17th Century Sea Lanes to North America
Tradewinds Defined North and South Routes Across Atlantic
Jul 30, 2008
Transatlantic sea lanes were first charted by the Spanish, bringing silver from Mexico and Latin America, and the European cod trade off Newfoundland. In 1602, Bartholomew Gosnold took seven weeks to make landfall in America via the northern route, returning to England in 32 days the same way.
Atlantic trade winds come out of the northeast in the northern hemisphere and blow from the southeast below the equator. This predictable pattern explains why ships sailing between Europe and America took a wide, curving course.
The Southern Route
Ships on the southern route traveled Spain’s coast to the Canary Islands, hoping to catch prevailing westerly winds below the Tropic of Cancer. Those would propel them toward the Caribbean Islands, from which they headed north, boosted by the Gulf Stream flow.
Between the 20th and 30th parallels were variable winds interspersed with dreaded calms which left vessels stranded for days, making a drain on provisions. Some called them “Horse Latitudes” . Combined with muggy heat atop rolling, pitching ships, they were often fatal to livestock. The advantage was that below the 20th parallel favorable northeast trade winds made for a faster, more comfortable trip. Captains stopped in the West Indies for water and provisions.
The Northern Route
Navigators later realized benefits of the shorter northern route. Ships left London on the tide and anchored at or near Dover. When winds picked up, they headed to the Scilly Islands and southwest toward the Azores before heading due west.. They passed south of Nova Scotia and, once in the Gulf of Maine, found such landmarks as Monhegan, Agamenticus and Cape Ann enroute to Boston.
Because of prevailing westerly winds and the west to east Gulf Stream flow, a return journey to England on the northern route was easier than charting a course on the southern sea lane.
Winds were crucial. The Mary and John, lead ship of the 1630 Winthrop Fleet,sailed from Plymouth March 20, 1630, but the others didn’t weigh anchor from Cowes, near the Isle of Wight, until April 8 brought favorable winds. The Mary and John, able to fill its sails earlier, was the first of the group to reach Boston, arriving May 30.
Other 17th Century Sea Routes
Many sea routes were sought or found in the 17th century. To the north, the French pushed across Canada via the St. Lawrence, hoping to reach the Pacific and mistaking Hudson Bay for that ocean. The Northwest Passage around upper North America wasn't traversed until the early 1900s.
To the south, the Dutch East India Company had a monopoly on all Dutch trade via the Straits of Magellan. They discovered Australia in the early 1700s.
The Northeast Passage connecting the Atlantic and Pacific by a northern route around the Eurasian continent was explored by Russian traders from the east and Europeans from the west. It would be another century before the entire length was navigated.
The ancient “silk road” linking Europe and China was the longest and oldest land route. Mediterranean and Red Sea ports had long been linked to it. Now ports in the Persian Gulf and Indian Ocean also became connected. The Portuguese found a sea lane around Africa and reached Japan. The Dutch reached Korea in the early 1700s and the Spanish found the Philippines.
SOURCES: Coming Over: Migration and Communication Between England and New England in the Seventeenth Century, by David Cressy, 1987, Cambridge University Press; The Northern Sea Route, by Terence Armstrong, Cambridge University Press, 1952; The Winthrop Fleet of 1630, published 1930, Boston (reprint, 1961, Genealogical Publishing Co., Baltimore.)
