A classic broadside of the first Donald McKay extreme medium clipper launched, STAGHOUND, on her maiden voyage departing San Francisco for China. Her extreme sharp lines and deadrise were offset against a reduced cargo capacity and almost no bilge in a quest for speed- but the clipper performed well enough to start a significant run of building American extreme clippers. Built in New York and sold to Sampson & Tappan, STAGHOUND left on Feb. 1, 1851. She sailed to San Francisco, on to Canton and home to New York. She achieved her entire cost of building and operating for her owners, plus a tidy $80,000 profit in this maiden voyage.
STAGHOUND launched at 215' L x 39'8" B x 21' D from McKay's own design. The extreme sharpness of her lines, while attractive and unique, didn't prove to hold the maximum speed he was looking for, but led him to his greatest success with FLYING FISH and WESTWARD HO, also built and owned by Samson & Tappan. It is written that this group is the fastest sailing ship ever built for one owner by a single builder. Thimgan's beautiful broadside portrayal off San Francisco catches STAGHOUND on the first of her six Cape Horn voyages. From his best period, this is an excellent example of the brilliance of light and motion that Thimgan was able to portray in his finest works.
