SS Great Britain
History | |
---|---|
United Kingdom | |
Name | Great Britain |
Owner | Great Western Steamship Company |
Port of registry | Bristol |
Builder | William Patterson |
Cost |
|
Laid down | July 1839 |
Launched | 19 July 1843 |
Completed | 1845 |
Maiden voyage | 26 July 1845 |
In service | 1845–1886 |
Homeport | Bristol, England 51°26′57″N 2°36′30″W / 51.4492°N 2.6084°W |
Status | Museum ship |
General characteristics | |
Type | Passenger steamship |
Displacement | 3,674 tons load draught |
Tons burthen | 3,443 bm |
Length | 322 ft (98 m) |
Beam | 50 ft 6 in (15.39 m) |
Draught | 16 ft (4.88 m)[1] |
Depth of hold | 32.5 ft (9.9 m) |
Installed power | 2 × twin 88-inch (220 cm) cylinder, bore, 6 ft (1.83 m) stroke, 500 hp (370 kW), 18 rpm inclined direct-acting steam engines |
Propulsion | Single screw propeller |
Sail plan |
|
Speed | 10 to 11 knots (19 to 20 km/h; 12 to 13 mph) |
Capacity |
|
Complement | 130 officers and crew (as completed) |
SS Great Britain is a
The ship is 322 ft (98 m) in length and has a 3,400-ton displacement. She was powered by two inclined two-cylinder engines of the direct-acting type, with twin cylinders 88 in (220 cm) bore, of 6-foot (1.8 m) stroke. She was also provided with secondary masts for sail power. The four decks provided accommodation for a crew of 120, plus 360 passengers who were provided with cabins, and dining and promenade saloons.
When launched in 1843, Great Britain was by far the largest vessel afloat.
In 1970, after Great Britain had been abandoned for 33 years, Sir Jack Arnold Hayward, OBE (1923–2015) paid for the vessel to be raised and repaired enough to be towed north through the Atlantic back to the United Kingdom, and returned to the Bristol dry dock where she had been built 127 years earlier. Hayward was a prominent businessman, developer, philanthropist and owner of the English football club Wolverhampton Wanderers. Now listed as part of the National Historic Fleet, Great Britain is a visitor attraction and museum ship in Bristol Harbour, with between 150,000 and 200,000 visitors annually.
Development
After the initial success of its first liner, SS Great Western of 1838, the Great Western Steamship Company collected materials for a sister ship, tentatively named City of New York.[3] The same engineering team that had collaborated so successfully on Great Western—Isambard Brunel, Thomas Guppy, Christopher Claxton and William Patterson—was again assembled. This time however, Brunel, whose reputation was at its height, came to assert overall control over the design of the ship—a state of affairs that would have far-reaching consequences for the company. Construction was carried out in a specially adapted dry dock in Bristol, England.[4]
Adoption of iron hull
Two chance encounters were profoundly to affect the design of Great Britain. In late 1838,
Great Britain's builders recognised a number of advantages of iron over the traditional wooden hull. Wood was becoming more expensive, while iron was getting cheaper. Iron hulls were not subject to dry rot or woodworm, and they were also lighter in weight and less bulky. The chief advantage of the iron hull was its much greater structural strength. The practical limit on the length of a wooden-hulled ship is about 300 feet (91 m), after which hogging—the flexing of the hull as waves pass beneath it—becomes too great. Iron hulls are far less subject to hogging so the potential size of an iron-hulled ship is much greater.[6] The ship's designers, led by Brunel, were initially cautious in the adaptation of their plans to iron-hulled technology. With each successive draft however, the ship grew ever larger and bolder in conception. By the fifth draft, the vessel had grown to 3,400 tons, over 1,000 tons larger than any ship then in existence.[7]
Adoption of screw propulsion
In early 1840, a second chance encounter occurred, the arrival of the revolutionary
Having satisfied himself as to the advantages of screw propulsion, Brunel wrote to the company directors to persuade them to embark on a second major design change, abandoning the paddlewheel engines (already half-constructed) for completely new engines suitable for powering a propeller.
Brunel listed the advantages of the screw propeller over the paddlewheel as follows:
- Screw propulsion machinery was lighter in weight, thus improving fuel economy;
- Screw propulsion machinery could be kept lower in the hull, lowering the ship's centre of gravity and making it more stable in heavy seas;
- By taking up less room, propeller engines would allow more cargo to be carried;
- Elimination of bulky paddle boxes would lessen resistance through the water, and also allow the ship to manoeuvre more easily in confined waterways;
- The depth of a paddlewheel is constantly changing, depending on the ship's cargo and the movement of waves, while a propeller stays fully submerged and at full efficiency at all times;
- Screw propulsion machinery was cheaper.[9]
Brunel's arguments proved persuasive, and in December 1840, the company agreed to adopt the new technology. The decision became a costly one, setting the ship's completion back by nine months.[9]
Reporting on the ship's arrival in New York, in its first issue Scientific American opined, "If there is any thing objectionable in the construction or machinery of this noble ship, it is the mode of propelling her by the screw propeller; and we should not be surprised if it should be, ere long, superseded by paddle wheels at the sides."[10]
Launch
The launching or, more accurately, the float-out took place on 19 July 1843. Conditions were generally favourable and diarists recorded that, after a dull start, the weather brightened with only a few intermittent showers. The atmosphere of the day can best be gauged from a report the following day in The Bristol Mirror:
Large crowds started to gather early in the day including many people who had travelled to Bristol to see the spectacle. There was a general atmosphere of anticipation as the Royal Emblem was unfurled. The processional route had been cleaned and Temple Street decorated with flags, banners, flowers and ribbons. Boys of the City School and girls of Red Maids were stationed in a neat orderly formation down the entire length of the Exchange. The route was a mass of colour and everybody was out on the streets as it was a public holiday. The atmosphere of gaiety even allowed thoughts to drift away from the problems of political dissension in London.[11]
Introductions were made, followed by the "Address to His Royal Highness the Prince Albert", by the town clerk, D. Burgess. Honours were then bestowed on him by the Society of Merchant Venturers, and there were speeches from members of the Bristol clergy. The royal party then had breakfast and, after 20 minutes, reappeared to board horse-drawn carriages.[11]
At noon, the Prince arrived at the Great Western Steamship yard only to find the ship already "launched" and waiting for royal inspection. He boarded the ship, took refreshments in the elegantly decorated lounge then commenced his tour of inspection. He was received in the ship's banqueting room where all the local dignitaries and their ladies were gathered.[11]
After the banquet and the toasts, he left for the naming ceremony. It had already been decided that the christening would be performed by Clarissa (1790–1868), wife of Philip John Miles (1773–1845) and mother of Bristol's MP, Philip William Skinner Miles (1816–1881), a director of the company.[13][14] She stepped forward, grasped the champagne bottle and swung it towards the bows. Unfortunately, the steam packet Avon had started to tow the ship into the harbour and the bottle fell about 10 feet (3.0 m) short of its target and dropped unbroken into the water. A second bottle was rapidly obtained and the Prince hurled it against the iron hull.[15]
In her haste, Avon had started her work before the shore warps had been released. The tow rope snapped and, due to the resultant delay, the Prince was obliged to return to the railway station and miss the end of the programme.[11]
Another extended delay
Following the launch ceremony, the builders had planned to have Great Britain towed to the
This dilemma was to result in another costly delay for the company, as Brunel's negotiations with the Bristol Dock Board dragged on for months. It was only through the intervention of the Board of Trade that the harbour authorities finally agreed to the lock modifications, which began in late 1844.[18]
After being trapped in the harbour for more than a year, Great Britain was, at last, floated out in December 1844, but not before causing more anxiety for her proprietors. After passing successfully through the first set of lock gates, she jammed on her passage through the second, which led to the
Description
General description
When completed in 1845, Great Britain was a revolutionary vessel—the first ship to combine an iron hull with screw propulsion, and at 322 ft (98 m) in length and with a 3,400-ton displacement, more than 100 ft (30 m) longer and 1,000 tons larger than any ship previously built. Her
Like other steamships of the era, Great Britain was provided with secondary sail power, consisting of one
The hull and single funnel amidships were both finished in black paint, with a single white stripe running the length of the hull highlighting a row of false gunports. The hull was flat-bottomed, with no external keel, and with bulges low on each side amidships which continued toward the stern in an unusual implementation of tumblehome—a result of the late decision to install propeller engines, which were wider at the base than the originally planned paddlewheel engines.[22]
Brunel, anxious to ensure the avoidance of
Machinery
Two giant propeller engines, with a combined weight of 340 tons, were installed amidships.[25] They were built to a modified patent of Brunel's father Marc. The engines, which rose from the keel through the three lower decks to a height just below the main deck, were of the direct-acting type, with twin 88 in (220 cm) bore, 6-foot (1.8 m) stroke cylinders inclined upward at a 60° angle, capable of developing a total of 1,000 horsepower (750 kW) at 18 rpm.[23][26] Steam power was provided by three 34-foot (10 m) long by 22-foot (6.7 m) high by 10-foot (3.0 m) wide, 5 psi (34 kPa) "square" saltwater boilers, forward of the engines, with eight furnaces each – four at each end.[a]
In considering the gearing arrangement, Brunel had no precedent to serve as a guide. The gearing for Archimedes, of the spur-and-pinion type, had proven almost unbearably noisy, and would not be suitable for a passenger ship.[29] Brunel's solution was to install a chain drive. On the crankshaft between Great Britain's two engines, he installed an 18-foot (5.5 m) diameter primary gearwheel,[30] which, by means of a set of four massive inverted-tooth or "silent" chains, operated the smaller secondary gear near the keel, which turned the propeller shaft. This was the first commercial use of silent chain technology, and the individual silent chains installed in Great Britain are thought to have been the largest ever constructed.[31]
Great Britain's main propeller shaft, built by the Mersey Iron Works, was the largest single piece of machinery. 68 ft (21 m) long and 28 inches (71 cm) in diameter, the shaft was bored with a 10-inch (25 cm) diameter hole, reducing its weight and allowing cold water to be pumped through to reduce heat. At each end of the main propeller shaft were two secondary coupling shafts: a 28-foot (8.5 m), 16-inch (41 cm) diameter shaft beneath the engine, and a screw shaft of 25 ft (7.6 m) in length and with a diameter of 16 inches (41 cm) at the stern. Total length of the three shafts was 130 ft (40 m), and the total weight 38 tons.[25] The shaft was geared upward at a ratio of 1 to 3, so that at the engines' normal operating speed of 18 rpm, the propeller turned at a speed of 54 rpm.[31] The initial propeller was a six-bladed "windmill" model of Brunel's own design,[32] 16 ft (4.9 m) in diameter and with pitch of 25 ft (7.6 m).[33]
Interior
The interior was divided into three decks, the upper two for passengers and the lower for cargo. The two passenger decks were divided into forward and aft compartments, separated by the engines and boiler amidships.[34]
In the aft section of the ship, the upper passenger deck contained the after or principal saloon, 110 ft (34 m) long by 48 ft (15 m) wide, which ran from just aft of the engine room to the stern. On each side of the saloon were corridors leading to 22 individual passenger berths, arranged two deep, a total of 44 berths for the saloon as a whole. The forward part of the saloon, nearest the engine room, contained two 17-by-14-foot (5.2 m × 4.3 m) ladies' boudoirs or private sitting rooms, which could be accessed without entering the saloon from the 12 nearest passenger berths, reserved for women. The opposite end of the saloon opened onto the stern windows. Broad iron staircases at both ends of the saloon ran to the main deck above and the dining saloon below. The saloon was painted in "delicate tints", furnished along its length with fixed chairs of oak, and supported by 12 decorated pillars.[35]
Beneath the after saloon was the main or dining saloon, 98 ft 6 in (30.02 m) long by 30 ft (9.1 m) wide, with dining tables and chairs capable of accommodating up to 360 people at one sitting. On each side of the saloon, seven corridors opened onto four berths each, for a total number of berths per side of 28, or 56 altogether. The forward end of the saloon was connected to a stewards' galley, while the opposite end contained several tiers of sofas. This saloon was apparently the ship's most impressive of all the passenger spaces. Columns of white and gold, 24 in number, with "ornamental capitals of great beauty", were arranged down its length and along the walls, while eight
The two forward saloons were arranged in a similar plan to the after saloons, with the upper "promenade" saloon having 36 berths per side and the lower 30, totalling 132. Further forward, separate from the passenger saloons, were the crew quarters.[35] The overall finish of the passenger quarters was unusually restrained for its time, a probable reflection of the proprietors' diminishing capital reserves.[36] Total cost of construction of the ship, not including £53,000 for plant and equipment to build her, was £117,000[37]—£47,000 more than her original projected price tag of £70,000.
Service history
Transatlantic service
On 26 July 1845—seven years after the Great Western Steamship Company had decided to build a second ship, and five years overdue—Great Britain embarked on her maiden voyage, from Liverpool to New York under Captain James Hosken, with 45 passengers. The ship made the passage in 14 days and 21 hours, at an average speed of 9.25 knots (17.13 km/h; 10.64 mph) – almost 1.5 knots (2.8 km/h; 1.7 mph) slower than the prevailing record. She made the return trip in 13+1⁄2 days, again an unexceptional time.[36]
Brunel, who prior to commencement of service had substituted a six-bladed "windmill" design of his own for Smith's proven four-bladed propeller design, now decided to try to improve the speed by riveting an extra two inches of iron to each propeller blade. On her next crossing to New York, carrying 104 passengers, the ship ran into heavy weather, losing a mast and three propeller blades.[15] On 13 October, she ran aground on the Massachusetts Shoals. She was refloated and after obtaining a supply of coal from the American schooner David Coffin resumed her voyage.[38] After repairs in New York, she set out for Liverpool with only 28 passengers and lost four propeller blades during the crossing. By this time, another design flaw had become evident. The ship rolled heavily, especially in calm weather without the steadying influence of the sail, causing discomfort to passengers.[36]
The shareholders of the company again provided further funding to try to solve the problems. The six-bladed propeller was dispensed with and replaced with the original four-bladed, cast iron design. The third mast was removed, and the iron rigging, which had proven unsatisfactory, was replaced with conventional rigging. In a major alteration, two 110-foot-long (34 m) bilge keels were added to each side in an effort to lessen her tendency to roll.[39] These repairs and alterations delayed her return to service until the following year.[40]
In her second season of service in 1846, Great Britain successfully completed two round trips to New York at an acceptable speed, but was then laid up for repairs to one of her chain drums, which showed an unexpected degree of wear. Embarking on her third passage of the season to New York, her captain made a series of navigational errors that resulted in her being run hard aground in Dundrum Bay on the northeast coast of Ireland on 22 September. There was no formal inquiry but it has been recently suggested by Dr Helen Doe in her book 'SS Great Britain' that it was mainly due to the captain not having updated charts, so that he mistook the new St John's light for the Calf light on the Isle of Man.[41][42][43]
She remained aground for almost a year, protected by temporary measures organised by Brunel and
Refit and return to service
The new owners decided not merely to give the vessel a total refit; the keel, badly damaged during the grounding, was completely renewed along a length of 150 feet (46 m), and the owners took the opportunity to further strengthen the hull. The old
Reflecting the rapid advances in propeller engine technology, the original engines were removed and replaced with a pair of smaller, lighter and more modern oscillating engines, with 82.5-inch (210 cm) cylinders and 6-foot (180 cm) stroke, built by John Penn & Sons of Greenwich. They were also provided with more support at the base and supported further by the addition of both iron and wood beams running transversely across the hull, which had the added benefit of reducing engine vibration.[48]
The cumbersome chain-drive gearing was replaced with a simpler and by now proven cog-wheel arrangement, although the gearing of the engines to the propeller shaft remained at a ratio of one to three. The three large boilers were replaced with six smaller ones, operating at 10 psi (69 kPa) or twice the pressure of their predecessors. Along with a new 300-foot (91 m) cabin on the main deck, the smaller boilers allowed the cargo capacity to be almost doubled, from 1,200 to 2,200 tons.[48]
The four-bladed propeller was replaced by a slightly smaller three-bladed model, and the bilge keels, previously added to reduce the tendency to roll, were replaced by a heavy external oak keel for the same purpose. The five-masted schooner sail-plan was replaced by four masts, two of which were square-rigged.[48] With the refit complete, Great Britain went back into service on the New York run. After only one further round trip she was sold again, to Antony Gibbs & Sons, which planned to place her into England–Australia service.[48]
Australian service
Antony Gibbs & Sons may have intended to employ Great Britain only to exploit a temporary demand for passenger service to the Australian goldfields following the discovery of gold in Victoria in 1851,[49] but she found long-term employment on this route. For her new role, she was given a third refit. Her passenger accommodation was increased from 360 to 730, and her sail plan altered to a traditional three-masted, square-rigged pattern. She was fitted with a removable propeller, which could be hauled up on deck by chains to reduce drag when under sail power alone.[50]
In 1852, Great Britain made her first voyage to
Alexander Reid, writing in 1862, recorded some statistics of a typical voyage. The ship, with a crew of 143, put out from Liverpool on 21 October 1861, carrying 544 passengers (including the English cricket team that was the first to visit Australia), a cow, 36 sheep, 140 pigs, 96 goats and 1,114 chickens, ducks, geese and turkeys. The journey to Melbourne (her ninth) occupied 64 days, during which the best day's run was 354 miles and the worst 108. With favourable winds the ship travelled under sail alone, the screw being withdrawn from the water. Three passengers died en route. The captain was John Gray, a Scot, who had held the post since before the Crimean War.[52]
On 8 December 1863, she was reported to have been wrecked on
Her passengers and crew witnessed a
On 8 October 1868 The Argus reported "To-day, at daylight, the fine steamship Great Britain will leave her anchorage in Hobson's Bay, for Liverpool direct. On this occasion she carries less than her usual complement of passengers, the season not being a favourite one with colonists desiring to visit their native land. Great Britain, however, has a full cargo, and carries gold to the value of about £250,000. As she is in fine trim, we shall probably have, in due time, to congratulate Captain Gray on having achieved another successful voyage."[55][56] Gray died under mysterious circumstances, going missing overnight during a return voyage from Melbourne, on the night of 25/26 November 1872.[57][58] On 22 December, she rescued the crew of the British brig Druid, which had been abandoned in the Atlantic Ocean.[59] On 19 November 1874, she collided with the British ship Mysore in the Sloyne, losing an anchor and sustaining hull damage.[60] Great Britain was on a voyage from Melbourne to Liverpool.[61]
Later history
Notable passengers and crew
The Great Britain carried over 33,000 people during her working life.[68] These included:
- Gustavus Vaughan Brooke, Irish stage actor; travelled with Avonia Jones between Melbourne and Liverpool in 1861[69]
- Fanny Duberly, author and chronicler of the Crimean War and the Indian Rebellion of 1857; travelled between Cork and Mumbai in 1857[70]
- Colonel Sir George Everest, British surveyor and geographer; served as Surveyor General of India; namesake of Mount Everest; travelled between Liverpool and New York in 1845[71]
- John Gray, Scottish born seaman; the Great Britain's longest serving captain; mysteriously disappeared while at sea; crew member 1852–1872[72]
- James Hosken, first captain of the Great Britain and before that the Great Western from her maiden voyage until she ran aground in Dundrum Bay[73]
- Avonia Jones, American actress, travelled with Gustavus Vaughan Brooke between Melbourne and Liverpool in 1861[74]
- Sister Mary Paul Mulquin, Roman Catholic nun and educationalist; travelled between Liverpool and Melbourne in 1873[75]
- Elizabeth Parsons, English-Australian artist, travelled between Liverpool and Melbourne in 1870.[76]
- Anthony Trollope, English novelist of the Victorian era; travelled between Liverpool and Melbourne in 1871, and wrote Lady Anna during the voyage[77]
- Augustus Arkwright, Royal Navy officer and a Conservative Party politician, and great grandson of Richard Arkwright, travelled between Liverpool and New York in 1852.[78]
- George Inness, prominent American landscape painter, travelled with his wife between Liverpool and New York in 1852.[79]
- Gibbs, Bright & Co., travelled between Liverpool and New York in 1852.[80]
- John Simcoe Macaulay, businessman and political figure in Upper Canada, travelled between Liverpool and New York in 1852.[81]
- William Charles (fur trader), Pacific coast pioneer, Hudson's Bay Company factor, and a prominent figure in the early history of British Columbia, travelled between Liverpool and New York in 1852.[82]
- screw propeller, travelled between Liverpool and New York in 1852.[83]
Recovery and restoration
The salvage operation, made possible by several large donations, including from
The ship was then taken off the pontoon, in preparation for her re-entry into Bristol, now truly afloat. On Sunday 5 July, amidst considerable media interest, the ship was towed up the River Avon to Bristol.[85][86] Perhaps the most memorable moment for the crowds that lined the final few miles was her passage under the Clifton Suspension Bridge, another Brunel design. She waited for two weeks in the Cumberland Basin for a tide high enough to get her back through the locks to the Floating Harbour and her birthplace, the dry dock in the Great Western Dockyard (now a Grade II* listed building, disused since bomb damage in the Second World War).[87]
The recovery and subsequent voyage from the Falklands to Bristol were depicted in the 1970 BBC
The original intent was to restore her to her 1843 state. However, the philosophy changed and the conservation of all surviving pre-1970 material became the aim.
By 1998, an extensive survey discovered that the hull was continuing to corrode in the
Awards
The engineers Fenton Holloway won the
SS Great Britain got our unanimous vote for being outstanding at every level. It combines a truly groundbreaking piece of conservation, remarkable engineering and fascinating social history plus a visually stunning ship above and below the water line. Most importantly, the SS Great Britain is accessible and highly engaging for people of all ages.
The project won The Crown Estate Conservation Award in 2007,[98] and the European Museum of the Year Awards Micheletti Prize for 'Best Industrial or Technology Museum'.[99] In 2008 the educational value of the project was honoured by the Sandford Award for Heritage Education.[100]
Being Brunel
Being Brunel is a museum dedicated to Isambard Kingdom Brunel and built on the harbour next to his ship. Opened in 2018, it holds thousands of Brunel-related items, such as his school reports, his diaries and his technical drawing instruments.[101] Costing £2 million, it occupies buildings on the quayside including Brunel's drawing office.[102] It includes a reconstruction of his dining room from Duke Street, and the drawing office has been restored to its 1850 condition.[103]
Popular culture
Great Britain featured in several television specials.
- The Sir Jack Hayward, then moved to the Falkland Islands where he spoke with islanders who worked in the salvage team.[104]
- A BBC West documentary called When Brunel's Ship Came Home tells the story of the salvage operation and was broadcast on BBC One in the West of England on 12 July 2010. It includes memories of many of the people who were involved.[105]
- A 15-minute animated short film called The Incredible Journey produced with the University of the West of England tells the story of the ship's return to Bristol from the Falklands in 1970.[106]
- In 2015 it was announced that the new British passport would include an image of the SS Great Britain on a page of Iconic Innovations.[107][108]
- The Living TV series Most Hauntedwent on the ship in 2009.
Dimensions
- Length: 322 ft (98 m)[89]
- Beam (width): 50.5 ft (15.39 m)[89]
- Height (main deck to keel): 32.5 ft (9.91 m)[109]
- Weight unladen: 1,930 long tons (2,160 short tons; 1,960 tonnes)[109]
- Displacement: 3,018 long tons (3,380 short tons; 3,066 tonnes)[109]
Engine
- Rated horsepower: 1,000 horsepower (750 kW)[109]
- Weight: 340 long tons (380 short tons; 350 tonnes)[109]
- Cylinders: 4 x inverted 'V' 88 inches (223.5 cm) bore[109]
- Stroke: 72 inches (182.9 cm)[109]
- Pressure: 5 psi (34 kPa)[109]
- RPM: Max. 20 rpm[109]
- Main crankshaft: 17 feet (5.18 m) long and 28 inches (71.1 cm) diameter[109]
Propeller
Other data
- Fuel capacity: 1,100 long tons (1,232 short tons; 1,118 tonnes) of coal[109]
- Water capacity: 200 long tons (224 short tons; 203 tonnes)[109]
- Cargo capacity: 1,200 long tons (1,344 short tons; 1,219 tonnes)[109]
- Cost of construction: £117,295[109]
See also
Notes
- ^ Some sources, such as Claxton,[1] state that there was only a single boiler, but others, such as Fletcher and Maginnis,[27][page needed] state that there were three side by side. This apparent discrepancy is explained by the fact that there were three separate boilers or boiler compartments sharing a common housing.[28][page needed]
References
- ^ a b c Claxton 1845, p. 3.
- ^ Grahame Farr, The Steamship Great Britain (Bristol Historical Association pamphlets, no. 11, 1965), p. 1.
- ^ a b Gibbs 1957, pp. 41–54.
- ^ "SS Great Britain". Brunel 200. Archived from the original on 14 May 2008. Retrieved 31 December 2008.
- ^ Fox 2003, pp. 147–148.
- ^ Fox 2003, p. 144.
- ^ a b Fox 2003, p. 148.
- ^ Fox 2003, p. 148, 151.
- ^ a b Fox 2003, p. 149.
- from the original on 5 April 2015. Retrieved 14 March 2015.
- ^ a b c d e "Royal Visit". The Bristol Mirror. 20 July 1843. pp. 1–2.
- ^ "The Launch of the Great Britain". Morning Chronicle. 20 July 1843. Retrieved 14 March 2015 – via British Newspaper Archive.
- ^ The Victorian Era, the Miles Family | Kings Weston Action Group Archived 18 August 2014 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ Nonesuch Expeditions – From Slaves to Sleepers, the dark saga of the men who built the Steam-ship Great Britain Archived 29 January 2016 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ a b Brown 2009, pp. 68–78.
- ^ Dumpleton & Miller 2013, p. 64.
- ^ Claxton 1845, p. 21.
- ^ Ball & Wright 1981, p. 13.
- ^ "The creation of Bristol City docks". Farvis. Archived from the original on 2 April 2015. Retrieved 17 June 2015.
- ^ Claxton 1845, pp. 19–20.
- ^ Fox 2003, p. 152.
- ^ Fox 2003, p. 149, 152.
- ^ a b Fox 2003, p. 150.
- ^ Claxton 1845, p. 5.
- ^ a b c Claxton 1845, p. 18.
- ^ Claxton 1845, pp. 3–6.
- ^ Maginnis 1900.
- ^ Dumpleton & Miller 2013.
- ^ Fox 2003, pp. 148–149.
- ^ Claxton 1845, p. 6.
- ^ a b American Chain Association 2005, p. 10.
- ^ Fox 2003, p. 151.
- ^ Claxton 1845, p. 13.
- ^ Claxton 1845, p. 4, 6.
- ^ a b c Claxton 1845, pp. 14–17.
- ^ a b c Fox 2003, p. 153.
- ^ Fox 2003, p. 155.
- ^ "The Steam-ship Great Britain". The Morning Post. No. 22345. London. 29 October 1845. p. 5.
- ^ "Great Britain". The Ships List. Archived from the original on 3 March 2015. Retrieved 14 March 2015.
- ^ Fox 2003, pp. 153–154.
- The Cruising Association: 24–26.
- ^ "(untitled)". The Times. No. 19377. London. 26 October 1846. col F, A, pp. 4–5.
- ^ "The Great Britain Ashore". Liverpool Mercury etc. No. 1847. Liverpool. 25 September 1846.
- ^ "Recovery of the SS Great Britain". David Bremner. Archived from the original on 2 April 2015. Retrieved 14 March 2015.
- ^ "Floating of the Great Britain". Lloyd's Weekly London Newspaper. No. 250. London. 5 September 1847.
- ^ Fox 2003, pp. 154–155.
- ^ Fletcher 1910, pp. 225–226.
- ^ a b c d e Fletcher 1910, pp. 226–227.
- ^ Fletcher 1910, p. 227.
- ^ a b "ss Great Britain". National Historic Ships UK. Archived from the original on 2 April 2015. Retrieved 15 March 2015.
- ^ "Hit for six by elite sporting stars' trip on great iron ship". Bristol Post. 3 July 2010. Archived from the original on 2 April 2015. Retrieved 15 March 2015.
- ^ Reid 1862.
- ^ "Loss of the "Great Britain" Steamship". York Herald. No. 4756. York. 2 January 1864. p. 9.
- ^ "Brunel's SS Great Britain on Instagram: "#OTD in 1865 passengers witnessed a Solar Eclipse. 🌘 "Total eclipse of the sun, a clear sky and stars seen in daytime" –diary extract (author unknown) … #SSGreatBritain #SolarEclipse #Museum #Victorian #Brunel #Bristol #History"". Instagram. Retrieved 25 April 2023.
- ^ "Untitled news". The Argus. October 1868. p. 5 – via Trove.
- The Argus (Australia). 8 October 1868. p. 4 – via Trove.
- ^ "Captain Gray of the S.S. Great Britain". The Mercury. Hobart, Tasmania, Australia. 3 January 1873. Retrieved 3 December 2017.
- ^ "Captain Gray's Disappearance". SS Great Britain Trust. Archived from the original on 4 December 2017. Retrieved 3 December 2017.
- ^ "Mercantile Ship News". The Standard. No. 15105. London. 28 December 1872. p. 7.
- ^ "Shipping Intelligence". Daily News. No. 8916. London. 21 November 1874.
- ^ "Castletown and the South". Isle of Man Times. Vol. 14, no. 708. Douglas. 21 November 1874. p. 5.
- ^ a b "Salvage of S.S. Great Britain 1970" (PDF). The Cachalots. Archived (PDF) from the original on 27 June 2015. Retrieved 14 March 2015.
- ^ "The Penarth Mysteries: No 2 – The Buried Secrets Of Penarth's Plymouth Park". Penarth Daily News. 4 July 2013. Archived from the original on 13 March 2016. Retrieved 29 February 2016.
- ^ "Latest Shipping Intelligence". The Times. No. 31784. London. 12 June 1886. col B, p. 13.
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Bibliography
- American Chain Association (2005). Standard Handbook of Chains: Chains for Power Transmission and Material Handling (2nd ed.). CRC Press. ISBN 978-1-57444-647-0.
- Ball, Adrian; Wright, Diana (1981). S. S. "Great Britain". David & Charles. ISBN 978-0-7153-8096-3.
- Brown, Paul (2009). Britain's Historic Ships: A Complete Guide to the Ships that Shaped the Nation. Anova Books. ISBN 978-1-84486-093-7.
- Claxton, Christopher (1845). History and Description of the Steam-Ship Great Britain, Built at Bristol for the Great Western Steam-Ship Company. New York: J. S. Homans. OCLC 02773078.
- Dumpleton, Bernard; Miller, Muriel (2013). Brunel's Three Ships. University of Chicago Press. ISBN 978-1-84150-800-9.
- Farr, Grahame, The Steamship Great Britain (Bristol Historical Association pamphlets, no. 11, 1965)
- Fletcher, R. A. (1910). Steam-ships: The story of their development to the present day. London: Sidgwick & Jackson. OCLC 7384477.
- Fox, Stephen (2003). Transatlantic: Samuel Cunard, Isambard Brunel, and the Great Atlantic Steamships. HarperCollins. OCLC 231981040.
- Gibbs, Charles Robert Vernon (1957). Passenger Liners of the Western Ocean: A Record of Atlantic Steam and Motor Passenger Vessels from 1838 to the Present Day. London: John De Graff. OCLC 3775315.
- Haddelsey, Stephen; Carroll, Alan (2014). Operation Tabarin: Britain's Secret Wartime Expedition to Antarctica 1944–46. History Press. OCLC 875866833.
- Maginnis, Arthur J. (1900). The Atlantic ferry: its ships, men, and working. London: Whittaker & co. OCLC 77121824.
- Reid, Alexander (1862). The Cabinet, or a Repository of Facts, Figures and Fancies relating to the Voyage of the "Great Britain" SS. Melbourne: J. Reid.
Further reading
- Corlett, Ewan C. B. (1990). The Iron Ship: Story of Brunel's SS Great Britain (Revised ed.). London: Conway Maritime Press. OCLC 1280888789.
- Hendrie, James (May 2017). "A Great British Ship". Ships Monthly: 52–55.
External links
- Official website
- I. K. Brunel
- Panoramic tour from the BBC
- The Great Britain Steamer Australian Town and Country Journal, 31 December 1870, p. 17, at Trove
- BBC Chronicle 1970 – The Great Iron Ship – SS Great Britain Rescue