"Thermopylae" clipper ship. Chromolithograph by M. Reilly (19th century)
It's exhilarating to imagine being a captain of a clipper ship. My long, sleek boat skimming atop the waves as a stiff wind snaps the canvas sails into billowing clouds. What a rush!
The heyday of the clipper ships was in the mid 1800's when American and British shipbuilders competed to build the fastest designs for bringing fresh tea from China. Tea lovers on both sides of the Atlantic wagered on which boats would arrive first and captains commanding the fastest ships would win public acclaim and monetary rewards.
Many ships names evoked images of speed and beauty: Flying Cloud, Champion of the Seas, Hurricane, Flying Fish, Snow Squall, Stag Hound and Lightning.
The clippers could travel at speeds of 20 knots per hour and cover 400 miles in a 24-hour period. By comparison, cargo ships of the time traveled at 4 knots per hour. The route went around Cape Horn and took about 107 days.
The clipper ship era ended around 1869 when the Suez Canal opened and steamships made the trip in 50 days.
I'd like to someday see the last surviving clipper ship, the Cutty Sark. For the last 6 years, it has been under renovation but was re-opened in April 2012 by Her Majesty the Queen. The ship's home is at the Royal Museums Greenwich, London.
