Eileen (a volunteer) directed me towards A Register of Whitby Steamships 1865-1950, in the archive, which was compiled by Harold Wakefield Smales. This book includes information about Steamships registered at the Port of Whitby, list of Steamships managed at Whitby, Whitby Steamships lost by enemy action 1914-1918 and 1939-1945, an index of owners and photographs of ship owners.
Harold Wakefield Smales was the son of Charles and Alice Smales, brother of Charles Bertram who features in a previous blog was born on 7th November 1872 and died aged 94 on December 14th 1966. He was schooled at Spring Bank Boarding School from 1882 (originally located at the annexe of Bagdale Hall) and then attended Rugby school in 1886. Harold had a background in shipping embarking on a three-month voyage to the Baltic on the S.S. Leila; joining the family business in 1889 but still occasionally dipping out for other voyages at sea! In 1891 they commenced Steamship owning at Whitby and he became an official partner in the business in 1897 – C. Smales & Son.
In 1898 C. Smales & Son formed the Eskside Steam Shipping Ltd with their Steamships Highlander, City of Gloucester and Eskside. The chart below shows the details of those vessels, funnel colours and flag of the ship owner which can also be seen on the picture of S/S Competitor:
D.W. – Deadweight tonnage or tons deadweight is a measure of how much weight a ship can carry. It is the sum of the weights of cargo, fuel, fresh water, ballast water, provisions, passengers, and crew.
H.P. – Horsepower is defined as a unit to measure the power of an engine. Today, it applies to boat and auto engines, but its original use was to describe the power of a steam engine.
The S/S Competitor built in 1907 in W.Hartlepool.
The first iron vessel built in Whitby was Whitehall by shipbuilders Thomas Turnbull & Son in 1871 who were long established sailing ship builders and owners at Whitehall, Whitby. It was launched on June 25th 1871.
“The vessel launched on Tuesday is handsomely designed and strongly built of the best material, and all her fittings and internal arrangements will be of the most approved and scientific description…The Yard was thronged with spectators, and the banks and terraces on the opposite side of the river were also crowded.”
(The Whitby Times, 1871)
Several vessels built by this firm at Whitby traded for over 50 years and the S/S Falshaw built in 1888 was still trading in the 1950’s over 60 years old!
If you are interested in reading more about these impressive vessels email library@whitbymuseum.org.uk to book an appointment with this fabulous book. We also have a copy of a book called ‘Steam Shipping of Whitby’ compiled by John A. Dixon which is an incredibly detailed book on this industry.
By Claire Marris
Archive Development Officer
#HeritageFund #archivesforall
