| Contextual Notes |
The PORTLAND was built at Bath, Maine, and entered service in 1885. She sold weapons, cannons and ammunition, to the Hippolyte Rebellion in Haiti while in service there, but was seized by the Legitime for doing so. The Legitime eventually released her, but tried to sink her by ramming. The PORTLAND was also used to smuggle opium and Chinese workers. After she sailed into Seattle with 1.5 short tons of gold, worth around $964,000, on July 17, 1897, the Klondike Gold Rush began. She was caught in ice on her way north on June 3, 1902, and feared lost, but arrived in St. Michael, Alaska, on July 12, 1902. Notes from Gordon Newell, ed., The H.W. McCurdy Marine History of the Pacific Northwest (Seattle: Superior Publishing Co, 1966). |
