List of longest wooden ships

Vasa, a warship built in 1628. She is today a museum ship on display at the Vasa Museum.

A list of the world's longest wooden ships is compiled below. The vessels are sorted by ship length including bowsprit, if known.

Finding the world's longest wooden ship is not straightforward since there are several contenders, depending on which definitions are used. For example, some of these ships benefited from substantial iron or even steel components since the flexing of wood members can lead to significant leaking as the wood members become longer. Some of these ships were not very seaworthy, and a few sank either immediately after launch or soon thereafter. Some of the more recent large ships were never able or intended to leave their berths, and function as floating museums. Finally, not all of the claims to the title of the world's longest wooden ship are credible or verifiable.

A further problem is that especially wooden ships have more than one "length". The most used measure in length for registering a ship is the "length of the topmost deck" – the "length on deck" (LOD) – 'measured from leading edge of stem post to trailing edge of stern post on deck level' or the "length between perpendiculars" (LPP, LBP) – 'measured from leading edge of stem post to trailing edge of stern post in the construction waterline (CWL)'. In this method of measuring bowsprit including jibboom and out-board part of spanker boom if any have both no effect on the ship's length. The largest length for comparing ships, the total "overall" length (LOA) based on sparred length, should be given if known.

The longest wooden ship ever built, the six-masted New England gaff schooner Wyoming, had a "total length" of 137 metres (449 ft) (measured from tip of jib boom (30 metres) to tip of spanker boom (27 metres)) and a "length on deck" of 107 m (351 ft). The 30 m (98 ft)-difference is due to her extremely long jib boom of 30 m (98 ft) her out-board length being 27 m (89 ft).

Longest known wooden ships

Length	Beam	Name	Service	Current status	Comment
140 m (450 ft)	15.3 m (50 ft 1 in)	Wyoming	1909–1924	sunk	This American ship had a tendency to flex in heavy seas, causing the long planks to twist and buckle. This allowed sea water into the hold, which had to be pumped out. The overall length including jibboom was 450 feet (140 m).
120 m (393.7 ft)	18.08 m (59 ft 1 in)	Bretagne	1855-1879	Decommissioned and broken up	The 120-gun Bretagne of the French Navy was the largest wooden ship of the line ever launched. The overall length of 120m, from the tip of her flying jib-boom to the aftmost end of her mizzen driver boom, is extrapolated from the ship's official plans; her length of 81 m (266 ft) feet long on the deck fractionally surpassed the Royal Navy's 260 ft (79 m) HMS Victoria. However, Bretagne was not considered a particularly successful design, and was almost immediately rendered obsolete by the emergence of the ironclad, so in 1864 she had her steam engines removed and was relegated to training duties.
115.0 m (377.3 ft)	22.2 m (72.8 ft)	USS Dunderberg	1865–1874	scrapped	This ship was an iron-clad ship built in New York City, originally intended for the United States Navy during the American Civil War, but eventually bought by the French. About 50 feet (15 m) of her length was a ram. She was not particularly stable or seaworthy, even with her substantial metal components, and only made one voyage in the open ocean to reach her new owners.
104Modern estimates are approx 104 m (341 feet)	20.3 m (66 ft)	Caligula's Giant Ship	c. 37	foundation of lighthouse	Traces of this Roman barge were found during the construction of Rome's Leonardo da Vinci International Airport at Fiumicino, Italy, a port on Italy's coast, just north of Ostia at the mouth of the Tiber. According to Pliny, this or a similar ship was used to transport the obelisk in St. Peter's Square from Egypt on the orders of Roman emperor Caligula.
103 m (338 ft)	13.4 m (44 ft)	Pretoria	1900–1905	sunk	An American barge built for use on the Great Lakes. To strengthen the wooden frame and hull, builders included steel keelson plates, chords, arches, and also was diagonally strapped with steel. A donkey engine powered a pump to keep the interior dry.
102.1 m (335 ft)	16.2 m (53 ft)	Great Republic	1853–1872	abandoned leaking, sank	This American ship used iron bolts, and reinforced with steel, including ninety 36 foot 4x1 inch cross braces, and metal keelsons. The MIT Museum noted that: "With this behemoth, McKay had pushed wooden ship construction to its practical limits.". The overall length including jibboom was 400 ft (120 m).
102.1 m (335 ft)	18.3 m (60 ft)	HMS Orlando and HMS Mersey	1858–1871, 1858–1875 respectively	sold as scrap	These British warships were pushing the limits of what was possible in wooden ship construction and suffered structural problems. The overall length of approximately 335 feet (102 m) is apparently that of the hull from figurehead to taffrail - their length on deck was around 300 feet (91 m), while their total length from the tip of their flying jibboom to the aftmost point of their mizzen driver boom would have been somewhat longer, surpassing the largest ships of the line such as HMS Victoria and the French Bretagne (see above).
100 m (328.084 ft)	6 m (50 ft 1 in)	Belyana type	19th century	disassembled	Belyanas were Russian river going ships purposely build for log driving on the Volga and Vetluga rivers. Their bottom was made from fir and sidings from pine and featured a complement of 60 to 80 workers. The largest Belyanas could transport up to 13,000,000 kilograms (29,000,000 lb) of logs all stacked on their deck in the form of an inverted pyramid.
98.8 m (324 ft)	14.0 m (46 ft)	Santiago	1899–1918	swamped in gale and sunk	An American schooner-barge on the Great Lakes, towed by the Appomattox until 1905 and then the steamer John F. Morrow until 1918.
97.84 m (311 ft)	15.0 m (49 ft)	Roanoke	1892–1905	sunk after having burnt down to the waterline	A huge four-masted barque with skysails of a total length of 360 ft (110 m) and 3,539 GRT. In 1905 she was under the command of Capt. Jabez A. Amesbury when she caught fire while loading at the anchorage of Noumea. The crew, aided by those of the four-masted barque Susquehanna of the same owner and the three-masted ship Arabia, all in all 60 men, tried to fight the fire. This American ship used iron bolts and steel reinforcements. She belonged to the fleet of Arthur Sewell & Co. of Bath, Maine and was the largest wooden ship (115 m / 377 ft LOA) after the Great Republic.
97.2 m (319 ft)	12.8 m (42 ft)	Appomattox	1896–1905	run aground and sunk	A Great Lakes steamship capable of carrying 3000 tons of bulk cargo. Built with metallic cross bracing, keelson plates, and multiple arches because of her extreme length. Several syphons and steam-driven pumps were required to keep her afloat. Towed the steamer barge Santiago.
92.7 m (304 ft)	18.6 m (61 ft)	Baron of Renfrew	1825-1825	stranded and broke apart; planned to be disassembled to sell components	This unseaworthy British ship was a disposable ship. Created to avoid taxes on timber, the components were intended to be sold after the ship's arrival from Quebec to London. The ship stranded on the Goodwin Sands and broke apart while being towed with a pilot aboard. Parts of her timber were found on the French coast. The ship had 5,294 GRT and an overall length of 362 ft / 110 metres.
91.7 m (301 ft)	13.0 m (42.5 ft)	Frank O'Connor	1892–1919	burned	A steam screw operating on the Great Lakes, it required an innovative iron and steel-reinforced hull to be a viable vessel.
91.7 m (301 ft)	15.4 m (50 ft)	Columbus	1824–1825	broke apart and sunk	It was the first timber ship or disposable ship with a kind of four-masted barque rigging – just three square sails (course, top, and topgallant sails) per mast, two fore and aft sails on the spanker mast, and two foresails. Built to avoid taxes on timber (the timber used for the ship was tax-free), her cargo and components were intended to be sold after the ship's arrival from Quebec (Anse-du-Fort) to London. Changing its plans Charles Woods, her builder and owner, had only the cargo discharged and sold and ordered the ship back for another voyage with a timber cargo before being disassembled. But the ship broke apart and sunk in the Channel on her return voyage to St. John, New Brunswick. The ship had a 356 ft / 108 metres overall length.
91.1 m (299 ft)	23.7 m (78 ft)	Eureka	1890–1957	museum ship	The Eureka is a steamboat with twin, 27-foot paddlewheels. She carried railcars, cars and passengers across San Francisco Bay. This National Historic Landmark is at the San Francisco Maritime National Historical Park.
83.7 m (274.6 ft)	18.5 m (60.7 ft)	Al-Hashemi-II	2001-	museum and restaurant	Planning for this non-seagoing model of a Kuwaiti dhow began in 1985, and construction started in 1997.
80 m (262 ft)	15 m	William D. Lawrence	1874-1891	converted to barge and sank under tow	The largest wooden sailing ship ever built in Canada, William D. Lawrence was built at Maitland, Nova Scotia and had a profitable career as cargo carrier under the Canadian flag and after 1883 under Norwegian ownership as Kommander Svend Foyn. She was converted to a barge in 1891 and later sank during a tow at Dakar. Her sparred length, including bowsprit was 335 ft / 102 m.
78.3 m (256.9 ft)	14.5 m	Adler von Lübeck	1567–1588	disassembled	The Adler von Lübeck was built by Lübeck in two years' time to serve as the main fighting ship of the Hanseatic League. The galeon featured 138 guns, and space for 650 marines and a 350-man-strong crew. She was the largest ship of her time.
76.15 m (249.8 ft)	21.22 (69.6 ft)	Mahmudiye	1829–1874	disassembled to sell components	Mahmudiye (1829), ordered by the Ottoman Sultan Mahmud II and built by the Ottoman Imperial Naval Arsenal on the Golden Horn in Constantinople, was for many years the largest warship in the world. The 76×21 m ship-of-the-line was armed with 128 cannons on three decks with complement of 1280. She participated in many important naval battles, including the Siege of Sevastopol (1854–1855) during the Crimean War (1854–1856). She was decommissioned in 1875.
76 m (249.3 ft)	11 m (36 ft)	HMS Sovereign of the Seas	1637–1696	accidentally burned	Being one of the first three-decker warships, the ship was built as a deliberate attempt to bolster the reputation of the English crown. The ship took part in many battles after the upper deck had been removed for reasons of balance.
73.2 m (249.8 ft)	11 m (36 ft)	Michael	1512-	sold to the French crown	Michael (1512) was the flagship of the Royal Scots Navy, ordered by James IV of Scotland, and built at Newhaven, Edinburgh. Known as the Great Michael, she was sold on to the French navy following the Scottish defeat at the Battle of Flodden.
71.9 m (236 ft)	10.7 m (35.1 ft)	SS Great Western	1837–1856	disassembled in salvage yard	A British steamship designed by the English engineer Isambard Kingdom Brunel for regular transatlantic steam "packet boat" service. In addition to the paddle wheels, she carried four masts for supplementary propulsion and stability.
71.1 m (233.3 ft)	14.1 m	Chinese treasure ship replica	2008 (planned) –	under construction	This ship will exceed "the Götheborg, the world's largest wooden ship, by 10 m. in length" (sic), according to China Daily.
71 m (233 ft)	13.5 m	Jylland	1860–1908	museum ship	A restored Danish ship on display in the coastal town of Ebeltoft, Denmark
69 m (226 ft)	15.7 m	HMS Victory	1765–	In commission, not for active service	HMS Victory is a 104-gun ship of the line of the Royal Navy. She is the oldest naval ship still in commission and the only remaining ship of the line. She sits in dry dock in Portsmouth as a museum ship and serves as flag ship for The First Sea Lord.
66.4 m (218 ft)	15.2 m	Grace Dieu	1420–1439	sunken wreck	An English carrack used as King Henry V's flagship. She burned after being hit by lightning.
65.2 m (213.8 ft)	16.2 m	Orient	1791–1798	blew up	Of the French 118-gun Océan class ship of the line 16 ships were built. Orient was the flagship of the French Nile fleet. She was destroyed when fire reached her magazine during the Battle of the Nile.
65 m (213.2 ft)	10.6 m	SV Tenacious	2000–	operational	A recently made British ship designed for the disabled.
64 m (210.0 ft)	17.3 m	USS Pennsylvania (1837)	1837–1861	burned to prevent capture	Largest and most heavily armed American wooden sailing warship. Mounted 120 guns. Made only one voyage. Laid up at the Norfolk Navy Yard and burned in April 1861 to prevent capture by the Confederates at the start of the American Civil War.
62.2 m (204.0 ft)	13.3 m	USS Constitution	1797–	In commission, not for active service	The second-oldest commissioned warship (after the Royal Navy's HMS Victory) in any of Earth's navies, and the oldest wooden ship still afloat in the 21st century.
61.3 m (201.1 ft)	16.2 m	Santísima Trinidad	1769–1805	sunk after battle	One of the few four-deckers ever built. 136 guns.
58.5 m (191.9 ft)	11 m	Götheborg	2003–	operational	This Swedish ship is 40.9 m (134.2 ft) long without the bowsprit, and a replica of the original that sank off Gothenburg in 1745.
58.3 m (191.2 ft)	16.0 m (52.5 ft)	HMS St Lawrence	1814–1815	turned into a hulk then sunk	Constructed in the Kingston Royal Naval Dockyard in Upper Canada during the War of 1812 to fight on the Great Lakes. After never seeing action she was decommissioned and became a storage hulk before sinking.
55 m (180 ft)	9.1 m (30 ft)	Bounty	1960–2012	sunk in Hurricane Sandy	An enlargement of HMS Bounty, which was scuttled by mutineers; built by MGM for the movie Mutiny on the Bounty.
54.71 m (179 ft 6 in)	9.8 m (32 ft)	HMS Surprise	1970	museum ship	Originally commissioned and operated as a sail training ship, HMS Rose was renamed Surprise for her part in the movie Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World. She was sold to the Maritime Museum of San Diego in 2007. She again appeared on film as HMS Providence in the Disney film Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides.
54.5 m (179 ft)	13.1 m (43 ft)	Kronan	1672–1676	partial wreck excavated; possibly a planned exhibit	Sank with great loss of life at the Battle of Öland on 1 June 1676. Kronan is estimated to have been the third or fourth-largest ship in the world when built, but only seventh-largest at the time of her sinking.
51 m (167.3 ft)	12 m	Peter von Danzig	Before 1462 – late 1470s	wrecked	A Hanseatic League caravel, built in the French Atlantic port town La Rochelle, and the first large vessel in the Baltic Sea with carvel planking.
48 m (162 ft)	13.5 metres (45.5 ft)	Mars	1564	sunk after battle	A Swedish warship with 107 guns, that sunk after the battle known as Action of 30 May 1564 of the Northern Seven Years' War. Wreck possibly relocated in 2011. A possible sparred length has been estimated by divers as 80 meters.
47.5 m (155.8 ft)	11.7 m	Vasa	1628–1628	museum ship	This Swedish warship sunk on her maiden voyage when a gale forced water onto the ship, she fell over on her port side and sank. Her sparred length is estimated at 69 meters, but her measured deck length (between perpendiculars) is 47.5 meters (155.8 ft).

Claimed but poorly documented

Length	Name	Completed	Comment
135–150 m (+500 ft)	Noah's Ark	c. 2348 BC	According to Genesis, God gave Noah instructions for building the ark. Seven days before the deluge, God told Noah to enter the ark with his household and the animals. Three full sized replicas have been built: one in Hong Kong, one in The Netherlands, and one in Kentucky near the Creation Museum constructed by Answers in Genesis.
128 m by 18 m (420×58 ft)	Tessarakonteres	c. 200 BC	The Greek Tessarakonteres (meaning 40 files of oarsmen) reportedly carried a crew of 400, was powered by 4000 oarsmen and transported 2850 soldiers, according to Athenaeus and Plutarch (Life of Demetrios). She was built for Ptolemy IV Philopator. Historical evidence for this ship is limited to ancient references. It is speculated that the ship could have had two hulls. According to Plutarch, during the tests the ship was difficult and dangerous to move.
127 m by 52 m (416×170 ft)	Chinese treasure ship	15th century	Historical records from the document History of the Ming dynasty claim that the largest Chinese treasure ships were more than 400 feet (120 m) long. However, the size of treasure ships is still disputed and some scholars argue that they were probably closer to 200–250 feet in length, while others argue that they were actually 309–408 feet in length and 160–166 feet in width.
115 m by 14 m (377×46 ft)	Thalamegos	c. 200 BC	Thalamegos (Ancient Greek θαλαμηγός = "leader of the rooms" from θάλαμος, -οι (thálamos, pl. -oi) = room(s) and ἡγεῖσθαι (hegeísthai) - to lead, guide) was a river going pomp boat of Ptolemy IV Philopator. It is speculated that the ship had two hulls, with one single mast with a yard and sail, and is said to have been towed from the banks of the Nile.
110 m (360 ft)	Syracusia	c. 240 BC	The Greek ship Syracusia is claimed to be the largest transport ship of antiquity. She was designed by Archimedes and built around 240 BC by Archias of Corinth on the orders of Hieron II of Syracuse.
110 m (360 ft) according to modern estimates	Leontophoros	c. 280 BC	A warship (octere) built for Lysimachos. After his death was used by Ptolemy Keraunos to defeat Antigonus I in a battle in 280 BC. The length estimate is based on the evidence of Memnon of Heraclea that each file of the oarsmen contained 100 people. The total number of oarsmen was 1600.
73 m (240 ft)	Great Michael	1511	Some claimed that the Scottish carrack Great Michael was over twice the size of her competition of the same era, and had oak sides over 3 meters (10 ft) thick. She was allegedly armed with the largest ship's cannon ever.
63–95 m by 27–32 m, according to modern estimates	Hatshepsut's barge	c. 1500 BC	Used to transport obelisks.
55 m (180 ft)	Isis	c. 150	The Roman ship Isis was described by the sophist Lucian when he saw her in Athens' seaport Piraeus.
45–60 m (150–195 ft)	Ormen Lange	c. 1000	The Ormen Lange (The Long Serpent) was one of the most famous of the Viking longships, built for the Norwegian King Olav Tryggvason, and was the largest and most powerful longship of her day.