What Is a Nantucket Sleighride?

Whaling started as early as the 1650s in northeast US, predominantly in Nantucket. First, the whaling ships netted the “right whale” – these whales swam slowly and floated once killed. By the mid-1700s, Nantucket earned the title “Whaling Capital of the World.” With that title came immense wealth, transforming this island into one of the richest communities in the US.

Nantucket dominated the whaling industry from the 1720s until the 1850s. Its whaling ships ventured far into the world’s oceans, seeking their quarry. Whale oil was a key ingredient during the Industrial Revolution, used as a machine lubricant in factories, for illumination as it burned cleanly, and many other products – its versatility made it highly valuable. Nantucket grew steadily, and at whaling’s 19th-century height, seventy-five out of 750 ships were Nantucket-based. 

The key to successful hunting was the type of ship. First, the whalers used sloops, being cheap to build and operate. But as whale numbers dropped, hunters began to hunt the very valuable sperm whale, which led ship owners to switch to larger square-mast brigs or sloops. These sturdy boats were designed to take a drubbing and sail into the cold Arctic to the Antarctic seas. Their crews followed a rigid ranking system, with the ship’s captain at the top.

The harpooner also ensured nothing entangled in the rope as the whale fled, diving or pulling away. Thus, the aptly titled Nantucket Sleighride began. 

The Sleighride resulted from the desperate whale dragging the whaleboat along. Some species tended to be more dangerous – humpbacks gave the fastest rides while fin whales dove deep, trying to sink the whaleboat. But any wounded leviathan was dangerous. Speeds of over 20 mph were not uncommon. Some whales retaliated, like in Herman Melville’s Moby Dick, about a great white sperm whale that sank whaling ships. Melville based his bestseller on Mocha Dick, a fierce white whale that lurked off the coast of Chile. The hardy sailors held on, watching the coiled harpoon rope feed out, waiting for exhaustion to set in. Upon the whale tiring out, the whaleboat crew rowed up to the leviathan to finish it off with long lances in vital organs.

After killing the whale, the whaleboat towed the carcass back for processing at the whaling ship. The entire whale was sliced up. Whaling ships carried brick ovens to aid the refining, storing the whale oil in wooden caskets. Nothing went to waste, from the blubber rendered into the prized oil, baleen for umbrellas and corsets, meat and bones for jewelry, or chess pieces.

Sperm whales became the most hunted and valued whale. Oil from the sperm whale’s head, called spermaceti, proved even more valuable. This waxy oil went into making candles and high-grade lubricants. Retrieving the oil meant a crewmember climbed into the skull to scoop it out. Ambergris, an intestinal secretion in sperm whales, also called “floating gold,” was worth its weight in gold. Sought for the perfume manufacturing, this enabled the perfume’s scent to last much longer. Finally, breaking down a whale into its component parts could take a day or more. 

And woe to any sailor who fell overboard into the messy water; sharks often prowled around whaling ships, homing in on the whale carcass’s blood. 

Risks and Rewards

Whaling entailed its risks, which took mental and physical tolls. As time went on, American whaling ships traveled further afield, looking for new whale populations to exploit. Voyages could last up to several years, leading to isolation. Diseases such as scurvy and dysentery cropped up, aided by poor diets and bad health. 

The Nantucket Sleighride was no easy feat for the sailors. Aside from being dragged along, the whaleboats could be pulled under or capsized. The whale’s powerful thrashing tail could strike sailors. Despite the risks, the immense rewards kept the whaleships returning, powering a nation. The whaling industry declined after 1865 as whale oil was replaced by kerosene, lard oil, and petroleum-based chemicals. Thus, the Nantucket sleighride represented the height and skill of the whaling era as tough men risked life and limb to obtain valuable whale oil.