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Draughts: The Henry Eckford Story
       by Steven M. Selig
 
Soft Cover 155 pages, many photos.  8.5 x 11.

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This is a nonprofit book. The author wrote and produced this book solely for advancing the family history of American shipbuilder Henry Eckford (1775-1832).

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Page 1       Page 2  About the Ships     Page 3 Ship Index

 Dedication   Introduction  Table of Contents

Dedication

I dedicate his book to the free public libraries around the world. May your preservation and advancement of knowledge avoid the ever-increasing dangerous shoals of corporate greed.

Steven M. Selig

Steven M. Selig is an independent researcher and wooden model ship builder. Retired after a 30 year career in telecommunications, Steve enjoys international travel and adventure. Steve lives in the beautiful Grand Canyon State of Arizona. Other books by Steven Selig include Touching the Horizon – A Memoir

Introduction

“…he was destined to die no ordinary man.”
- John Galt

This book recalls the extraordinary life and achievements of American shipbuilder Henry Eckford (1775-1832). Born in Scotland on 12 March 1775, Eckford set sail at the age of sixteen to Canada where he served out a shipwright apprenticeship. Eckford then emigrated to the United States, became a citizen and later an American hero during the War of 1812. As one of the nineteenth century’s greatest naval architects, Eckford rose to the height of wooden ship design and construction only to die suddenly in Turkey on 12 November 1832. Eckford used his shipbuilding talents to propel not only New York City but also America into a worldwide maritime power. The industrious Eckford experienced a broad range of personal achievements and misfortunes; from his brilliant career as a naval architect and resulting wealth and political power to a crushing trial for conspiracy, the tragic deaths of most his children and his suspicious death abroad while rebuilding the Ottoman Navy. History often relegates Eckford to footnotes of the War of 1812, a conflict only recalled by most for the composing of America’s national anthem, the Star-Spangled Banner. As with many once famous individuals, scripted two paragraph biographies abound on Eckford, but these sparse sketches do little to honor his eventful life.

Draughts – The Henry Eckford Story presents two years of research focused on Henry Eckford. Many Eckford related items survive in collections around the world, yet regrettably just as many are now lost or destroyed. Most Eckford information survives in fragments and the lack of understanding or complete ignorance of his contributions in most sources made research difficult and time consuming. Also, Eckford’s travels around the world through Scotland, Canada, America and Turkey presented added hurdles documenting his life. In cases of conflicting data, I used data found within primary sources; in cases of conflicting specifications on Eckford designed and / or built ships, I used the specifications from the ship registries and Customhouse records of the U.S. National Archives. This book presents the most extensive Henry Eckford profile available and I hope it will encourage further study of his life. The hardships and pitfalls of research were many, but well worth the effort to affirm this great man’s legacy.

Steven M. Selig

Table of Contents

Dedication
Introduction
Chapter 1 - Scotland 1775 - 1791
Chapter 2 - Canada 1791 - 1796
Chapter 3 – America 1796 - 1812
Chapter 4 – War 1812 - 1815
Chapter 5 - New York City 1815 - 1831
Chapter 6 – Turkey 1831 - 1832
Appendices
Appendix A – Henry Eckford’s Ships
Appendix B – Henry Eckford in NYC Directories
Appendix C – Henry Eckford’s Will
Appendix D – Henry Eckford’s Ottoman Petition
Appendix E – Henry Eckford’s Obituary
Sources
Ship Index
About the Author

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