The Great Republic
England was the supreme sea power of the time. Their ships were enormous, heavy, and slow vessels that were used for both trade and naval warfare, but were more fit for warfare than trade. It took large gusts of wind to move these colossal vessels and they seldom reached a speed of over four knots. Improvements in speed had not been made for centuries since the Spanish galleons sailed the ocean. Suddenly a new American ship appeared called a clipper which would revolutionize overseas trade and transportation.
The term clipper was thought to come from the verb clip, meaning to move quickly. It was first used in America after the War of 1812 to refer to vessels that were built in Virginia. The Baltimore Clipper is said to be the first type of American clipper ship ever built. It was constructed in accordance with the principles known in England sometime in the 16th century, where a narrow hull design was thought to increase the speed of sailing vessels. The first true Baltimore Clipper was finished just before the American Revolution. Through new ways of shipbuilding, the shipbuilders in Virginia created a more sleek vessel which would be sure to handle higher speeds.
By the early 19th century, these Baltimore Clippers became internationally known to be speedy vessels suited for naval service, illegal trading, and carrying light cargo. They were increasingly bought and used by slavers, smugglers, and pirates. The Baltimore Clippers were used extensively throughout the War of 1812 and were solidified as a hot commodity for warfare and transportation. However, the Baltimore Clipper had one major problem. The sleekness of its design did not enable much cargo to be stored in the hull. The designers sacrificed speed for cargo carrying space. Shipbuilders began working extensively throughout the 1930�s to fix this problem. The Baltimore clippers became the basic model for shipbuilders into the 1840's and 1850's. Its design was seen in many later fishing schooners, yachts, and pilot boats still present today.
Donald McKay, who is like the grandfather of clipper shipbuilding, figured out the best way to increase speed while still maintaining enough space for cargo. These ships would be gigantic, he thought, but still their narrow hull would make them much faster than any other cargo ship out on the sea. McKay moved from Newburyport, Massachusetts to Boston Harbor in 1840 to start up a clipper shipbuilding post there. News of these new clipper ships spread and McKay was commissioned to build numerous clippers. Thus, the new shipbuilding enterprise had begun.
America's new baby, the clipper ship, was a symbol of America's independence and new cultural identity. Names were given to ships, like the Great Republic, pictured above, to give a connection between these great ships and America. These ships would sail to China and Great Britain with their name on the flat side of the stern so that everybody would see and remember the name. It allowed America to give off a sense of their new prominence in other countries. The Cutty Sark, seen below, was one of the later clipper ships as it set sail in 1869, after the golden age of clipper ships. It still exists today in Greenwich, London where donations are being taken for the full restoration of this historical vessel.
