Eliot History                  The Clipper Ship "Nightingale"   

                                                How the ship “Nightingale" acquired its name-- 

Jenny Lind was born in Sweden, Oct. 6,1 820--Died Nov. 2, 1887--She was one of the most celebrated singers of her time. Between 1838 and 1849 she appeared at every major opera house in Europe and was known by her adoring public as "The Swedish Nightingale".

In 1850, she was brought to the United States by the circus impresario, P.T.Barnum. The American public thronged to her recitals, and writers penned poems in her honor and newspaper articles by the hundreds. She left the United States in 1852 with a newly acquired fortune and a husband, her German accompanist Otto Goldschmidt.

A Swede from her country area followed her here, he had money to invest and thought he would have a clipper ship built here to carry passengers to and from the World's Fair in London, England and he would name the ship "Jenny Lind".

The primary interest of the original owner here was to have the ship carry Jenny Lind back to her native land. She never boarded the ship "Nightingale" that was named for her. Wm. L. Hanscom of Eliot, a shipbuilder from an old shipbuilding family, was employed to build a model, lay down the lines, and build a clipper ship for the Swedish investor. She had three masts; 175 feet stem to stern, 36 1/2 feet from port to starboard, had a depth of 18 feet and displaced 1066 tons. This was accomplished in 1851 at the Hanscom Shipyard in Eliot, Maine. Before the clipper ship was finished, the money ran out, the builder thought it best to complete the ship and to get an agent to sell her- the ship was now named "Nightingale". The ship was towed to Portsmouth, N.H. for the final outfitting. Ex-Governor Goodwin, of Portsmouth, N.H. was made the sales agent. The ship was sold to an agent in Boston, Massachusetts and when it arrived among the great clipper ships in the area, "Nightingale" made quite a sensation. It was a great looking ship and the owners took on a cargo to Liverpool. Her owners issued a challenge for a run to Calcutta. A challenge was accepted at a wager of $10.000.00 and "Nightingale" out ran and out sailed her competitor and won the wager against the English competitor.

Soon after the race, the owners had financial difficulties and sold the Nightingale, which was placed in the African slave trade. A U.S. Sloop of War sighted the “Nightingale” off the west coast of Africa and the ship was boarded after dark and found to have the hold full of slaves.

"Nightingale" was confiscated and used as a store ship on the Pacific Coast.

A few years later, "Nightingale" was caught in a hurricane on the North Atlantic and sank, all the crew was lost.

Edward H Vetter

Ref:   Old Eliot Vol.#8 Pages #144 and 172

And history from other sources