The Wreck of the Steam Ship "San Francisco" Disabled on Her Voyage from New York to San Francisco, Dec. 24th, 1853 and in a Sinking Condition

Marine views and pictures of ships have long been popular with collectors. This particular print features a newsworthy disaster, which was described in a January 16, 1854 newspaper account: "The steamship San Francisco left New York on the 22nd of December, having on board the Third Regiment of the United States Artillery, as well as ...cabin passengers. On Saturday morning, Dec. 24, when about 200 miles east of Charleston [South Carolina], a violent [storm] sprang up, and the sea commenced running very high. For several hours the steamer stemmed the waves nobly…. About 12 o'clock that night, the engine stopped, and the vessel was left to the mercy of the waves. During the whole of that night, such of the cabin passengers as could be gathered together, assembled in the lower cabin, where, with Mr. Cooper, an Episcopal clergyman, they united in prayer to God for their preservation from the impending danger. The sea ran high all night…. At about 8 o'clock in the morning, she was struck amidships by a violent sea carrying the entire main saloon, the paddle-boxes and smoke-stacks overboard, which caused the hurricane deck to break in half and fall upon the cabin floor. …The horror of the moment cannot be described. [Passengers] were seen groping their way through the water to the upper deck. … We remained many hours upon the deck, the sea washing over us at every lurch of the vessel, and the cold northwest wind chilling us to the heart;... not less than 100 human beings [were] clinging to spars, doors, and such other fragments as they could obtain for the preservation of their lives, but the next wave sealed their fate, and they were hurried without a moment's notice into eternity." The long article describes other misfortunes before other ships came to the rescue. Of the approximately 700 people on board the San Francisco, about 200 were swept overboard; during the ensuing days, three passing ships --the Kilby (not mentioned in the title), the British ship Three Bells, and the Antarctic-- were able to aid the sinking ship and save many of the surviving passengers.

Nathaniel Currier, whose successful New York-based lithography firm began in 1835, produced thousands of hand-colored prints in various sizes that together create a vivid panorama of mid-to-late nineteenth century American life and its history. People eagerly acquired such lithographs featuring picturesque scenery, rural and city views, ships, railroads, portraits, hunting and fishing scenes, domestic life and numerous other subjects, as an inexpensive way to decorate their homes or business establishments. As the firm expanded, Nathaniel included his younger brother Charles in the business. In 1857, James Merritt Ives (the firm's accountant since 1852 and Charles's brother-in-law) was made a business partner; subsequently renamed Currier & Ives, the firm continued until 1907.