Yesterday the beautiful clipper ship Wild Pigeon, Captain Putnam, hauled out of her berth, at the foot of Wall Street, and sailed for California. The bark Salem, Captain Millet, also cleared yesterday for the same destination. Both vessels have large and valuable cargoes. The agent of the first named vessel had to refuse some on thousand barrels, for want of room. The Wild Pigeon has only been in port twenty-nine days, and in the short space of twenty-eight working days discharged and received cargo, and is now again on her way to the Pacific.
On the other side of the slip, just evacuated by the Wild Pigeon, lies the Boston clipper ship Flying Fish [?], Captain Nickles, also taking cargo for San Francisco. She arrived here some three weeks back, from Manila, and it is her first appearance in this port. She is of a similar model to the celebrated clipper ship Flying Cloud, and both constructed by the same builder (Mr. Donald McKay, of East Boston) but has sharper ends, and is stated to be the sharpest vessel he ever launched. Like all clipper ships, she is filling fast, and will leave on or about the 23rd inst.
Independent of the above, there are seventeen other vessels up for the same port. Among these are the following beautiful new clippers yet untried: The Flying Dutchman, Contest, John Gilpin and Tinqua. The first two were built in this city -- the Flying Dutchman by Mr. W.H. Webb, the other by Messrs. Westervelt & Sons; the John Gilpin, by Mr. Samuel Hall, of East Boston. The Tinqua was constructed by Mr. Georges Raynes, of Portsmouth, N.H. She has not yet arrived here, but will make her appearance shortly, to commence loading in Mr. John Ogden's line of clippers, to which the Wild Pigeon and Flying Fish also belong.
The other clippers also loading here for San Francisco are the Game Cock, Grey Feather and Trade Wind, all first class vessels. The freighting business for California is at present very active, several of the new clippers having had a portion of their cargo engaged before they appeared at their berths.
The clearances at this port for San Francisco, during the month of October, give one for every alternate day; and from the first of last month up to the present date, the number amounts to twenty, including the clipper Comet, and other first class ships. The whole number from all our Atlantic ports during that period is thirty-six; which shows the great preponderating commercial enterprise of New York, over all the other commercial cities of the Union combined.
Transcribed by Lars Bruzelius
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Copyright © 1997 Lars Bruzelius.