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The Iron Ore Carriers

155K views 381 replies 124 participants last post by  Ocean Blue 
#1 ·
hi what ever happen to all the orecarriers of the sixties and early seventies
was with w a souter on the
longstone
dunstanburgh castle
lindisfarne
but remember others like welsh herald la colina silversand and shore cape franklin cape howe and ports like narvik murmansk sept isles nouadhibou monrovia mossamedes pepel victoria lulea and the dust good beer though.
 
#136 ·
Margam wharf

Google Port Talbot Swansea docks,which should give access to some nostalgic pics of the old PT docks and Margam wharf. Shows Morar,Gleddoch and Orelia discharging. Also various other vessels at lay-bys. Try Home page in site, thence Slide Show - Margam wharf (PDF file).
Maybe someone has already posted this one, if so-apologies!

Angus
 
#151 · (Edited)
Google Port Talbot Swansea docks,which should give access to some nostalgic pics of the old PT docks and Margam wharf. Shows Morar,Gleddoch and Orelia discharging. Also various other vessels at lay-bys. Try Home page in site, thence Slide Show - Margam wharf (PDF file).
Maybe someone has already posted this one, if so-apologies!

Angus
I still remember, when sailing with my father on the Gleddoch - transferring from launch to the ship in Narvik - via a rigid wooden ladder, held away from the hull at the bottom - by an empty 45gal oil-drum lashed to the ladder.
I didn't climb the ladder (I was 8 yrs old and had the build of a porridge-spirtle) - the bosun gave me a piggy-back!

I can still remember the vision of the Lofoten Islands from then (1965)

Happy days!

Al :)
 
#142 ·
#141 ·
For those who tried to guess where the old vessel was loading iron ore the answer is Piquillo on the Cantabrian coast between Santander and Bilbao in Northern Spain.
This was one of about six "cargaderos" or ore loading cantilevers situated on this coast.
These were constructed in the abscence of suitable ports and the close proximity to the mines. This one was built circa late 1860s and loaded until the mid 1960s. Ships would pick a pilot off Casrtro Urdiales or Santander who would navigate the empty vessel to a point below the cargadero and loading would start. As the cargaderos cantilever was fixed, ships would be required to move to fill hatches beyond the reach of the spout.
Although none are in use now and most have been destroyed, one has been preserved at Dicido about 10kms East of Castro. This one was still being used upto about 1980 to load iron ore from Setares mines for shipment to AVHs blastfurnaces on the Rio Navion near Bilbao.
One of the most famous cargaderos was at Saltacaballo, this was where the British freighter Blackhill loaded its last cargo of iron ore bound for the Tyne or Tees before being sunk in the Thames estuary in late 1939.
It was also the point where the German freighter Baldur was sunk whilst loading by the submarine HMS Sceptre.
If any of the viewers loaded from these or similar ports I would be interested to know?
I have further info/photos if anyone is interested!
 
#143 ·
Hi all,
I sailed on a few of the Ore Boats mentioned on this thread.
DUNADD. 15.2.57. 2 trips Birkenhead-Bone,Algeria. B/head
RIPON. 26.3.63. B/head-- Vitoria,Brazil. -B/head.
DALHANNA.20.2.65. B/head--Nouardibou--Hartlepool.
KNIGHTSGARTH.12.10.65. B/head--Lulia,Sweden.--South Shields.
I enjoyed my various trips on Ore Boats. Firstly,they were handy on joining day just down the road from where I lived. After discharging at Bidston Ore Dock they would lay at Reas Wharf or Cavendish Quay taking on stores,bunkers and some make-ups to the crew. I was mostly a cargo boatman but now and then a trip in an Ore Boat was a break from Derricks,Jumbo's ect, But as Pat Kennedy said earlier the deck work was mostly chipping and soojee jobs that got a bit monotonous day after day. One exception for me was the RIPON.
During her discharge at Bidston Dock she sustained quite a bit of damage from the Grabs to the heavy timber cladding that lined her cargo holds,so before we sailed we loaded a stack of heavy timber for repairs. All the way down to Brazil we worked with the Chippie removing and replacing the damaged timber(weather permiting)
We went to Anchor outside Vitoria for 8 days. We were told that the Japs had a large contract for X amount of Ore and thier ships had priority to the berths(Ouch)ttfn Peter.
 
#144 ·
I was on Mabel Warwick, Iron Crown, Dunkyle, Cape Franklin (for a day) and Victore. Seven Islands, Monrovia, Lower Buchanan, Vitoria, Tubarao (just outside Vitoria), Nouhadibou, Murmansk, maybe more, I forget. Pretty easy going ships.

I thought I'd seen the last of iron ore until I came to Australia and discovered ... Port Hedland. Oh no!

John T
 
#145 ·
John T,
Yes I believe there are many ore boats trading out of Oz. Just before xmas I was in touch with my cousin who lives in Brisbane and he is Ch/Cook on the Iron Yandi. Gordon Cavanagh is his name,and has been on Her for 3yrs on the triangle trade(??) ttfn
Peter.
 
#146 ·
Thanks Peter, good to know that there are still a few Aussies employed at sea.

The"triangle" used to refer to ships taking coal from eastern Australia to Japan, Korea, etc, then returning via northwest Australia and loading Iron ore for Port Kembla and Newcastle in NSW. The ships were huge bulkies though, not the 15000 ton BISCO boats.

Not sure what the "triangle" refers to now as the steel industry shut down years ago in NEwcastle and is winding down to nothing in Port Kembla. It may even be finished already, not sure.

John T
 
#152 ·
Pepel, The phoenix rises from the ashes.

For many of us that visited Pepel Sierra Leonne in the fifties, sixties and earlier might be interested in this post!

After visiting Pepel on numerous occasions on Huntings River Afton and Dalhanna, plus one trip on the Lindisfarne I was interested to find out the old port has re-opened for business.

A little history first. The Iron ore deposits at Marampa in Sierra Leone were first mined in 1933 with shipments starting in September of that year by a company called Delco, this company was later to be controlled by William Baird Mining and others.
To ship the product the company built a port on the Rokel River (upstream from Freetown) at Pepel.
The first loading point at Pepel was a jetty with a fixed conveyor (old jetty) later in the early sixties a new loading jetty was constructed by Taylor Woodrow consisting of two loading conveyors with luffing and slewing capabilities. To connect the port to the mine a 74km 3ft 6in railway was constructed.
However by early 1975 Delco was in trouble, leading to the mine closing.
A brief attempt to restart was tried in 1983 but failed.
When I visited Marampa in 1980 while working in SL I found the mine a mess with most of the plant vandalised and never thought I would see the day it was re-opened.
Now however a company called African Minerals has developed a new orebody at Tonkolili about a further 126km east of Marampa. This new company has reinstated the old 74km Pepel-Marampa railway and constructed a further 126km of new track.
At Pepel the shiploader has been refurbished and the first shipment of ore (about 40kt) has been shipped to China.
The phase one plan is to load transhipment vessels/barges at Pepel and transload into Capesize vessels in Freetown Harbour.
The company on their website have a video showing the operation and the loading of the first vessel at Pepel.
 
#156 · (Edited)
Thanks for this...always wondered what happened to Pepel as in my early days we loaded there for Gjers Mills Ayresome Wharf in Middlesbrough and almost nowhere else later for mainly South Wales. The London Agents for Wm Baird were Fergusson Wild in St.Helens Place, off Bishopsgate, which was a couple of doors from our BISC(ore)Ltd offices...

Although the port was in warmer climes it was not popular with the ships as there was generally a 'no shore leave' ban......we did have some Chinese crew who did 'go ashore' and who had to repatriated on arrival in the Tees....and the only photos I ever saw of the place were of huge trenches to take away the rainfall.....

geoff

p.s. Can you remember who the Master was on Lindisfarne please?.
 
#154 ·
You missed a treat at Narvik namely their War Museum (in aid of the Red Cross), the equipment on show in those days was not "nailed down" or behind glass and you were not banned from touching it (with or without gloves) as long as you put it back!!
Market tomorrow, Barkers for tea and fancies.
 
#155 ·
...and I mean nowhere was open..not even the churches! We did get to admire lots of window boxes with begonias in...How did they get so large we asked 'Midnight Sun' was the reply...

Barkers for tea & fancies..not my scene.....Garthway Sandwich Bar for bacon butties.

geoff
 
#159 ·
Your cargo would be for Cargo Fleet Iron and Steelwork's, the Jetty was just up river from Smith's on the same side, they also exported sl&g usually in smaller vessel's like the Gertrude and Otrude Mueller. Lackenby Wharf which most will remember was just downriver from Smiths.
 
#160 ·
Yes the Ottomueller vessels kept the Tees almost as their home port for years.....when I was with Constantines we had them running potash from Wismar & Antwerp all the time ( we handled 700 ships a year through that office).......Lackenby Wharf eventually turned into Lackenby Dock where the first vessels to use it were Silvercrag and, I think, Sheaf Field where we had them in partial lay-up during the depression about 1962/63 ...Lackenby Dock became,as you will know, Tees Dock...
geoff
 
#161 ·
The Mueller's, the Tholstrups and the Breore's were very popular with one particular Tug, it's Skipper and his Mate who was a sly old Fox. Do you remember the incident? it was around 1958.
 
#162 ·
Erimus

Regarding the Lindisfarne the Master was Dodson or possible Robson and the Chief Engineer was Bill Collins, we brought a couple of cargoes into the Tees, one from Port Etienne for Cargo Fleet, then in ballast to the Tyne for drydock (middle dock) and later in early August 1968 Seven Islands to Eston jetty on the Tees where I payed off prior to shore leave with intent to join the Sheaf Mount for trading between Australia and Japan. But personal problems changed these plans and went to Africa instead.
 
#170 ·
I was in the,then, Port Etienne in 1968 in a sandstorm as part of a steel industry party visiting what was then the Miferma Mines...later called Tazadit & F'derik...I thought the town itself quite fascinating but then I had not been to any Arab towns at the time....

En route we were told to buy a couple of bottles of Scotch ( JW Black Label) as gifts for the European Mining engineers..mainly French & Russian....when customs checked our bags at Fort Gourard they carefully removed one bottle each!

geoff
 
#177 ·
Can't place a George Dave......they mainly used Boro Taxis in my days (1960-64 before London) and the owner was called Walter. I'm sure I would have remembered a ginger one.....there was a redheaded girl though...worked for her Dad who had a red Humber Hawk.

geoff
 
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