Ship Construction

Construction Information

Keel Laying Ceremony July 4, 1983 - Spanish Landing, San Diego California.

The keel for the Californian was laid on Independance Day 1983. The heavy logs that would be fashioned into the ship's backbone had arrived a few days earlier at "Spanish Landing" in San Diego Bay. This sandy beach was the site where the boats of Juan Cabrillo's expedition to Alta California brought the first Europeans ashore in 1542, a very appropriate site for building the state ship of California. The Nautical Heritage Society was given permission to build the Californian on this historic site by th Port of San Diego, which donated the use of the land for one dollar. Once the site was located, the Society contracted with Melbourne Smith to design and oversee construction of the ship and Jayford Hazell was asked to come to California to serve as master shipwright on the project.

One of the first steps taken in the building of the Californian was to locate and order the lumber that would be used to begin the project. A team was sent to Belize in Central America to find the trees that would be needed for the keel, frames, deck beams and other members that would form the major parts of the Californian's structure.

It was the job of Rusty White, Nautical Heritage Society's Director of Operations, to see that materials arrived in proper sequence and when wood began arriving, a shed was constructed on the site to protect the lumber from the elements. Donated burlap cloth was wet down and used as a cover to prevent the wood from drying too rapidly. As construction proceeded, it wasn't long before great quantities of sawdust began to accumulate. This "by product" of the construction was noticed by the Port District landscaping crew, and soon our sawdust was being used as soil amendment in parks all along the waterfront. Scap wood was also donated to the Sea Scouts to restore their vintage sailing boat Cutter.

The construction, being next to one of San Diego's major bayfront streets, attracted many visitors to observe. The building of a wooden ship to most people is a fascinating thing to watch and during the months of construction, the Californian has large numbers of "regular" visitors at the yard. Many local people would spend their lunch hour in the bleachers we set-up for the public. Do to the public response, we recruited groups of volunteers called Watchkeepers to be present and provide citizens with information about wooden sailing ship construction and the Californian's educational mission. Many of the most often asked questions were about the woods that were being used. One of the interesting aspects of wood use concerns was how we made our own "Compass Timber".

The "New" Compass Timber Compass Timer is used when a piece of lumber that takes a sharp bend (such as an "L" shape) is needed. Since trying to bend a heavy, bulky piece of timber was impossible, early shipwrights would choose particular parts of a tree for special pieces of lumber. They called some of their selection "compass timber". These pieces, cut from where a limb branches from the trunk would be used for "hanging" or "lodging" knees or for any condition where the wood required a sharp bend. Compass timber provided this bend naturally and was far stronger than straight grained pieces used for the same purpose. The Californian building crew had no access to compass timber but instead found a unique solution. When the order was placed for the 39 sets of laminated frames, a number of horseshoe pieces were also laminated with a radius of about 2 1/2 feet. Because the 1/4 inch Georgia Pine laminates were formed in this tight curve, the grain of the wood followed that curve and gave tremendous strength to the part. This artificial compass timber was used as knees in many below deck places on the ship.

Photos of the ship under construction List of woods used in the Californian:

White Oak / Quercus Alba
The masthoops on the Californian were fabricated of steam bent White Oak and it was also used for the gaff and boom jaws where great strength was needed.
Douglas Fir / Pseudotsuga Menziesii
The Californian's Douglas Fir came from Washington state and is used for all masts and spars. The relatively light weight and straight grain also makes it ideal for the ship's decks which are made of select quarter-sawn D.F.
Sugar Maple / Acer Saccharum
The shells of the Californian's blocks are made of Hard Maple, and were purchased from a commercial source and assembled on site. An interesting side note is that the sheaves inside these blocks are held in place by Mexican Pesos which were an ideal size, and cheaper than regular metal slugs.
Redwood / Sequoia Sempervirens
The bulkhead paneling in the Californian's "Governor's Cabin" is crafted of straight grained California Redwood.
Black Locust / Robinia Pseudoacacia
Rounds (cross sections) of Locust were used for the gun carriage wheels of Californian's six-pound naval cannons.
Longleaf Pine / Pinus Palustris
Georgia Pine was laminated and shaped to the Californian's builders drawings by a firm in Alabama and shipped to the site to become the frames of the ship. This prefabrication not only made construction easier, but nearly doubled the strength of the frames.
Chicle Tree / Achras zapota
The close grain of this wood made it a good choice for the ships belaying pins. Not used anywhere else aboard, the 30 pins arranged in rows on the ships four pinrails and the foremast fiferail show off this attractive wood. Over time some of the pins need replacing and, due to lack of available Sapodilla stock, new ones have been turned out of White Oak or Koa, which although completely adequate, the Sapodilla pins are a clearly favored because of their richer color.
Honduras Mahogany / Swietenia Macrophylla
The caprails of the Californian are Honduras Mahogany. The scarf joints that are visible in several places show how pieces are traditionally joined. The rails were originally varnished but for ease of maintenance are now oiled. The beautiful grain of this wood can also be seen in the hatch covers which are made of the same material and easily retains its varnish. The woods poor resistance to marine borers is not an issue on deck furniture. The beautiful "Horseflesh" or "Flame" grain of this wood is shown off best in the beams of the Governors Cabin.
Jelutong / Dyera costulata
Sculptor Frank Morgan chose this wood for the carving of Queen Calafia, the Californian's figurehead. As only 2 inch planks were available, the carving blank was made up of laminated pieces. The fine grain of this wood allowed Mr. Morgan to achieve great detail in the face and hair of Calafia. A supply of Jelutong is kept on hand as periodical "dutchmen" or replacement pieces need to be carved when the ship's rigging abrades Calafia's arm or bouquet of California poppies.
Longleaf Caribbean Pine / Pinus caribaea
This wood was used for the hull planking and ceilings of the Californian. The planks were between 30 and 36 feet long allowing for fewer joined pieces. The planks are 6 inches wide and 2 1/2 inches thick along most of the hull. But, at the wales where more strength is needed, the thickness was increased to 3 1/2 inches.

Santa Maria / Calophyllum brasiliense
The Santa Maria aboard the Californian was harvested in Belize and was used primarily for deck beams and carlings. The curvature of the deck beams was cut into the timber pieces which ranged up to 24 feet at the ship's widest beam. The fore and aft bracing pieces (carlings) were also cut from this wood.

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Last modified on 8, October 2003