HISTORY: Built by William Hall of Black Rock, Connecticut and launched on November 11^th 1856, the Charles Cooper was a fine example of American deep-water, wooden, merchant shipbuilding. The Cooper was built as a packet ship – the packets being vessels that ran to a fixed schedule, rather than sailing only when full. She would have been able to carry more than 250 passengers and 3,500 barrels of cargo. Her first voyage was New York – Antwerp – New York with a cargo that included tobacco, flour, cotton, rice, resin, coffee, lard, codfish, beeswax, mahogany and logwood.

On 1 June 1866, the Cooper set sail from Philadelphia. Bound for San Francisco with a cargo of coal, she must have run into trouble rounding Cape Horn, for she limped into Stanley harbour on September 25 and was destined to never leave. Condemned as unseaworthy, the Cooper was sold for use as a storage hulk. The once fine ship was stripped and later grounded in front of Ross Road where she served as a warehouse until the 1960s.

In 1968 the Cooper was bought by South Street Seaport Museum of New York who hoped to transport the ship “home”. When it became evident that this would be too expensive, the ship was returned to Falklands ownership and given into the care of the Museum.

DETERIORATION: A number of surveys have been carried out on the Charles Cooper over the years, aimed at documenting her construction and finding ways of preserving her. Many efforts were made to slow the deterioration of the hulk, but these were ultimately unable to save the ship from the main attackers – weather, tide and marine pest.

The constant washing action of tides, aggravated by wind and subsequent wave action slowly eroded the ships planks and frames; above water the hulk was constantly being damaged by wind, rain and sunlight. Marine borers – gribble and teredo – were also found to be rampant in the hulk, eating away and destroying the timbers from inside and out. These pests cannot be controlled and are found in all the wooden wrecks in the harbour.

SALVAGE: In January of 2003, a small team began the mammoth task of removing the hulk of the Charles Cooper from Stanley harbour. This is the FIMNTs biggest project to date and a huge undertaking by international standards.

The Trust made the decision to remove the topsides of the hulk more than a year ago, after it became evident that the break-up of the ship had become unstoppable and the hazard to small shipping had reached an unacceptable level.

Martech Falklands were given the contract to carry out the harbour work, and Neil McKay Ltd. took on the task of transporting the timbers on land. Paul Ellis and Eddie Grimmer of Martech Falklands carried out a great deal of preliminary work, surveying the hulk for themselves and planning how to dismantle the structure.

The first timbers were removed in early February 2003 – these were so loose that no cutting was required and the wood was simply pulled off by Lively, Martech’s hard-working tug. As further sections were cut away, they were towed to FIPASS (Stanley’s floating dock) lifted out by crane and carted out to a nearby hard-standing for preservation work. Paul and Eddie had to build floating platforms to reach many parts of the Cooper, but also spent many hours working in the water, often working late into the night.

Despite being held up by bad weather and only being able to work during evenings and on weekends, by the beginning of May only the bow remained in the harbour. The Charles Cooper salvage operation required enormous effort and skill, but was ultimately more successful that had been originally hoped.

THE BOW: The Trust had hoped that Martech might be able to remove the bow of the Charles Cooper in three or four large sections that might then be put back together for displaying. In reality, Paul and Eddie were able to take the bow in just one piece – a ten-metre-square section weighing more than 30 tons! It took the Lively almost two hours to tow the huge section to FIPASS where it was tied alongside, reading for lifting.

Because of the weight and the angle of the lift from sea to dock, Neil McKay’s crane was unable to manage and the captain of a Russian cargo ship, the Kapitan Vaga was called on to help. At approximately 6.30pm on the night of 4^th May 2003, the bow was pulled alongside the vessel and lifted with the ship’s crane – over the decks and onto FIPASS.

But the excitement did not end there and moving the bow off FIPASS became the next test. Loaded with the bow, Neil McKay’s low-loader was unable to make the turn onto the dock bridge and both trailer and bow had to be lifted and pushed into line by forklift; it was then found that the bridge was too narrow and two ladders had to be cut off FIPASS to allow the bow to pass!

But finally the Cooper’s weary bow was set down on an area of wasteland just south of FIPASS. Here it will undergo preservation treatment and support frame will be built to stabilise the section before it is moved to its final resting place.

WHAT’S NEXT?: It has always been intended that as much of the Charles Cooper as possible would be put out on display by the Museum. The bow will form the centrepiece for the display, but many of the other large timbers will also be used – particularly those that demonstrate the structure of the ship and the skills of 19^th century shipwrights.

The remainder of the timber will be sorted and some will be used to make high quality souvenirs for sale at the Museum. Timber will also become available for purchase by local carpenters and craftsmen, so if you are interested in building yourself something with Cooper wood, contact the Museum Manager to express your interest. Certificates of authenticity will be issued for all timber sold.

It is hoped that through these sales, the Museum will be able to raise funds towards the continued upkeep of the Charles Cooper.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS: The Museum & National Trust wish to acknowledge the contributions of the following individuals and companies, without whose help the salvage of the Charles Cooper would not have been possible:

·        Members of Legislative Council, for voting essential funds to assist with the salvage operation

·        Martech Falklands - Paul Ellis and Eddie Grimmer, for achieving the impossible with eternal optimism

·        Neil McKay Ltd – Neil McKay and Brian Middleton, for another excellent job and unlimited patience

·        Morrisons (FI) – Ken McKenzie and Paul Looseley, for generously providing storage room

Special thanks to Mike Stammers and John Kearon of Liverpool Maritime Museum, for their expert advice.

This list is likely to keep growing as more and more individuals offer to help with this incredible project – all assistance is welcome and if you would like to become involved, please contact the Museum Manager.