The Era of the Clipper Ships
Maritime News - Sailing Events - Features - Links - Maritime Museums - Galleries & More
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Table of Contents
12/14/2001 - New Pages are up!
The Clipper Ship Saga
of the Seven Seas continues. . . .
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You can email us at: donross@eraoftheclipperships.com
You can write us at:
The Era of the Clipper Ships
P.O. Box 723
Stone Ridge, NY 12484
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The Era of the Clipper Ships
Prologue
The clipper ship Saga of the Seven Seas continues with the launching of the Staffordshire from Donald McKay's shipyard. To be followed by the Flying Fish, Westward Ho! and the Sovereign of the Seas. Other notable clippers launched around that time included the Nightingale, Dauntless, Sword Fish, Shooting Star, John Gilpin, Trade Wind and Wild Pigeon. The Deep-Sea Derby over the winter of 1852-53 was the zenith of the clipper ship era. Also launched from Donald McKay's shipyard were the Emperess of the Seas, Star of Empire and Chariot of Fame. Then came the Romance of the Seas that ran a very fine race against the New York clipper David Brown. Many other notable clippers were launched around that time.
12/19/2001 - New Pages up!
New pages just went up as a special gift to maritime history enthusiasts around the world over the Holiday Season that include the story of Mary Ann Patten and her epic voyage around Cape Horn in command of Neptune's Car. To be followed by the Great Republic. Then comes the Black Ball Quartette: Lightning, Champion of the Seas, James Baines, and the Donald McKay. Along with the Marco Polo and Red Jacket and other notable American, Canadian and British clippers. We do hope that maritime history enthusiasts of Canada, Great Britian, Australia and New Zealand will take note.
At this point in time we call upon tall ships-square sail enthusiasts around the world, upwards of a million people we are told, to give us a show of support by letting all their friends know about our Web site. We would really like to reach everyone over the Holiday Season and share this Era of the Clipper Ships Web site with the maritime world.
A great effort will be made over the coming years to achieve the lofty goals that we have set for ourselves. The support of patron-benefactors is heartily encouraged at this point in time from everyone who wishes to see future efforts to build American clipper ships get out of the "Horse Latitudes" and reach fruition. After all, a whole century just went by and over that period not one single American clipper ship was launched in that time.
So for the time being we are asking everyone to buy at least one Era of the Clipper Ships T-shirt over the Holiday Season as a show of support.
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Holiday Season
Era of the Clipper Ships T-shirt Sale
Go to the Ship's Store Page
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Tradewinds Page
Article about the Hudson River Maritime Museum is on the Hudson River Valley Tradewinds Page.
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11/27/2001 - ECS - The Great American II, a 53-foot trimaran, arrived at the Royal Yacht Club in Melbourne, Australia with a record setting 15,000-mile voyage of 68-days/10-hours/7-minutes/52-seconds and broke the New York to Melbourne sailing record of 69-days/14-hours set by the Mandarin over the winter of 1855-56 around the time of the Australian Gold Rush. Hats off to sailors Rich Wilson and Bill Biewenga. Everyone can surf on into the www.sitesalive.com Web site and go to the Press Room link for further details.
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Ship's Log & Poem about the tea clipper Oriental surface
Across the mighty deep,
And give the wings to traverse it
A thousand times again.
And mayest thou, As thou headest the sea,
Till thy long wanderings cease.
Be like the Patriarchal dove,
The messenger of Peace.
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ECS - Poetry, Silk, Tea, Fire Crackers & Opium too! Oh my!
I received an Email this past August 25th from Emily Wilson, the gist of which follows. . . .
"Hello, I came across your Web site tonight while searching for information of the ship Oriental. I have in my possession what I believe is a ship's log for a voyage of the Oriental, leaving London on January 12th 1851 bound to Hong Kong & Canton. On the front is written "Captain Palmer", and some other writing which is illegible. My grandfather sailed tall ships and I am just starting to research the ships he sailed on. The Oriental was not one of them, but I believe he acquired this log from an old sailing friend. The log ends in New York in 1852.
"Is there any interest in this book? The old handwriting is very difficult to read, but it is fascinating and I would love to learn more about the book itself.
"Please respond, even if it is just so I can thank you for posting all that good information on your Web site."
ECS - I responded to Emily that I was delighted with her find and requested that she take pictures of the log, and Email them to me as an attached file which she did. I was then able to transcribe the poem from one of the pages. We together deduced that the log was indeed the authentic Oriental ship's log of Theodore DeWhite Palmer, the younger brother of Nathaniel Brown Palmer, who took over command of the Oriental following her first voyage. The log squares with my manuscript of the period. Emily's next Email continues.
"…This log book covers not one, but two voyages, including one which began on January 20, 1852 identified as London 'Bound to Hong Kong & Canton for the last Time.' Now I wonder where this ship served next?
"One of the items the Oriental took on as cargo in Hong Kong was Opium - a lot of Opium!
"At the end of the log for the 1851 voyage are two poems, one about the ship and one about Theodore Palmer.
"At the end of the log for 1852, is a chronicle of the historic, record setting maiden voyage of the Oriental in1850. This is where I saw the notation that the ship carried Fire Crackers in addition to Silk and Tea. . . . Next I would like to plot out the route of the voyages as the latitude and longitude was recorded each day, along with the weather and sea conditions. Please let me know if there is anything else I can do for you or if you learn any new facts about this ship. Thanks again. You have a right to be proud of your own shipbuilding history". - Emily Wilson
ECS - This long-lost Oriental ship's log and poem are indeed quite a historical find. The poem is most intriguing. The true author of these lofty lines is for the moment a mystery. Was Captain Theodore DeWhite Palmer the poet? If so they would reveal a poetic side to the man that I did not know he had. And I really do not know all that much about him except that he had the reputation of occasionally being a short-tempered hothead and somewhat of a bully with his crew. Could the poet have been one of the mates? Possibly; or perhaps Palmer saw the poem in one of the London Newspapers of the day and jotted it down in the Oriental's ship's log around the time of her sailing. In any event, we hope that you will all enjoy these lofty lines that perhaps have not ever appeared in print before. Or have they? If anybody out there has any information concerning this poem please let us know about it. Clipper ships, Poetry, Silk, Tea, Fire Crackers & Opium too! Oh my!
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Gardner McKay - 1932 - 2001
Gardner McKay, a great great grandson of Donald McKay, died at his home in Honolulu on Wednesday, 11/21/2001.
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Book Review: The Captain's Wife A Novel by Douglas Kelley
11/07/2001 - ECS - I just read the first three chapters of this book last night and like it a lot! By late December I will have a full review of this epic historical novel account of Mary Patten in command of the California bound clipper Neptune's Car and her perilous voyage around Cape Horn to San Francisco.
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The Launching of the Baltimore Clipper Topsail Schooner Privateer Lynx in Rockport, Maine
Saturday, July 28, 2001 - The Baltimore Clipper Topsail Schooner Lynx was launched this afternoon at Rockport, Maine to enthusiastic historical fanfare in the true patriotic spirit of the War of 1812 time period complete with the appropriate era costumes along with the accompanying musketry and cannon fire.
Surf on into their Web site for more details.
ECS Coverage of the Privateer Lynx Launching
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The Marco Polo
Editorial
ECS - The two airliners that were skyjacked on the morning of September 11th had taken off from Logan International Airport in East Boston, Massachusetts, not far from where the shipyards of the 1800's used to be. Where in earlier days such lofty clipper ships as the Surprise and the FlyingCloud first slid down the ways to the sea. The two airliners' tragic destiny with death was with the World Trade Towers and commercial heart of New York City and the world. Not far from the South Street Seaport and where the New York shipyards that built the Sea Witch and the Challenge used to be in the 1800s further uptown along South Street and the East River - in the horizon of the South Street picture with a northern view presented below. The coincidence of this horror happening in close proximity to the places of importance to our maritime and commercial past is hardly surprising for the perpetrators of these foul deeds chose the fiscal and symbolic center of the commercial world, old and new, for their targets. Yet the following message was found scrawled in the dust of a yet unbroken window surface amidst the debris near Ground Zero in the devastated Battery district of Manhattan: "This won't stop inspiration."
Now more than ever the United States of America needs an American clipper ship, at least one, to rise up out of the devastation to sail upon the oceans of the world again as a symbol. To remind the American people and other free societies just where their commercial and maritime heritage actually came from. Without these lofty clippers we are lost as a nation in my opinion, having been cut off from our true roots for years, because there are no American clipper ships in existence today that we can point to and draw inspiration from. Keep in mind that from now on we are forever at the mercy of the winds of war, the media and foreboding news that is going to invade our homes to show up on our TV screens every day. From now on the armed struggle to come will continue to challenge the American spirit and upset us all. This anguishing scenario is going to drag on for years to come. Get used to it.
What the world needs now are clipper ships, a whole fleet of them, to catch the fair winds of adventure rather than the winds of war. The sight of lofty clippers out there on the high seas could do much to replenish the American spirit. Such maritime sailing possibilities have always been out there beyond the ocean mists. So please allow this member of the McKay Clan to part the mists at this time of national tragedy for a moment to try and point a way back to our roots that will do much to heal us as a people.
The Era of the Clipper Ships
Bibliography
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