Jackie.......... In 1870's what became known as "Overland Mail Service" was instigated in the US. The rail had opened across America which meant that international travellers from the eastern States of Amercia - and even England - did not have to tavel down the length of America and across below Africa to reach Australia. The mail was sent from London via this route. This had the effect of shortening the sea voyage to 4 weeks to Sydney. Doubt it from England. My gg wrote in a letter to the east coast of US that the last letter he had received from Massachusetts had taken only 4 weeks. This was via San Fran. and was 1903. I dont know about the England bit for sure, can't imagine why crossing the Atlantic then the US then the Pacific was more appealing than going down the Atlantic across the INdian Ocean to Australia. Thanks for the route to San Fran Jacqui Denise ----- Original Message ----- From: "G & J Cunningham" <[email protected]> To: <[email protected]> Sent: Sunday, November 11, 2001 3:57 PM Subject: Re: [A.G.R. ] Shipping 1800's > > To anyone's knowledge did steamers from San Francisco go to Melbourne > during the latter half of the 1800s. I know they went at least as far as > Sydney and via New Zealand. > > > > I would be interested also if any one knows of a website which shows their > route to Australia. Did they go to Hawaii, Fiji as well as NZealand? > > > Hi Denise, > I've just started to index an Argus from 1879. In the shipping columns there > is an add for the overland route to London. It goes from Sydney, via > Auckland, Honolulu, then San Francisco. Then they went overland somehow, it > does not say how. The ship was the City of Sydney and it was under contract > with the N.S.W. Government and the N.Z. Government for the mails. > It is the only one advertising for San Francisco. > Hope this helps. > Cheers > Jacqui Cunningham > Central Victoria > http://www.oldnewscopy.com "It's Old News!" > > > ==== AUSSIE-GEN-RESEARCH Mailing List ==== > Have you visited AUSSIE-GEN-RESEARCH Web site yet? > Please do? And do sign our visitors book? > http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.com/~ausgenres/ > ==================================================== > Virus warnings are not to be sent to the List! > ************************************************************************ > Ancestry.com Genealogical Databases > http://www.ancestry.com/rd/rwlist2.asp > Search over 2500 databases with one easy query! > > ============================== > Search over 1 Billion names at Ancestry.com! > http://www.ancestry.com/rd/rwlist1.asp > >