History Wm Sloan & Co.
William Sloan was introduced into shipping about 1825 by his uncle, Charles Tennant, who owned the St Rollox Chemical Works, Glasgow. A group of businessmen, including John Tennant, son of Charles, and Scott Reynolds of London acquired in 1825 three vessels, LONDON PACKET (I), HOPE and ST ROLLOX to carry away the products of the works, a large proportion of which passed through the Forth and Clyde Canal on their way to Newcastle, Hull and London. Initially William Sloan had no financial interest in them but this changed in March 1831 when GLASGOW PACKET was acquired in which he had a number of shares. Subsequently ships purchased or built were registered in the names of two or more members of the group which traded under the name of the St Rollox Shipping Co. Two further additions were made to the fleet in 1831 with the purchase of the sloops SIBELLA (1806) and LILLY (1807). Some two years later, further three vessels joined the fleet, two new schooners GLENCONNER and JOHN CROSBIE, and one secondhand snow CALEDONIAN (1825). All the vessels (except CALEDONIAN which only remained with the company for less than three years) were able to pass through the locks of the Forth and Clyde Canal.
Other vessels joined the expanding fleet in subsequent years, GRATITUDE (1816), MERCURY (1824) and the newly built schooner THAMES in 1834, the newly built brig JOHN TENNANT and schooner CHRISTINA in 1835, the sloop COUNTESS OF MAR (1833) in 1836, and the newly built schooners LONDON PACKET (II), the first vessel of that name had been lost in 1835 and ORISSA in 1837, which brought the number in the fleet up to 13. However, the company suffered two losses in quick succession, that of the new ORISSA in 1838, and GLENCONNER (1833) in 1839. Two of the oldest vessels, GRATITUDE (1816) and SIBELLA (1806) were sold in 1839.
In 1840 ST ROLLOX (1825) was lost but three new schooners were added to the fleet (the owners being now known as Tennant Sons and Co). They were AUCHINCRUIVE, SARAH TENNANT and CHARLES TENNANT, followed a year later by HULL PACKET. The schooner ANNE GIBSON (1839) was purchased in 1841 as well, so that by that year the fleet numbered 15.
David Sloan took over the interests of his brother William in October 1848, from which date the partnership traded as William Sloan & Co as agents, although the ownership of at least some vessels of the fleet remained with St Rollox Shipping Co (eg BRIGAND and CORSAIR so advertised in April 1858).
From 1845 onwards the rundown of the sailing vessels owned commenced as no replacements were sought on the sale of MERCURY (1824) in that year, nor on the loss in 1847 of COUNTESS OF MAR (1833), with steamers now beginning to break into coastal sailings. In January 1851 one of these early steamers, EUROPEAN completed by Smith and Rodger, Glasgow, was placed on sailings between Glasgow and London by her builders operating through a company named the Glasgow Screw Steam Ship Co. William Sloan and Co were appointed agents for this vessel and so entered the era of steam. The sailings proved so successful that arrangements were put in hand to provide a larger vessel. The sailings were taken over from EUROPEAN in September 1851 when METROPOLITAN (I), owned by the Thames & Clyde Screw Shipping Co, with William Sloan and Co as managers, entered service. METROPOLITAN (I) carried goods only but even so made a record run in November 1851 of 70 ½ hours from Greenock to Wapping Wharf on the River Thames, which was reckoned exceptionally fast for this period. A second steamer was built named COSMOPOLITAN which allowed a weekly sailing to be introduced in April 1852. Unfortunately METROPOLITAN (I) was sunk after being involved in a collision in the English Channel in October 1852 and sailings had to be reduced to fortnightly until a new METROPOLITAN (II) could be ready for service in September 1853.
The year 1852 saw the beginning of William Sloan & Co acquiring the Thames and Clyde Screw Shipping Co, and having completed that transaction, they acquired a third steamer, BRIGAND (1848), in early 1854. However in November, 1854 both COSMOPOLITAN and METROPOLITAN (II) were taken up as transports to carry supplies to the Black Sea in connection with the Crimean War, so that sailings to London had to be discontinued for two years. Both vessels were released from this task, METROPOLITAN (II) in September 1855 and COSMOPOLITAN in November 1856, and returned to the London sailings until these were discontinued in 1859 as unprofitable. Both vessels were then sold to the General Steam Navigation Co, London remaining with their new owners until 1881 when they were both lost within seven months of each other.
With the arrival of steam in the fleet, the number of sailing vessels was steadily reduced. JOHN TENNANT (1835) was lost in 1852, LONDON PACKET (II) (1837), SARAH TENNANT (1840) and GLASGOW PACKET (1831) were sold in 1854, and in 1856 HOPE (1821) and HULL PACKET (1841) were lost. LILLY (1807), AUCHINCRUIVE (1840), THAMES (1834) and CHARLES TENNANT (1840) were sold in 1857, as was JOHN CROSBIE (1833) in 1859. ANNE GIBSON (1839) and CHRISTINA (1835) became the sole survivors of the sail era but in their turn were sold out of company service in 1862 and 1866 respectively.
It was in 1858 that William Sloan and Co started what was to become their best known service, that from Glasgow (via Belfast) to Bristol and Swansea. Calls at Cardiff and Newport (Mon.) were added later, the first steamers employed being BRIGAND and the newly built CORSAIR (1857).
Unfortunately BRIGAND was lost shortly afterwards and in her place Sloan's acquired OSCAR (1850), built by William Denny and Bros, Dumbarton. She was originally owned by Robert Henderson and others of Belfast, who in 1853 had formed the Belfast Screw Steam Shipping Co. During August 1858 the share holding in William Sloan and Co was broadened by the inclusion of Mark Whitwill of Bristol, and Robert Henderson of Belfast, who became agents for the sailings at their respective home ports.
Another steamer was ordered and ANTONA (I) appeared on the sailings in 1859, being approximately the same size as OSCAR. The name ANTONA (a Latinised form of the name of the River Avon) initiated the naming of ships of the fleet after rivers, which, with few exceptions, was continued until the company went out of business. Three years later, when high prices were being paid for steamers to run the blockade in the American Civil War, ANTONA (I) was sold to agents of the Southern States. She was not very successful, being captured in the Gulf of Mexico by U.S.S. POCAHONTAS, while running the blockade to Mobile. only three months after purchase. She then became U.S.S. ANTONA until sold out of service in 1865.
To take her place on the Bristol Channel sailings, the company ordered another ship, to which the same name was given. Slightly larger than her predecessor, ANTONA (II) was launched in April 1863. A sister ship CLUTHA (one of the Latin names for the River Clyde), also 3-masted, joined the service in 1864, when CORSAIR was sold to J. Edwards of Bristol for further service.
An additional steamer was purchased in 1866. This was ADMIRAL CATOR (1857) previously owned in West Hartlepool but she was soon on the sale list being actually sold in May 1867 to foreign owners who renamed her JURA The sale, (such as it was), however, fell through and she reverted to Sloan s ownership under her new name. The year 1869 saw the introduction of AILSA, (taking her name from Ailsa Craig in the Firth of Clyde) a similar ship to ANTONA (II) and CLUTHA but only 2-masted.
In May/June 1870 JURA (1857) and OSCAR (1850) were both sold to the Dinqwall & Skye Railway Co, who used them to inaugurate sailings to the Isle of Skye from their railhead at Strome Ferry, on the West Coast of Scotland. Their services to this company were, however, to be short lived, as the returns were not entirely satisfactory. When OSCAR was wrecked in November 1870 JURA continued the sailings alone at a reduced level, but a year later was sold to John Bell, Glasgow (who will appear later in connection with other steamers). Partly to fill the gap caused by their departure from the Sloan fleet PRINCESS ALEXANDRA (1863) was purchased from the Limerick and London Steamship Co, and put into service with her name unchanged.
SEVERN, built in 1874, was larger than any vessel previously owned by Sloan's but three years later she was joined by the even larger AVON (1877). In the latter part of 1878 ANTONA (II) and CLUTHA were sold to John Bell, Glasgow, who had earlier acquired JURA, with these vessels being employed on services to the Mediterranean.
David Sloan's sons, William and George, had now joined the firm and it was they who were to be responsible for expanding the fleet over the next 40 years. During September 1881 a sister ship to SEVERN was launched and given the name SOLWAY. She was to take the place of AILSA (1869) which had been wrecked in November 1880.
The first steel steamer owned by the partnership was MEDWAY, built in 1886, followed in 1889 by HUMBER, the latter being the first,vessellnthe fleet to have triple expansion engines. HUMBER replaced PRINCESS ALEXANDRA, but unfortunately after only a little more than two years service, HUMBER was wrecked near Milford Haven.
The company branched out in another direction in 1891, when they acquired the goodwill and trade from Silloth to Douglas, Isle of Man and Dublin (largely cattle carrying) from Robert Henderson and Co, part owners of some of Sloan's earlier ships, together with the steamer CALEDONIAN (1874) which operated these sailings, connecting at Silloth with the North British Railway.
Durinq the years 1892, 1893, and 1894, the company added to its fleet three further sister ships to HUMBER, viz TWEED(1892) YARROW (1893) (to replace CALEDONIAN which was sold), and ETTRICK (1894).
The size of the fleet naturally varied over the years. From 1886, when it was five, it rose steadily to reach a maximum of eight in 1894. This number was reduced to six by 1897 on the sale of CALEDONIAN in 1895 and SEVERN in1897 However in 1899 another ship, TOWARD (1883), was acquired from the Clyde Shipping Co. Somewhat similar to HUMBER, after being re-engined and overhauled, she entered service with Sloan's as TEVIOT, being the company's last acquisition with an iron hull and a compound engine.
The year 1903 saw the first ship with a more refined and smarter profile, with a long superstructure and taller more raked funnel. This was FINDHORN, built by Ailsa Shipbuilding Co of Troon, starting an owner-builder relationship which was to last (except for one ship) until 1930, when the last vessel was built by the company. FINDHORN, a fine vessel of 1,122 tons gross, had accommodation for passengers and could steam at around 12 knots. Subsequently her low bridge (as with later ships) was raised and a wheelhouse fitted. On the introduction of FINDHORN to service, AVON was sold to James Rankine and Co, Grangemouth and renamed AMSTERDAM. James Rankine and Co at one time traded as the Glasgow and Rotterdam Steam Ship Co and could, like William Sloan and Co, trace its origins back to Charles Tennant of St Rollox. Both fleets had similar funnel colouring all black with a white band.
ANNAN was launched in January 1907, a sister to FINDHORN (1903) succeeding SOLWAY (1881), which was sold and subsequently sailed across the Atlantic to Newfoundland, continuing trading there until 1936.
The death on 13th August, 1910 of William Sloan left George the sole survivor of the early partners who had run the business successfully for the last 40 years or more, as Robert Henderson had previously died on 30th December, (with his shares going to his daughter) and Mark Whitwell on 6th August, 1903 (although his son carried on in his place).
The one vessel not built by the Ailsa Shipbuilding Co during this period was AFTON. She was launched in 1911 by D. J. Dunlop and Co, Port Glasgow and was in fact to be the last ship built for the company for the next thirteen years. At this time the number in the fleet again rose to eight as no ship was disposed of after the new arrival in 1911.
During World War I William Sloan and Co suffered two losses due to enemy action. First, AFTON (1911) was sunk by explosive charges near Fishguard in February, 1917 after having been stopped by a U-boat, and secondly, TWEED (1892) was torpedoed and sunk off the Isle of Wight in March 1918. At the end of hostilities the number in the fleet was thus again reduced to six. Of the twenty-six ships built prior to 1914, many had given (or were to give) exceptionally long service. MEDWAY (1886) giving 40 years ETTRICK (1894) 30 years, TEVIOT (1883) 46 years (including 13 years with Clyde Shipping Co), FINDHORN (1903) 53 years, and ANNAN (1907) 51 years a remarkable record.
The need for new tonnage was pressing by the early 1920s, and an order was placed with the Ailsa yard for two sister ships, so it was in 1924 that BRORA and BEAULY joined the fleet. They were similar in size to the pre-war ships but had less powerful engines for reasons of economy. ln1926 the engine of FINDHORN (1903) was also modified to reduce power and save fuel.
The loss of ETTRICK (1894) in September 1924 reduced the fleet to seven and this number was yet further reduced in 1926 by the sale of MEDWAY (1886) and in 1929 of YARROW (1893), together with the goodwill of the Silloth/Dublin trade to Palgrave, Murphy Ltd. TEVIOT (1883), the last iron-hulled vessel, also went to the breakers in 1929.
Even though the shipping industry was in the middle of a deep depression, an order was placed for another steamer in fact this was to be the last order the company ever placed. For economy the vessel was not provided with any passenger accommodation, most passenger traffic having been of the tourist type since before the war. There was now little call for a regular Passenger service with rail transport much improved between Scotland and South Wales since the early days of the company's sailings. ORCHY joined the fleet in 1930, and although her dimensions were slightly greater than those of the preceding vessels, her outward appearance was very similar, the most noticeable difference being in the shape of the stern.
During 1932 the decision no longer to carry passengers was taken and accordingly FINDHORN (1903), ANNAN (1907), BRORA (1924) and BEAULY (1924) had the accommodation removed. At the same time ANNAN was reboilered to reduce fuel consumption, which brought her speed down from around 12 knots to nearer 10 knots. The older FINDHORN had been reboilered in 1926.
When World War II broke out in 1939, the fleet numbered five the oldest ship being FINDHORN (1903) and the newest and largest ORCHY (1930). The black funnel with the white band disappeared for a period, and although initially the funnels were painted light blue, later with black tops, they soon had to conform to the standard non-gloss grey of all wartime ships. During October 1939, BEAULY and ORCHY were requisitioned by the Admiralty as Q-ships, being renamed respectively LOOE and ANTINOE, but as their presence in the SW Approaches to the English Channel did not attract any attacks from U-boats, they were withdrawn and returned to commercial service in June, 1941. The company suffered no losses from enemy action during the hostilities.
After the war, the company restarted its sailings to the Bristol Channel. In late 1955 a new company, William Sloan and Co Ltd, was formed to take over the assets of the old firm, although the control of the Sloan family was unaffected. In the same year the company also acquired a successor for FINDHORN (1903). This was the Currie Line's HORSA (1928) which had been employed (except for the war years) on their sailings between Leith and Copenhagen, carrying general cargo and up to 12 passengers. HORSA was sent round to Port Glasgow for overhaul and alteration, including conversion to burning oil fuel, the fitting of 'tween decks, repositioning of her mainmast and removal of passenger accommodation, after which she was renamed ENDRICK. Externally she differed from the other vessels in the fleet in having four hatches, a continuous deck and a cruiser stern, as well as having no rake to her funnel or masts, but when given her new owner's usual brown upper-works and pink boot-topping, she did not appear out of place in the fleet. Her funnel colouring was already similar to that of Sloan's, although the spacing of the white band from the top had to be altered, giving a shallower black top.
During 1956 also, BRORA, BEAULY and ORCHY were converted to burn oil fuel. FINDHORN went to the breakers, and the last coal burner in the fleet, ANNAN (1907), remained that way until her end in 1958.
Great changes occured in June 1958 when the issued share capital of William Sloan and Co Ltd was bought by Coast Lines Ltd of Liverpool. The company name was retained but its significance became eroded as sailings were modified and finally integrated into those of the Coast Lines group of companies. Within a very short time of this change in control, Coast Lines transferred two of their motor vessels to the Clyde Bristol Channel sailings. These were FIFE COAST (1954) and WESTERN COAST (1951), which took the names FRUIN and TAY respectively in 1958. Soon afterwards ANNAN (1907) the faithful coal burner, was sent to breakers in Holland, having served the Company some 51 years.
In January 1959 a further Coast Lines motor vessel was transferred ULSTER SENATOR (1938) which took the name DEVERON. With three motor vessels in the fleet, there was now no need for the steamships, so first BEAULY (1924) went to the breakers in May 1959, followed in quick succession by BRORA (1924) and ENDRICK (1928). The brown upperworks and pink boottopping now disappeared and instead all the vessels had the standard Coast Lines colours of white masts and superstructure, with a narrow white band at the waterline, but retaining the Sloan funnel colours. ORCHY (1930) still remained but in October 1959 when a further motor vessel joined the fleet COLEBROOKE (1943) now renamed FORTH, she too went to the breakers at her birth place, Troon.
Even with four motor vessels, it was necessary from time to time to use other Coast Lines group vessels to maintain the weekly sailings between Glasgow, Bristol, Cardiff and Swansea as well as the twice weekly service between Belfast and Bristol, with HAZELFIELD (1948) during 1959 OCEAN COAST (1935) during 1961, MOUNTSTEWART (1955) during 1962 and PACIFIC COAST (1947) during 1963, until two new and more suitable vessels were allocated from within the group's resources.
The fleet consisted in May 1961 mv FRUIN 906 gt aquired 1958, ex FIFE COAST
mv TAY 791 gt aquired 1958, ex WESTERN COAST
mv DEVERON 511 gt aquired 1959, ex CLYDE COAST
mv FORTH 869 gt aquired 1959, ex SOUTHERN COAST
Sailings May 1961
From Glasgow weekly to Bristol, Cardiff & Swansea
From Belfast twice weekly to Bristol
weekly to Cardiff & Swansea
From Bristol twice weekly to Belfast
weekly to Glasgow
From Cardiff weekly to Dublin, Belfast & Glasgow
From Swansea weekly to Dublin, Belfast & Glasgow
During 1962 FORTH (1943) was transferred to the British Channel Islands Shipping Co Ltd, and modifications were made to the sailings to coordinate them to some extent with those of the parent company. Dublin was now included as a port of call as part of this rationalisation, so as to carry traffic formerly moved by the vessels of Burns and Laird Lines, another member of the Coast Lines group. In late 1963 two new and larger motor vessels were transferred to the Sloan sailings, the Belfast S.S. Co’ s ULSTER PIONEER (1955) and ULSTER PREMIER (1955) and these vessels were given the new names of TALISKER and KELVIN respectively. DEVERON (1938) was then sold to Greek owners and FRUIN (1954) transferred to the Belfast S.S.Co, another company within the group.
A further change took place on 1st January 1965 when the three vessels in the fleet TAY (1951), TALISKER (1955) and KELVIN (1955) were transferred to Burns and Laird Lines Ltd, although this was purely administrative and no alterations were made to the funnel markings or the pattern of sailings. However, this in fact was the beginning of the end for William Sloan and Co Ltd, on 16th April 1965 KELVIN made the last Glasgow to Bristol sailing and thereafter the three vessels operated only between Belfast and Dublin, and the Bristol Channel With the ever increasing competition from road services, sailings to Cardiff ended in January 1968, and those to Bristol in April of the same year, after which the three vessels were transferred to other services, administratively they had reverted to the parent company. Coast Lines Ltd, in December 1967. A unit load daily express service through Preston thenceforth operated betweenNorthern Ireland and South Wales, provided by yet another associated firm of the Coast Lines group, Northern Ireland Trailers Ltd.
So after over 100 years the funnel and houseflag of William Sloan and Co was no longer to be seen at Windmillcroft Quay near the centre of Glasgow, nor in the docks of the Bristol Channel which the Company served so long and the gracefully proportioned steamers with their black topsides over pink boot topping, black lifeboats, and rich brown superstructure and masts are just memories of the past.
Sources:
William Sloan & Co Ltd, Glasgow, G. Langmuir & G. Somner, WSS, 1987.
History Of William Sloan, G. Langmuir & G. Somner, WSS, 1961.