A massive paddle wheel steamship model of the SS California, scratch built by Tom Fordham (d. 2004), scale 1/4"+1', mounted in a glazed case, overall 37.5"h x 63"w x 19.25"d. Provenance: Ken Brown, Frank's Fisherman, San Francisco. Note: The California was built in 1848 by William Webb in New York for the Pacific Steamship Company. The specs were Length 199', Breadth 33'6", 1057 net tons. The California operated between San Francisco and Panama with U.S. Mail and passengers headed for the Gold Rush. The steamship shipwrecked off the coast of Peru in 1895. Tom Fordham's work can be found in numerous the museum collections. The National Maritime Museum in San Francisco relied on Tom to restore many of their antique ship models.

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