Eleanor Creesy Graces the Nor'easter Label
Eoin Vincent
A few weeks ago I asked, "Should I create this new logo or stick with the old?" The new one won, by more than half. With that, I'm excited to finally share the new label for our Nor'easter coffee – one that's been brewing in my head since I first launched this coffee.
The artwork is based on a sketch my uncle Peter Vincent created of Eleanor Creesy for a Hallmark book project that also included a limited edition etching called "All Possible Sails Set", the detail above image. The sketch Peter did shows Eleanor with her sextant – the perfect representation of this remarkable woman who literally changed the course of maritime history.
Eleanor Creesy was the navigator of the clipper ship Flying Cloud, and she set a world record that stood for 138 years. Born in Marblehead Massachusetts in 1814, she learned navigation mathematics from her father, a master mariner, when she was young girl.
In 1851, Eleanor and her husband Captain Josiah Creesy took on an ambitious challenge: break the sailing record from New York to San Francisco. The typical route around Cape Horn took at least 100 days, but Eleanor had been studying Lt. Matthew Fontaine Maury's revolutionary Wind and Current Charts – she was among the first navigators to use his recommended route around Patagonia.
Flying Cloud was built right here in East Boston – a ship so impressive that while still under construction, she was purchased for $90,000 (about $2.6 million today). A Boston Daily Atlas reporter marveled at her dimensions: 235 feet long, 41 feet wide, built for speed with her sharp ends and extreme design.
Flying Cloud left New York on June 2, 1851, carrying $50,000 worth of California gold rush cargo. Eleanor's daily calculations were complex mathematical work that took hours to complete. The first time she completed her work, she couldn't believe her results – the ship had traveled almost 300 miles in 24 hours. She rechecked her work twice. No errors. Few ships had ever sailed that fast.
On August 31, 1851, Eleanor navigated Flying Cloud into San Francisco Bay in just 89 days and 21 hours – smashing the previous record by more than 11 days. Two years later, they beat their own record by 13 hours. That record wasn't broken until 1989.
Eleanor represents everything I love about our New England maritime heritage, skill, determination, and the courage to chart new courses. She reminds us that sometimes the best experiences come from unexpected challenges, whether you're navigating around Cape Horn or brewing the perfect cup of coffee.
The Nor'easter single origin coffee from Papua New Guinea, with Eleanor watching over it, feels like the right tribute to a woman who proved that with the right knowledge and tools, you can accomplish extraordinary things.