Seth Mendell, President of Mattapoisett’s Historical Society, had many things to say about the golden age of shipbuilding. The most important being the town’s reputation in shaping the industry.

“If you wanted the best shipbuilders in the world, you came to Mattapoisett because they built the best ships. We were known worldwide,” Mendell said to the gathered crowd at Shipyard Park on Sunday evening.

Mendell led a discussion on the history of the 300 to 400 ships built on Mattapoisett shores during the late 1700’s up until the early 1900’s.

Most local residents know that Herman Melville researched his classic “Moby Dick” while traveling around on the Mattapoisett-built whaleship called the Acushnet.

Here are a few facts you might not know about what Mendell calls the “greatest shipbuilding town on the eastern seaboard.”

North by South

Most of the ships were built using live oak, which is found in the southern states such as Florida, Georgia and both North and South Carolina. Live oak is a very hard and dense wood. If the wood dried out, the builders would not be able to construct the body of the ship. Most times, Mendell said, the builders kept the oak submerged while they prepared the rest of the ship’s body.

Cribs and ribs

Mattapoisett made for a popular site for shipyards due to its shoreline. Builders would construct the cribs, which Mendell said resembled railroad tracks and would serve as a platform on which the builders could construct the ship. The cribs could be up to 150 feet long in size.

The ribs, or sides of the ship, would be made from timber. To tie it all together, the builders would use ropes to pull the frames up.

“They would have the ribs up so it looked like a fish skeleton upside down,” Mendell said. “Each rib is different. It gives the ship its beauty and its seaworthiness.”

Blacksmiths wanted

With hundreds of ships being built in town, the shipyard owners needed the services of blacksmiths to complete the large amount of ironwork. There were an estimated nine blacksmith businesses operating near the small town’s shoreline.

Don’t mess with the caulkers

One of the most important steps in shipbuilding lied with the caulkers, who would make the seams in between the planks airtight.

“Caulking was an art.” Mendell said. “The men who did it were a fraternity of their own.”

The caulkers used heavy hammers to get the seams put in right. This, Mendell said, resulted in some tough company along the shore.

“You never messed with those caulkers because they had the very strong arms,” he said.

Making millions

The shipyard owners were the “men of the town,” Mendell said.

Shipbuilding was a multi-million dollar business that reaped massive profits for the shipyard owners.

To start, the owners had to make an estimated $35,000 investment in the parts of the ship. Once built, the whaling and merchant ships of Mattapoisett would be sold all over the world.

The whaling industry began to slow down in the early 20th century, but Mattapoisett had clearly left its mark worldwide.

“Even people in Europe would say: ‘The best ones came from the little town over on the mainland called Mattapoisett,’” Mendell said.