NavList:

I have been outed as a lurker who has read this list for years.  I could not pass up the obligation to report that I have a copy of "The History of American Sailing Ships by Howard Chapelle.  The first chapter is 43 pages and is called "The Colonial Period".  There is also a long chapter on "The American Schooner".  The book describes the evolution and types of American vessels and has many interesting line drawings of many types of rigs.  Alas, there is no mention of Cook or Grenville.  There is mention of a "Sally, but it a revenue cutter from the 1800's.  There is a discussion of the Admiralty buying or acquiring American designs. 

 

It seems that early schooners had numerous square sails and he points out that "brigantine" meant a lot of different things at the time.  There is a line drawing of a schooner labeled 1760 that shows a single square sail and a foresail with a gaff and boom.  This drawing shows a triadic stay between the two masts effectively acting as the fore stay for the mainmast.  However, Frank points out that this may be 1935 speculation.

 

So while this book does not address George's specific vessel' there is a lot of scholarly information about vessels at the time that George would find worth tracking down.

 

Navigation Content:  I could find no mention of navigation or navigation devices in the book.

 

Bill