Product Description

For all its romance, the tall-ship renaissance has a tragic side. Working from official documents, survivor and expert interviews, and his own tall-ship experience, Parrott re-creates the losses of five sail-training vessels: the 316-foot Pamir (1957), 117-foot Albatross (1961), 117-foot Marques (1984), 137-foot Pride of Baltimore (1986), and 125-foot Maria Asumpta (1995). He vividly re-creates each final voyage and then explores the roles played by ship stability, structural integrity, weather, human error, and standards of risk in tragedies at sea.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #389758 in Books
• Published on: 2004-01-26
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 352 pages

Review
There is something endlessly fascinating about shipwrecks, as this book so admirably demonstrates. Parrott writes with ease and authority, carefully blending both historical and technical data. - Baltimore Sun; Gripping reading. Not much detective fiction holds a reader's attention so well. A must-read for anyone with any interest in large sailing ships in general, and square-riggers in particular. - WoodenBoat; If you might like to read a closely reasoned seaman's appraisal of not one, but several maritime disasters, you will be richly rewarded by Tall Ships Down. - SAIL

From the Back Cover

Five Stories of Tragic Loss at Sea

Once nearly swept from the seas, tall ships have experienced a fifty-year renaissance as sail training and passenger vessels. But that resurgence has had a tragic side, and professional mariner and maritime scholar Dan Parrott explores it in this groundbreaking reconstruction of five infamous losses that claimed 112 lives. Parrott's vivid re-creations of each final voyage dissect the circumstances of loss from forensic evidence, expert testimony, survivors' memories, and his own considerable experience. Rich with history and lore, Tall Ships Down shows unforgettably how small and seemingly insignificant lapses can produce fatal consequences at sea.

"An engaging--and heartrending--book."--Ocean Navigator

"In addition to being a fabulous read, Tall Ships Down is a sailing seminar for both active and armchair sailors."--Sailing

"The careful detail makes gripping reading. Not much detective fiction holds a reader's attention so well."--WoodenBoat

"A closely reasoned seaman's appraisal."--SAIL

"This extraordinary book is a must-read for anyone interested in the world of Tall Ships."--Tall Ships and Sail Training International

"An important contribution to maritime studies. . . . Parrott writes with ease and authority, carefully blending both historical and technical data."--Baltimore Sun

"If you're a fan of sea stories, you should have a great time reading Tall Ships Down."--Connecticut Post

About the Author

Daniel S. Parrott is a professional mariner with twenty years' experience in tall ships all over the world. He holds a master's degree in maritime affairs from the University of Rhode Island, an Australian Masters Certificate, and a U.S. Coast Guard license for Master of Oceans, Motor, Steam, and Auxiliary Sail, 1,600 Tons. After five years in command of the 158-foot topsail schooner Pride of Baltimore II, he now teaches navigation, seamanship, and sail training at the Maine Maritime Academy.

Customer Reviews

A Must-Read for Professional Sailors
This book is an outstanding study of five sail training vessel accidents. It is not only interesting, but full of important lessons for all sailors, particularly for professional sailors of traditional vessels. Captain Parrott has done the sailing world a great service by analysing these tragedies, not with romance or melodrama, but with compassion and empathy. As a seasoned professional himself, he investigates without being judgemental, and provides us with information we can use to prevent future accidents.

A Great Read
This book is a great read for both professional mariners and armchair sailors alike. Professionals will appreciate the insight into these disasters and their causes, while the armchair sailor will find the sea stories fascinating enough to keep their interest. The author's writing style is easy to read, and his research is fairly extensive. All in all an outstanding book that deserves a place in any nautical library.

why some ships sink
Readers seeking spine-tingling narratives of sea disasters will be disappointed with Tall Ships Down, because this brilliant book is instead a penetrating analysis of the circumstances of loss of several traditional sail ships in recent times. In five lucid essays, the author uses each sinking to illuminate the intersection of changes in nautical technological traditions, situational decision-making, and construction of sailing heritage. Beyond sailors or maritime buffs, this superbly written work should capture anyone interested in the sociology of technological change. The author is thoughtful and engaging, with his experience as captain of large traditional sail ships only one source of the book's extraordinary insights. Tall Ships Down will take its place as a classic alongside technology and culture studies such as Hilton's Eastland: Legacy of the Titanic. I'd consider it a shame if the author does not give us next a full-length treatment of the sinking of the Pamir, or a biography of Alan Villiers.