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| SS Mauritania entering Liverpool Docks. |
Liverpool became
Britain’s number one port for passengers wishing to travel to America during
the latter half of the 19th century; the city was called ‘The Gateway to the
West’. The shipping and commerce of the Mersey were exceeded only by those of
the Thames with its Port of London and also Tilbury.
Because of the
River Mersey’s very high tides, often as much as 32 feet, the docks had to be
enclosed by a wall some 10 feet thick and reaching 12 feet above the maximum
high-water mark. Access to the docks was by three main entrances located at
Canada, Sandon and Brunswick docks and connected to the river by half-tide
basins.
However,
having to use these sea locks caused
delays to liners, which frequently spent hours at anchor in the river waiting
for the tide in order to enter dock and, when tides were exceptionally low,
even to reach the Landing Stage to discharge their passengers.
Five famous
companies competed for the passenger and mail traffic to North America: The
Allan and Dominion Line Royal Mail Steamers, involved in the transatlantic
immigrant passenger service between Liverpool, Queenstown (Cobh) and Boston;
Liverpool to Quebec and Montreal and Naples to Boston. They were in operation
under Dominion Line from the late 1800s to 1908.
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| White Star Line Adriatic |
+in+mid-river.jpg) |
| Inman Line ship City of Rome (launched in 1881) in mid-river |
Cunard, White
Star and the American owned Inman and International running to the United States.
The Americans in particular were not happy with the delays at Liverpool and the
docks at Southampton offered many advantages as care had been taken to ensure
that the new Ocean docks on the Solent were open basins whose quays could he
reached by the largest liners at all states of the tide, and where they were
able to turn-round ships between voyages without excessive delays.
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| Mersey Docks and Harbour Board Port of Liverpool Building pre 1914 |
Liverpool’s
docks were owned and managed by the Mersey Docks and Harbour Board, and
the possible loss of the American liners concerned the Board members so much
that they began to consider counter measures. One proposal was to utilize a
large area of land at the north end of the system and construct an estate that
would provide direct access from the river at all states of the tide for even
the largest ships. But some members of the Board, who were mainly concerned
with cargo traffic, including the Chairman, Alfred Holt, considered that the
money could be better spent on improving existing docks facilities.
It was finally
decided, as a compromise to deepen the bed of the river at the Landing Stage
and to widen the entrance at Sandon Dock from 80 feet to 100 feet. These proved
to be wise decisions as they would enable the new large vessels already planned
by Cunard to reach the company’s berths at Huskisson Dock and the Board’s
largest graving dock at Canada Dock. However, these improvements would do
little to cut the waiting time caused by the Mersey tides.
In 1902 the
White Star Line joined the powerful International Mercantile Marine, which was
financed by American capital, and decided to build two of the world’s largest
liners.
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| Liverpool Brunswick Dock |
To conform to
American practice they would terminate their Number one passenger and mail
service from New York at Southampton. Once again the Mersey Docks and Harbour
Board could see the potential movement of passenger shipping, away from
Liverpool, and the new dock proposal was re-examined. This time it was
suggested that a three branch estate should be constructed, including a dry
dock that could accommodate ships up to 1,000 feet in length. Parliamentary
powers were approved in 1906, but the idea was shelved when it was estimated
that the cost of the work would he over £2 million.
Cunard Line
began to build its new super-liners in 1905; they were expected to be not only
the fastest in the world, but also the largest, with a length of 790 feet and a
beam of 88 feet. Losing these ships to Southampton would have had a devastating
effect on Liverpool, however, Cunard eventually declared its intention to
continue to use the Port of Liverpool as its terminal port, as it was expected
that the ships would spend only five days in port before sailing again.
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| The hydraulic tower that long stood in Canada Dock. It was tragically destroyed in an air raid in 1941. |
Cunard had no
wish to arrange for the new ships to enter dock unless it was absolutely
necessary. Instead it asked that a large buoy be moored in the river off
Woodside, at which the liners could complete the turn-round. This was provided,
and additional measures included the removal of a further large quantity of
rock and silt from the bed of the river at the Landing Stage. At the same time passenger facilities at the
landing stage were further improved by the fitting of an upper deck.
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| Lusitania Docking in Liverpool |
Two superliners, named
Lusitania and Mauretania, duly entered service and, although capable of their
designed speed of 25 knots, it was usually found necessary to use a third ship
in order to maintain a weekly transatlantic service. Either the much older
Campania or the Lucania was used until a third super-liner could enter service.
Cunard duly announced in 1910 that it was ordering a third vessel to match the
luxury of the first pair, the new Aquitania, a considerably larger vessel
designed to compete with the Atlantic liners. With a tonnage of 45,500 with a
length of 901 feet and a beam of 97 feet, the thousand-foot liner had almost
arrived. Cunard was not prepared to service so large a ship at the river buoy,
and stated that Liverpool must provide a suitable dock or the ship would sail
to and from Southampton.
The Dock Board
decided on a modern dock estate should be built as there would c not be
sufficient time to complete a three branch project before the new ship came
into service. The new dock was
eventually built about nine months ahead of schedule.
The first stage,
which was completed by April 1913, was the construction of a single basin 1,050
feet in length. Its 120-foot wide entrance was connected by a direct channel to
the Mersey and was consequently capable of being used at all stages of the
tide. The basin would have dual functions: when flooded, cargo could be handled
using the latest quayside equipment and transport facilities, and when ‘dried
out’ it would become the largest graving dock in the world.
King George V
and Queen Mary duly opened the graving dock on 11 July 1913 and the
occasion included one of the finest parades of shipping ever seen on the
Mersey, which included ‘The Ceramic’ which was launched on 11th December 1912,
she was making her first public appearance at the Merseyside Pageant . Ships
where, decked out in bunting and banners, and ‘The Ceramic’ joined a ten
mile line of shipping to welcome King George V and Queen Mary. The exuberance,
with which this Royal Visit is reported in the press, must reflect not only the
delight the King experienced to be presented with such a sight, as a former
Mariner himself, but also the joy that it brought to the area of Merseyside
that would become the Ceramic’s adopted home. She later became nicknamed “The
Relief of Bootle”, or “The Breadbasket of Bootle”, because she employed so many
of the town’s seafarers, keeping them from the dole queue in the precarious
inter-war period.
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| The Crystal Serenity at Port of Liverpool |
Despite the
austerity of the 80s and 90s, due largely to containerisation and the movement
of goods by road and rail, which saw a massive decline in shipping in
Liverpool, and despite the closure of large parts of the dock system, the
cruise liners are with us once again. Cruise ships had been operating from the
port with a terminal at Langton Dock. But, Cruise ships returned to Liverpool's
Pier Head in 2008, berthing at a newly constructed cruise terminal. Since 2012,
the terminal has been used as the start and end of voyages, and not just as a
stop-off point. Ships which have called at Liverpool include RMS Queen
Elizabeth 2 (QE2), Grand Princess and RMS Queen Mary 2, along with a number of
large Royal Navy vessels. Liverpool is one of the few cities in the world where
ocean-going cruise ships can berth in the city centre, providing a spectacular
addition to the waterfront skyline.
The Liverpool
Cruise Terminal welcomed 54
cruise ships in 2015, bringing with them an 80,000 international
visitors to the city. Many of the new vessels and cruise lines were making
their inaugural calls along the Mersey to the historic port.
The highlight of the season were two events to celebrate Cunard Cruise Line’s 175th anniversary. The first, on May 25, that saw the Cunard fleet arrive on the Mersey, creating an unprecedented Three Queens spectacle in Liverpool that made maritime history. On the 4th of July, the Cunard flagship Queen Mary 2 returned to Liverpool to celebrate Britannia’s transatlantic departure exactly 175 years earlier. Added to this there were events across the city celebrating cruise travel and how an industry that was born in Liverpool changed the world culturally.
By Robert.F.Edwards
