New York City — Once The City of Ships

Sometime during the Civil War, the poet Walt Whitman wrote a poem about New York City, titled “The City of Ships.” The first stanzas begin: City of ships! (O the black ships! O the fierce ships! O the beautiful, sharp-bow’d … Continue reading

Historic Clipper City of Adelaide’s Voyage Home in Limbo? Will New Government Write the Check?

The clipper ship City of Adelaide is supposed to be transported by heavy-lift ship back to Australia in the near future. Scottish taxpayers have already chipped in $1.2 million.  The City of Adelaide Trust, however, has been unable to book … Continue reading

The Leaving of Liverpool

“The Leaving of Liverpool” is a wonderful sea song,  capturing both the promise of a new voyage and the sadness of leaving loved ones behind.   It was “collected” by William Main Doerflinger in 1951 from Dick Maitland, an old sailor at New York’s … Continue reading