Clipper Flying Cloud burned for scrap at Saint John, New Brunswick
- When
- 1874
- Where
- Beacon Island bar
- Episodes
- 1
The clipper ship Flying Cloud, renowned for its 1851 record-setting voyage, was sold to the Black Ball Line in 1862. After sailing under British colors, the vessel ran aground on the Beacon Island bar in Saint John, New Brunswick, on 19 June 1874. The legacy record claims the ship was burned for scrap in June 1875, but the supplied passages only confirm the 1874 grounding, leaving the final destruction date and specific circumstances unverified.
Episodes
Background and detail
Background. Flying Cloud was an extreme clipper built by Donald McKay, famous for setting a sailing record between New York and San Francisco in 1851. The ship maintained this record for over 135 years. In 1862, the vessel was sold to the Black Ball Line in Liverpool, operating under British colors in the Australia and New Zealand trades.
Final Disposition. The ship's final years involved a grounding incident in Saint John, New Brunswick. On 19 June 1874, Flying Cloud ran aground on the Beacon Island bar. The legacy record asserts the ship was burned for scrap metal in June 1875, but the supplied passages do not confirm this specific event or date, only the 1874 grounding.
People involved
- Donald McKay · Shipbuilder
- Black Ball Line · Owner
Sources
- Flying Cloud (clipper) Wikipedia, revision of 2026-10-07
Machine-drafted from the cited Wikipedia passages and checked by a reviewing model, not by a human editor. Every passage cites the revision it was written from; dates and places follow those passages.