Rick Spilman - Hell Around the Horn

Standing rigging– the fixed rigging that supports the masts, yards and spars of a sailing ship. Standing rigging includes stays and shrouds and unlike running rigging is not intended to move.

Starboard– the right side of a ship, nautical term for the right.

Stays– standing rigging used to support the masts along the centerline of the ship. Each mast has backstays and forestays.

Staysail– a fore and aft sail set on a stay, either between the masts or between the bowspriat and the foremast

Sun sight– the most common sight taken in celestial navigation. A ship's officer with a sextant can determine the ship's latitude by measuring the sun's altitude (height above the horizon) at Local Apparent Noon. With an accurate chronometer, the officer can also determine latitude observing the time of Local Apparent Noon as compared to the time in Greenwich, England.

Square-rigged– A ship or a mast with sails set on yards rigged square, or perpendicular to the centerline of the ship.

Susannah, Susanna– a German four-masted ship that took 99 days to round Cape Horn on a passage of two hundred and seven days from Port Talbot to Iquique, Chile in 1905 - the longest rounding on record.

T'gallant fo'c'sle– the space beneath the raise deck on the bow of the ship. The space could be used for stores and gear or as an accommodations space for the crew.

T'gans'ls, t'gallant,top gallant sails – the sails set above the topsails. In many windjammers the t'gallant sails were split, like the topsails, into upper and lower t'gallant yards and sails to make sail handling easier.

Tiger Bay– an area around Butetown and the Cardiff Docks in Cardiff, Wales. Tiger Bay had a reputation for being a tough and dangerous area. Merchant seamen arrived in Cardiff from all over the world, staying only for as long as it took to discharge and reload their ships. Consequently the area became the Red-light district of Cardiff. The name "Tiger Bay" became used in a number of port cities to refer to any rough and boisterous "sailor town."

Top– a platform on each mast at the upper end of the lower mast section whose main purpose is to anchor the shrouds of the topmast that extends above it. The top is larger and lower on the masts but performs the same function as the cross trees.

Top-hamper– slang for the sails, masts and rigging of a ship. Can also refer to only the light upper sails and rigging.

Topping lift– a line used to support the yards when the yard is lowered or the sail is furled. Depending on the rigging of the ship the lifts can also be used to adjust the angle of the yards when under sail.

Topsail– the sail above the course. A large and powerful sail, after 1850s most topsails were split into upper and lower topsails to make sail-handing easier. Windjammers tended to have upper and lower topsails.

Turk's head– an ornamental knot that resembles a small turban.

Vang– A line used to swing a boom or yard.

Watches– regular periods of work duty aboard a ship. The watches kept on sailing ships usually consisted of 5 four-hour periods and 2 two-hour periods. On many merchant ships the watches were divided into the captain's and the mate's watch or starboard and port watches. The captain did not stand a watch so the Second Mate stood the watch in his stead. By tradition, the captain's watch stood the first watch on the sailing of the ship from its home port, while the mate's atch took the first watch on sailing on the return voyage.

Weather rail– The deck edge on the side of the ship in the direction from which the wind is blowing. The lee rail is the on the other side of the ship.

Wet dock– A wet dock is a dock in which the water is impounded either by dock gates or by a lock, allowing ships to remain afloat at low tide in places with high tidal ranges. The level of water in the dock is maintained despite the raising and lowering of the tide. This makes transfer of cargo easier. It works like a lock which controls the water level and allows passage of ships.

Wharfinger– an owner or manager of a wharf.

Windward– the direction from which the wind is blowing.

Windbound– ship that is becalmed, incapable of moving due to lack of wind.

Windjammer– a large square rigged sailing ship common in the later portion of the 19 thand early 20 thcentury, often built of steel or iron, designed for maximum cargo capacity.

Worming– wrapping a thin line in a cable's strands before serving and parcelling.

Yard– a spar rigged horizontally, perpendicular or "square" to a ship's mast, used to set a square sail.

Yard Arm– the extreme outer end of the a yard.