Race across the Atlantic between “Lightning” and “Red Jacket.”
The Lightning loaded at Constitution Wharf, Boston, and sailed for Liverpool on 18th February, 1854, whilst the Red Jacket sailed from New York on the following day, and great interest was shown in shipping circles as to which should make the best passage across the Atlantic.
In the end these two magnificent clippers arrived in Liverpool on the same day, 4th March, their exact times being:—
Red Jacket—Sandy Hook to Rock Light 13 days 1 hour.
Lightning—Boston Light to Rock Light 13 days 19½ hours.
Their 24-hour runs opened the eyes of the packet ship commanders and in fact the whole world.
The Red Jacket put up runs of 413, 374, 371, 343, and 300 against the Lightning’s 436, 328, 312 and 306, thus there was little to choose between the two vessels on this point.
The Boston Daily Atlas of 18th February, 1854, thus describes the Lightning’s departure from Boston:—
At 2 o’clock the Lightning hove her anchor up, and at 3 o’clock discharged her pilot off Boston Light. She went down in tow of the steamer Rescue, Captain Hennessy, and was piloted by Mr. E. G. Martin.
Before the steamer left her, she set her head sails, and fore and mizen topsails, and had a moderate breeze from W. to S.W. She appeared to go at the rate of 6 knots under this canvas, though she draws 22 feet of water and has only 23 feet depth of hold.
We have seen many vessels pass through the water, but never saw one which disturbed it less. Not a ripple curled before her cut-water, nor did the water break at a single place along her sides. She left a wake as straight as an arrow and this was the only mark of her progress. There was a slight swell, and as she rose we could see the arc of her forefoot rise gently over the seas as she increased her speed. At 5 p.m., two hours after the pilot left her, the outer telegraph station reported her 30 miles east of Boston Light with all drawing sails set and going along like a steam boat.
And the following extract from her log book was published in the Liverpool Albion on her arrival.
| Distance. | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Feb. 19 | Wind, | W.S.W. and N.W. moderate | 200 miles. |
| 20 | „ | N.N.E. and N.E. strong breezes with snow | 328 „ |
| 21 | „ | E.S.E. with snow storms | 145 „ |
| 22 | „ | E.S.E., a gale with high cross sea and rain | 114 „ |
| 23 | „ | N., strong gales to E.S.E.; ends moderate | 110 „ |
| 24 | „ | S.E., moderate | 312 „ |
| 25 | „ | E.S.E. and S.E., fresh breezes with thick weather | 285 „ |
| 26 | „ | W.S.W., moderate | 295 „ |
| 27 | „ | W.N.W. „ | 260 „ |
| 28 | „ | W. and N.W., steady breezes | 306 „ |
| March 1 | „ | South. Strong gales; bore away for the North Channel; carried away the foretopsail and lost jib; hove the log several times and found the ship going throughthe water at the rate of 18 to 18½ knots;lee rail under water and rigging slack | 436 „ |
| 2 | „ | South, first part moderate, latter part light and calm. | |
| 3 | „ | Light winds and calms. | |
| 8 | „ | Light S.E. winds and calms; at 7 a.m. off Great Orme’sHead. 12 noon off the N.W. lightship. | |
On 28th February at noon she was in Lat. 52° 38′ N., Long. 22° 45′ W., and her run of 436 nautical miles from that position to her noon position on 1st March gives her the greatest day’s work ever accomplished, to the best of my belief, by a sailing ship. The 1st March entry “Wind south—bore away for the North Channel,” has misled some nautical critics, who have plotted her as being up with Rathlin Island when she bore away, without noticing the direction of the wind. The log is rather ambiguously worded, but her run of 436 miles puts her some 30 miles west of Achill Head—and she then bore away north, bringing the wind on the starboard quarter. If she had been off Rathlin Island she would have had to bring the wind on the starboard bow for the course through the North Channel.
Captain Charles McDonald always hoped to get a day’s run of 500 miles out of the James Baines, and firmly believed she could do it; but he never succeeded in beating the Lightning’s records.
The Red Jacket, which was under the command of Captain Asa Eldridge, of American packet ship fame, had strong winds from S.E. to W.S.W. with rain, snow and hail. As with Lightning, the first half of her passage was the slowest half and for the first seven days she could only average 182 miles a day. But with practically the same weather, it is interesting to compare the performances of the two vessels as they approached the Irish Coast. Red Jacket’s last six runs were 219, 413, 374, 343, 300, and 371, giving a total of 2020 and an average of 336.
The only vessel that has ever beaten this six-day run is the famous Cutty Sark, which in 1876, before her wings were clipped, ran 2163 miles in six days in the roaring forties, when outward bound to Sydney.