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Asa Eldridge (1809–1856) was a sea captain from
Recent research has revealed many additional details about Asa Eldridge's career, including an earlier record-setting voyage two decades before his more famous feat on the ''Red Jacket''. That earlier record came in 1833 on the ship ''America'', which Eldridge took from Boston to Calcutta in 89 days – a time that remained unbeaten for the next two decades, and was then only bettered by one of the new generation of clipper ships. The new research also identified a number of other vessels that Eldridge commanded during his career that had not previously been linked with him. These include three sailing ships that he took to the Far East in the 1830s; another that he sailed around the "cotton triangle" in the early 1840s; a second Dramatic Liner, in addition to the ''Roscius'' long associated with him; and two early transatlantic steamships. Eldridge's close connection to the first of those steamships appears to have been the circumstance that introduced him to
Asa Eldridge (1809–1856) was a sea captain from Yarmouth, Massachusetts
Yarmouth ( ) is a town in Barnstable County, Massachusetts, United States, Barnstable County being coextensive with Cape Cod. The population was 23,793 at the 2010 census.
The town is made up of three major villages: South Yarmouth, West Yarmou ...
. In 1854, Captain Eldridge guided the clipper ship ''Red Jacket'' from New York and to Liverpool in only in 13 days, 1 hour, and 25 minutes, dock to dock, setting a speed record for the fastest trans-Atlantic crossing by a commercial sailing vessel that has remained unbroken ever since. In 1856, Captain Eldridge skippered the ill-fated steamship ''SS Pacific'', which disappeared at sea on a voyage from Liverpool to New York.
Eldridge is also known for having captained Cornelius Vanderbilt
Cornelius Vanderbilt (May 27, 1794 – January 4, 1877), nicknamed "the Commodore", was an American business magnate who built his wealth in railroads and shipping. After working with his father's business, Vanderbilt worked his way into lead ...
's private steam-powered yacht, the ''North Star'', when the tycoon took a small group of family and friends on a summer-long cruise around Europe in 1853, and for his prior command of the packet ship ''Roscius'' in E.K. Collins' Dramatic Line.
Contemporary Account
Charles Francis Swift says of Eldridge:More Recent and Extensive Account
Recent research has revealed many additional details about Asa Eldridge's career, including an earlier record-setting voyage two decades before his more famous feat on the ''Red Jacket''. That earlier record came in 1833 on the ship ''America'', which Eldridge took from Boston to Calcutta in 89 days – a time that remained unbeaten for the next two decades, and was then only bettered by one of the new generation of clipper ships. The new research also identified a number of other vessels that Eldridge commanded during his career that had not previously been linked with him. These include three sailing ships that he took to the Far East in the 1830s; another that he sailed around the "cotton triangle" in the early 1840s; a second Dramatic Liner, in addition to the ''Roscius'' long associated with him; and two early transatlantic steamships. Eldridge's close connection to the first of those steamships appears to have been the circumstance that introduced him to Cornelius Vanderbilt
Cornelius Vanderbilt (May 27, 1794 – January 4, 1877), nicknamed "the Commodore", was an American business magnate who built his wealth in railroads and shipping. After working with his father's business, Vanderbilt worked his way into lead ...
, and in turn to his appointment as commander of the ''North Star''.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Eldridge, Asa 1809 births 1850s missing person cases 1856 deaths American sailors People from Yarmouth, Massachusetts People who died at sea Sea captains