The Wreck of the Gold Rush Steamship Winfield Scott awards rhe end of rhe M exican War rhar resulred in California being ceded ro rhe Unired Srares, the federal government was eager to imp rove co mmuni ca ri o n s between rhe Wes t Coast and rhe resr of rhe country. In 1847 ir aurhorized the subsidy of two steamship lines-the US M ail Steam ship C ompany and rhe Pacific M ail Sreamship Company-ro carry mail, cargo and passengers ro California and Oregon from East C oast pons. Sreamship service ro California was up and running ar rhe end of 1848 , jusr ar rhe time gold was discovered ar Sutrer's Mill. The Gold Rush creared an unexpecred and immediate migration of tens of thousands of people ro C alifornia, traveling by any means they could. While rhe Gold Rush provided rhe imperus for the creation of the famous American clipper chips of the 1850s, most of the argonauts chose the Isthmus of Panama route, with US Mail sream ships bringing them from Easr C oasr ports ro the Caribbean side of Panama, and Pacific Mail Steamships picking rhem up on the Pacific side and sailing north ro San Francisco. W ith rhe sudden flood of people seeking passage, rhere we re not enough ships to handle the traffic. Soon, rival independent steamship companies sprang up ro compete with the two subsidized ones . One of these commercial steamship
(
UNI~~~TES )
'-;
~\;r;;?c';''~;. *"''•" .._ ... ,lwl"-'••.r ..... 1·• .....r.....il'.'(.... )WI ....i .. 1·1o •
14
.rtti~
c. 1<1 ,11M 1;1. m .
by Willard Thompson
Color lithograph of the sidewheel steamer Winfield Scott. The artist exaggerated some features that are not historically correct, such as adding a bowsp rit.
lines was New York-based D avis, Brooks, & Company, which in 185 0 contracted with the Westervelt & M ackey shipyard in New York ro build a composite wooden and iron steamship, SS Winfield Scott, named for the celebrated general, a hero of the Mexican War. The 1,29 1-ron side-wheeler was built under the supervision of Caprain William Skiddy; her two side-lever steam engines were manufacrured ar New York's Morgan Iron Wo rks. At 225 feet in length with a 34-foot beam , she could accommodate 3 15 passengers- 165 in cab ins and 150 m ore in steerage. H er dining room could accommodate 100 people ar a rime, and passengers could relax in the between-decks
drawing room aft and the salon forward. An American eagle and coar of arms graced her round srern, with a carved bust in the likeness of General Winfield Scott serving as the figurehead on the bow. The ship was described in Gleason's Pictorial D rawing Room (26 July 1851) : "her lines partake somewhar of rhe 'hollow' kind, beautifully swelling ro her extreme width , and as beautifully tapering off again as rhey approach her stern. The venrilation and lighring of rhe vessel reflect great credit on Captain Skiddy, with bur few vessels being able ro boast of such excellence in these important necessaries to the comfort and health of her passengers." T h e Winfield Sco tt's steam engines produced 370 hp each , driving two side paddlewheels. M assive pisrons, each wi th an eight-foot stroke, moved levers posirioned (left) Map of the United States, the British Provinces, Mexico &c. Showing the Routes of the US Mail Steam Packets to California, by J H. Colton, 1843. Ambitious gold seekers faced a difficult journey to California, no matter which route they chose: over land, more than 2,500 miles by horse and wagon; sailing 14, 000 miles around Cape H orn; or the Isthmus of Panama route, which cut approximately 7, 000 miles off the Cape Horn route but was more expensive. Travelers would book steamship passage to Chagres, on the Caribbean side of Panama, cross the 60-mile wide isthmus on foot and by horseback, then wait far another steamship on the Pacific side to take them north to San Francisco.
SEA HISTORY 130, SPRING 2010