French Polynesia issued two stamps and a SS for the World Philatelic Exhibit in San Francisco from 29 May to 8 June 1997 to recall the maritime mail and trade links that existed 100 years ago from Tahiti to San Francisco.
One of the ships depict is the TROPIC BIRD registered in San Francisco, there is only one ship in the database of http://www.mysticseaport.org/library/in ... MSearch.cf which fitted the bill.
She was built in 1882 on the yard of John Kruse, Coos Bay, Org., in the register is her owner given as A. Crawford & Co., San Francisco, but other sources on the net give that her owner was Simpson or Thomas McDonald, can be that she was managed by Crawford.
Tonnage given as 331 gross, dim. 126 x 20.8 x 10ft.
Barkentine rig.
She was a nice looking three-masted barkentine, and used for the South Sea trade from San Francisco, mostly between San Francisco and Tahiti.
From 1883 till 1900 her master is given as Capt. Burns. (thereafter the registers are not in the database.)
The http://www.tahitiphilatelie.pf/m_timber ... 1997&id=21 has the following info on her.
From the 12 February 1897 edition of the “Messager de Tahiti” (a local publication of the epoch)
The American sailboat TROPIC BIRD, which carries mail and passengers, will leave for San Francisco on Monday Feb. 15. Mail sacks will be closed the same day at 10 o’clock in the morning.
This large three masted, 368 ton trading schooner operated a regularly service between San Francisco and Tahiti via Taiohae in the Marquesas Islands dating back to 1893. The voyage lasted 28-34 days and involved a 10-day stopover at each port of call.
Although less regularly, for other American ships made similar trips during 1897: the CITY OF PAPEETE, the NORMA, the FALCON and the GALILEE.
They all left San Francisco loaded with a variety of products and returned from Tahiti loaded with such Polynesian goods as fruit, coconuts, mother of pearl shells and vanilla.
The TROPIC BIRD was lost in 1907 at Perula Bay, Mexico.
http://tallshipsofsanfrancisco.com/_wsn/page13.html
French Polynesia 1997 92f sg791, scott705