The
Baltimore Clipper (sharp-lined hull) class of ships are rated the most beautiful
sailing vessels ever built. Their beauty is a source of inspiration, with the
ability of stirring lifelong dreams into action.
The word "clipper" seems to have been derived from
an old slang phrase meaning to move fast; "to clip
along" or "to move at a fast clip." The schooner's
rapid development started about 1746. By 1790 the schooner was
the national rig of both the United States and Canada.
Baltimore Clippers are modified Chesapeake Bay coastal
trading schooners. Their efficiency became famous during the war
of 1812 when the State Governments authorized, with letters of
manqué, private ship owners to capture British ships for profit.
Thus the term, privateers. In addition to a private navy,
the state of South Carolina, the Continental Congress
commissioned several privateers that used Charleston as a base of
operations. In August of 1776, the first vessel officially
commissioned was the sloop Swift.
Private and highly individualistic cruises rarely found their
way into official records. What records were kept, few survived.
Some facts are obvious; these men combined patriotism with
profits. British vessels were blockading the U.S. east coast and
the government did not have resources for an efficient navy to
protect shipping lanes. Privet merchants filled the gap.
Privateers were not pirates. A pirates only motive was to
plundere for greed from vessels of any flag.
