Macbrayne’s Second Mountaineer

on Feb 6, 2016

The Hero steamer was part of the purchase of William Buchanan when he took over the assets of Messrs Keith & Campbell in 1884. She did not remain long in the fleet, and was sold to owners on the Tay early in 1886. “River Steamboat Sale.—Yesterday the well-known river steamer Hero was sold to the River Tay Steamboat Company (Limited), of which Messrs Simpson & Dow are the managers. The Hero will in future be employed on the Tay, plying between Dundee and Perth as a passenger steamer, a trade for which she is admirably fitted, being both commodious and steady. Occasional trips will also be made down the Firth during the season. The Hero, which was built by Wingate at Whiteinch in 1868, was latterly owned by Captain William Buchanan. She was for years employed on the Glasgow and Arran station, and did her work most admirably. The Hero left the river yesterday for her destination...

Queen Elizabeth

on Jan 20, 2016

Construction of hull 552 at Messrs John Brown & Co. Ltd. in Clydebank was begun in the last month of 1936 on the same building berth left by her quasi-sister Queen Mary. She was 1031 feet long and 118 ft in the beam and at 83, 673 tons, was the larger of the two ships. Hull 552 early summer, 1938 Hull 552 early summer, 1938 Hull 552 before launch in 1938 The new ship attracted less attention than her more famous sister and was named, Queen Elizabeth, when launched by the new Queen on September 27, 1938. Queen Elizabeth afloat for the first time (Feilden) Anchor Line tug Paladin taking control (Feilden) Coming into the fitting-out berth (Feilden) With Paladin and Flying Eagle Fitting out ensued in John Brown’s basin but war was declared before she was completed and at the end of 1939, she was prepared to sail for New York and then Australia to complete her conversion for trooping...

Wemyss Bay

on Jan 15, 2016

At the half-yearly meeting of the Greenock and Wemyss Bay Railway Company on September 30, 1869, the Chairman remarked that the numbers of passengers using the route had dropped in the pervious period, as had passenger receipts but that he was pleased to report the arrangements had been completed with Captain Gillies and Mr Alexander Campbell to run services to Largs, Millport, and Rothesay, taking over from the Wemyss Bay Steamboat Company (Limited) which had withdrawn from the route. The opening of the Wemyss Bay Railway in 1865 running onto a new pier constructed in the shelter of Wemyss Bay promised a new fast route to Rothesay, Largs and Millport. Indeed the M‘Kellar fleet that had dominated the Largs, Millport and Arran trade for almost thirty years had received no new investment since the railway had been announced and quickly went out of business. Largs at Rothesay with Iona...

Buchanan Steamers

on Jan 3, 2016

The early years of Captain William Buchanan’s career as a steamboat owner on the Clyde have been documented in the articles dealing with W. F. Johnstone, Railways and Racing, and Early Arran Steamers. Captain Buchanan’s steamers carried a black funnel with a white band, a remnant of their origins with the Castle Company’s steamers. The hulls and paddle boxes where black providing a rather utilitarian look. The Eagle of 1864 is a good place to start the remainder of the story. From the yard of Messrs Charles Connell & Co., she was an impressive vessel with two funnels forward of her paddle boxes but her engines, by Messrs Henderson were too powerful for her hull and her early career involved many adjustments, including lengthening the hull by 16 feet in 1866. Eagle at the Broomielaw around 1866 (Annan) Nevertheless, the Eagle was a reliable steamer and earned...

Early Arran Steamers

on Dec 30, 2015

It was in 1834 that the Castle Company introduced a service from the Ayrshire coast to the Island of Arran. The veteran Inverary Castle sailed to Brodick from Troon where she connected with the horse-drawn railway from Kilmarnock. Ardrossan was included as a call in 1834 and the following year, Ardrossan was the Ayrshire terminus with a connecting coach from Kilmarnock. Although the Inverary Castle was described as extensively improved in both speed and comfort, she had been advertised for sale in the Spring, and was disposed of the following year when M‘Kellar’s Hero appeared on the route. The hull of the Hero was built by William Denny in Dumbarton in 1832 and her machinery was produced by Robert Napier. Duncan M‘Kellar added a larger and more successful vessel, the Victor, in 1836 so that Hero was available for the Arran service. Plan of the Glasgow, Paisley, Ardrossan and Ayr...

Queen Mary—534

on Dec 26, 2015

During the roaring twenties, with prohibition in the United States, the Transatlantic trade expanded rapidly. Cunard with Mauritania and the Clyde built Aquitania, were experiencing severe competition from White-Star, the French Compagnie Générale Transatlantique and German Norddeutscher Lloyd. The advent of the Bremen in 1929 demanded a response and while the French line laid down Normandie, and White-Star planned a new vessel, to be named Oceanic, Cunard planned to have its own vessel built on the Clyde. Yard number 534 The steamship with yard number 534 was laid down in John Brown’s yard in December 1930. Good progress was made with the construction of the hull but the project fell victim to the depression that followed the Wall Street crash. Work was suspended late in 1931 as the Cunard Company could not raise the capital to complete the ship. The partially completed hull lay...