HMS Plumper was a notable 19th-century Royal Navy sloop launched in 1848 from Portsmouth Dockyard, designed by John Fincham. She measured approximately 140 feet in length on her gundeck, with a beam of around 27 feet 10 inches, and a depth of hold of 14 feet 6 inches. Her displacement was about 577 tons, and her builder's measure tonnage was 490 tons. The vessel's mean draught was 11 feet 4.5 inches. Powered by a vertical single-expansion oscillating steam engine supplied by Miller, Ravenhill & Company, Plumper was equipped with two rectangular fire-tube boilers. Her engine produced 148 indicated horsepower, enabling a speed of roughly 7.4 knots. She had a single screw propeller 9 feet in diameter. Her armament initially comprised two Blomefield 32-pounder muzzle-loading guns and six additional 32-pounder guns on broadside trucks, reflecting her dual steam and sail propulsion capabilities. Constructed at a cost of £20,446, Plumper was launched in April 1848 and commissioned in November of the same year. Her early service included deployments to the West Indies and North America, where she was involved in various activities, including the capture of slave vessels and a notable incident in 1849 involving a sea serpent sighting off Portugal. Throughout her service, Plumper undertook significant surveying missions along the west coast of North America, including the lower Fraser River, Burrard Inlet, Howe Sound, and surrounding waters around Vancouver Island. She played a role in the Pig War crisis of 1859, dispatched to prevent American military activity on San Juan Island. Her surveys contributed to the charting and naming of geographic features such as Plumper Sound and Plumper Cove, leaving a lasting maritime legacy in British Columbia. Decommissioned in 1861 and sold for breaking in 1865, HMS Plumper remains historically significant for her role in naval surveying, anti-slavery patrols, and regional exploration, with numerous geographic features bearing her name.

This description has been generated using GPT-4.1-NANO based on the Vessel's wikidata information and then modified by ShipIndex.org staff.