Typical Galway Hooker

Name of vessel

Typical Example - Leath Bhád

Designer

Various - usually the Builder

Builder of vessel

Various

Date of yacht / Date of model

Some given dimensions of the yacht (LOA, LWL, Draft etc)

Scale of the model

Owner's name / yacht club.

General Description:

The Hooker, a name associated with hook and line fishing, refers to four classes of boats. 1. Bad Mor (big boat) - ranges in length from 35 to 44 feet The standard rigging consisted of three brown calico sails, a mainsail, foresail and a jib extended beyond the bow on a bowsprit, 2. Leath Bhad (half boat) - about 32 feet in length 3. Gleoiteog - ranges in size from 24 to 28 feet and having the same lines and rig as the hookers 4. Pucan - similar in size and shape to the gleoiteog, but carries a different rig, with a large dipping lug and a small jib. Larch,Oak and beech were used in the building of these sturdy craft. The timbers being tarred with a mixture of creosote and coal giving the traditional black colour. The hull was decked from the stem to the mast beam and a small cabin or cuddy provided cooking and sleeping quarters. Cooking was on an open turf fire on a stone hearth. The ballast of local stones was carefully and expertly located amidships. Galway was the main boatbuilding centre early in the nineteenth century with over twenty new Hookers being built at the claddagh m 1835 with the boatwrights earning three shillings (�0.15) plus three glasses of whiskey a day. Each Hooker cost �70 and a foredeck cost an extra �10. the fishermen themselves made and fitted sails and rig. In addition to fishing, the Hookers and smaller wording boats played an important part in the transport of a wide range of goods on the west coast, including turf, cattle, limestone and general supplies. With the arrival of electricity, bottled gas and road transport, the Hookers were no longer able to earn their keep and fell into disrepair.

Any other information.