Author:
Title: Details of the Engines for the U.S. Steam Frigate Niagara
Description: 1859. This engraving measures approximately 22 x 28 inches (in the frame). There is a vertical crease mark, but otherwise the engraving is in excellent condition. It is marked as Plate XXXI and is dated at the bottom as being entered in 1859 in the Clerk's Office, of the District Court of the Southern Distict of New York. Ill.: engraving. The engraving is presently framed under glass but could be removed from the frame and shipped rolled in a tube. The USS Niagara was a screw-driven steam frigate in the United States Navy. It was launched in New York City in February, 1855, and sailed from that city in November, 1857, bound for Gravesend, England, where it was to be fitted out for laying the first transatlantic telegraph cable. The first attempt was unsuccessful and the Niagara returned to New York City to prepare for a second attempt the following year. This second attempt was successful, the Niagara meeting up mid-ocean with the British cable-laying ship HMS Agamemnon, where the cable ends were spliced and, on August 16, 1858, the first telegraph message was sent by Her Majesty, Queen Victoria, to U.S. President James Buchanan. The Niagara then played a role in interdicting the slave trade, and in the ensuing American Civil War, where she served commendably. After the war, she was sent to the Boston Navy Yard for decommissioning, from where she was sold in 1885.

Keywords: Telegraphy;Transatlantic cable;Nautical;American history;Civil War;Slave trade;;; engraving


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