Fiery Cross
Books
- Ninety-Nine Days The Great Tea Race of 1866 and the End of the Clipper Era · Liszt Think
In May 1866, five clippers departed Foochow within three days, chasing a lucrative premium for the first new-season tea to reach London.
- The Premium and the Min River…in 1865 and would carry the hopes of her owner again. Serica, under Captain George Innes, had the reputation of a fast and reliable vessel. Fiery Cross, owned by Thomas Harrison, had won the premium twice before. Taitsing, the newest of the five, carried the ambitions of her owner, John Cam…
- The Logbook’s First Page…rivals yet, but he knew where they were. Taeping and Serica had dropped their pilots within twenty minutes of each other that same morning. Fiery Cross had sailed the previous day, May 29. Taitsing would follow at midnight on May 31. The logbook lay open on the cabin table below. The first…
- Tea, Salt, and Men…different for each ship. Ariel was an extreme clipper, built for speed. Taeping was similar. Serica was slightly smaller but equally fast. Fiery Cross was an older ship, but she had won the premium twice before. Taitsing was new and untested. The ships were matched, but they were not ident…