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The pungy is a type of
The pungy is a type of schooner
A schooner () is a type of sailing vessel defined by its rig: fore-and-aft rigged on all of two or more masts and, in the case of a two-masted schooner, the foremast generally being shorter than the mainmast. A common variant, the topsail schoo ...
developed in and peculiar to the Chesapeake Bay
The Chesapeake Bay ( ) is the largest estuary in the United States. The Bay is located in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region and is primarily separated from the Atlantic Ocean by the Delmarva Peninsula (including the parts: the ...
region. The name is believed to derive from the Pungoteague region of Accomack County, Virginia
Accomack County is a United States county located in the eastern edge of the Commonwealth of Virginia. Together, Accomack and Northampton counties make up the Eastern Shore of Virginia, which in turn is part of the Delmarva Peninsula, bordered ...
, where the design was developed in the 1840s and 1850s.
In form, the pungy is a two-masted gaff-rigged schooner with a main topsail
A topsail ("tops'l") is a sail
A sail is a tensile structure—which is made from fabric or other membrane materials—that uses wind power to propel sailing craft, including sailing ships, sailboats, windsurfers, ice boats, and even sail- ...
but no square-rigged
Square rig is a generic type of sail and rigging arrangement in which the primary driving sails are carried on horizontal spars which are perpendicular, or square, to the keel of the vessel and to the masts. These spars are called ''yards'' and ...
sails (as found on the related Baltimore clipper
A Baltimore Clipper is a fast sailing ship historically built on the mid-Atlantic seaboard of the United States of America, especially at the port of Baltimore, Maryland. An early form of clipper, the name is most commonly applied to two-masted ...
). The mast
Mast, MAST or MASt may refer to:
Engineering
* Mast (sailing), a vertical spar on a sailing ship
* Flagmast, a pole for flying a flag
* Guyed mast, a structure supported by guy-wires
* Mooring mast, a structure for docking an airship
* Radio mast ...
s are tall and raked, and there is a bowsprit
The bowsprit of a sailing vessel is a spar extending forward from the vessel's prow. The bowsprit is typically held down by a bobstay that counteracts the forces from the forestays. The word ''bowsprit'' is thought to originate from the Mid ...
on the clipper bow. The deck is flush, with a log rail. The hull is framed and has a vee profile. One peculiar detail of the pungy is its traditional paint scheme of green and pink, the origin of which is unknown.
The pungy, like the Baltimore clipper, evolved from the pilot schooner. Its principal usage was to haul freight, particularly perishables ranging from oysters to farm produce. It was capable of ocean travel and was used, for instance, to ship pineapple
The pineapple (''Ananas comosus'') is a tropical plant with an edible fruit; it is the most economically significant plant in the family Bromeliaceae. The pineapple is indigenous to South America, where it has been cultivated for many centurie ...
s to Baltimore from Bermuda
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. It was also used for a time to dredge
Dredging is the excavation of material from a water environment. Possible reasons for dredging include improving existing water features; reshaping land and water features to alter drainage, navigability, and commercial use; constructing d ...
for oyster
Oyster is the common name for a number of different families of salt-water bivalve molluscs that live in marine or brackish habitats. In some species, the valves are highly calcified, and many are somewhat irregular in shape. Many, but not a ...
s, but its excessive draft
Draft, The Draft, or Draught may refer to:
Watercraft dimensions
* Draft (hull), the distance from waterline to keel of a vessel
* Draft (sail), degree of curvature in a sail
* Air draft, distance from waterline to the highest point on a ves ...
and large crew complement led to its being replaced by the bugeye. The last pungies were built in the 1880s, and the type's use died out in the first half of the twentieth century.
A replica, the ''Lady Maryland
''Lady Maryland'' is a gaff-rigged, wood-hulled pungy topsail schooner. She is owned and operated by the Baltimore
Baltimore ( , locally: or ) is the List of municipalities in Maryland, most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland, f ...
'', was built in 1985–1986 and continues to serve as a floating classroom for The Living Classrooms Foundation.
References