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Monday 6 July 2020

A Trip to the New World in 1870

J. W. Bushby 1852- 1931
In the same little journal as this blog post originated, I've found and transcribed another few pages which detail Randy's great grandfather James William Bushby's trip from London to New York and back exactly 150 years ago.  He is a beautiful cursive writer and the ink is as black as the day it was written.  The words were hard to make out in places, likely because I am not familiar with a sailor's vocabulary so I've made a few guesses!  Although he was a carpenter, I am thinking he may have been part of the crew of this ship. He mentions painting and varnishing the bulwarks during the voyage but he pays $28 passage for the trip back.

Wednesday 6 April 1870
Left the London Docks at 4 o’clock in the ship Liverpool bound for New York. Second mate had a fight with one of the seamen. Anchored off Graves End for the night.
Thursday 7th
Heaved anchor in the morning at 3 in the morning and then dropped anchor off Sheerness about 9 am. Weighed about 3 o’clock. Very calm for the Channel Pilot.
Friday
Very calm - could make no headway.
Saturday
Sighted Dungeness Lighthouse and Dover Castle. Almost run aground when the pilot was at breakfast. Good wind.
Sunday 10th
Most people sick myself and Bob not included
Monday 11th
Tuesday 12th                  very calm
Wednesday 13th 
Thursday 14th
Wind more favourable. Bill Portland. Didn’t bout ship but twice passed.
Friday (Good) 
Didn’t have any hot cross buns. Passed the Marie & Joseph about 6 pm evening. No bout shipping.
Saturday 16 April
Wind fair going three knots. Made a devil of a row about 10 pm - crowing bellowing.
Sunday
Fair wind going five knots an hour. Pat the Irishman very bad. Going 7 knots in the evening.
Monday
Eastern wind still fair. Walker & Hearn had a fight and also the cook and the Spurgeon.
Tuesday 19
Dead calm in the morning with the heavy swell wind rose about 11 o’clock. Heavy seas. Carpenter caught a swallow rung under reefed topsails about 10 at night.
Wednesday 20th
Wind fresh. Good sea. Most passengers sick. Pig killed by one of the passengers. Spoke a vessel homeward bound.
Thursday 21st
Caught in a squall early in the morning. Tore the gib to bits. Main topsail heave seas running headwind. Stayed up all night. Very nigh running under close reefed topsails and gib.
Friday
Wind aft in the morning. Calm in the evening with a heavy rolling sea. Pat Sullivan taking very bad in the evening. His nose bled. Turned in and slept round.
Saturday 23
No wind dead calm with the swell on sighted a ship in the morning and kept sight of her all day from 6 in the evening.
Sunday the 24th
Sam Cooke had a clean shave. Bought some dripping. Going very slowly
Monday
Very calm. EB’s birthday
Tuesday 26th
Better wind - favorable
Wednesday 27
Wind aft. Sighted a ship
Thursday
Passed between 40 and 50 vessels. Spoke to five or six of them. Off Western Isles. Wind on her quarter.
Friday 29
Wind favourable. Shipping good many seas. Saluted an American ship which had lost her top gallant foremast in Latitude 32’ 36. Main sail split.
Saturday 30th
Caught in a squall early in the morning. Heavy rain. Shipped a good deal of sea. Raining hard all day.
May 1, 1870 Sunday
Wind almost dead ahead. Making very little headway. Very fine day.
Monday 2nd
Bought a knife off Chipps for 2/-. Nice wind but got around to the head about 10 o’clock in the night.
Tuesday 3rd
Foul wind. Bob bought a knife off Chipps for 4/- Ship rolled heavily. Sent five or six under the bulwarks - myself one.
Wednesday 4th
Wind about the same. Ship rolling heavily. Sighted a ship about 1/2 past 6 in the evening.
Thursday 5th
Wind about WSW. Skin & Grief had his neck lanced. Saw a steamer ahead up to 12 pm. Singing and larking.
Friday 6th
Headwind - making very little headway.
Saturday 7th
Fair Wind
Sunday 8th
Very rough in the morning. The roughest day we had up to present time. Almost calm in the evening. Ship in sight. Porpoises playing around her head. Also saw a whale spouting in the evening
Monday 9th
Almost dead calm. Foggy a deal of rain.
Tuesday 10th
Wind aft but very little. Saw two whale came close along side about midday. Had a nice breeze in the evening right aft
Wednesday 11th
Dead calm all day. Saw three blackfish whale.
Thursday 12th
Nice wind going seven knots 10 in the evening.
Friday 13th
Dead calm all day. Ship hove to nice wind spray up in the evening till about five k/hr in night.
Saturday 14th
Had a calm in morning till about 10 am. Freshening towards evening. 2 pts off our course about 800 miles from New York. Bought a plug of tobacco for 1/3 off Jack Welsh.
Sunday 15th
Made very good headway. Shipped a good many seas. Fine day.
Monday 16
Calm in morning. Wind aft about 10 am making good headway. Sighted a barque in the morning on weather bow
Tuesday 17
Barque in sight all day. Wind fair good breeze.
Wednesday 18
Barque still in the aft but gaining on us
Thursday 19
Balm in morning breeze sprang up gradually. Barque in our wake. Spoke a steamer about 11 am. Finished painting and varnishing bulwarks. 391 miles at 12 o’clock from New York.
Friday 20th
Had wind about ship at 3 am. Saw a Steamer and Schooner in the morning. 290 miles from Sandy Hook at 12 o’clock. 275 miles from Sandy Hook at 3 pm.
Saturday 21st
Dead calm 250 miles at 12 o’clock. Very foggy all day.
Sunday 22nd
Fine breeze up to about 12 o’clock when it died into a calm. Saw a steamer in the afternoon.
Monday 23rd
Pilot came on board about two in the morning. Several schooner and fishing boats around us. Sighted land 35 minutes past 5 in the evening. Had a fair wind and was carried up to Staten Island where we anchored.
Tuesday
Doctors inspecting who came on board about 9 o’clock morning. Tug boat came alongside and took all passengers to Castle Gardens. Took lodgings at 25 1/2 Washington Street. 1 dollar bed + three meals a day. Morgan’s people slept in second room. 
Wednesday 25th
Went to Eli Benedict at 41 Pier North River N.Y. where we changed our coin. Got our tickets for Buffalo. Started at 6 pm for Albany.
Thursday 26th
Arrived in Albany at 5 am started for Buffalo at 9 am.

** There is a gap in the entries here.  Many pages are written in pencil and have become illegible over the years.  Some pages  pages are numbered so I'll continue on page 24 after leaving off at 16.**

November 28, 1871
And thense to Mr. B.'s.  Had quite a little party in the evening.
November 29th
Bade farewell to Mrs. Bullock. Johnie drove us to Lakeview Depot where we proceeded on to Buffalo and took tickets for New York Harteda 4:20 PM.  After a delay of two hours delayed again at Rockville for an hour.
November 30
Got into New York soon after 9 am. Book passage by SS Spain for Liverpool for $28. Took lodgings in Washington Street and walked around the city for the rest of the day.
December 1
Went to Central Park in the forenoon and in the evening went to Bowery Theatre.  
Saturday 2nd
Got on the ship. Gangway drawn up soon after. Steamed up and started on our voyage. Fair wind in the afternoon but got ahead towards evening. Stopped about 9 pm for machinery inspection.
Sunday 3rd
Hot rolls for breakfast and coffee. Wind still ahead. Steamer ahead and one aft of us. Plum duff for dinner and salt junk.
Monday 4th
Fine day in the evening it began to blow as a matter of course. The passengers begin for spew. Got into a birth and slept.
Tuesday 5th
Pretty rough all day - very few passengers to the mess table. Rained nearly all day.
Wednesday 6th
Fine morning rained some frequently. Passed a steamer New York bound in the evening.
Thursday 
Dirty in the morning. Heavy swell - fair wind.
Friday 8th
Fine morning - wind ahead. Salt fish for dinner.
Saturday 9th
Fine day making good headway. Cleaned some cans for the Steward for a couple of coins.
Sunday the 10th 
Fine morning. Plum duff for dinner - making good headway 
Monday the 11th 
Sighted huge pile of rock along headland. Kept out of land the rest of the day.  Steamer came off about 5 pm and took all passengers for Queensland.

View of mountains on the Coast of Ireland on a Voyage from N. York to Queenstown & L'Pool seen on morning of 11th of December 1871 making the 9th day out. 

Tuesday the 12th 
Arrived at Liverpool about 11 am. Landed about 12. Passed the customs - walked around town some and then took lodgings. Went by Alexandra Theatre in the evening saw The Windmill and Notre Dame acted - very good. Had a glass of hot Brandy and water. The first I had in 20 months.Went home and to bed.
Wednesday 13 
Took the cars for London at 7:20 am. Arrived in London about 2:30 and took a cab from Easton.  Left Bob at his house and onto 88 Hill St. where my journey ended for a spell.