Lot Essay
Built by Richardson at Stockton in 1892, the steel four-masted barque The Highfields was the last sailing ship owned by the famous Liverpool shipping auctioneers C.W. Kellock & Co. Registered at 2,280 tons and measuring 291½ feet in length with a 42 foot beam, she was a splendid ship from the start with her maiden voyage from Liverpool to Calcutta in 83 days the fastest India run of the year. Sold to MacVicar Marshall within a few years, she was lost in Table Bay in August 1902 whilst on passage from Cardiff to Capetown carrying coal. Damaged by bad weather, she collided with the German steamer Kaiser and sank with the loss of the master and 22 crew.