Caledonian and Southwestern Advances

By on Aug 28, 2016 in Atalanta, Caledonian Steam Packet Co. Ltd., Clyde River and Firth, Duchess of Argyll, Duchess of Fife, Duchess of Hamilton, Duchess of Montrose, Duchess of Rothesay, Galatea, Glasgow & Southwestern Railway Co. Ltd., Glen Rosa, Glen Sannox, Ivanhoe, Juno, Jupiter, Kylemore, Madge Wildfire, Marchioness of Breadalbane, Marchioness of Bute, Marchioness of Lorne, Mars, Meg Merrilies, Mercury, Minerva, Neptune, Sultana, Viceroy, Vulcan | 0 comments

Minerva Meg Merrilies racing

By 1894, the resurgence of the Glasgow & Southwestern Railway connections had eclipsed the efforts of the Caledonian Steam Packet Co. at Gourock to dominate the Clyde Coast trade. A new station edifice at Princes Pier was nearing completion and the fleet of modern steamers, well designed for the routes that they supported, were quickly supplanting the steamers initially purchased from the Turkish Fleet. That year, Neptune was placed on the popular Arran by way of Rothesay service from Princes Pier, taking over the route from Buchanan’s Isle of Arran. By sailing on the outward leg through the Kyles and returning by Garroch Head, she was in direct opposition to James Williamson’s Ivanhoe. The route also provided a circular tour to Arran where passengers could return by the Glen Sannox to Ardrossan.

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Neptune in Rothesay Bay (McGregor, Kilmarnock)

Early in the year, Captain James Williamson, Marine Superintendent of the Caledonian Steam Packet Co., and owner of the Ivanhoe, had sent the vessel to run excursions on the newly opened Manchester Ship Canal. The Ivanhoe, run on teetotal principles, experienced a serious decline in patronage over the subsequent years and Captain James sought a solution. He went to his directors with a request for two new steamers and received permission to add one.

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Ivanhoe on Barton Aqueduct on the Manchester Ship Canal

The new steamer, Duchess of Rothesay, was launched from the yard of Messrs J. & G. Thomson Ltd., at Clydebank on April 20, 1895. At 226 ft long, she was shorter that Duchess of Hamilton, which she resembled, but she had full width saloons fore and aft, and she was faster, reaching over 18 knots on trials. Duchess of Rothesay entered the Rothesay rotation from Gourock and Wemyss Bay and was immediately popular.

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Duchess of Rothesay (Adamson)

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Duchess of Rothesay (Robertson)

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Duchess of Rothesay (Adamson)

The following year, the Glasgow & Southwestern also went to the Clydebank yard for the Jupiter, marginally longer than her Caledonian rival and plated to the bow like the Glen Sannox. She too was fast, reaching 18 knots on trials.

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Jupiter (Adamson)

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Jupiter (Nautical Photo Agency)

The new Jupiter replaced Neptune on the Arran by way of the Kyles service and allowed the latter to concentrate on excursions on the lower Firth including Girvan and Stranraer. For this work, Neptune had some of her saloon windows replaced by ports around the sponsons and so was readily distinguishable from her sister, Mercury.

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Jupiter at Brodick (Washington Wilson)

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Jupiter at Corrie

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Neptune with saloon windows replaced (Robertson, Glasgow)

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Neptune approaching Brodick on a calm day

The competition with Jupiter put paid to the viability of the Ivanhoe on the Arran excursion and in the new year, 1897, Ivanhoe was sold to the Caledonian Steam Packet Co., allowing the Duchess of Rothesay to oppose Jupiter on the Arran route. After modifications that included the installation of a bar into the teetotal steamer, the Ivanhoe took up ferry and excursion work from Gourock.

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Ivanhoe as a Caledonian steamer with white paddle-boxes on an excursion to Arrochar (F.S. Easton)

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Ivanhoe sharing Arrochar pier with Minerva and Lady Rowena (F.S. Easton)

The addition of the Jupiter to the Glasgow & Southwestern fleet meant that Sultana could be sold and she was quickly acquired by John Williamson as a valuable addition to his fleet of Rothesay steamers sailing from the Broomielaw. The Glasgow & Southwestern company also added a large paddle steamer, Juno, that had been building for a London company at the yard of the Clydebank Shipbuilding and Engineering Co. Ltd. The London company had solvency issues and the new steamer, almost as long as the Glen Sannox, fast, powerfully built, and plated to the bow, was purchased with the idea that she was ideal for excursion work on the lower Firth.

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Juno (Adamson)

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Juno, well filled (Robertson)

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Juno in Rothesay Bay (F.S. Easton)

Juno travelled far afield on her excursions.

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Juno reversing out of Troon Harbour

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Juno at Arrochar

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Juno at Girvan

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Juno leaving Stranraer

Around this time, the Caledonian’s Meg Merrilies was given new compound machinery and had a fore-saloon added to improve passenger accommodation to the same standard as the other vessels in the fleet.

Minerva Meg Merrilies racing

Minerva and Meg Merrilies racing off Innellan. The latter was fitted with a fore-saloon in 1898

Caledonian steamers Ivanhoe at Berth 3 and Meg Merrilies with her fore-saloon at Berth 1, Rothesay around 1900

The pace of improvements slowed into the first years of the new century. The advent of the Juno on the lower-firth excursions allowed Neptune to find new employment and the Chancellor, surplus to requirements, was put up for sale. She was sold to Spanish owners in 1901 and renamed Commercio. Viceroy, the only surviving member of the original fleet, remained on the Millport station.

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Commercio

For the Glasgow & Southwestern, the Rothesay station was maintained by Mercury and one of the smaller paddle steamers, Glen Rosa or Minerva. They sailed on to Port Bannatyne and to the Kyles of Bute piers.

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Mercury at Rothesay

Mercury Updated Bannatyne

Mercury approaching Port Bannatyne, advertised for a time as “Seal Bay” and a place to watch for seals.

In 1902, both the Caledonian and Glasgow & Southwestern added new tonnage. It is perhaps surprising that both new additions were paddle steamers. The pioneer turbine steamer, King Edward, had graced the Firth in the previous summer and was viewed as a great success. The time was not yet right for the addition of turbine steamers to the railway fleets. Both new paddle steamers came from the yard of Messrs John Brown & Co., Ltd., at Clydebank. For the Glasgow & Southwestern, the new steamer launched in March was named Mars. She was plated to the bow like Jupiter but, at 200 ft, was shorter and designed for ferry connection work, she attained a disappointing 16 knots on trials.

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Mars off Princes Pier

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Mars at Princes Pier

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Mars in Rothesay Bay

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Mars at Cove on Loch Long on the Holy Loch roster

The Caledonian contribution, Duchess of Montrose was a smaller version of the Duchess of Rothesay at 210 ft. She was well appointed, with full width saloons fore and aft, and was designed mainly for the all year round ferry services to Dunoon and Rothesay but spent her first season sailing on excursions. She was significantly slower than the other Duchess steamers, managing just over 16 knots on trials.

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Duchess of Montrose off Gourock

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Duchess of Montrose in Rothesay Bay

Meg Merrilies leaving Kirn in her last season

The introduction of Duchess of Montrose allowed disposal of the Meg Merrilies in 1902 but the Caledonian were not satisfied. The following year, they went to the Fairfield Shipbuilding and Engineering Co. Ltd., for a sister to the Duchess of Montrose. She was launched at the beginning of May and on trials reached 17¾ knots, to the great pleasure of her owners. Named Duchess of Fife, she became a firm favourite on the Rothesay station.

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Duchess of Fife (Robertson, Gourock)

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Duchess of Fife off Innellan

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Duchess of Fife in Rothesay Bay

At the same time, the oldest member of the Caledonian fleet, Madge Wildfire, was reboilered and equipped with new paddle-boxes of the standard design. The Caledonia was also reboilered and had her bridge moved forward of the funnel so that the fleet could now boast four useful ferry-class steamers that could be used all-year round.

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Madge Wildfire with her new paddle boxes (Murdoch, Gourock)

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Caledonia with her navigating bridge forward of the funnel

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Galatea at Rothesay with Marchioness of Bute, North British Guy Mannering and Mercury (Annan)

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Galatea in her heyday, cruising in Loch Riddon

The Galatea was also in need of reboilering, but she was less fortunate and was laid up until disposed of to Italian owners in 1906.

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Galatea in Italy

The Glasgow & Southwestern added new tonnage the following year for the Millport station. In 1897 Captain John Williamson had had a steamer built in 1897 for his Rothesay service but had sold the steamer off the stocks as Britannia, to owners on the South Coast of England.

Britannia (ex-Kylemore) before her return to the Clyde

In 1904, Williamson purchased the steamer and renamed her, Kylemore, her original name, but quickly sold her again to the railway company. Renamed Vulcan, she was a handy, if unostentatious vessel.

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Vulcan in Rothesay Bay

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Vulcan at Keppel Pier on Cumbrae

By 1905, the Caledonian Steam Packet Co. Ltd. had concluded that a turbine steamer would enable them to match the speed of the Glen Sannox and restore their dominance on the Arran station. They went to Messrs William Denny & Bros., who had been responsible for the two successful turbine steamers, King Edward and Queen Alexandra, built for the Turbine Syndicate in 1901 and 1902. They new turbine was named Duchess of Argyll, and she was launched on March 10, 1906. On trials in May, she achieved in excess of 21½ knots and quickly took up the Arran service from Ardrossan to Brodick, Lamlash and Whiting Bay. Like the other Duchess steamers in the fleet, the main deck forward was not plated in below the promenade deck than ran to the bow.

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Duchess of Argyll at Montgomerie Pier Ardrossan

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Duchess of Argyll approaching Brodick on a misty morning

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Duchess of Argyll approaching Whiting Bay with saloon windows winter-boarded

The Glasgow & Southwestern had approached Messrs John Brown & Co. Ltd., for a repeat of the steamer Mars. The shipyard was completing an order for the Transatlantic liner, Campania, for the Cunard Company, and had constructed a small turbine set to gain experience with the new technology. They offered to construct a turbine steamer and the Atalanta was constructed in the shadow of another order for the Cunard Company, the giant Lusitania. Atalanta was launched towards the end of April in 1906 and was markedly different from the Denny-built turbines with a single funnel and, at 210 feet in length, a much shorter hull. On trials in May, she achieved only 17½ knots, a disappointing performance that necessitated reboilering the following winter.

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Atalanta ready for launch next to Lusitania

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Atalanta (Robertson, Gourock)

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Atalanta entering Ardrossan Harbour

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Atalanta at Millport

The new vessels allowed Duchess of Hamilton and Glen Sannox to extend excursion sailings and they were to be found at some far-flung locations. However, the fleets had now reached their zenith. Grumblings at the expense from shareholders and a realization that the duplication of service led to prolonged negotiations on cooperation and limitations in the services. Ivanhoe was laid up at the end of the 1906 season.

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Glen Sannox at Rothesay

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Glen Sannox with a party from the YMCA Congress in 1913 on an excursion

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Glen Sannox on an excursion to Arrochar

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Duchess of Hamilton on an excursion to Arrochar

Duchess of Hamilton off Portincaple ferry (Clayton)

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Ivanhoe leaving Kilcreggan in 1906

Naturally, there was excess tonnage and the first to go was Viceroy, sold to the Mersey in 1907.

Viceroy off Dunoon towards the end of her career on the Clyde

The following year, Marchioness of Bute went to the Tay and Vulcan was purchased by Captain Williamson and renamed Kylemore.

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Marchioness of Bute on the Tay

With Vulcan sold, Glen Rosa took up the Millport roster (Valentine)

Mars and Marmion at Arrochar (McNeur & Bryden)

The Arran routes were perhaps the most affected by the cooperation. The Ardrossan station was initially operated by the Glasgow & Southwestern’s Atalanta and the new Duchess of Argyll was laid up. In 1910, she was briefly tried on the Stranraer to Larne sailings for which she had her main deck forward plated in and returned to the Arran station the following year.

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Duchess of Argyll plated to the bow and with fore-saloon windows converted to portholes

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Duchess of Argyll at King’s Cross ferry

Duchess of Argyll was not alone in receiving modifications to accommodate more stormy conditions. Neptune, which substituted for Juno on the open Firth excursions in the early and late season had her fore-saloon windows forward charged for portholes.

WR Neptune 1910

Neptune with forward plating (Robertson, Gourock)

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Neptune at Rothesay

In 1911, the veterans Ivanhoe and Madge Wildfire were sold for the up-river excursion trade. The Arran by way of the Kyles became the province of the Caledonian and in 1911, Duchess of Rothesay was supplanted by the Duchess of Argyll as the regular steamer on the route.

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Atalanta leaving Ardrossan with additional lifeboats

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Atalanta leaving Dunoon

The steamer services continued with little change over the next few years until the disruptions of the Great War. After the findings of the Titanic disaster inquiry were released, there were recommendations that additional lifeboats and life-saving equipment should be added to the steamers and this was quickly implemented.

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Juno with extra lifeboats leaving Tignabruaich

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