Elissa (ship)
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| History | |
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 United States
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| Operator: | Galveston Historical Foundation |
| Builder: |
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| Launched: | 27 October 1877 |
| Status: | Museum ship |
| General characteristics | |
| Displacement: | 620 tons. |
| Length: | 141 ft (43 m) |
| Beam: | 28 ft (8.5 m) |
| Draft: | 10 ft 6 in (3.20 m) . |
| Sail plan: |
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| Capacity: | 430 tons cargo |
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Elissa (bark)
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| Location | Galveston, Texas |
| Coordinates | 29°18′34″N 94°47′37″W / 29.30943°N 94.793601°WCoordinates: 29°18′34″N 94°47′37″W / 29.30943°N 94.793601°W |
| Built | 1877 |
| Architect | Alexander Hall & Sons |
| Architectural style | Three-masted Barque |
| NRHP Reference # | 78002930 |
| Significant dates | |
| Added to NRHP | March 21, 1978 |
| Designated NHL | December 14, 1990 |
The tall ship Elissa is a three-masted barque. She is currently moored in Galveston, Texas, and is one of the oldest ships sailing today.
Elissa was built in Aberdeen, Scotland as a merchant vessel in a time when steamships were overtaking sailing ships. She was originally launched on October 27, 1877. According to the descendants of Henry Fowler Watt, Elissa's builder, she was named for the Queen of Carthage, Elissa (more commonly called Dido), Aeneas' tragic lover in the epic poem The Aeneid.
Elissa also sailed under Norwegian and Swedish flags. In Norway she was known as the of Tønsberg and her master was Captain . In Sweden her name was Gustav of Gothenburg. In 1918, she was converted into a two-masted brigantine and an engine was installed. She was sold to Finland in 1930 (owned by Gustaf Erikson to 1942) and reconverted into a schooner. In 1959, she was sold to Greece, and successively sailed under the names Christophoros, in 1967 as Achaeos, and in 1969 as Pioneer. In 1970, she was rescued from destruction in Piraeus after being purchased for the San Francisco Maritime Museum. However, she languished in a salvage yard in Piraeus until she was purchased for $40,000, in 1975, by the Galveston Historical Foundation, her current owners. In 1979, after a year in Greece having repairs done to her hull, Elissa was first towed to Gibraltar. There, she was prepared for an ocean tow by Captain Jim Currie of the New Orleans surveyors J.K. Tynan International. The restoration process continued until she was ready for tow on June 7, 1979.
Elissa has an iron hull, and the pin rail and bright work is made of teak. Her masts are Douglas fir from Oregon, and her 19 sails were made in Maine. She has survived numerous modifications including installation of an engine, and the incremental removal of all her rigging and masts.
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Wikipedia