More than 500 logbooks of the U.S. Coast and Geodetic Survey Ships are now available to view and download in the National Archives Catalog. Learn more in this week's newsletter.
Information contained within these logbooks may be of interest to genealogists and historians, and should also serve as a rich source of historical weather data for climate scientists. A typical logbook contains daily entries of the ship’s position, the ship’s movements, weather conditions, and descriptions of the day’s surveying activities.
This logbook page shows hourly weather data recorded by USC&GSS Endeavor on June 12-13, 1888, at Hampton Roads, Virginia. Image 32 from Log of USC&GSS Endeavor: 03/18/1888-10/27/1888. National Archives Identifier 247017740
“List of Officers,” usually found near the beginning of a logbook, is where the ship’s officers and crew are listed by name, rank, and date of joining and departing the ship – information useful to those researching family history.
The “List of Officers” shown on the left page above, provides basic information about 14 officers and crew members, including the ship’s surgeon, who served on USC&GSS Discoverer for the period covered by the logbook from July 1 to August 26, 1941. Image 3 from Log of USC&GSS Discoverer: 07/01/1941-08/26/1941. National Archives Identifier 247016697
These logbooks also provide a window into daily life aboard the Coast and Geodetic Survey ships, recording both the mundane and the unusual, such as rescue operations, accidents, and tragic deaths. Over the years, these Coast and Geodetic ships were also involved in a number of rescue operations.
For example, on May 30, 1914, USC&GSS McArthur assisted the Ketchikan Power Company scow Blanche from sinking as recorded on the Remarks page for that day:
“8:45 Hove up anchor and went alongside scow “Blanche” at the lumber mill wharf. The Blanche waterlogged. Connections made and pumped her out. Finished at 12:45. 1:00 cast off from scow and hauled back to Heckman wharf, making fast 1:15.”
The USC & GSS logbooks currently in the Catalog cover the period from 1874 to 1942 for the following seven ships: Hassler (1874-1895), Discoverer (1922-1941), Endeavor (1879-1915), Explorer (1904-1939), Gedney (1875-1914), McArthur (1876-1915), and Pioneer (1922-1942). Included with the logbooks are seven volumes of medical journals from McArthur and one volume from Pioneer.
Many thanks to Gina Kim Perry, Archivist in Digitization Archival Services at the National Archives in College Park, Maryland. This feature was adapted from Gina’s blog post on the Text Message blog:
Want to search for a particular logbook within this Ships’ Records Series? Try the Catalog’s “search within” feature!
To search within this series, start with the main series description page, and click on the blue box labeled “Search within this series.”
This will take you to a page where you can perform a keyword search within the series. Type a name, subject, or other keyword into the search bar at the top left of the page, and see your results. To refine your search further, you can use the filters on the left side of the page.
Pro tip! You can use this “search within” feature for any Record Group, Series, or File Unit in the National Archives Catalog. Learn more on the Using the National Archives Catalog help page.
Up for a challenge? Help transcribe these logbooks of the U.S. Coast and Geodetic Survey Ships! You can help make the information found within these records more searchable.
Help transcribe the Remarks and narrative section of the record. You can transcribe lists of officer names, the handwritten events of the day, descriptions of surveying activity, and more.
Every word you transcribe helps to make these records more searchable and accessible online. Get started transcribing!
Have a question? Find your answer on History Hub! You can find past questions about U.S. Coast and Geodetic Survey records including historic surveys, photos, and employment records, such as:
