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Medford Historical Society Papers, Volume 28., Old ships and Ship-building days of Medford. (search)
a and the consequent high prices had not made the question of speed of greater importance. The first vessel built in this part of the country on these ideas was the Game Cock, built by Samuel Hall at East Boston in 1850, and the same year James O. Curtis of Medford built the Shooting Star, 900 tons, for Reed and Wade of Boston. She was one of twenty-six ships which made the passage twice from Boston or New York to San Francisco in less than 110 days average time (105 days from Boston and 11rning made the trip in 99 days The record passage was made in 89 days, twice by the Flying Cloud and once by the Andrew Jackson. from New York. She was designed by Samuel A. Pook of Boston, who also designed the Ocean Telegraph, built by James O. Curtis in 1854. Other famous ships designed by Mr. Pook were the Red Jacket and Game Cock. Captain Clark mentions twenty-three Medford ships in a list of one hundred and seventy-three extreme type of clipper ships built between 1850 and 1857, a
Medford Historical Society Papers, Volume 28., Old ships and Ship-building days of Medford. (search)
kept open by vessels running up and down, as the arrival of the America was expected. Ice formed in the inner harbor at Gloucester, and when it started it carried away every vessel with which it came in contact. Among them was the California, which was driven completely across Massachusetts bay and cast ashore on Black ledge, near Cohasset. Often they met mishap and, after injuring themselves or others, they were finally repaired. One of these was the Columbianna, built by Paul and J. O. Curtis. She was of six hundred and fifty tons—the largest vessel of that time. She was used in the ice trade, and at the close of 1839 was loading ice at Charlestown. In Storms and Shipwrecks in Boston Bay Fitz Henry Smith, Jr. is the following:— In December, 1839, there occurred one of the most disastrous storms on this coast up to this time. More than ninety vessels were lost and nearly two hundred dismasted, driven ashore and otherwise injured. The storms occurred at intervals