Clipper Ship Stillwell S. Bishop
The Stillwell S. Bishop was the only California clipper to call at San Diego. She arrived on June 12, 1854, after a 112 day voyage around Cape Horn from Baltimore. On June 24 she departed San Diego and headed for Benicia, where she docked on July 2, 1854. Stillwell S. Bishop brought Army supplies for the local garrison in San Diego as well as to frontier outposts beyond the mountains to the eastward. Her passage of 112 days from the east coast to San Diego still stands as a record. Twenty-seven years passed before another "Cape Horner" came into San Diego directly from the east coast, and these later ships were both larger and slower than the sleek clippers. Stillwell S. Bishop was launched October 21, 1851 from the yard of William Cramp in Kensington, Pennsylvania. With her sharp lines, she was fast ship, often logging 14 knots. Her dimensions were: 595 tons, length 156 feet, beam 31.4 feet, draft 15 feet. She made five round trips around Cape Horn to San Francisco, then was sold to Rutter, Newell & Co. and was renamed Grey Eagle. She continued in trade under various owners until the late 1880's. In 1889 her name disappeared from the shipping registers and her fate is unknown. The Watercolor Painting shown here is paired with an original 1853 entrance chart to San Diego showing Point Loma and North Island as they looked prior to the modifications and landfills that created their present day configuration. Detailed sailing directions appear in the upper left hand corner. These were most helpful to the master of a sailing ship such as Stillwell S. Bishop, often relying on wind power and skill alone to navigate the difficult channel.
Dimensions:	29 x 38
Price:	$725.00