Fisherman's Wharf in San Francisco City and County, California — The American West (Pacific Coastal)
Schooner C.A. Thayer
Photographed By Barry Swackhamer, March 4, 2017
1. Schooner C.A. Thayer Marker
Caption: (main photo) The Thayer sets out for Pete Nelson's Bristol Bay salmon station in 1912 carrying and workers supplies for the season.; (map, bottom right) The principal lumber ports on the West Coast.
Thayer was one of 123 three-masted schooners built on the West Coast for the lumber trade. From 1895 until 1912 she sailed with lumber cargoes from the Pacific Northwest to California ports.
She was then purchased by "Whitehead Pete" Nelson, owner of a salmon salting station in Alaska. Thayer made yearly trips from San Francisco Bay to Bristol Bay with men and supplies, returning with barreled salmon.
In 1925 Thayer became a cod fisherman, sailing from Washington and fishing in the Bering Sea. Her final trip, in 1950, was the last commercial voyage by a West Coast sailing vessel.
BASIC FACTS:
Built: 1895, Fairhaven, Humboldt Bay, California
Builder: Hans Bendixson Shipyard.
Length on Deck - 156 feet
Beam - 36 feet
Draft - 11 feet
Gross Tonnage - 453
Erected by U.S. Department of the Interior. National Park Service, San Francisco Maritime National Historic Park.
Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Industry & Commerce • Waterways & Vessels. A significant historical year for this entry is 1895.
Location.
this page online
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker. Hyde Street Pier Was Part of Highway 101 (a few steps from this marker); Highway 101 (within shouting distance of this marker); Paddle Tug Eppleton Hall (within shouting distance of this marker); Ship Balclutha (within shouting distance of this marker); The Cathead... (within shouting distance of this marker); The Forecastle... (within shouting distance of this marker); Why Here? (about 300 feet away, measured in a direct line); Steam Tug Hercules (about 300 feet away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in San Francisco.
Also see . . . C.A. Thayer History. ...She was named for Clarence A. Thayer, a partner in the San Francisco-based E.K. Wood Lumber Company.
Between 1895 and 1912, Thayer usually sailed from E.K. Wood's mill in Grays Harbor, Washington, to San Francisco. But she also carried lumber as far south as Mexico, and occasionally even ventured offshore to Hawaii and Fiji. (Submitted on March 7, 2017, by Barry Swackhamer of Brentwood, California.)
Photographed By Barry Swackhamer, March 4, 2017
2. Schooner C.A. Thayer and Marker
Additional keywords. Schooner C.A. Thayer
Photographed By Barry Swackhamer, March 4, 2017
3. Schooner C.A. Thayer
Photographed By Barry Swackhamer, March 4, 2017
4. Schooner C.A. Thayer
Photographed By Barry Swackhamer, March 4, 2017
5. Schooner C.A. Thayer
Photographed By Wikipedia
6. C.A. Thayer, launched November 12, 1895
Credits. This page was last revised on February 7, 2023. It was originally submitted on March 7, 2017, by Barry Swackhamer of Brentwood, California. This page has been viewed 320 times since then and 24 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6. submitted on March 7, 2017, by Barry Swackhamer of Brentwood, California.
