Built by the eminent New York shipwright William Webb in 1853, the Clipper YOUNG AMERICA was known to be a stout ship in heavy weather. In this view Buttersworth shows the vessel rising on the crest of an enormous wave as she rides out a howling storm, with only a storm jib set to give steerage way. At the base of the mainmast her crew is shown laboring to control the main topsail, which has flown loose from its spar.

A flash of lightning from Buttersworth’s trademark gap in the clouds illuminates the vessel while the surrounding sea and sky remain in shadow, exaggerating the light and dark colors into a polished and dramatic effect. Buttersworth’s sense of wind and weather creates a selective realism bringing the scene to life, with the vessel heeled against the elements to reveal her deck layout and the drama of the crew struggling at the mainmast.

The 1,961-ton YOUNG AMERICA, measuring 243 feet long with a 43 foot beam, was the most successful of Webb’s designs. Popular with shipping merchants for her fast passages, she commanded top rates, often double what lesser ships earned. She was in steady service around Cape Horn for thirty years before she went missing in the North Atlantic in 1886. This portrait is an important record of one of the world’s greatest clippers in her prime.