John Schank
John Schank , also John Schanck , (* 1740 in Fife , Scotland , † February 6, 1823 in Dawlish , England ) was a British naval engineer and admiral.
Life
John Schank was the son of Alexander Schank from Castlereg, Fife. As a teenager he first worked on merchant ships. In 1757, when he was 17, he joined the Royal Navy and was initially on the storage ship HMS Duke . After a few weeks he moved to HMS Shrewsbury and served there as an Able Seaman for almost four years . He was then promoted to midshipman by Captain Hugh Palliser . Six months later he was transferred to HMS Tweed , where he was promoted to Master's Mate . On January 10, 1766 he passed his officer examination. After serving on the HMS Emerald under Captain Charles Douglas , in 1771 on the HMS Princess Amelia , the flagship of George Rodney , in the West Indies and the HMS Asia in North America under Captain George Vandeput, he was promoted to lieutenant in June 1776 . Now he was given command of the HMS Canceaux , a small ship that operated on the Saint Lawrence River .
John Schank was commissioned by Vandeput to equip a fleet for the North American Lakes and was given command of the naval station at Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu . The ship HMS Inflexible , which he commanded himself during the Battle of Valcour , he dismantled in Québec (city) , transported it to Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu and had it reassembled there. On August 15, 1783, he was promoted to post-captain . In 1791, during the operation against Martinique and Guadeloupe and for the army in Flanders , he served as a transport agent. Later he was head of the coastal defense and equipped some ships for this. Also in 1799 he took care of the transport logistics for the army in Holland . Due to his deteriorating eyesight, he retired in 1802. On November 9, 1805 he was promoted to Rear Admiral of the Blue . His other promotions were on July 31, 1810 to Vice-Admiral of the Red and on July 19, 1821 to Admiral of the Blue .
Inventions
John Schank was known as a man with a special understanding of mechanics. So he constructed a bed that could be raised or lowered when in use. This earned him the nickname Old Pulley . In 1774 in Boston he constructed a private boat with a lowerable keel that was suitable for shallow waters. He later presented his invention to the Admiralty . Two identical ships of 13 tons were ordered, one with a lowerable keel, the other without. Since the design proved itself, several ships with a lowerable keel were built, such as the HMS Cynthia and the research ship HMS Lady Nelson .
Honor
The Mount Schank in Australia is named after him.
Web links
Individual evidence
- ↑ James Grant Wilson, John Fiske: John Appletons' Cyclopædia of American Biography , 1900, Lemma: Schank, John
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Bar, John |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | Schanck, John |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | British shipbuilder and admiral |
| DATE OF BIRTH | 1740 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Fife (Scotland) , Scotland |
| DATE OF DEATH | February 6, 1823 |
| Place of death | Dawlish , England |