seminole of Boston. Impressed with the outlook on the Pacific coast, he decided to stay. After plying the coast trade for several years, he was lured into gold mining on the Stikine River in northwestern British Columbia but did not find it profitable.
The Sam Blair Line
Going back to the sea, Slater became master of several ships belonging to the Sam Blair line: first the Oreola, then in succession the Yosemite, Two Brothers, and the Oriental.
According to the History of California and Biographical Record of Oakland and Environs, “[a]t the time Captain Slater was master of the Oriental it was the largest vessel entering the bay of San Francisco.”
In 1889, he joined the shipping firm of William E. Mighell and Charles C. Boudrow. For seven years Slater was master of the bark Wilner. After this ship was burned at the docks in Tacoma, WA, he took charge of the clipper ship Charmer, which he commanded on the San Francisco-Honolulu route until his retirement in 1907.
Editor's Note: Additional information on Captain Slater's life can be found on the Berkeley Architectural Heritage Association (BAHA) site, which details an area of Berkeley settled by several noted sea captains plying San Francisco Bay waters during the 1800s. It is well worth a visit.
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Breverton's Nautical Curiosities: A Book of the Sea
Breverton's Nautical Curiosities" is about ships, people and the sea. However, unlike many other nautical compendiums, the focus of this book is on the unusual, the overlooked or the downright extraordinary.
Thus, someone most of us do not know, Admiral William Brown, is given equal coverage to Admiral Nelson. Without Admiral Brown releasing Garibaldi, modern Italy might not exist. And without the barely known genius John Ericsson designing the "Monitor," the Confederacy might have won the American Civil War.
You will be stimulated as you read about the remarkable people - explorers, admirals and trawlermen - who have shaped our world. The sea has had a remarkable effect upon our language. We hear the terms "steer clear of," "hit the deck," "don't rock the boat," "to harbour a grudge: and the like, and give little thought to their origins. In the pages of this book, the reader will find the roots of "bumpkin," a "brace of shakes," "born with a silver spoon," "booby prize," "above board," "bombed" (in the sense of being drunk), "blind-side," "the pot calling the kettle black," "wasteres," "barbecue" . . . Other colourful terms, which have passed out of common usage, such as "bring one's arse to anchor" (sit down), "belly timber" (food) and "bog orange" (potato) are also included, as well as important pirate haunts, technical terms, famous battles, maritime inventors and ship speed records.
