The James Craig is a three-masted, iron-hulled barque

Barque

A barque, barc, or bark is a type of sailing vessel with three or more masts.- History of the term :The word barque appears to have come from the Greek word baris, a term for an Egyptian boat. This entered Latin as barca, which gave rise to the Italian barca, Spanish barco, and the French barge and...

 restored and sailed by the Sydney Maritime Museum

Sydney Maritime Museum

The Sydney Maritime Museum, also known as Sydney Heritage Fleet, is a private not-for-profit museum located in Darling Harbour, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia....

.

History

Built in 1874 in Sunderland, England

England

England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...

, by Bartram, Haswell, & Co., she was originally named Clan Macleod. She was employed carrying cargo around the world, and rounded Cape Horn

Cape Horn

Cape Horn is the southernmost headland of the Tierra del Fuego archipelago of southern Chile, and is located on the small Hornos Island...

 23 times in 26 years. In 1900 she was acquired by Mr J J Craig, renamed James Craig in 1905, and began to operate between New Zealand

New Zealand

New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...

 and Australia

Australia

Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...

 until 1911.
Unable to compete profitably with freight cargo, in later years James Craig was used as a collier

Collier

-Coal industry:*Collier, a person in the business or occupation of producing coal or making charcoal or in its transporting or commerce*Colliery, coal mining and selling*Collier , a bulk cargo ship which carried coal...

. Like many other sailing ships of her vintage, she fell victim to the advance of steamships, and was first laid up, then used as a hulk

Hulk (ship)

A hulk is a ship that is afloat, but incapable of going to sea. Although sometimes used to describe a ship that has been launched but not completed, the term most often refers to an old ship that has had its rigging or internal equipment removed, retaining only its flotational qualities...

, until eventually being abandoned at Recherche Bay

Recherche Bay

Recherche Bay is located on the extreme south-eastern corner of Tasmania, Australia and was a landing place of the d’Entrecasteaux expedition to find missing explorer La Pérouse...

 in Tasmania

Tasmania

Tasmania is an Australian island and state. It is south of the continent, separated by Bass Strait. The state includes the island of Tasmania—the 26th largest island in the world—and the surrounding islands. The state has a population of 507,626 , of whom almost half reside in the greater Hobart...

. In 1932 she was sunk by fishermen who blasted a 3-metre hole in her stern.

Restoration

Restoration of James Craig began in 1972, when volunteers from the 'Lady Hopetoun and Port Jackson Marine Steam Museum' (now the Sydney Heritage Fleet) refloated her and towed her to Hobart

Hobart

Hobart is the state capital and most populous city of the Australian island state of Tasmania. Founded in 1804 as a penal colony,Hobart is Australia's second oldest capital city after Sydney. In 2009, the city had a greater area population of approximately 212,019. A resident of Hobart is known as...

 for initial repairs. Brought back to Sydney

Sydney

Sydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...

 under tow in 1981, her hull was placed on a submersible pontoon to allow work on the hull restoration to proceed. Over a number of years the vessel was restored, repaired by both paid craftspeople and volunteers and relaunched in 1997. In 2001 restoration work was completed and she was able to set sail.

Current situation

James Craig is currently berthed at Wharf 7 of Darling Harbour, near the Australian National Maritime Museum

Australian National Maritime Museum

The Australian National Maritime Museum is a federally-operated maritime museum located in Darling Harbour, Sydney. After consideration of the idea to establish a maritime museum, the Federal government announced that a national maritime museum would be constructed at Darling Harbour, tied into...

. She is open to the public, and takes passengers out sailing on Sydney Harbour

Port Jackson

Port Jackson, containing Sydney Harbour, is the natural harbour of Sydney, Australia. It is known for its beauty, and in particular, as the location of the Sydney Opera House and Sydney Harbour Bridge...

and beyond. She is crewed and maintained by volunteers from the Sydney Heritage Fleet. The cost of maintaining her is approaching $1 million a year and the ship relies on generating income from visitors alongside, charters, events, and regular fortnightly daysails with up to 80 passengers.

The ship has now made historic return voyages to Hobart (2005 and 2009) and to Port Philip (Melbourne and Williamstown) in 2006 and 2008. A voyage to Hobart to coincide with the Wooden Boat Festival (one of the largest in the world!) is planned in February 2011.

Historical value

James Craig is of exceptional historical value in that she is one of only four ships of her era and rig, still afloat and putting to sea at regular intervals. As such she is a working link to a time when similar ships carried the bulk of global commerce in their holds. Thousands of similar ships plied the oceans in the 19th and early 20th centuries linking the old world, the new world, Asia and Oceania. She is sailed in the traditional 19th Century manner entirely by volunteers from the Master to the galley crew.

Online sources

• The James Craig restoration - archived website from the James Craig Restoration Division, Sydney Heritage Fleet, 1999–2002

External links

• History and description
• James Craig Tallships Australia page