A Voyage To The New World

You'll be able to use more than your imagination to experience what it was like to make the journey from Ireland as an emigrant during the famine years.

A replica of the Jeanie Johnston, the ship on which many Irish sailed to North America in the mid-1800s, is slated to make several stops along the U.S. coast in 2001. The Early Show's Jon Frankel spoke with captain Michael Forwood.

The Jeanie Johnston became famous during the Ireland's great famine because it carried several thousand emigrants from Ireland to major ports in the United States and Canada.

Now about 150 years later, a full-size sailing replica of the vessel is expected to leave Tralee Bay, Ireland. The new ship, 145 feet long and 26 feet wide, will serve as a day-time museum.

"We're coming over here with 40 Irishmen, and we're intending to come with a very powerful message," Forwood said.

Lots of lives were lost in Ireland between 1840 and 1860 because of the famine.

"This was a very unique ship, and it was unique in that it was always sailed by the same captain and the same doctor," he said. "Together they formed a firm partnership over a period eight years."

The original ship held 200 passengers and 17 crew members. Despite cramped conditions, it never lost a passenger to disease or the sea.

"Yes, that's a unique, actually, experience for this ship. Many ships lost up to 25 percent of their crew and their passengers. It's quite extraordinary that this ship had such an impeccable record," Forwood said.

"Originally, it would have taken between five and six weeks, and occasionally seven weeks," the captain said of the voyage. "On this occasion, we'll take between four and five weeks.

"We are going to try to do some sailing with some Americans. We are going to introduce that crew into society here, as far as we can. And we're going to open the ship as...a real live museum," captain said.

The replica will stop in many ports frequented by the original vessel including New York, Baltimore, Trenton and Philadelphia.

Visitors will be able to travel back in time via an audio-visual display of the famine, the emigration and the Irish contribution to North America and Canada. Computers will facilitate research about the famine period, and visitors will also be able to learn about the building of the ship.