East India Trader (Clipper Ship)

East India Trader (Clipper Ship)

 

A Clipper was a very fast sailing ship of the 19th century that had three or

more masts and a square rig. They were generally narrow for their length, could

carry limited bulk frieght, small by later 19th century standards, and had a large

total sail area. Clipper Ships were mostly made in British and American shipyards,

though France, the Netherlands and other nations also produced some. Clippers 

sailed all over the world, primarily on the trade routes between the United Kingdom

and its colonies in the east, in trans-Atlantic trade, and the New York to San 

Francisco route round Cape Horn during the California Gold Rush. Dutch Clippers

were built beginning in the 1850's for the tea trade and passenger service to Java.

The boom years of the Clipper Ship Era began in 1843 as a result of the growing

demand for a more rapid delivery of tea from China. It continued under the large

influence of the discovery of gold in California and Australia in 1848 and 1851,

and ended with the opening of the Suez Canal in 1869. The term "Clipper" most

likely derives from the verb "Clip" which in former times meant, among other things,

to run or fly swiftly. While the first application of the term "Clipper" in a 

nautical sense is by no means certain, it seems to have had an American origin when

applied to the Baltimore Clippers of the late 18th century. The first ships to which

the term "Clipper" seems to have been applied were the Baltimore Clippers. Baltimore

Clippers were topsail schooners developed in Chesapeake Bay before the American

Revolution, and which reached their zenith between 1795 and 1815. They were small and

some were lightly armed in the war of 1812. The most significant Clippers were the

China Clippers, also called Tea clippers or Opium Clippers, designed to ply the 

trade routes between Europe and the East Indies. The last example of these still in

reasonable condition was Cutty Sark, preserved in dry dock at Greenwich, United

Kingdom. The last China Clippers were acknowledged as the fastest sail vessels. When

fully rigged and riding a tradewind, they had peak average speeds over 16 knots. 

China Clippers are also the fastest commercial sailing vessels ever made. Their speeds

have been exceeded many times by modern yachts, but never by a commercial sail

vessel. Only the fastest windjammers could attain similar speeds.

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