Ticonderoga was a 169 feet 4 masted clipper displacing 1,089 tons, launched in 1849 at Williamsburg, New York. The Ticonderoga was infamous for its "fever ship" voyage in 1852 from Liverpool to Port Phillip carrying 795 passengers, arriving on the 22nd December 1852. It was a double-decker ship, overcrowded, and with more than its recommended load. Many passengers were small children, as the restrictions on the number of children per family had been lifted. Most came from the Highlands of Scotland but there were other families from Somerset on board.