The Daily Astorian. [volume] (Astoria, Or.) 1876-1883, 1883-11-02
Marine Memories-First Barkentine,

Joshua B. Webster of Stockton
writes to the Bulletin as follows con-
cerning the barkentine rig and other
marine matters:
In your issue of Monday, 22d inst,
is the lnclosed item referring to the
rig OF q vessel known among mari
uers as "barkentine." | feel quite
sure that the first vessel of that rig
was the ". II. Ga,Uley, belonging, /
think, 10 G.. A. Meigs q Co. of San
Francisco. Her owners bought the
hull of the ship COqVinlbO, partially
destroyed by FIRE at Esquimalt Har-
Dor, British Columbia, in 1859. The
barkentine rig was placed thereon as
an experiment, and she made her first
trip loaded with lumber from Puget
Sound to San Francisco early in Jan
nary, 1861. l made the trip in her at
that time from Port Townsend, W. I.
to Webster's Point, Nesh Bay, just
inside Cape Flattery, some eighty
miles. The wind was light north
easterly and thick snow storm. The
vessel worked admirably, and the rig
was pronounced by the captain in
charge I forget his neme) to be the
most simple used. She carried on the
mizzen OF after-mast what was
called the I" leg of mutton
sail" No gaf boom. l think
think there is no doubt that from this
experiment originated the barkentine
rig. The next vessel, think, ID adopt
1t was the Fremont, owned by Adams,
Blinn * Co, built over from the Pan
anna steamer of that name. | made
the trip IN her from San Francisco -
Cape Flattery in January, 1868, in
three days. One difficulty expert
enced on her was that often upon GO
ing "in stays" she would make 'stern
away" before her bows could lay of.
Thinking these facts may be Of value
10 you, / have taken the liberty TO
write them.
/ may also add that the ship High
land Light, now at Astoria, is an old
friend. Twenty-eight years ago last
June 1 was boy before the mast of
the ship Western Empire, commanded
by Capt. Chas. F. Winsor. The High.
land Light and the JTestern Empire
lay at anchor at the mouth of the
river St. George at Mecadarie, n. b.,
taking lumber (Deal) for Liverpool.
This leads me to the remembrance
that in 1856 Capt. Charles +. Winsor,
Kenry A. Webster and Charles L.
Strong (having been of the firm of LIE
Count & Strong), settled at Neah
Bay, w. T., to trade and fish among
the Indians. Strong was afterwards
the first superintendent of the
Gould & Curry mine in its flush peri
oil of 1S62-63, when the shares were
$4,000 He committed suicide about
two years ago in southern California.
IL. A. Webster died at the Pacific
hotel last May. He was Of the pio-
neer firm of Page & Webster, who
built the first flour mill IN Stockton,
the San joaquin, now Sperry & Co. S
mill, with a capacity of 500 barrels
per day, IN, / think, 1853. Tim.
Page, the partner, is still alive, a very
wealthy land owner and resident on
Sutter street, San Francisco. Con-
cerning Capt WinsoD, the last i heard
Of him, some two years ago, he was
keeper of light house in San Fran
cisco bay. l mention these few desul-
tory matters as they come 10 mind
suggesting the vicissitudes of Califor-
MAS FIRST settlers, etc. l can now see,
as it were, Charlie Strong, as in 1859,
he would come into the kitchen of the
log house at Neah bay, w. T., with
overalls on, shirt sleeves rolled up,
and pick doughnut out of the pan
where l had freshly fried them, or al
the pine table after breakfast, light
his Havana cigar (the last remnant OF
luxury with a silver of wood so a:
not to impair its fine favor with the
birthstone OF match.