Cutty Sark as depicted in 1872 by artist Frederick Tudgay. the Erst ships back to England from the east with a cargo of tea could realize tremendous profits. It is also wo rthy to note that she was launched on 22 Novem ber, just five days after the Suez Canal opened to sh ip traffic, an event that wo uld cause the ultimate demise of the merchant sailing ship. Though she competed well in the tea trade, Cutty Sark carried her last cargo of tea in 1877; she could not compete with the steamships that took over the lucrative trade. The clipper ship continued her career as a merchant ship, carrying general cargo until 1883 when she entered the wool trade between Australia and the UK. It was in this trade that she earned world fame for her ability to achieve and maintain tremendous speeds. She made a passage from Newcastle, NSW, to London in 83 days, beating every other ship that year (December 1883 to March 1884)
by at least twenty-five days. In her fastest recorded noon-to-noon run, she covered 360 nautical miles, an average of 15 knots, earning her the reputation of the fastest of any ship of her size. She was sold to a Portuguese firm in 1895 and continued to carry miscellaneous cargoes until 1922 when she was purchased by a Captain Wilfred Dowman, who returned the ship to Britain. Back in Falmouth, she was used as a tourist attraction and as a training school fo r boys entering the Navy and the merchant marine. In 1938 she was
presented to the Incorpo rated Thames Nautical Training College and was moored at Greenhithe throughout World War II. In 1953 ownership of the clipper transferred to the C utty Sark Preservation Society, the predecessor of the C utty Sark Trust. A d rydock berth was built in Greenwich and the tea clipper was m oved there in 1954, where she was formally opened to the public as a visitor attraction and as a m emorial to the British Merchant Navy by Queen Elizabeth in 1957. The Cutty Sark Conservation Project At the time of the fire, Cutty Sark was undergo ing a major conservation proj ect to secure the future of this emblem of international maritime trade. The C utty Sark Trust has assessed the dam age and has determined to continue wi th the project. The recent events will, of course, have a significant impact on the cost and schedule. By the time she was brought home to G reenwich in 1922, Cutty Sark had already outlived her expected lifespan of thirty years. Her 50-year career hauling cargo had taken her to every international port. Since then , she has taken on a new role and become an icon of the capital. The ship is one of London's most popular tourist attractions. On average, six million visitors to G reenwich each year see the ship,
While damage to the original fabric ofthe ship was not as bad as first expected, the three wooden decks were completely destroyed.
This photograph was taken by her captain, Richard Woodget, master of Cutty Sark from 1885 to 1895, during the period when she made her record passages between Australia and England carrying wool. SEA HISTORY 120, AUTUMN 2007
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