Clipper Ship GREAT REPUBLIC, 1853
Lloyd McCaffery has challenged his own exceptional ship-building skills with this miniature masterpiece, one of the most famous of all the clipperships…the GREAT REPUBLIC was built by Donald McKay in East Boston in 1853, she was by far the largest of all the clipperships, measuring 335’ x 53’ molded beam! This vessel is one of the most famous of all the clipperships built by Donald McKay. She had a steady career after the tragedy of being burned on the night of her departure for her maiden voyage. This is a bold project, tragedy, and recovery: all the makings of a 19th century novel, except this is a true story. McCaffery chose the scale of 16’=1”, or 1:192, this ship model is scratch-built of Boxwood, and measures only 21" long!
After half a century of model building and carving in miniature, Lloyd McCaffery is selecting his projects with great care. Lloyd began contemplating building this model in 1980 after reading a 1951 article written for the National Research Journal by America’s preeminent Naval Architect/Historian and Smithsonian Museum Curator Howard Chappelle (1901-1973), entitled “Ship Models that Ought to be Built.” In Chapelle’s article, he discusses the GREAT REPUBLIC,
“Where there are ship models, there are usually Clippers…. but anyone interested knows that in nearly all available plans of Clippers, there is far too little detail. And upon research being made, it is found that Clippers appear to be the one damned mystery after another.” One of the most complex plans of clipperships is the set showing the GREAT REPUBLIC. This set, published and discussed in great detail in Duncan McLean's 1953 30-page pamphlet titled: “Description of the Largest Ship in the World, The New Clipper GREAT REPUBLIC, of Boston. Designed, Built, and Owned By Donald McKay.”
For a ship modeler of Lloyd's caliber, this historical information was pure gold. Lloyd speaks about this in his own words: “When I started learning about clipperships over 60 years ago, this ship stood out to me. When I read Chappelle's article back in the 1980s, I resolved to collect all the materials I could find, with the aim of recreating a constructional model of her to serve as a teaching model for a school or museum. This model, built in 2025-2026, is the summation of that effort.”
Each and every part of the model was handmade by Lloyd. The keel assembly frames and deck beams are made of light and dark Applewood. The hull and deck planking, caprail, stantons, hawksbill moldings, and strapping, are made of Lilac wood (syringa Vullgaris). The chains are made of Nichrome wire. The masts are constructed of Lemon wood (Degama). The carvings and figures are made of Bass wood and some gilded with 24-carat gold.
The model is built to a scale of 16’= 1,” or 1:192. The hull measures 21” long x 2 1/2" wide x 4 1/2" high. It is mounted on two Hawthorne pedestals then on an Applewood plinth and Applewood veneer base, encased the model measures 27” long, 11” wide, and 13 ½” high. SOLD
