The Steamers of John M‘Callum and Martin Orme

on Sep 30, 2016

For many years, sailings from Glasgow to the West Highland and Islands was carried out by the steamers of John M‘Callum & Co., and Martin Orme & Co. Perhaps the most famous was the Dunara Castle, owned by Martin Orme & Co. Built by the yard of Blackwood and Gordon at Port Glasgow in 1875, she originally sported two-funnels but was reboilered in 1894 and emerged with a single red colored funnel. She was 180 ft long. Sailing on a weekly roster that alternated with the Outer Hebrides on one week and the Inner Hebrides on the other, she was well liked on the service carrying both passengers and cargo. Dunara Castle Dunara Castle was popular for cruising and these would reach as far as the remote St. Kilda, and she took part in the evacuation of St. Kilda in 1930. Two-funneled Dunara Castle at Tarbert, Harris (Washington Wilson) Dunara Castle Dunara Castle at Lochskipport Dunara...

Caledonian and Southwestern Advances

on Aug 28, 2016

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. Neptune in Rothesay Bay (McGregor, Kilmarnock) Early in the year, Captain James...

Marchioness of Graham

on Jul 4, 2016

The Marchioness of Graham was launched on March 6, 1936 from the Govan yard of the Fairfield Shipbuilding and Engineering Co. Ltd. She was 220 ft long and 30 ft in the beam with a draught of 10 ft and her two screws were driven by four steam turbines. She was designed for the Arran route from Ardrossan where the turbine predecessor, Atalanta, that she replaced, had a long career. She was indeed similar to Atalanta with a single tall funnel and had significant deck space that would allow her to carry motor vehicles. Marchioness of Graham on trials with Fairfield flag on the main mast (Salmon) Marchioness of Graham on trials (Robertson) Marchioness of Graham on trials (Adamson) This is a photographic salute to the Marchioness of Graham. Her history was largely uneventful and was mainly of the Arran service though she was also popular on excursions. Marchioness of Graham in the Kyles of...

Up and Down Harbour Steamers

on Jun 22, 2016

The Clyde Navigation Trust obtained powers from Parliament in the late 1870s to run steamers up and down the river in the harbour area over which they had jurisdiction. These powers added to those that allowed the Trust to provide cross-river ferries at the various points, but were not immediately translated into action. At its meeting of January 7, 1879, the subject of contracting for boats for the service was deferred for at least a year while the Trust studied the issue in some detail, examining the feasibility of the project. At the meeting of August 5, the Ferries’ Committee was urged to take action to remedy the inconvenience of the workers engaged on the many engineering projects that were taking place in the harbour at that time. At the December 2 meeting, they considered an offer from Messrs Peter Denniston & Co., to run a service between Stockwell Street and the Kelvin...

Macbraynes on the Caledonian Canal

on Jun 10, 2016

Sailing on the Caledonian Canal dates from 1820 when travelers by Henry Bell’s Comet, sailing from Glasgow to Fort William, connected by coach at Fort Augustus with the Stirling Castle sailing on to Inverness on the partially completed canal. When the canal was finally opened in 1822, through services from Glasgow to Inverness were offered and continued in this manner for twenty years. On the centenary of the battle of Culloden, Messrs. Burns placed their new steamer Culloden, on the Inverness service from Glasgow through the Caledonian Canal. Culloden was built by Caird & Co., and at 149 tons, measured 145 ft long by 16½ ft broad. During the season, she was joined by the Shandon and the Dolphin to provide three sailings a week. The schedule was designed for tourists and involved long stops to view local highlights such as the Falls of Foyers. Local transport considerations were of...

Culzean Castle

on May 28, 2016

“The New Service to Campbeltown—Opening Cruise of Culzean Castle “On Saturday a new service to Campbeltown was inaugurated. In recent years this somewhat remote burgh has been comparatively neglected as a short holiday or week-end resort. No doubt this has been due largely to the want of adequate facilities, and if that be so, this drawback has been removed for the present at least, by the enterprise of the Glasgow and South-Western Railway Company and the Glasgow, Ayrshire, and Campbeltown Steamboat Company (Limited). The directors of these companies have just completed and put into force arrangements by which Campbeltown as well as Lochranza and the west side of Arran have been brought within the range of a day’s excursion from Glasgow. The steamboat company mentioned, which has been only recently formed, have been fortunate in securing Mr Clark as manager, and in acquiring a steamer...

Williamson’s Glasgow, Rothesay and Kyles of Bute Steamers

on May 25, 2016

The fortunes of the Turkish Fleet owned by Captain Alexander Williamson, Snr., were affected in negative fashion when the Caledonian Steam Packet Co. entered the steamer trade in 1899 and appointed Captain Williamson’s son, Captain James Williamson, as their Marine Superintendent. For a number of years, the Turkish Fleet had run railway connections for the Glasgow & Southwestern Railway and as part of their response to the Caledonian company in 1891, the Glasgow & Southwestern Railway purchased the steamers of the Turkish Fleet to form the nucleus for their service and appointed Captain James Williamson’s brother, Captain Alexander Williamson, Jnr., as their Marine Superintendent. Benmore Glasgow Herald, December 15, 1891 With the sale of his steamers, Captain Alexander Williamson, Snr., retired from business in 1891 and later that year, a third son, Captain John Williamson,...

Glasgow & Southwestern Railway Steamers

on May 15, 2016

The opening of the Gourock and Ardrossan routes by the Caledonian Railway and the associated steamer services had immediate impacts of the business of the Glasgow & Southwestern Railway and Captain Alexander Williamson who ran his steamboats in association with the railway at Greenock and Captain William Buchanan who provided the service from Ardrossan to Arran. New steamers at Craigendoran had also secured for the North British Railway, the bulk of the Arrochar traffic in connection with their Loch Lomond tours. Faced with these inroads in multiple fronts, the Glasgow & Southwestern Railway made application to Parliament to run its own steamboat service. The Bill was passed in August 1891 but it placed some restrictions on the Glasgow & Southwestern steamers, preventing them sailing to the Lochfyne and Kintyre ports, and the west coast of Arran. They also could not extend...

Caledonian Steam Packet Co. Ltd.

on May 7, 2016

The opening of Princes Pier in 1870 for the Greenock and Ayrshire Railway Co. had signaled a downturn on the coast traffic carried by the Caledonian Railway Co. to Greenock Central with its remote and inconvenient approach to Greenock Quay. The situation was exacerbated when the Greenock and Ayrshire was absorbed into the Glasgow and South Western Railway Co. in 1872. While most steamers called at both Greenock Piers, the bulk of the traffic used the South Western route and with fast steamers such as Messrs Williamson’s Sultana on the station, the express services could even compete on the Rothesay station with the shorter crossing from Wemyss Bay. A plan to extend the Caledonian Railway further down the coast to Gourock was floated in 1877 but the proposal was rejected after opposition from the Greenock Harbour Trust. The North British Steam Packet Co. route through Craigendoran...

Early Clyde Steamers V

on Apr 29, 2016

There were a number of changes to the Campbletown and Londonderry service during 1826. The owners of the Argyle and Britannia added a new vessel, Londonderry, in June. The concentration of the new Londonderry, Britannia and Argyle on Londonderry resulted in poorer service to Campbeltown and the resultant opportunities for other operators. The Londonderry was built by William Denny at Dumbarton and was 102 tons burther with a two-cyliner engine of 76 horse-power. “Regular conveyance for goods and passengers to Campbelton & Londonderry, three times a-week, the proprietors of the steam-boats Londonderry, Argyle & Britannia, having as formerly advertised, arranged to sail to these ports with goods and passengers three times a week, there will be a regular conveyance from this port to Londonderry every Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday, and to Campbelton every Saturday, Tuesday...