Schooner
A Schooner is a sailing vessel with two or more masts, predominantly fore-and-aft rigged, in which the foremast is shorter than (or equal to) the mainmast behind it. This foremast-shorter arrangement is the defining feature that distinguishes a schooner from a ketch or yawl.
Fast and able to sail well across and into the wind, and requiring relatively small crews for their size, schooners were historically favoured for coastal trade, fishing and fast cargo work. Larger schooners carried three, four or more masts. Today they survive mainly as traditional, sail-training and charter vessels. The schooner is one of the classic multi-masted rigs and a key term in the traditional vocabulary of sailing-vessel types, alongside the sloop, ketch and yawl.
Fast, weatherly and economical on crew, the schooner was the workhorse of coastal trade and fishing under sail — and its defining feature (foremast shorter than the main) is what sets it apart from the ketch and yawl. It completes the family of traditional multi-masted rigs.
What makes a vessel a schooner?
Two or more fore-and-aft rigged masts with the foremast shorter than or equal to the mainmast behind it.
What were schooners used for?
Coastal trade, fishing and fast cargo, thanks to their speed, upwind ability and relatively small crew needs.