The Marco Polo was a clipper ship that made a record passage in 1852 from Britain to Australia and back in five months and 21 days, unheard of at that time. She brought fame to her skipper, Captain James Nicol “Bully” Forbes, and her owners, James Baines and partners of the Black Ball Line, the first scheduled transatlantic passenger service.
For Maritimers, the Marco Polo would be simply another chapter in the story of sailing vessels of the latter half of the 19th century were it not for two significant details. She was built in Saint John, N.B., and, after sailing for three decades, she ended her days wrecked at Cavendish, P.E.I.