Half Hull Model of Clipper Ship <I>Young America</I>
date: label: Date made
content: 1853
label: sold and renamed
content: 1883
label: ship disappeared after setting sail from Delaware
content: 1886
name: label: maker
content: Webb, William H.
notes: label: Description
content: This is the original builder’s half hull model of the famous ship <I>Young America</I>, constructed by the renowned shipbuilder William Webb in 1852/53 at his New York shipyard. Measuring 243 feet long on deck and 1,961 tons, the <I>Young America</I> was an extreme clipper, characterized by a sharp bow and long, narrow hull. Constructed lightly for speed and commonly sailing the harsh waters of Cape Horn off the southern tip of South America with crews of up to 100 men, clippers often lasted only about ten years before being sold to foreign owners.
label: Description
content: Costing $140,000 to build, the <I>Young America</I> set a number of speed records. It sailed from New York to San Francisco 20 times, averaging 118 days per trip. Its reputation for strength and speed earned high freight rates—its maiden voyage from New York to San Francisco earned $86,400. The clipper traded mainly between Liverpool, New York and San Francisco, but also sailed to China, Hawaii, Australia, New Zealand, Belgium, the Philippines, Mauritius and other countries. After a very long and profitable 30-year career, the <I>Young America</I> was sold to Austrian owners in 1883 and renamed the <I>Miroslav</I>. In February 1886, the ship cleared Delaware for a trading voyage and was never seen again.
label: Description
content: Half hull models were the first step in the construction of a ship. They were carved out of horizontal strips of wood known as lifts, and only one side was needed since ships are symmetrical. After a model was approved, its lines were taken (measured) and it was disassembled. Then the lines were lofted, or drawn at full scale on the floor. The actual ship’s frames were cut to fit the lines on the floor and then set in place along the keel during the construction process. Sometimes the models were discarded or even burned as firewood after use, but many original examples are preserved today.
place: label: sailed to
content: United States: New York, New York
label: sailed to
content: Chile: Magallanes y de la Antártica Chilena, Hornos, Isla, Cape Horn
label: sailed to
content: United Kingdom: England, Liverpool
label: sailed to
content: China
label: sailed to
content: United States: Hawaii
label: sailed to
content: Australia
label: sailed to
content: New Zealand
label: sailed to
content: Belgium
label: sailed to
content: Philippines
label: sailed to
content: Mauritius: Mauritius
label: sailed from
content: United States: Delaware
label: sailed to
content: United States: California, San Francisco
topic: label: related event
content: Expansion and Reform
setName: label: See more items in
content: Work and Industry: Maritime
label: See more items in
content: Transportation
label: See more items in
content: On the Water exhibit
label: Exhibition
content: On the Water
label: Exhibition Location
content: National Museum of American History
publisher: label: Related Publication
content: National Museum of American History. On the Water exhibition website
label: Related Web Publication
content: http://americanhistory.si.edu/onthewater
creditLine: label: Credit Line
content: Gift of William P. Pattee
dataSource: label: Data Source
content: National Museum of American History
identifier: label: ID Number
content: TR.160135
label: catalog number
content: 160135
label: accession number
content: 15059
objectType: label: Object Name
content: ship
label: Object Name
content: half model, clipper ship
label: Object Name
content: half model, clipper merchant ship
label: Other Terms
content: ship; Maritime; Clipper; Decorative
physicalDescription: label: Measurements
content: overall: 25 in x 101 in x 10 in; 63.5 cm x 256.54 cm x 25.4 cm