Loch Lomond Steamboats in Mid-Victorian Years

on Jun 1, 2023

A previous article details the development of the Lochlomond Steam-boat Company to 1855. At that time, the Company had two steamers, Prince Albert, built in 1850, with a flush deck, and Queen Victoria, built in 1852 to incorporate the engines of the old Waterwitch. She had a raised quarter-deck that gave her better saloon accommodation. On the Loch itself, there were piers at all the calling places. The route ran from Balloch to the Inverarnan Canal, where connections with coaches to Perthshire and the north were made. At Tarbert, there were coach connections to Inveraray, Oban and the west, and to Arrochar where the Dumbarton steamers called to provide a circular tour from Glasgow. At Inversnaid, there were connections with the Trossachs tour and Loch Katrine. That year, a consortium of interested hotel proprietors and the Lochlomond Company shared the cost of a new steamer, Rob Roy,...

Firth of Clyde Steam Packet Co. Ltd.

on Jan 15, 2017

The history of the steamer Ivanhoe has featured in earlier articles, up to the point when she was laid up in 1906 by the Caledonian Steam Packet Co. Ltd. As the new century progressed, the pollution that characterized the upper Clyde began to be ameliorated and there was renewed interest in sailing from the heart of Glasgow. Shipyards on the Clyde were also experiencing full order books and sailing “doon the water” allowed the denizens of the city to see the latest developments that would make the Clyde known throughout the world. It was to accommodate this need that Captain Cameron brought out the Meg Merrilies and the Lady Rowena, and in 1911, the Ivanhoe was brought out of retirement. Ivanhoe in her 1911 color scheme The Firth of Clyde Steam Packet Co. Ltd. was registered on 16th February 1911 with a nominal capital of £6,000 and purchased, for £4,000 from the Caledonian...

North British Steamers

on Feb 28, 2016

The North British Railway Company had taken over the Helensburgh Railway in July 1866, a subsidiary, the North British Steam Packet Co., formed to run steamer services with their new well-appointed saloon steamers Meg Merrilies and Dandie Dinmont, immediately pressured the Helensburgh authorities for improved steamboat accommodation and a railway connection with the pier. The failure of this initial venture to attract a greater portion of the coast trade with steamers so obviously superior to those on other routes with the exception of the Iona must have been a tremendous blow to those involved. At the end of the season, Meg Merrilies and Dandie Dinmont were laid up in Bowling and offered for sale. The former was sold in 1868 to Turkish owners. Meg Merrilies Dandie Dinmont was moved to the Forth and tried on ferry services there. Her deck space was unsuitable for the requirements of...

Captain Alexander William Cameron

on Aug 8, 2015

The worsening economic climate in the early Edwardian years had its impact on the Clyde coast traffic. In 1907, the two south-bank railway companies, the Caledonian and Glasgow and South-western, entered into a pooling arrangement to rationalize some services and avoid costly duplication and in the next few years, a number of steamers were laid up and sold. Among these were the Vulcan and Viceroy of the Glasgow and Southwestern Co. and Marchioness of Bute, Ivanhoe and Madge Wildfire of the Caledonian. Madge Wildfire, surplus to requirements was purchased on 8th April 1911 by Captain A. W. Cameron, a retired ship captain residing in Dumbarton, for £3,500. A week later, he transferred ownership to The Vale of Clyde Steam Packet Co. Ltd, a private company that was registered on 13th April 1911. Captain Cameron was anxious to take advantage of the resurgence in popularity of sailings from...