Reaper, a Fifie, a type of sailing drifter built in the Northeast of Scotland
A lugger is a class of boat that was widely used as a traditional fishing boat or other working craft, particularly off the coasts of France, England, Ireland and Scotland. It is a sailing vessel defined by its rig, using the lug sail on all of its one or several masts. Luggers varied extensively in size and design. Many were undecked, open boats, of a range of sizes, some of which operated from beach landings (such as Hastings or Deal). Others were fully decked craft (typified by the Zulu and many other sailing drifters). Some larger examples might carry lug topsails.[1]
Luggers were used extensively for smuggling from the middle of the 18th century onwards; their fast hulls and powerful rigs regularly allowed them to outpace any Revenue vessel in service. The French three-masted luggers also served as privateers and in general trade. As smuggling declined about 1840, the mainmast of 3 masted luggers tended to be discarded, with larger sails being set on the fore and mizzen. This gave more clear space in which to work fishing nets.[2]: 15–19
A French lugger, beached and drying nets. The lugsail is spread on the beach. Painted by Gustave Courbet around 1874.
New Orleans LuggerOyster Luggers in New Orleans (also known as an Oyster Lugger). These shallow draft vessels were typically 37 ft overall with a 12 ft beam - (though could vary substantially in size). They set a dipping lug on a single mast and had a centre board to help go to windward in deeper waters. They were used principally for fishing, with some cargoes occasionally carried. They could be found from Texas to the West coast of Florida.[3]: 358–363
Australia
Some of the early pearling luggers used off the northern coast line of Australia from about the 1870s, often ship's boats, carried a lug sail, but the purpose-built boats that were used from the 1880s stopped using it over time. The majority of these were gaff-rigedketches, although they continued to be called pearling luggers until the present day.[4][5]
References
^Greenhill, Basil; Mannering, Julian, eds. (1997). The Chatham Directory of Inshore Craft: Traditional Working Vessels of the British Isles. London: Chatham Publishing. ISBN1 86176 029 9.
^March, Edgar J. (1952). Sailing Drifters: The story of the herring lugger of England, Scotland and the Isle of Man (1969 reprint ed.). Newton Abbott: David and Charles (Publishers) Limited. ISBN0 7153 4679 2.
^Leather, John (1979). Spritsails and Lugsails (1989 reissue ed.). Camden, Maine: International Marine Publishing Company. ISBN0877429987.
^"Pearling Luggers". Australian National Maritime Museum. Retrieved 11 April 2020.
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