John Summers

Book Review: Building Kettenburgs. Premier Boats Designed and Built in Southern CaliforniaAllenMark, Building Kettenburgs. Premier Boats Designed and Built in Southern California.San Diego, CA: Maritime Museum of San Diego [www.sdmaritime.com] and Mystic, CT: Mystic Seaport Museum [www.mysticseaport.org], 2008. 224 pp., photographs, figures, endnotes, index. US

the owners ofsail, they recognized a business opportunity in the form of the commissions they could draw from their clients. Chapter 2 examines the interwar years. Notwithstanding the economic difficulties of this period, and despite the rapid decline of sail and its bulk cargoes, like coal, Steamship Mutual increased its membership and developed new business in the forrn ofcoastal tankers. The remaining three chapters, which form the bulk of the book, examine the post-1945 period, remarkable for the expansion and internationalization of Steamship Mutuals operations. The size of shipping, especially tankers, the increasing importance of safety at sea and the scale of claims brought a new dimension to the business. Now clients in India, Italy and Germany joined the club and the management committee was largely composed of non-UK nationals. The abandonment of unlimited liability accompanied changes to Mutuals corporate governance and, eventually, in 1975 tax incentives saw the Association move its operations to Bermuda. Stronger on personality and accounts of marine accident than on academic argument, this celebratory history is inevitably descriptive rather than analytical. There are also one or two loose ends. Competitive battles with other clubs and the financial record are rather cursorily examined while the technical operations ofmutual insurance and risk management are largely omitted. Is Steamship Mutual typical ofthe industry or should we see it simply as a case study? Nevertheless, the book touches upon many issues of interest to maritime historians as author Helen Doe sets the context for her story. The Associations original concern with sail reminds readers of just how protracted was its demise against the rise of the steamship. The emergence of new shipowners in Norway and Greece, as well as non-European fleets, the expansion of the tanker trade, the adoption of flags of convenience and the coming of containerization are among the themes which provide a backdrop to the post-1945 period. What makes the book particularly attractive are its presentational qualities. Beautifully produced, it is a credit to Steamship Mutual whose achievements it celebrates. It is lavishly illustrated and its written style is agreeable. Although the book is not intended as a contribution to mainstream academic debate, it nevertheless contains the customary scholarly appurtenances of footnotes and sources, mined from a variety of primary and secondary works. In addition, the personal recollections of some of the key players who feature in the book add a lively testimony to the story.