Oliph Blossom
Posted: Sun Sep 14, 2008 5:34 pm
A new name for an old timer, Oliph Blossom is given on the 50c stamp. She appeared on a Barbados Id. issued in 1905 as the Olive Blossom. The Dictionary of National Biography states that "Charles Leigh, merchant and voyager brother of Sir Oliph Leigh, sailed from Woolwich for the West Indies on March 21, 1604 in the Olive Plant, described as a barque of 50 tons, with 46 men and boys all told."
The West Indies Year Book. however has other names for the vessel: "An English ship, variously named the Olive, Olive Branch, and Olive Blossom is stated to have nominally taken possession of the island (Barbados) in 1608 in the name of King James I.
That the ship Olive Branch sailed from London on April 12, 1605, having on board 67 English passengers intended as a reinforcement for the Colony planted by Charles Leigh in the preceding year on the River Wiapoco, in Guiana, is true. There is however no evidence that this vessel touched at any other island than that of St. Lucia. To say the least, historians seem to be a little uncertain about the ship's name. All pictures of the ship are obviously artists' impressions. SG354 Sea Breezes Sept 1973
The West Indies Year Book. however has other names for the vessel: "An English ship, variously named the Olive, Olive Branch, and Olive Blossom is stated to have nominally taken possession of the island (Barbados) in 1608 in the name of King James I.
That the ship Olive Branch sailed from London on April 12, 1605, having on board 67 English passengers intended as a reinforcement for the Colony planted by Charles Leigh in the preceding year on the River Wiapoco, in Guiana, is true. There is however no evidence that this vessel touched at any other island than that of St. Lucia. To say the least, historians seem to be a little uncertain about the ship's name. All pictures of the ship are obviously artists' impressions. SG354 Sea Breezes Sept 1973