The Republican journal. [volume] (Belfast, Me.) 1829-current, 1909-12-02
CHARLES A. P1LsBuRY, Bu Ea,ses Manager ana
"SHIPS THAT HAVE PASSED"


Campanero from the bottom of the har-
Dor on the Baltimore water front the
other day is reminder that the once
famous feet of coffee clippers" sailing
from that port is no more. The Cam
panero, built at Baltimore before the
Civil War, was famous craft in her
day, making many record passages, but
in later years Belfast-built craft outdid
the once famous Baltimore clippers. The
Josephine, built by Mcdonald 4 Brown
of this city for C. Morton Stewart q Go.
of Baltimore made one trip in steamer
time and for many years held the record
for fast passages between Baltimore and
Rio. This firm first bought OF George
W. Cottrell Of this city barkentlne
which had been On the stocks, completed,
for a wear, and she proved so good YES
sci that they had him build another bark
eptine. Later Mcdonald & Brown built
for the Stewart feet a number OF bark
entines. AS there were shipbuilders In
Baltimore there was some local feeling
because orders for vessels were placed IN
Maine, and C. Morton Stewart q Co.
were induced to place an order with
local firm and they undertook to build
harkentine that would show her heels to
the Maine craft. She was named White
Wings. but in sailing qualities, and in
other respects, did not compare with the
Belfast-buil clippers. With decline in
the demand for Baltimore flour in the
Brazil market, and the preference given
to steamers for coffee shipments, the COT
fee feet of sailing vessels had to engage
in other business, and the survivors are
now in the general coasting trade.
Belfast's Jacksonville trade went about
She same way. Fer many years a fleet OF
two and three masted centerboard schoon-
,ers built III Belfast yards were engaged
in this business. They We're commanded
by Belfast men, and in the early days
their crews We're wholly natives or resi-
dents OF this city. These vessels took
out cargoes of hay and ice and brought
hard pine north, in part for use in the
local shipyards. But after a while the
west began sending hay to Jacksonville
by rail and plants for making artificial
ice supplied the demand for that COM
modify. and Belfast's trade with Jack
sonvile gradually died out. 1t is worthy
of note here that few vessels engaged in
this trade were lost-a fact that speaks
we'll for our local shippers. Some of
them, now retired from the sea, are still
living here, and when we undertook to
call the roll we were greatly surprised at
their number Possibly some may have
been overlooked, but we find that today
the following former commanders of
vessels in the Jacksonville trade are liv-
ing in Belfast: Thomas w. Bartlett,
James F. Mckeen, James H. Perkins,
John W. Jones, John W. Ferguson, J.
Harvey Stinson, Frank W. Limeburner,
Henry j. Chaples, Christopher Y Cot
trell, Z. S. Mcdonald, George D. Ma
honey, Royal W. Warren and J. W. Bur-
CESS. Of those living out of town may
pc mentioned Bartlett Wadlin of North
port. @ W. French Of Lincolnville,
E. /. French Of Massachusetts,, and
N. =. Foss Of California. Some of
She Vessels that were engaged in this
trafe are still afoat but are no longer
Owned here. From the History of Bel
fast We take the names and tonnage of
part Of the fleet, rs follows: NJ. W. Drew,
1855. Prescott Hazeltine, 1856; A. Hayford,
1853; Flora Condor, $50; Florida, 2s6; F.
E. Mcdonald, 253; Charley Buck, 242;
5. NJ. Bird, 400; Lois V. Chaples, 23O.
OF this number the Condor and Chaples
we believe are the only ones afoat.
An even more prosperous time was the
era in Belfast, when square
riggers Of 1000 to 400 tons were built
to engage mainly in the cotton carrying
trade between New Orleans and Liver
pool. If memory is not at fault the
freight at one time was one penny near
~ two cents) pound, about $40 bale,
and some ships are said to have paid for
themselves on their first round voyage
In 1857 the writer saw these ships laying
four or five abreast along the levee at
New Orleans loading cotton by means Of
staging laid a across the inner vessels.
The last, and largest, ship built here, the
p. R. Hazeltine, of 1868 tons, sailed out
Of this port on her maiden voyage in the
sumner of 1875, bound for Liverpool,
going out the eastern way by Turtle
Head. She struck on a ledge off Cape
Sable, the southern end of Nova Scotia,
in a fog, but got off and proceeded on
her voyage and was dry locked at Liver
pool. Some years later she was lost in
the Straits of Magellan on the passage
from New York to San Francisco.
Some Of our ships were employed in
she East India trade, Boston having at
one time large feet engaged in this
business. Now you will see reported the
arrival at Boston from East Indian ports
of steamer under a foreign flag with a
cargo valued at one million dollars. The
other day one was reported with cargo
valued at 81, 500, 900, this representing