Cutty Sark

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The Clyde-built Cutty Sark was, in 1869, one of the last sailing clippers to be built. She is now preserved in dry dock at Greenwich in London.

Contents 1 History 2 Today 3 Access 4 General specifications 5 Trivia 6 References 7 See also 8 External links

[edit] History

The ship is named after the short shirt worn by the fleet-footed witch featured in the poem Tam o' Shanter written by Robert Burns. She was designed by Hercules Linton and built in 1869 at Dumbarton,Scotland, by the firm of Scott & Linton, for Captain John "Jock" "White Hat" Willis, and launched November 23 of that year.

Cutty Sark was destined for the tea trade, then an intensely competitive race across the globe from China to London, with immense profits to the ship to arrive with the first tea of the year. However, she did not distinguish herself; in the most famous race, against Thermopylae in 1872, both ships left Shanghai together on June 18, but two weeks later Cutty Sark lost her rudder after passing through the Sunda Strait, and arrived in London on October 18, a week after Thermopylae, a total passage of 122 days. Her legendary reputation is supported by the fact her captain chose to continue this race with an improvised rudder instead of putting into port for a replacement, yet was only beaten by one week.

In the end, clippers lost out to steamships, which could pass through the recently-opened Suez Canal and deliver goods more reliably, if not quite so quickly, which as it turned out was better for business. Cutty Sark was then used on the Australian wool trade. Under the respected Captain Richard Woodget, she did very well, posting Australia-to-England times of as little as 67 days. Her best run, 360 nautical miles (666km) in 24 hours (an average 15kt, 27.75kph), was said to have been the fastest of any ship of her size.

In 1895 Willis sold her to the Portuguese firm Ferreira and she was renamed after the firm. In 1916 she was dismasted off the Cape of Good Hope, sold, re-rigged in Cape Town as a barquentine, and renamed Maria do Amparo. In 1922 she was bought by Captain Wilfred Dowman, who restored her to her original appearance and used her as a stationary training ship. In 1954 she was dry-docked at Greenwich.

Cutty Sark is also preserved in literature in Hart Crane's long poem "The Bridge" which was published in 1930.

[edit] Today

Cutty Sark is today preserved as a museum ship and popular tourist attraction. She is located near the centre of Greenwich, in south-east London, close aboard the National Maritime Museum, the former Greenwich Hospital, and Greenwich Park. She is also a prominent landmark on the route of the London Marathon. She flies signal flags on her ensign staff reading "JKWS", which is the code representing Cutty Sark in the International Code of Signals, introduced in 1857.

Cutty Sark has inspired the name of a brand of whisky. An image of the ship appears on the label, and the maker has sponsored the Cutty Sark Tall Ships' Race. It also inspired the name of the Saunders Roe Cutty Sark flying boat. The Life and Times of Scrooge McDuck part three-and-a-half: The Cowboy Captain of the Cutty Sark by Don Rosa features the ship itself.

Cutty Sark is a Grade I listed monument and is on the Buildings At Risk Register.

A major project to conserve the Cutty Sark has now begun, and is scheduled to end in September 2008. Access to the ship and its environs is subject to the needs of the restoration, but can be checked here.

[edit] Access

Cutty Sark is currently closed to the public until late 2008 for conservation work.

From April 2007 a temporary exhibition about the conservation works and tours of the captain and crew accommodation which has been removed from the ship during the work, will be open. Also available will be live webcam views of the conservation work and pre-booked hard-hut tours of the ship.

The conservation work is due to finish in 2009.

For more information on the works see the Cutty Sark website (see External links).

Cutty Sark station on the Docklands Light Railway is one minute's walk away, with connections to central London and the London Underground. Greenwich Pier is next to the ship, and is served by scheduled river boats from piers in central London. A tourist information office stands to the east of the ship.

[edit] General specifications

• Tonnage: 921 tons (935.8 tonnes)
• Hull length: 212.5 ft (64.8 m)
• Beam: 36 ft (11 m)
• Draft: 21 ft (6.4 m)

Sails:

• Fore
  • fore course 21.0 yd (19.2 m)
  • lower topsail 16.8 yd (15.4 m)
  • upper topsail 14.6 yd (13.4 m)
  • topgallant 11.5 yd (10.5 m)
  • royal 9.4 yd (8.6 m)
• Main
  • main course 21.6 yd (19.8 m)
  • lower topsail 18.5 yd (16.9 m)
  • upper topsail 16.8 yd (15.4 m)
  • topgallant 14.2 yd (13.0 m)
  • royal 10.4 yd (9.5 m)
• Mizzen
  • mizzen course 17.4 yd (15.9 m)
  • lower topsail 14.9 yd (13.6 m)
  • upper topsail 13.4 yd (12.3 m)
  • topgallant 11.0 yd (10.1 m)
  • royal 8.2 yd (7.5 m)
  • spanker 14.1 yd (12.9 m)

[edit] Trivia

A student magazine at the University of Greenwich is called the Sarky Cutt.

The Cutty Sark is mentioned in the Dire Straits song 'Single Handed Sailor'.

[edit] References

[edit] See also

• Cutty Sark (short story)

[edit] External links

• Cutty Sark homepage
• Cutty Sark history
• Model Expo has several museum quality wooden ship kits of the Cutty Sark.
• A family connection to her
• Cutty Sark, Virtual Reality image Quicktime image of the tea clipper
• Aerial view of Cutty Sark at Google Maps
• Images of England - details from listed building text
• This building is on the English Heritage - Buildings at Risk Register - link to entry (Buildings at Risk Register article)

Coordinates: 51°28′58″N, 0°00′35″W