''Hallowe’en'' was a 920-

ton Ton is any of several units of measure of mass, volume or force. It has a long history and has acquired several meanings and uses. As a unit of mass, ''ton'' can mean: * the '' long ton'', which is * the ''tonne'', also called the ''metric ...

iron

clipper A clipper was a type of mid-19th-century merchant sailing vessel, designed for speed. The term was also retrospectively applied to the Baltimore clipper, which originated in the late 18th century. Clippers were generally narrow for their len ...

ship. She was built in 1870 by Maudslay, Son & Field at

Greenwich Greenwich ( , , ) is an List of areas of London, area in south-east London, England, within the Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county of Greater London, east-south-east of Charing Cross. Greenwich is notable for its maritime hi ...

, England, for Jock Willis & Sons (commissioned by John Willis, junior), and was a sister ship to the clipper ship ''Blackadder''. Due to faults in ''Blackadder'', which caused

dismasting Dismasting, also called demasting, occurs to a sailing ship when one or more of the mast (sailing), masts responsible for hoisting the sails that propel the vessel breaks. Dismasting usually occurs as the result of high winds during a storm act ...

on her maiden voyage, ''Hallowe’en'' was not handed over to Willis for nearly 18 months after her

launch Launch or launched may refer to: Involving vehicles * Launch (boat), one of several different sorts of boat ** Motor launch (naval), a small military vessel used by the Royal Navy * Air launch, the practice of dropping an aircraft, rocket, or ...

due to protracted legal action.

Record passage from China to London

In 1874–1875, ''Hallowe’en'' sailed from Shanghai China, to London with a cargo of

tea Tea is an aromatic beverage prepared by pouring hot or boiling water over cured or fresh leaves of '' Camellia sinensis'', an evergreen shrub native to East Asia which probably originated in the borderlands of south-western China and nor ...

in 91 days, a record time, arriving 20 January 1875. She was fast in light airs and recorded many fast passages between China and the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

. On 17 January 1887, ''Hallowe’en'' was on passage from

Fuzhou Fuzhou is the capital of Fujian, China. The city lies between the Min River (Fujian), Min River estuary to the south and the city of Ningde to the north. Together, Fuzhou and Ningde make up the Eastern Min, Mindong linguistic and cultural regi ...

, China, loaded with

when she was wrecked in the

English Channel The English Channel, also known as the Channel, is an arm of the Atlantic Ocean that separates Southern England from northern France. It links to the southern part of the North Sea by the Strait of Dover at its northeastern end. It is the busi ...

at Soar Mill Cove off

Salcombe Salcombe is a resort town in the South Hams district of Devon, south west England. The town is close to the mouth of the Kingsbridge Estuary, mostly built on the steep west side of the estuary. It lies within the South Devon Area of Outstand ...

South Devon South Devon is the southern part of Devon, England. Because Devon has its major population centres on its two coasts, the county is divided informally into North Devon and South Devon.For exampleNorth DevonanSouth Devonnews sites. In a narrower s ...

, England.

References

Tea clippers Individual sailing vessels Victorian-era merchant ships of the United Kingdom Ships built in Greenwich Shipwrecks in the English Channel History of Devon Maritime incidents in January 1887 1870 ships Ships built on the River Thames {{Merchantship-stub