END OF A NOTABLE SHIP

Otago Witness, Issue 3769, 8 June 1926, Page 27

END OF A NOTABLE SHIP

LARGEST WOODEN STEAMER. 4 (See Photograph in This Issue.) ~ - The Broxton, which will form a pro* tectiug buffer for ships entering the Port Chalmers dock in heavy north-east weather, has had a somewhat eventful 4 career since sho first arrived in New Zea*,» land waters. She was said to be the largest wooden steamer afloat. She was • built in Seattle during the war for the > United States Shipping Board, and on leav. mg the builders' hands was acquired bjr\ the Universal Trading and Shipping Com. pany of Seattle. This company tnen owned > five wooden steamers, also a number of ) other vessels. The Broxton, whose dead-7 weight capacity was 6600 tons, was * j single-screw steamer with a speed of B|l to 9 knots per hour loaded, and up toi 10 knots running light. She loaded lumber l on the Pacific Coast in 1921 for Melbourne, ■ and then steamed round to Newcastle on/ charter to carry three loads of coal to! New Zealand. With the first load she left] Newcastle on November 16, 1921, and on* the run across the Tasman Sea a series of fresh gales varying in direction! from south-west to north-west. As the); steamer was not fully loaded, on account •. of the bar at Newcastle, tittle inconveni- \ ence and no damago resulted from the! \ rough weather. Her draught on arrival at / Port Chalmers several days later was 25fti lin. On that trip she carried 4275 tom* of coal. ■> The Broxton, which had one funnel, two ' • masts, and four large hatchways, resembled! in appearance the ordinary type of ironf cargo carrier A close inspection showed! the ship to be powerfully constructed of j timber. Her decks were flush fore and! aft, with the exception of a rise of about y sft for the forecastle head. Her equip- ■ ment, which was on modern lines, included ' • a wireless outfit Her machinery worked j * satisfactorily, the run from America t 0,., Melbourne being accomplished without ft. \ stop, save for bunkering at Honolulu. The Broxton subsequently went to V* Lyttelton, where she was detained on account of debt. A mystery surrounded the V ship until October 8, 1922, when it was partly solved by the announcement that she had been sold at auction on September 26 for £6500. It was also announced that the purchasers, for whom Mr Budge, the United States Vice-Consul, acted at the sale, were a syndicate of Canterbury residents’ who then offered to resell th e Broxton to the New Zealand Government at a very moderate advance on the purchase price. The offer was declined. The purchasers* ■* object in offering the vessel to the Government was to provide the country with r a standby in the event of shipping troubles. They considered that, with a 3500-toa cargo steamer at its disposal, the Government would be able to ensure regular sup- * plies of phosphates from Nauru Island, as well as hydro-electric, railway, and publio works plant, and such necessary commodities as coal, sugar, and timber in the event of a lack of privately-owned vessels. They also believed that the ship would be useful for training boys for the sea, and . also as a naval collier. The Broxton was sold by order of the Vice-Admiralty Court in satisfaction of two debts at Lyttelton. She was built at a cost of about £75,000. The vessel could carry over 5000 tons dead-weight. The Broxton was subsequently purchased 3 by the Union Company, and brought to 4 Port Chalmers. She lay at the export wharf for many months while the engines and fittings were removed. When this work was completed she was towed to a * position close to the shore in Carey’s Bay, where she lav a mere shell until towed to her last resting-place beneath the water near the entrance to the Otago dock.