The Leaving of Liverpool - Gaelic Mist

New duo Gaelic Mist sing the sailors song "The Leaving of Liverpool".

The California Gold Rush created a demand for clipper ships. The "David Crockett" was a medium clipper ship, whose average speed on the run around Cape Horn to San Francisco was never equaled.

She was built in 1853 by the George Greenman and Company shipyard in Mystic, Connecticut, at a cost of $93.000, and was rigged with double fore and main topsails and three skysails. Its dimensions were 218'8"×41'×27' and tonnage 1547 tons.

The song, The Leaving of Liverpool, was collected in 1951 by William Main Doerflinger and published in Songs Of The Sailor And Lumberman, pp 104-105 (1972).

William (Bill) Main Doerflinger was the dean of maritime music scholars and one of North America's great folk song collectors. He died at his home in New Jersey on December 23, 2000 at 90 years of age.

The following was originally published in The Log of Mystic Seaport, Spring 2002.
"Much of the lore in Shantymen and Shantyboys was collected from retired seamen living in New York City. It was at Sailors' Snug Harbor on Staten Island where Bill located the man who was probably his favorite informant, Richard "Captain Dick" Maitland. "I was on deck one night," he told Bill Doerflinger, "when I heard a Liverpool man singing it in the fo'c'sle. Yessir, that song hit the spot." Later, "arranged and adapted," it became an international hit. Although a closely related immigration song has been found a few times in Ireland, Bill Doerflinger was the only person ever to collect "The Leaving of Liverpool" from tradition; a little known fact is that he collected it twice, once from Dick Maitland and once from Captain Patrick Tayluer.

Immortalized in its verses is the David Crockett.

I've shipped on a Yankee clipper ship,
Davy Crockett is her name;
And Burgess is the captain of her,
And they say she's a floating hell.

Tough but fair Captain John Burgess was lost overboard in a South Atlantic gale on what was to have been his last voyage before retirement."

Per The Maritime History Virtual Archives of North American Built Clipper Ships, John A. Burgess of Somerset, MA, captained the clipper ship David Crockett on the San Francisco-to-New York-to-Liverpool route from 1860 until his death in 1874.

David Crockett

1853 October 18
Launched at the shipyard of Greenman & Co., Mystic, CT, for Handy & Everett, New York, for their line of New York-Liverpool packets.

1860-1874
Captain John A. Burgess, Somerset, MA.

1874 April 20
Cleared to sail from San Francisco for Liverpool with a cargo of wheat when the crew mutinied and delayed the departure for five days.

1874 June 25
Captain Burgess was washed overboard and drowned in a heavy gale off the Rio de la Plata. The mate John Anderson assumed command of the ship.

1874 August 10
Arrived in Liverpool after a passage of 107 days.

1874-1883
Captain John Anderson.


The David Crockett figurehead

The ship's figurehead and a model of the ship formed part of a temporary exhibition at the Bob Bullock Texas State History Museum in 2002. Pictures of the figurehead and ships model can be seen on the following web page.
http://www.history.com/classroom/davycrockett/artifacts/printable_guide.html

An outstanding example of a ships figurehead the naturalistic rendering of the popular hero, David Crockett, carved in New York City in 1853 by Jacob S. Anderson. The skillful handling of the figurehead, with its fine modeling and attention to the details of the costume mark Anderson as one of the best carvers of his day. This was recognized at the time as well, for the figurehead was so prized that it was rarely mounted on the bow. It spent most of its time in the ship's hold, which explains why it has survived in such excellent condition.

Category:

Music

Tags:

• Folk
• Music
• song
• Celtic
• trad
• Gaelic
• Mist
• Sean
• Flanagan
• guitar
• bodhran
• Leaving
• of
• Liverpool
• Davy
• Crockett
• Doerflinger

[DennisVernier]

Great song! Like your version.

[aramat111]

With respect, this song is pure Liverpool folk although the Irish connection is obvious, my grandmother recalled singing it in the 1870's as I did in the fifties. There was massive migration into Liverpool in the 19th century including my own great grandparents this had a profound affect on Liverpool folk music,

[Duralex1978]

First heard this tune in Cork in 1983 & then and there fell in love with Irish music.

[jonessm50]

great version of this song.

[seannn111]

very nice i love playing this song!

[jaasien]

It's a pity this wasn't recorded in a studio, I'd love to hear it properly. He sings it very well.

[sjkalsc]

Love the music.  Thanks for posting.

[54spiritedwill54]

Very aweomse version.

[sailorette1]

As did the Clancy's. I wish we had a place like this where we live! Are you all at Snug Harbor?

Very nice performance and thank you for the documentation.

[maxximoni]

all right mates !