Macondray, William A.

Journal of a Voyage to California Via Chagres, June 30, 1849. Aboard the steamer "Crescent City" from Panama to San Francisco, 30 June– 18 August 1849



Autograph manuscript signed ("William A. Macondray"), 19 pages (10 1/2 x 8 1/8 in.; 266 x 205 mm); formerly folded, a few stains. Red half-morocco clamshell box, gilt-stamped title on spine, typed transcript laid in.

William A. Macondray came to San Francisco to establish, in association with his father, Frederick William Macondray (1803–1862),  and his brother Frederick, the commission house of Macondray & Co. in August 1849, a company which became known for its activities in the China trade. Frederick William, whose family came from Boston, was an old China hand, having spent eight years in Macao as receiving manager for ships loading tea in the Pearl River.

This is his son's journal of the voyage from New York by way of Panama, and reads like the account of a privileged teenager not accustomed to hardship. (He may have travelled with his father and with James Otis, but they are not mentioned in the journal.)  In Chagres (the Atlantic port of Panama, July 11): This morning when we and the rest of our party were ready to start ... all our boatmen refused duty, here was trouble directly, and many of our passengers who considered themselves greatly insulted were on the point of using their pistols or knives ... [July 12] We were glad to leave our uncomfortable quarters at one o'clock being aroused by our boatmen ... Having had a cup of Coffee without milk or sugar we jumped into our canoes and shoved off ... (after many adventures in Panama, they leave on the steamer Moll on 28 July for Guayaquil and Valparaiso) ... [August 5] I have quite recovered from my sickness. This morning I missed from my state room my beautiful pocket bible presented me by my aunt before leaving home and am under the impression that it was stolen from my room as the door was generally left open during the day ... [August 18] Arrived off the Bay of Monterey ... and we were on again at 6 o'clock ... [to] San Francisco. We ran close along the shore the whole way, the coast here is entirely bare of trees and shrubbery but is very bold and mountainous ... entered the harbor at 3 PM ... after getting on shore we were immediately surrounded to know what the news were and if we had any newspapers for which we [were] offered five dollars each. One of the passengers who came well supplied with them sold them all from one to two dollars a piece. We procured lodgings after a good deal of search, for which we payed the enormous sum of thirty dollars a week ..."