I found her under the name LUCY ANNE but mostly under the name LUCY ANN, built in 1817 in Frederickston New Brunswick, Canada, till so far I have not found her first owners and the builder, but in June 1827 she appears in Australia and was bought by the New South Wales Government.
She arrived in Sydney on 26/27 June 1827 under command of Capt. Dacre from London via Hobart Town At that time she was registered at London 766/1826, were she left 18 June, with a cargo of merchandise, wheat and potatoes from Hobart. Sailed again on the 27 bound for Hobart.
Sept 1827 bought by NSW Government for £2.200, as a Government vessel mostly used around the coast of Australia.
Around 7 March 1831, took she 86 Pitcairners away from their island for a better life in Tahiti, during the voyage a baby girl was born who was named Lucy Ann Quintal. She died shortly after landing in Tahiti on 23 March 1831. During that voyage HMS COMET a sloop of war, which carried some of the islander’s household goods, accompanied the LUCY ANN.
29 April 1831 the Lucy Ann arrived at Sydney from the Friendly Islands, and she was sold.
June 1831 Geo. Weller bought her and she was registered at Sydney, her registry papers give that she was a wooden 3-mast ship or barque rigged of 214 tons, with dim. 87.3 x 23.10 x 5.3ft.
The Weller Brothers at Sydney planned to form a whaling establishment at Otago Harbour, New Zealand and with this in mind they bought the LUCY ANN.
She sailed from Sydney on 25 September under command of Capt. Owen, with stores, equipment and arms, mostly for bartered with the Maori tribes.
The LUCY ANN returned on 29 Feb. 1832 with a full cargo of timber and flax.
That same year in early April news reached Sydney that fire had destroyed the whaling station at Otago.
When in May 1832 the LUCY ANN was in Sydney Cove and ready to sail for New Zealand an attempt was made to burn her, the culprit was never found. even by offering of a reward by the owners. She sailed on 28 May and the owner George Weller sailed with her.
The Maoris on an island in New Zealand, seized the owner with the intention for killing and eating him, but a friendly chief spared his life. There is not given on which island this happened.
After her return to Sydney, the LUCY ANN sailed on 14 Sept. 1832 for New Zealand, with stores and 3 passengers under command of Capt. Weller, early March 1833 she was at Paterson’s River. Stewart Island, and she sailed from New Zealand on 15 March bound for Sydney were she arrived on 15 March, with a load of assorted cargo mostly timber.
On the 5th of May again under command of Capt. Worth, the LUCY ANN bound for Otago New Zealand with stores and a whaling gang for bay whaling set sail from Sydney. The cargo of flour, beef, sugar, salt and pickles for their food; slops and cottons for their clothing; tar pitch lime, and 200 bricks for their tryworks; 160 tuns casks for their oil, and brandy and refreshment.
He returned on 07 Nov. at Sydney with the first recorded whale oil from Otago Harbour, 130 tuns and 7 cases of whale bone, some flax, potatoes and seal skins. He brought 5 Maoris as passengers under which a Chief.
26 April 1834 she arrived again at Sydney, still under command of Worth, with on board timber, whale oil and bone and even 23 barrels of salted fish, returning to New Zealand with stores and a whaling gang for Otago on 19th May, with a new captain, Capt. Anglin.
She returned at Sydney on 16th August with whale oil, whale bone, 3 tons of potatoes and several Maoris taken against their will.
Captains Anglin’s report on his Otago experiences was as follows. In the report his name is spelt as Anglim
While the LUCY ANN was at Otago, a very large body of natives, about 500, arrived from Cloudy Bay, where they had been at war with a contending tribe. They treated the residents with much insolence, and struck Mr. Weller repeatedly and assaulted Captain Hayward and most of the gentlemen there. They took the pipes out of the mouths of the servants and went into the houses and broke open the boxes, taking whatever they thought proper from them. After this, about half of them left Otago from the purpose of going, as they said, to Port Bunn (the establishment of George Bunn & Co.) which they did. The rest remained behind and while there a child belonging to one of the Chiefs died, which under some superstitious impression, they attributed to the visit of the LUCY ANN. In consequence of this they resolved to take the vessel and assassinate Mr. Weller, Captain Hayward, Captain Anglim and the rest of the Europeans. On going ashore for a raft of oil Captain Hayward was informed, by one of the native boys, of the intentions of the natives to murder them all, and take the ship. Captain Anglim immediately left off work and before daylight next morning the LUCY ANN was in a state of defense. The natives soon found that the Europeans were acquainted with their intentions, and gave up the idea of taking the vessel for that time. Captain Anglim , previous to his departure, for the better security of the lives of the residents of Otago, and its neighbourhood, persuaded some of the Chiefs on board, and having got them below set sail for Sydney in the most secret manner, and kept the natives as hostages for the good conduct of there tribe during the absence of the LUCY ANN. The utmost consternation is felt about this part of New Zealand, by the laborers belonging to those gentlemen who are residing near Otago, and they can do very little work.
During whaling she lost three men off the coast of New Zealand, through a boat capsizing while they were fast to a whale in the same voyage mentioned above.
07 Jan. 1835 she sailed again for New Zealand and returned 15th May with on board 50 barrels of oil. under command of a mate. She was now mostly used as a whaler, during the voyage one officer deserted, and she had to return to Sydney for an officer. (the book says: As she left under Captain Anglin it would look as if that officer was the man blamed for neglect and desertion, the first time I have heard that a captain deserted his ship.)
Thereafter she was used as a bay whaler and sailed on the first of June 1835 for Port Cooper, sailed from that port on 22 September with on board 90 tuns of oil and a few tons of whale bone. She was that voyage under command of Capt. Rapsey.
The book does mention her a few times later but only that she was sperm whaling or topping up her cargo with whale oil from the New Zealand coast for Sydney.
In a letter by one of the Weller Brothers is written that after her return from Port Cooper she needed new sheating and coppering and a fresh outfit for a long sperm whaling voyage, then he wrote I think £2.000 will be barely enough to cover the outfit and repairs bills.
Captain Thos. Richards received his instruction for a 15 month long sperm whale voyage around the 15th December 1835 written down in a letter and signed by Geo Weller.
There is not more info found by my on the next voyages.
1841 Sold to T.G.Gore & J.J. Peacock. Sept. 1841 to Duke & J.J.Curtis, Dec. 1841 sold to R.Dacre.
April 1842 registered in the name of R.Dacre & John Jones, looks she was bought back by the captain under which name she arrived at Australia.
1845 Sold to Benj Boyd.
1848 Sold to T.W.Campbell.
1852 Sold to Jas. Williamson & others and converted in a coal hulk.
1854 Sold to G.A. Mouritz and registered in Melbourne.
1857 Broken up an register closed.
Pitcairn Island 1988 30c sg319, scott?
Source: Australian Shipowners and their Fleets book six, and Ships of Australia and New Zealand before 1850 both by Ronald Parsons. The old Whaling Days by Robert Mc Nab. I have a few more whaling books on New Zealand whaling but they mostly repeat what is given by McNab. Shipping Arrivals and Departures from Sydney.