Glory of the Seas (clipper)

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Glory of the Seas
History
United States
NameGlory of the Seas
OwnerDonald McKay (original)
BuilderDonald McKay of East Boston, MA
LaunchedNovember 1869
FateBurned for her metal May 13, 1923
NotesThe last merchant sailing vessel built by McKay[1]
General characteristics
Class and typeMedium clipper
Tons burthen2102 tons
Length250 feet (76.2 m)
Beam44 feet (13.4 m)
Depth of hold28.5 feet (8.7 m)
Sail planDouble topsails, single topgallants and royals, and main skysail[2][self-published source] ; all sails totaled "about 8000 yards of cotton duck"[1]

Glory of the Seas was a clipper ship launched in 1869. She was the last merchant sailing vessel built by Donald McKay.[1][3][4]

Her voyages

On her maiden voyage, Glory of the Seas sailed from New York in February 1870 under the command of Captain John Geit. She anchored at San Francisco on June 13 after a passage of 120 days. From there she sailed to Liverpool, England, under Captain William Chatfield. McKay then sold Glory to J. Henry Sears of Boston, who replaced Captain Chatfield with Josia Nickerson Knowles.

Details of her time between 1870 and 1885 are incomplete, but she "ran between New York and British ports and San Francisco almost exclusively" during those years.[1] She did make a fast voyage from New York to San Francisco between October 13, 1873 and mid-January, 1874 (see the table and note). In 1875 she set the record of 35 days for a passage from San Francisco to Sydney, Australia. According to McKay[1], until 1885 under Captain McLaughlin Glory carried general cargo from New York to San Francisco and wheat from there to Britain, and was nearly wrecked in a storm when arriving in Britain in 1880. The Bruzelius timetable[2][self-published source] (below) differs and does not mention the 1880 event. Both agree that she was laid up at San Francisco between December 1882 and February 1885.

Glory of the Seas in Boston. McKay appears at the center of the photograph wearing a top hat.

After 1885 Glory of the Seas spent the rest of her long life on the Pacific coast, for a time sailing between San Francisco and Puget Sound and occasionally to Alaska.[1] In March 1906 she was sold in San Francisco for conversion to a barge but was repaired after the April earthquake and "put under sail again".[2][self-published source] Under new owners in 1911, she was again stripped of her masts and converted to a floating fish cannery and then to a floating cold storage plant. On May 13, 1923, she was beached near Seattle and burned to recover her iron and copper.

Glory's known voyages are tabulated below. Entries are from Bruzelius[self-published source] unless noted otherwise; disagreements or ambiguities are individually cited. City names are as they were at the time.

Origin Depart Destination Arrive Days Captain
New York February 13[2] or 14[1], 1870 San Francisco June 13, 1870 120 (see note)[notes 1] John Geit
San Francisco July 30, 1870 Liverpool[1] or Queenstown, Ireland[2] 112 William Chatfield
St. Johns (see note)[notes 2] May 13, 1871 Liverpool 21 William Chatfield (?)
Cardiff, Wales August 19, 1871 San Francisco December 16, 1871 120 Josiah Nickerson Knowles
San Francisco February 7, 1872 Liverpool May 28, 1872 112 Knowles (?)
Liverpool July 27, 1872 San Francisco November 25, 1872 119 Knowles (?)
San Francisco January 15, 1873 Liverpool May 23, 1873 128 Knowles (?)
New York October 13, 1873 San Francisco January 16[2] or 18[1], 1874 96[2] or 94[1] (see note)[notes 3] Knowles (?)
San Francisco February 26, 1874 Liverpool June 23, 1874 117 Knowles (?)
Liverpool August 13, 1874 San Francisco December 22, 1874 131 Knowles (?)
San Francisco March 14, 1875 Sydney, Australia April 19, 1875 35 Knowles (?)
Sydney June 4, 1875 San Francisco July 26, 1875 53 Knowles (?)
San Francisco October 7, 1875 Liverpool February 17, 1876 133 Knowles (?)
Liverpool May 2, 1876 San Francisco August 23, 1876 114 Knowles (?) or Daniel S. McLaughlin[2] (see note)[notes 4]
San Francisco October 24, 1876 Liverpool February 3, 1877 103 McLaughlin
Liverpool April 2, 1877 San Francisco August 23, 1877 144 McLaughlin
San Francisco November 9, 1877 Liverpool February 24, 1878 107 McLaughlin
Liverpool April 27, 1878 Oakland, California September 29, 1878 153 McLaughlin
San Francisco 1879 Queenstown (for orders), then Le Havre, France McLaughlin
New York 1880 San Francisco McLaughlin
San Francisco May 29, 1880 Queenstown September 28, 1880 120 McLaughlin
Cardiff December 27, 1880 San Francisco May 3, 1881 129 McLaughlin
San Francisco July 11, 1881 Le Havre via Valparaíso, Chile February 17, 1882 220 McLaughlin
New York July 2, 1882 San Francisco November 7, 1882 128 McLaughlin
Laid up, San Francisco December 1882 February 1885
San Francisco February 22, 1885 Liverpool June 19, 1885 119 Joshua S. Freeman
Liverpool 1885 San Pedro, California 121 Freeman (?)

Artifacts

The figurehead of Glory of the Seas is a partially-clad female figure. It is pictured in a book, The Clipper Ships, which notes that it is in the collection of a private New York City club, India House.[5] The builder's half-model, four prints or paintings, and several relics are held by the Mariners' Museum in Newport News, Virginia.[6]

Notes

  1. ^ February 13 to June 13 is 120 days, so the McKay date is wrong.
  2. ^ Bruzelius does not specify which of the many cities named St. Johns, but the one in Newfoundland is likely.
  3. ^ Neither passage length matches the stated arrival date. January 16 is 95 days out and January 18 is 97.
  4. ^ McKay states that McLaughlin began as captain in 1879.

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i j McKay, Richard C. (1928). Some Famous Sailing Ships and Their Builder Donald McKay. G.P. Putnam's Sons. pp. 322–327, 374, 376.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h Lars Bruzelius (June 30, 1997). "Glory of the Seas". Retrieved July 23, 2019.
  3. ^ Clark, Arthur H. (1910). The Clipper Ship Era. Vol. II. G.P. Putnam's Sons. pp. 258, 369.
  4. ^ Howe, Octavius T.; Matthews, Frederick C. (1926). America Clipper Ships 1833-1858. Vol. I, II. Marine Research Society. pp. 84, 714, 737.
  5. ^ Whipple, A.B.C. (1980). The Clipper Ships. Time-Life Books. pp. 62.
  6. ^ "Glory of the Seas". Mariner's Museum, Newport News, Virginia. Retrieved July 22, 2019.

See also

List of clipper ships


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