Stornoway (clipper)

Stornoway was a British tea clipper built in Aberdeen, Scotland in 1850. It has been suggested that she was the first clipper built in Great Britain.[2][lower-alpha 1]

The Stornoway
History
United Kingdom
Name:	Stornoway
Owner:	Jardine Matheson
Builder:	Alexander Hall and Sons, Aberdeen
Launched:	24 August 1850
Fate:	Wrecked at the mouth of the Thames on the Kentish Knock, 7 June 1873
General characteristics
Tonnage:	595 old measurement 527 new measurement[1]
Length:	157.8 ft (48.1 m)[1]
Beam:	28.8 ft (8.8 m)[1]
Draught:	17.8 ft (5.4 m)[1]
Depth:	17.8 ft (5.4 m)[1]
Sail plan:	fully rigged ship[1]

Name

She was named after Stornoway Castle, Lewis, one of the Hebrides Isles, owned by Sir James Matheson at the time.[2]

She was originally owned by Jardine Matheson, and sold to Mackay & Co., London, in 1861.

Maiden Voyage

Her maiden voyage was a passage from the Downs to Java Head, which she made it under command of Captain Robertson in 80 days and to Hongkong in 102 days. She sailed then from Hongkong to London in just 103 days. These were the fastest passages between these ports by a British vessel at the time.[2]

Masters

She is famous for her race with the clipper Chrysolite.[7][8] During her lifetime Stornoway was commanded by various Masters.[9]

Date	1850–53	1853–62	1863–64	1865–68	1869–72	1872–73
Name	Capt. John Robertson	Capt. H. L. Hart	Capt. Watson	Capt. Tomlins	Capt. J. Waugh	Capt. G. Greener

In 1867 she was sold to Welch & Co., Newcastle, and in 1871 was again sold to R. Chapman, Newcastle. She was wrecked at the mouth of the Thames, 7 June 1873, on the Kentish Knock.[9]

Notes

1. The concept of the "first clipper" is strongly resisted by maritime historians such as David MacGregor and Howard I. Chapelle (and the authoritative amateur Carl Cutler). Both point to the steady evolution of fast sailing vessels. Whilst MacGregor (in avoiding the concept) does not suggest any alternative vessel for the title, he discusses the Bonanza, built in Whitehaven in 1830 as setting a fast passage from Shanghai (departing late in 1844) to Liverpool in 91 days - a time rarely exceeded during the clipper ship period. It is worth noting that the iron clipper Three Bells was also built in 1850, the same year as Stornoway. Three Bells was launched on 7th June 1850 and Stornoway on the 24th August 1850. (These dates can be found by a quick search of the British Newspaper Archive.)[3]^:53[4]^{:26–27, 43, 50–51}[5]^:367[6]^:50

References

1. MacGregor, David R. (1983). The Tea Clippers, Their History and Development 1833–1875. Conway Maritime Press Limited. p. 53. ISBN 0 85177 256 0.
2. Clark, Arthur (1911). The Clipper Ship Era; An Epitome of Famous American and British Clipper Ships, Their Owners, Builders, Commanders, and Crews, 1843-1869. New York & London: G. P. Putnam's Sons. pp. 198, 199.
3. MacGregor, David R. (1988). Fast Sailing Ships, their Design and Construction, 1775-1875 (Second ed.). London: Conway Maritime Press Ltd. ISBN 0 87021 895 6.
4. MacGregor, David R (1993). British & American Clippers: A Comparison of their Design, Construction and Performance in the 1850s. London: Conway Maritime Press Ltd. ISBN 0 85177 588 8.
5. Chapelle, Howard I. (1967). The Search for Speed Under Sail, 1799-1855. New York: Bonanza Books.
6. Cutler, Carl C. (1930). Greyhounds of the Sea, the Story of the American Clipper Ship (1984 ed.). Annapolis: United States Naval Institute. ISBN 0 87021 232 X.
7. "Sailing Ships: Stornoway (1850)". Retrieved 24 September 2011.
8. Lubbock, Basil (1921). The Colonial Clippers (2nd ed.). Glasgow: James Brown & Son. pp. ii. OCLC 1750412.
9. Aberdeen Maritime Museum, Aberdeen City Council. "Aberdeen Ships – STORNOWAY". Retrieved 24 September 2011.

External links

• Oil painting of tea clipper Stornoway, by C.J. Guise
• The Clipper ‘Stornoway’ at Shippingtandy.com