The Essex

In 1820, the Essex whaling ship was attacked and sunk by a sperm whale in the Pacific Ocean.  The survivors were left stranded on whaleboats but eventually found temporary respite on the uninhabited Henderson Island.  After the island's resources had been depleted by the starving crew, the majority set off again-hoping to land their whaleboats on the mainland of South America.
Before being rescued, 93 days after the sinking of the Essex, the crew resorted to cannibalism and murder in order to survive.
The fate of the Essex and its crew was widely published in newspapers during the 1820's and was the inspiration of Melville's Moby Dick.


Click here to listen to Nathaniel Philbrick discuss his book In the heart of the sea: The tragedy of the whaleship Essex.


You may also be interested in the following titles:

• Shipwreck of the whaleship Essex by Owen Chase
• Narratives of the wreck of the whale-ship Essex by Owen Chase et al.
• The Jonah man by Henry Carlisle
• The loss of the ship Essex by Thomas Nickerson and Owen Chase and others
• Mutiny on the Globe: The fatal voyage of Samuel Comstock by Thomas Heffernan
• In the wake of madness: The murderous voyage of the whaleship Sharon by Joan Druett