THE SENIOR FIRM

Dominion, Volume 25, Issue 120, 15 February 1932, Page 11 (Supplement)

THE SENIOR FIRM

Shaw, Savill and Albion Co. MANY FAMOUS SHIPS Seventy-five Years’ Trading The Shaw, Savill and Albion Company has the double distinction of being by far the oldest shipping line in the New Zealand trade, as well as the first to carry frozen meat. Although its head office records do not date back further than 1862, it appears that the founlers of the firm, Shaw and Savill, were onnected with the New Zealand trilde is early as the 'fifties’ of last century, vhen they were sending out some 15 ihips a year. At all events, the company las an unbroken connection with the Dominion of three-quarters of a cen;ury. During 1862, Shaw, Savill and Co. were concerned with the dispatch from London to New Zealand of 44 ships, of a !otal tonnage of 30,496, the largest being the Mermaid, 1320 tons, and the smallest the Planter, of only 285 tons. In the following year the firm were given a contract to carry emigrants to Otago, and their business grew rapidly. They acquired, by purchase or building, a large fleet of sailing ships, including such well-known vessels as the Edwin Fox (now a hulk at Picton), Crusader, Lady Jocelyn, Helen Denny, and Margaret Galbraith. The chief rival of the inn before the advent of the N.Z. Shipping Company, was Patrick Henderson, »f Glasgow, owner of the Albion Shipring Company, who, in 1874, built the ix 1250 tons iron clippers,, Dunedin, ■lanterbury, Invercargill, Auckland, telson and Wellington. About the time the Dunedin started he frozen meat trade in 1882, the two irms amalgamated under the title of Jhaw, Savill, and Albion Company, the bmbined fleets being a powerful factor n the trade between London and Glasgow and New Zealand. In the ’sevenies and ’eighties of last century they nought out many thousands of new setters to the growing colony. One of heir best-known ships was the Crusadr, of 1058 tons register, which in 1877 an from Lyttelton to the English Chanel in 69 days, and on her next outward iassage sailed from London to Port j Jhalmers in the record time of 65 days. ( Jther well-known ships of the fleet were j .he little Helen Denny, of 728 tons, and ,

he Lutterworth, 883 tons, both of vhich are now coal hulks at Wellingon; and the Lady Jocelyn, which was ;he largest ship in the trade for years. She took the first cargo of frozen meat from Wellington, sailing on February 25,. 1883. She was built at London in 1852 as the Brazil, an auxiliary steamship, but her engines were taken out when she was bought by Shaw, Savill, and Company. The Lady Jocelyn was a popular ship in the New Zealand trade, and after she was withdrawn she was employed for many years in the London Docks, first as a frozen meat store ship and later as a general store and depot. ' Company’s First Steamship. . The last sailing ships built for the Shaw, Savill, and Albion Company were the 1110-ton vessels Taranaki, Lyttelton ,and Westland. Pending the building of their own steamers, the company chartered for the frozen meat trade the steamers Victory, 2848 tons, Bombay and Florida, 3133 tons, as well as the lonic, Doric, and Coptic, 4500 tons, the fatter starting its association with the White Star Line, which still continues, "he famous sister ships Arawa, 5086 ions, and Tainui. 5115 tons, were the l ; rst steamers built for the Shaw, Savill. •nd Albion Company. Launched in 384, by W. Denny Bros., at Dumbarton, hey were remarkably handsome ship.,, •’ith a good turn of speed, and they did ood service for many years. Early in er career the Arawa ran, from New iealand to London, via Cape Horn, in ust over 34 days, a remarkable perormance, which stood as the record for hat passage until quite recently. The irawa and Tainui survived under other .lames for many years after they had teen withdrawn from the New Zealand ;rade. Thus, in 1884. the Shaw. Savill, ind Albion Company, in conjunction .with the New Zealand Shipping Com-, oany. started a regular fortnightly service between New Zealand and Lindon —out via Cape of Good Hope and hometvards round Cape Horn—which was maintained without a break until the outbreak of war in 1914. With the rapid growth of trade, the Shaw, Savill, and Albion Company re placed most of its sailing ships by cargo steamers. In 1889-1890 the refrigerated steamers Maori, 2950 tons. Mamari, 3583 tons, Matatua, 3393 tons, Rangatira, 4045 tons, and Pakeha, 4331 tons, were built; and these were supplemented during the next t< years by the second Maori, 5317 tons, Tokomar.i, 6238 tons, Aotea, 6364 tons, Karamea, 5561 tons, Kumara, 6034 tons, and Waiwera, ,6237 tons. The maximum frozen meat capacity of these ships was up to 85,000 carcases in the case of the Tokomaru. A famous steamer specially built for the New Zealand passenger and cargo trade in 1893 was the Gothic, a splendid vessel of 7755 tons register, 490 feet in length. At that time she commanded great attention, as being not only a fine passenger ship, but also the largest liner to enter the Thames. The Gothic was a successful trader till 1906, when she was badly damaged by a fire in her wool cargo on her way tr London and had to be withdrawn. Af-

ter refitting, she ran for some years under the Red Star Line flag as the Gothland. In 1911 she returned to the White Star Line as the Gothic, and she was not finally broken up until after, the war. '

The beginning of the present century saw the advent of a new generation of Shaw, Savill and Albion steamers. The old Coptic, Doric, and lonic were withdrawn and replaced in 1901-02 by the 12,200 ton liners Athenic, Corinthic and lonic, splendid ships, which have made for themselves and the company a great reputation during the last 30 years. For a long time this trio were the largest steamers trading to either New Zealand or, Australia, and were probab'y the most successful vessels of their class ever built. The Athenic was sold to a whaling company about four years ago, and the Corinthic, after making 70 successful voyages, is now being broken up; the lonic is still trading. The second Arawa and Tainui, each of about 9500 tons, were built about 1906-_ 08, both being large refrigerated cargo carriers, as well as excellent passenger ships. The former ship was sold about

' four years ago. Another very success- ■ ful steamer, built in 1908, was the cargo ! liner Zealandic, which ran for some 20 1 years in the New Zealand trade, and. is ■ still an occasional visitor to the Domin- • ion as the Aberdeen liner Mamilius. 1 In 1926, the Aberdeen liners Diogenes and Sophocles, each of 12,500 ' tons, were acquired by the Shaw, Savill and Albion Company, and renamed 1 Mataroa and Tamaroa. They are • comparatively new vessels; • with a : speed of 15 knots, and have made for theriiselves a good reputation in the • New Zealand trade. The second generation of the company,’s cargo steamers came into being a few years before the war. The second Matatua, 6488 tons, was built in 1904, and she was followed in fairly quick succession by the Mamari, 7000 tons, Kia Ora, 8031 tons, Pakeha, 7909 tons, Rangatira, 8000 tons (wrecked in 1916), and Waimana (now the Herminius), 7852 tons. As the older ■ ships passed out of the fleet, more new. tonnage was added, including the Tairoa, 7983 tons, Raranga; 7956 tons Maimoa, 8011 tons, Mahia, 7914 tons, Mahana, 8740 tons, and Matakana 8048 tons. The company was fortunate in losing only the old Tokomaru during the war, she being torpedoed in the English Channel in 1915. The remaining‘old ships, Karamea, Waiwera, and Kumara, were sold seven years

ago, after many years of faithful service. Notable additions to the Shaw, Savill and Albion Company’s fine fleet were the four splendid motor-liners. Zealandic (Replacing the 8000-ton -steamer of that name), Taranaki, Karamea, and Coptic, all built in 1928. Specially designed for the New Zealand general and refrigerated cargo trade, each of these 8300-ton ships has an insulated capacity of over 416.000 cubic feet. They are high-powered vessels, with a speed of 15 knots. The company’s fleet now numbers 18 ships, totalling over 160,000 tons gross register. wish a-’ in-mlafcd cargo capacity of over 7.000.060 cubic feet.