Euterpe

A full-rigged iron ship built in 1863 by Gibson, McDonald & Arnold, Ramsey, Isle of Man, Great Britain. Her original dimensions were 205'5"×35'2"×23'4" and tonnage 1197 GRT, 1197 NRT and 1107 under deck tons. The measurements after the 1901 rebuilding are 62,47×10,73×6,55 meters 62,47×10,73×6,55 meters [205'6"×32'6"×21'6"] and tonnage 1318 GRT and 1247 NRT.

Rigged with royal sails and double topsails.

1863 November 14: Launched at the shipyard of Gibson, McDonald & Arnold, Ramsey, Isle of Man, Great Britain, for Wakefield Nash & Co., Liverpool. Assigned the British Registration No. 47617 and signal VPJK. To be used in the Indian jute trade.
1864 January 9: Sailed from Liverpool to Calcutta under command of Captain William John Storry. A collision with a Spanish brig off the coat of Wales carried away the jib-boom and she had to get back to Anglesey to repair. The mutinous crew had to be put in the Beaumaris Gaol during the repairs.
1865: Dismasted in a gale off Madras and had to be repaired at Trincomalee. Captain Storry died during the return voyage from Calcutta back to England.
1867: Sold to David Brown, London. Used in the India and South America trade.
1871: Sold to Shaw, Savill & Co., London. She was intended for passenger and freight on the New Zealand trade.
1873-1883: Captain Thomas E. Phillips.
1873: Sailed from the British Isles to Dunedin in 117 days.
1874 April 25 - August 30: Sailed from London to Wellington in 127 days.
1875 December 14 - April 11: Sailed from London to Lyttleton in 119 days.
1876 January 1 - April 11: Sailed from the British Isles to Lyttleton in 100 days.
1876 December 17 - April 3: Sailed from the British Isles to Dunedin in 106 days.
1878 July 7 - October 20: Sailed from the British Isles to Dunedin in 104 days.
1879 August 2 - December 24: Sailed from London to Lyttleton in 143 days. Delayed in the Channel and did not sight the Snares until December 12. Reached the Nugget Point seven days later. It took in all 19 days to clear land.
1880 October 25 - February 8: Sailed from the British Isles to Wellington in 105 days under command of Captain A. Banks.
1881 October 23 - February 8: Sailed from the British Isles to Lyttleton in 107 days.
1884 April 9: Sailed from Glasgow for Dunedin under command of Captain George Edward Hoyle, Wisbeach, but collided with the British steamer Canadian in the Clyde. The subsequent repairs took ten days.
1884 April 19 - August 1: Resumed the voyage to Pt. Chalmers, Dunedin, where she arrived after 113 days from the first start.
1885 July 9 - November 6: Sailed from the British Isles to Auckland in 120 days under command of Captain Hoyle.
1886 August 20 - December 12: Sailed from the British Isles to Auckland in 113 days under command of Captain Hoyle.
1888 November 3 - February 19: Sailed from the British Isles to Wellington in 107 days under command of Captain A. Banks.
1891 July 13 - October 25: Sailed from the British Isles to Wellington in 106 days under command of Captain Streeter.
1892 August 13 - December 3: Sailed from Glasgow to Dunedin in 111 days under command of Captain Streeter.
1893 December 4 - April 26: Sailed from Glasgow to Dunedin in 142 days under command of Captain Streeter. Had to put into Belfast for four days on account of adverse weather. When 18 days out from Glasgow she had to turn back from Holyhead and seek shelter in Belfast again. The Irish Channel was finally cleared on January 1.
1895 April 8 - July 29: Sailed from the British Isles to Wellington in 111 days under command of Captain A. Banks.
1896 June 22 - October 4: Sailed from the British Isles to Dunedin in 103 days under command of Captain A. Banks.
1897 November 25 - March 27: Sailed from the British Isles to Dunedin in 121 days under command of Captain Longmuir.
1897: Sold to Hawaiian owners.
1899: Sold to the Pacific Colonial Ship Co. (J.J. Moore), San Francisco, CA.
1900 October 30: US registry.
1901: Sold to the Alaska Packers' Association, San Francisco, and was re-rigged as a three-masted barque. Used in the Alaskian salmon cannery industry. Captain G.A. Swanson was given command of the ship.
1906: Renamed the Star of India.
c1908: Re-rigged as a barque. Captain Christiansen took over the command.
1923: Last sailing season.
1926: Sold to James Wood Coffroth for the Zoological Society of San Diego, CA. To be used as the centerpiece of a planned museum and acquarium.
1959: A group of citizens of San Diego formed the "Star of India Auxiliary" to support the restoration of the ship.

Presently a museum ship in San Diego.

References:

Square-rigged ships, general references.
San Diego Maritime Museum
Arnold, Graig ed.: Euterpe. Diaries, Letters & Logs of the Star of India as a British Emigrant Ship. 1988.
Brett, Henry: White Wings. Fifty Years of Sail in the New Zealand. 1924 & 1928.
Cresswell, Jeremy: The San Diego Collection. Sea Breezes Vol. 58 (1984). pp 426-434, ill.
MacMullen, Jerry: Star of India the Log of an Iron Ship. 1961.

Updated 1998-08-20 by Lars Bruzelius

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