1958–1959
M.V. Clunepark
J & J Denholm
Motor cargo ship
The one voyage in the logbook that goes behind the Iron Curtain and into the People's Republic of China: iron ore loaded at Yulin on Hainan Island in June 1958, carried to Poland.
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1 of 24 passages
24th November 1958 — 5th December 1958
Avonmouth → Newark
3,280 miles · 11 days at sea
333 cars
Every passage he logged in her. Press play to follow her through, or tap a port to see every time he called there.
- Log entries
- 56
- Ports
- 29
- Nautical miles
- 47,120
- Days at sea
- 156
Her longest passage in the log ran from Philadelphia to Rosario — 7,639 miles, 19 days at sea.
The log
20 Nov 1958 to 8 Aug 1959
November 1958
- 20 Nov 1958
Signed on Avonmouth
December 1958
January 1959
- 9 Jan 195910am
Sailed Birkenhead — bound New York
BOUND U.S.N.H. FOR ORDERS
- 22 Jan 19592pm
Arrived Philadelphia
AFTER COLLISION WITH "AMERICAN HUNTER"
- 23 Jan 1959
In the shipyard Chester
doing repairs to starboard side
February 1959
- 7 Feb 19596am
Sailed Philadelphia — bound Rosario
2742 pipes (3,600t)
- 26 Feb 19598am
Arrived Rosario
to discharge pipes
March 1959
- 6 Mar 195903:30 - 23:30
Piloted Prácticos Intersección
- 7 Mar 19595.30pm
Arrived Montevideo
for bunkers & F.W.
- 7 Mar 195910pm
Sailed Montevideo — bound Talara via Strait of Magellan
- 11 Mar 195918:00 - 23:00
Magellan passage
- 16 Mar 19598pm
Arrived Valparaiso
DISEMBARKED MAGELLAN PILOT
- 16 Mar 19598.30pm
Sailed Valparaiso — bound Guayaquil
GUAYAQUIL? uncertain
- 23 Mar 1959Noon
Sailed Puná Island
Noon 23rd Mar - Noon 24th Mar
- 24 Mar 19595.30pm
Arrived Guayaquil
TO LOAD 6,000T BAGGED SUGAR
April 1959
May 1959
June 1959
July 1959
- 13 Jul 195911am
Arrived Suez
to join morning convoy
- 14 Jul 195908:00 - 23:00
Canal transit
- 14 Jul 195911.30pm
Sailed Port Said
- 26 Jul 19595pm
Arrived Brunsbüttelkoog
- 26 Jul 195919:00 - 03:30
Canal transit
- 28 Jul 195910am
Arrived Gdansk
berthing 7am 29th July
August 1959
- 3 Aug 19596am
Sailed Gdansk — bound Copenhagen
- 4 Aug 19593.30am
Arrived Copenhagen
for bunkers
- 4 Aug 19598.30am
Sailed Copenhagen — bound Avonmouth
- 8 Aug 195910am
Arrived Avonmouth
signed off 1pm home 8pm 9th Aug
What was happening
Background written by the family, not from the logbook — but it explains a good deal of what is in it.
1954–1971
No telephone, no news
There was no way to call home. Letters were sent ahead to the agent at the next port, and if the ship was diverted the mail chased her round the world for months. A man could sail knowing his wife was expecting, and learn he had a child from a telegram handed up a gangway in another hemisphere.
1954–1971
Two years was a normal voyage
Foreign-going Articles could run for up to two years, and often did. David's longest unbroken spell in this logbook runs seventeen months, from June 1960 to November 1961 aboard the Scotstoun. Leave came at the end of it, not during.
1954–1971
The map keeps changing
The place names in this log are the ones David used, and many of them have since changed. Bombay is Mumbai, Madras is Chennai, Bône is Annaba, Bougie is Béjaïa, Ceylon is Sri Lanka. He sailed through the end of one world map and into another.