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SAIL VOLUME II

II. PASSENGER AND EMIGRANT CLIPPER SHIPS

MALBOROUGH (1846 - 1869), 1,402 registered tons, length 175ft 5in, beam 41ft 5in, depth 29ft 1in.
Costructed of wood at T.W. Smith's Tyne yard for T.W. Smith's shipping service to India. An early
Blackwall frigate. She was built for easy conversion to a fifty gun naval frigate with scantlings pierced for gun
ports. The Blackwall frigates built by Smith, Green (Blackwall Line) and Wigram were 500 tons larger than
the London passenger ships of their day. MALBOROUGH entered the Indian trade carrying passengers
and troops to Calcutta and Madras. In1854, she made one voyage to Australia because of the press of
passengers in the Gold Rush. She carried 325 passengers and reached Melbourne in 78 days from the
Lizard. Her return journey via Cape Horn was also a creditable 83 days. In 1869. she was withdrawn from
service and converted to a coal hulk at Gibraltar.

BENVENUE (1867 -1882), 999 registered tons, length 210ft, beam 35ft 1in, depth 20ft 7in. Consructed
of iron, built by Barclay, Curle, Glasgow for Watson Bros. In her early years she was entirely in the
Melbourne trade. In 1876, she was transferred to the New Zealand trade. She made the very fine average
of 77days for her outward passages to New Zealand. She made six voyages to New Zealand. In 1882 on
her sixth voyage, she was driven ashore when her anchors dragged during a gale at Timaru and she became
a total loss.

                THOMAS STEPHENS (1869 - 1916) 1507 registered tons, length 263ft, beam 38ft 2in, depth 23ft 1in.
  Contructed of iron, built by Potter, Liverpool, as passeenger ship for the Black Ball Line but the Line
collapsed before she was launched. On completion she sailed under the Bethell & Co.'s London line of
Australian packets and was owned by Thomas Stephens & Sons, London. In the 1870's, she was one of
the crack ships in the Australian passenger trade. In the 1870's, her passages to Melbourne were between
66-78 days. In the !880's and 90's.she was kept regularly in the Australian trade except for an occasional
run to San Francisco, Calcutta and Rangoon. In 1896, she was sold to the Portuguese Government,
renamed PERO d'ALEMGUER, and became a training ship. In 1914, she was lying as a hulk in the River
Tagus. In 1915, she was refitted and sent to the United States. On her return journey in 1916 she was
  posted as missing..

PATRIARCH (1869 - 1912), tonnage 1,405 gross and 1,339 net, length 221ft 1in, beam 38ft 1in,
depth 22ft 3in. Constructed of iron, built by Hood, Aberdeen, for George Thompson's Aberdeen
White Star Line. Though fine lined and fast she had the reputation of being a very dry ship. Basil
Lubbock comments that "it was owing to her splendid seaworthiness that, in twenty-nine years of
racing out and home, she never had a serious accident and never came on the overdue list" She was
on the Sydney run for most of her twenty nine years career with Aberdeen White Star. On her
maiden voyage in 1870, she established a record for iron ships by arriving in Sydney ('pilot to pilot')
in 67 days. In 1898, she was sold to Norwegian owners.. In 1912, she was wrecked when she
came ashore south of the River Plate on the Argentinian coast and was a total loss.

                MILTIADES (1871 - 1905), 1452 registered tons, length 240ft 5in, beam 39ft 1in, depth 23ft 3in.
Of iron construgtion, built by Hood, Aberdeen, as a passenger ship for George Thompson's Aberdeen
White Star Line. Thompson's second iron ship. She was built for the carriage of emigrants and put on
  the Melbourne run. Unlike PATRIARCH she was a wet ship but faster. her best outward passage was
in 1873 - 66 days pilot to pilot and 70 days dock to dock. In 1874, she was sent to Auckland with
470 emigrants. From 1890, she was transferred to the Sydney run but was not as regular in getting a
wool cargo for the return voyage. In 1890, she went from Sydney to Lyttelton to get a cargo, and again
  in 1891.to Wellington for the same purpose.. In 1896-97, she crossed the pacific to San Francisco for
a return cargo. She was sold to Italian owners in 1901 and broken up in 1905.

BEN VOIRLICH (1873 - 1918), 1,474 registered tons, length 255ft 6in, beam 37ft 1in, depth 28ft 8in.
Constructed of iron, built by Barclay, Curle , Glasgow, for Watson Bros. In the Melbourne trade , she
carried passengers (saloon, second cabin and steerage) out and wool on the return voyage. In 1875, in
her second voyage, her outward passage to Melbourne was 64 days to Port Phillip from Plymouth. She
was transferred to the Sydney trade in 1886 and in 1887 to the San Francisco grain trade.She was sold
to German owners in 1891and converted to a barque. In 1903, she was sold to Italian owners and
renamed COGNATI. Towards the end of World War I she was at Leith where she was converted into
an accommodation hulk for the crews of surrendered German ships.

                SAMUEL PLIMSOLL (1873 - ), 1,444 registered tons, length 241ft 3in,beam 39ft, depth 23ft 1in.
  Of iron construction, built by Hood, Aberdeen, for Georg Thompson's Aberdeen White Star Line.
Thompson's third iron clipper and was built to carry emigrants. She was in the Sydney trade until 1887
when she was transferred to the Melbourne trade.. She was fast and on her maiden voyage in 1874,
  was 74 days form Plymouth to Sydney - the fastest passage by any ship in that year. In 1899 she
caught fire in the Thames and was scuttled.. After being raised and repaired she was sold to Shaw
Savill & Albion Co.who ran her in the New Zealand trade until in 1902she was dismasted in a voyage to
New Zealand and towed by a steamship to Port Chalmers. She was subsequently towed to Sydney and
ended up as a coal hulk in Fremantle, Western Australia.

                RODNEY (1874 - 1901), tonnage 1,519 gross and 1,447 net,, length 235ft 6in, beam 38ft 4in,
depth 22ft 6in. Constructed of iron, built by W.Pile & Co., Sunderland, for Devitt & Moore.
  She was designed to carry first-class passengers with accommodation considered luxurious at
the time. Her owners regarded her as their fastest ship. In 1880 she made a passage to Adelaide
in 74 days out. Her best passage to Melbourne was in 1882 - 69 days from the Channel. In
1887, she reached Sydney from the Lizard in 77 days matching the record set by PATRIARCH
in 1870. She was in the Melbourne trade until 1887 with the exception of the voyage to Adelaide
  in 1880.. Then she was in the Sydney trade until 1897. She was sold to French owners in that
year and renamed GYPSY. In 1901, she was wrecked on the Cornish coast with a cargo of
nitrates from Iquique, Chile . .

                INVERCARGILL (1874 -1905), 1,246 registered tons, length 239ft 7in, beam 36 ft, depth 20ft 7in.
Constructed of iron , built b Robert Duncan, Glasgow, for James Galbraith of the Albion Line. One of
six Albion Line sister ships in the New Zealand trade. In 1874, her maiden voyage with 390 passengers
to Port Chalmers, New Zealand, was in 90 days. She made altogether 26 passages to New Zealand -
14 to Port Chalmers, 7 to Wellington 2 to Lyttelton, 2 to Timaru and 1 to Auckland. The average passage
time for the 26 voyages was 89.38 days. In 1904, she had a bad passage home when she broached and
was put on her beams end off Cape Horn. The cargo shifted and it was only by a herculean effort that
the ship was righted.after a day and a night with her lee dipping six feet into the sea.. She made
  Queenstown (Cobh), Ireland, 113 days from Sydney. She was towed to Glasgow for repair and sold to
  Norwegian owners. She left the Clyde in February 1905 for Christiana to pick up a cargo of timber for
Melbourne. She was posted missing on this voyage.

                WAIMATE (1874 - 1899), tonnage 1,156 gross and 1,124 net, length 219ft 7in, beam 35ft 1in,
depth 20ft 7in. Constructed of iron, built by J. Bumer & Co., Sunderland, for the New Zealand
Shipping Co. She could carry 300 to 400 emigrants She made 22 voyages to New Zealand -
10 to Lyttelton, 8 to Port Chalmers, 3 to Auckland and 1 to Wellington. The average for all the
   outward passages was 92.14 days - to Lyttelton 90.5 days and Port Chalmers 91 days. The
   fastest outward passage was 74 days to Lyttelton in 1880. She came close to destruction in her
   return passage around Cape Horn in 1881 when she dropped both anchors and they held when
   she was being driven towards the rocks. In 1896, she was sold to Russian owners and was
   renamed VALKYRIAN. In 1899 she sailed with a cargo of coal from Necastle, N.S.W. to
   Iquique. Chile, and was never heard of again.

DUNTRUNE (1875 - 1899), tonnage 1,561 gross and 1,488 net, length 245ft 2in, beam 38ft 3in,
depth 23ft 1in. Constructed of iron, built by Alexander Stephen & Sons, Dundee, for David Bruce's
Dundee Clipper Line. In her early years she was in the Australian trade and usually sailing from London
or the Clyde in November. In a voyage to Brisbane, Queensland, in 1883 she carried 448 assisted
emigrants. On this voyage, the condenser broke down and the vessel was forced to put in to Madeira
for repairs and to get fresh water. After delivering her emigrants she carried coal to San Francisco
and wheat from there to England. In 1896, David Bruce & co. decided to sell all their ships.
DUNTRUNE was purchased by a Belfast firm. In 1899 the vessel was dismasted west of Cape
Horn and the Captain died that same night. The ship ran in to the coast under jury rig and anchored
off a lee shore. A boat under the ship's carpenter set off to get help lost its way but was picked up
after 17 days by a sealing schooner. The survivors were landed and a Chilean gunboat went in
search of the DUNTRUNE but couldn't find her and she was posted as missing.

                TORRENS (1875 -1910), tonnage 1,335 gross and 1,276 net, length 222ft 1in, beam 38ft 1in,
  depth 21ft 5in. Of composite (iron frame planked with teak) construction, built by James Laing ,
   Sutherland, for Captain H.R Angel who was a part owner with the Elder Line and commanded
   her for fifteen voyages from 1875 to 1889. She was a good sea boat and a relatively dry one.
      She was at her best however ghosting through the tropics. On her return journeys she came by
   the Cape of Good Hope, St Helena and Ascension Is. for passenger comfort. For years she was
   the favourite passenger ship on the London to Adelaide run. She established the record of 74
     days for the passage between Plymouth and Adelaide. In 1905 she was sold to Italian owners
   and after a grounding in 1910 was sent to the ship breakers.

PIAKO (1876 - 1900), 1,075 registered tons, length 215ft 3in, beam 34ft, depth 20ft 5in. Of iron
construction, built by Alexander Stephen,Glasgow, for the New Zealand Shipping Co. Piako made
17 voyages to New Zealand - 6 to Auckland, 4 to Lyttelton, 4 to Port Chalmers and 3 to Wellington.
Her average passage time for 16 of these voyages was 95.38 days. Her second voyage where she
had to put into Pernambuco for repairs because of a fire in her cargo lasted 145 days is not counted
in the average. In 1900, carrying supplies to the Cape from Melbourne for the troop in the Boer
War, PIAKO was posted as missing

ARISTIDES (1876 - 1903), 1,661 registered tons, length 260ft, beam 39ft 5in, depth 24ft 5in.
Constructed of iron, built by Hood, Aberdeen for George Thompson & Co.'s Aberdeen White
Star Line. Built as a passenger clipper flagship of the company's fleet. Her maiden voyage in 1876
from London to Melbourne was an unsuccessful attempt to beat the record. She reached
Melbourne 74 days out and her return journey was 81 days. She was kept on the Melbourne run
until 1889 when she was switched to the Sydney trade. She mostly had a full passenger list in both
Melbourne and Sydney. In 1897, after Lloyds had raised its insurance rates for sailing ships,
Aberdeen White Star sold its sailing ships except for ARISTIDES. In her last years, she was
seeking cargoes wherever they could be found. In 1903 she sailed from Caleta Buena, Chile, with
a cargo of nitrate of soda, for San Francisco and was posted as missing.

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