Final Voyage, Peter Nichols
Final Voyage, Peter Nichols
1 Rating(s)
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Final Voyage
A Story of Arctic Disaster and One Fateful Whaling Season

Author: Peter Nichols

Narrator: Norman Dietz

Unabridged: 9 hr 38 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Publisher: Tantor Media

Published: 10/27/2009


Synopsis

In 1871, an entire fleet of whaling ships was caught in an arctic ice storm and destroyed. Though few lives were lost, the damage would forever shape one of America's most distinctive commodities: oil.

New Bedford, Massachusetts, was fertile ground for this country's first multimillion-dollar industry. Founded by assiduous Quaker merchants seeking refuge for their austere religion, the town also lent unparalleled access to the high seas. The combination would lead to what would become the most successful whaling industry in America, and with it, the world's first oil hegemony. Oyl, or oil derived from whale blubber, revolutionized New England commerce. And as intrepid New Bedford whalers ventured farther into uncharted waters in search of untapped resources, the town saw incomparable wealth. But with all of the town's resources tethered to this dangerous industry and the fickle sea, success was fragile.

Final Voyage is the story of one fateful whaling season that illuminates the unprecedented rise and devastating fall of America's first oil industry. Peter Nichols deftly captures what New Bedford life was like for its Quaker inhabitants and, using a wealth of primary resources, has created a vivid picture of the evolution of whaling and how its demise was destined even before that devastating voyage.

About Peter Nichols

Peter Nichols is the author of the novel The Rocks, the international bestsellers A Voyage for Madmen and Evolution's Captain, and three other books of fiction, memoir, and nonfiction. He currently teaches in the MFA program at Antioch University Los Angeles.


Reviews

Goodreads review by kathleen on June 04, 2015

I gave up after two-thirds of the way through the book. Perhaps it covers the disaster, perhaps not. It defintely covers a whale of a lot of other whaling information--just not what the title purports.......more

Goodreads review by Linnéa on August 17, 2014

Agreed. The title really is misleading. This is a history book about whalers and Quakers and their fate. Not at all exciting, unless you're into that stuff.......more

Goodreads review by Mark on October 12, 2021

As I grew up in NE and fished commercially out of New Bedford and also Alaska/ Bering Sea , Found this book fascinating from a historical point covering the rise fall of the Whaling industry in New England . People only looking for a thrilling page turner may be disappointed. My after having spent f......more

Goodreads review by G.L. on July 21, 2014

This was the most depressing whaling history book I've ever read, and I own and have read quite a few books about whaling. Like a lot of other people who have reviewed the book here on Goodreads and Amazon, I think the description is a bit misleading. The blurb promises an adventure story of surviva......more

Goodreads review by Paul on February 05, 2011

This book tells several stories. The first story deals with the people and the cities that brought about the incredible wealth gained from whaling. The second story deals with one of the largest maritime diasters in history. The third story deals with the collapse of this empire and those that survi......more