The Journey to Bountiful and the Building of Nephi’s Ship – Part VIII

Continued from the previous post regarding the journey to the land of Bountiful and the building of Nephi’s ship. This next to the last article covers the final information on the importance of the area of Khor Rori as Lehi’s Bountiful, and how the winds and currents off the Arabian Peninsula aided in the direction Lehi sailed to reach his Land of Promise.

The Liahona would have been indispensable in helping Nephi build his ship

It should be kept in mind that the building of Nephi’s ship, regardless of the direction provided by the Lord, still would have taken Nephi, with the help of his brothers, Zoram, the sons of Ishmael and the older male children (probably the grandsons of Ishmael), quite some time. There were probably about 10 to 12 working on the ship, and given time away for hunting, fishing, planting and harvesting, chopping down trees, floating them to the site and hauling them to the work area, splitting and dressing the lumber, making the nails, pegs, and smaller items, additional time off for Jewish Festival days, the Sabbath, sickness, family matters and needs, etc., we are probably looking at about two years to accomplish the task.
    According to local shipwrights for 10 to 12 men to build a sixty foot (or longer) ship Lehi would have needed, all of that time. And as to the size, it would appear from the facts, that Nephi’s ship was of extended size, and undoubtedly would have had separate sleeping quarters for Lehi and his wife, as well as their newly wedded sons and Zoram, which would seem by necessity then, of including the sons of Ishmael in this separate quarters arrangement. None of that could have been on a ship and allow sufficient room for dancing—nor could the ship had been open as some theorists claim with just ribs and planking, for dancing would have been impossible.

Top: Perfectly-shaped tree limbs used for boat ribs; Bottom: Use of the ancient adze tool to shape wood into rib and other forms

Speaking of ribs, it might be of interest to know that in the time of Lehi, the system of working timbers was to find existing trees with branches that grew in the desired shape to make the ribs for the ship. It may well be that the Lord showed Nephi how to work timbers, not like what men were doing at the time, but to shape them with an adze for a more perfect, and stronger fit of the ribs, and in this way extra futtocks could be added to each rib for additional strength for the deep ocean journey. Or how to heat the timber to the point where it could be bent and worked to the desired shape. While we have no way of knowing what specifically the Lord instructed Nephi, we can assume it was not the typical method known at the time, thus it makes sense that the keel (ship’s backbone), along with the ribs, keel, and stringers (strakes), that apart from determining the shape of the hull, the framing carries much of the loading from the keel upwards through the bulkheads, planking as well as transverse loads, especially amidships, over bays, bilge, stopwaters and maststeps, and was probably well advanced for the time to make an ocean crossing well within the realm of safe transit despite the pounding and damage deep water caused ancient wooden hulls before man learned how to build strong ships.

Showing the Keel and Keelson; for added strength, a ship could have two extra keelsons, one on each side of the single keelson, which are all internal, longitudinal beams, like the external keel

To handle such heavy seas as Lehi would have to have done, the Lord might have had Nephi add a keelson (or more), additional stringers (beyond the garboard for rigidity), even a stronger or larger keel, since after Lehi’s time these became massive timbers in order to provide the greatest possible strength to a ship. Also, their ship might have included lessening the spring or curvature of the keel, and increasing the stem, and adding a gentle convex to deck beams, all to strengthen the ship against undue punishment experienced in deep ocean sailing.
    Obviously, and contrary to some theorists’ views, the ship had a deck, as well as coaming, for such would be essential to keep water and weather out of the hull and away from stowed supplies, besides stiffening the hull, such addition allows the crew to move about in handling the ship. The scriptural record also verifies a deck, and probably a wide one, since Laban, Lemuel, Sam, Zoram and the two sons of Ishmael for a total of 12 people were not only dancing, but being exuberant enough in the event to have upset Nephi who considered them being rude and displeasing the Lord (1 Nephi 18:9-10).
    The ship also probably would have had a soul, or lower deck to keep movement across ribs and outer planking from being difficult for women and children, and supplies stored there out of the bilge water. It is also obvious that Nephi’s ship had sails since he tells us it was driven forth before the wind (1 Nephi 18:8-9); and a rudder since he “did guide the ship” (1 Nephi 18:22). None of this suggests a small vessel, nor one of simple design.
    Finally, using the figure of various theorists who have estimated Lehi’s party at the time of embarkation from Bountiful to be between 49 and 65 people, to accommodate a group of this size, the ship would have to be at least 60-feet long, and maybe as much as 70-feet. Nor would this have been a particularly large vessel in the area, for many ships of that size were built by hand and without written plans in the shipyards along the Red Sea and south coast of the Arabian Peninsula for many years, some even today.
    The interesting thing is, unlike the vast majority of ships ever built, Nephi’s vessel did not have to last a long time—just long enough to get them to the Land of Promise. What it needed to be was strong—far stronger than any coastal ship of its day, since deep ocean waves and currents unmercifully pound a ship at sea, causing the weakening of joints, fittings, and connections, thus weakening the rigidity of the ship.

The cross or diagonal bracing of the hull became a necessity in providing needed strength to wooden ships in deep ocean sailing and added significantly toward the end of the Age of Discovery or Exploration

To strengthen Nephi’s vessel, it is likely that the Lord showed him how to use a type of diagonal bracing on his ship, rather than just latitudinal (cross-wise) ribs and longitudinal (length-wise) bracing of stringers, thus considerably strengthening the vessel—a building technique invented by Sir Robert Seppings in England that strengthened and made more seaworthy naval ships at the beginning of the 19^th century. This method of construction was later patented by Patented by Henry Higginson in 1838, in the United States—a method that included not only diagonal bracing, but extending the rib-like frames that constitute the skeleton of typical wooden hulls only from the keel to the approximate level of the load waterline. Above this point, the diagonally crossing timber braces were either placed between short upright ties or running between long timber bands reinforced by occasional straps. Outside the diagonal braces were placed multiple horizontal courses of long-grained planking, rigidly fastened together with treenails and insulated by waterproof paper or cloth. Along the bottom the hull was double planked with a double-rabbeted keel, longitudinal ties connecting the floor timbers, and the extensive use of wedges to brace the entire construction together.
    Obviously, local fishing or coastal trading boats did not need this type of strengthening and were not so built, thus, Nephi wrote: “I did build it after the manner which the Lord had shown unto me; wherefore, it was not after the manner of men” (1 Nephi 18:2).
    In addition, while local fishing and coastal trading ships of the day could be easily repaired each night when brought into shore, a deep ocean vessel like that of Nephi’s, was limited to what repairs that could be made at sea, and rarely much in the way of overall structure from the keel upward.
    In building the ship, Nephi would have first needed to construct a building berth, with standing structures called ways and skids (slipway), constructed as nearly to the shoreline as the water and maximum length of the vessel allowed, made of wooden blocks, spaced about one-third of the vessel’s beam apart, support the ship under construction. In this, the keel was placed on large blocks which raised it off of the shipyard bed timbers, which allowed access to all parts of the keep timber as it was being worked.

Simple ancient launch ramp

While the keel construction was being completed, others would have been building the frames, sternpost and stem. When this was finished, the “framing platform” was set at right angles to the keel, and using it's dimensions each frame was maneuvered into it's precise location and then fastened securely with a floor frame. These frames were beveled by hand in order for the frame to receive the curved planking, with the work done with a brad axe and adze in a process was called "dubbing." When Nephi made the tools, he would have made a broadaxe with the blade beveled on one side and ground flat on the other in order to cut a straight line, or a straight edge adze and a curved adze for either flat or curved cuts.
     When the frames, sternpost and stem were in place, the vessel was said to be "in frame," and followed by the strengthening of the timbers.  The "keelson" was then laid over the keel and floor and securely fastened.  This great heavy member, gave the necessary longitudinal strength to the hull. Then, after the heavy framing was completed Nephi turned to the planking of the hull.  This was the interior longitudinal planking that was fastened to the inner side of the frames to further strengthen the vessel and to protect the ship's framing from the anticipated cargo—their supplies and goods. When this interior planking was placed or "ceiled" to the height of the lower deck, then the shelf and clap timbers were installed.  These members were horizontal timbers which would support the deck beams.

    Each deck beam would then be fitted with a heavy under-brace, called a "knee," which were often made following the natural curve of the wood for additional strength. By necessity, the distance between these two decks would have been minimal, at best probably just head room clearance, and here the supplies, provisions, tents, and other materials would have been stored, as well as repair equipment, spare parts, planks of wood and emergency material, such as additional masts, along with whatever animals, fowls, and other live animals were carried for both eating along the way, and using for children’s needs as well as milk for drinking.
    Finally, the planking of the vessel was undertaken by beginning at the keel and working upwards. The heavy planks needed to be pliable to some degree and so these planks were possibly heated since it was not a simple matter to bend and to twist planks into a shape that matched the hull design, and required a great deal of hard work. One of the things that added to the difficulty of this precise fitting, was the fact that the butt-ends of the hull planks had to be placed in such a way as to be distributed evenly over the hull surface. A concentration of butt-end lines in any area of the hull would present a weak place in the whole hull structure. After this, the boards were caulked, forcing material, such as untwisted rope (called “oakum” today) between the planks for a watertight integrity over the entire hull.
    Lastly the deck work, with planks carefully laid and caulked, the cabin and upper structure constructed, along with sleeping quarters, and the hatch coamings measured and installed.
    At this point, with the ship finished, standing off to a distance where the entire ship could be viewed overall, everyone “beheld that it was good, and that the workmanship thereof was exceedingly fine” (1 Nephi 18:4). It was time to prepare for our departure by preparing meats and other foods, gathering fruits and collecting honey, making clothing for the trip, and readying all other onboard needs for a lengthy period, we were ready to launch the ship down the ways and into the khor.
(See the next post, “The Journey to Bountiful and the Building of Nephi’s Ship – Part IX,” for the building of Nephi’s ship and their journey across the sea)