A Brief History Of The Greenock Steamship - 1920 Words

Appendix 5 A Brief History of the Greenock Steamship Company, the Gulf Line Association, and their Ships THE TOWN OF GREENOCK lies on the south banks of the River Clyde where it enters the Firth of Clyde. Historically it had largely been a fishing town, but the construction of a harbour in 1714 marked the be-ginning of its transformation into one of the key ports on the Clyde. Throughout the 18th and early 19th centuries, a large fleet of sailing ships came to call Greenock home. Greenock ships had distinguished themselves in the China tea trade, trade with the East Indies, Australia, and California, and in the conveyance of timber from the St Lawrence River in North America. Many of the town’s shipowners contented themselves in the†¦show more content†¦The advent of the screw propeller changed all of this and made steamers increasingly viable. Though she still bore sails, Archimedes was the world’s first screw-propelled steamship. Built in 1839 in Britain, she had considerable influence on the development of ships and shipping in the years to come. Despite the advances in steam technology, however, sailing ships continued to dominate the world’s oceans for many years to come. Unlike steamers they did not depend on the availability of coal and were simply much cheaper to run. This was particularly evident in voyages to the Far East, reached from Europe via the Cape of Good Hope at Africa’s south-ern tip and from America across the Indian Ocean. This changed in 1869 with the opening of the Suez Canal. As a result of this, the Far East and Australia were opened up to steamers bearing passengers and mail from the Europe. But the effects of such developments were not immediate. The continued dominance of sail was obvious nowhere better than in Greenock. When the Suez Canal opened in 1869, only seven of the 182 or so Greenock-registered ships listed in that year’s Post Officer Directory were steamers. In the subsequent years, the registration of additional sail-ing ships by Greenock shipowners consistently outnumbered the addition of new steamers. One such syndicate of shipowners was William Lindsay and Com-pany. The company had long been involvedShow MoreRelated The Importance and History of the Steam Engine Essay3541 Words   |  15 Pagesover all power of about fifteen horsepower in 1760. However, Newcomen is unfortunately overshadowed by the well known James Watt. Beginning in 1765, Watt was incorrectly labeled the inventor of the steam engine. James Watt was born in Greenock, Scotland. Around 1769, he was assigned the task of repairing a Newcomen engine that was deemed inefficient. The Newcomen engine however was the best engine available at the time. Watt eventually added a separate condenser to Newcomens engineRead MoreSteam Engine4823 Words   |  20 Pagesresides at the Henry Ford Museum in Dearborn, Michigan.     Ã‚  Ã‚   However, Newcomen is unfortunately overshadowed by the well known James Watt.   Beginning in 1765, Watt was incorrectly labeled the inventor of the steam engine.   James Watt was born in Greenock, Scotland.   Around 1769, he was assigned the task of repairing a Newcomen engine that was deemed inefficient.   The Newcomen engine however was the best engine available at the time.   Watt eventually added a separate condenser to Newcomens engine