Nicholas Peppas
18-04-2009, 16:01
Atromitos was a well known passenger ship of the Yannoulatos Line in the 1920s and early 30s. She was built close to Liverpool in 1889 and spent almost 20 years in the English seas before transferred to Greece. She was one of the unlucky ships that were retired in 1933, age 44!
She was launched as Antelope in May 1889, having been built at Laird Shipyards in Birkenhead. She was just 71.8 m long and 8.4 m wide (therefore smaller than Kyknos) although it was listed at 668 tons. The most impressive thing is that she was rather fast at 16 knots! Here is her Miramar listing
1093435 Year: 1889
Name: ANTELOPE Launch Date: 4.5.89
Type: Passenger/cargo Date of completion:
Flag: GBR Keel:
Tons: 668 Link: 1611
DWT: Yard No: 569
Length overall: Ship Design:
LPP: 71.8 Country of build: GBR
Beam: 8.4 Builder: Laird
Material of build: Location of yard: Birkenhead
Number of screws/Mchy/
Speed(kn): 2T-16
Owner as Completed: Great Western Rlwy Co, Milford
Naval or paramilitary marking :
A: *
End: 1933
Subsequent History: 14 ATROMITOS
Disposal Data: BU 3q.33
She was built by the Great Western Railway Co for the Weymouth-Channel Islands services. The Great Western Railway Company started Milford Haven and Fishguard to Waterford, Ireland, passenger services in 1872. Weymouth-Channel Islands and French ports services started in 1889.
Antelope was one of three similar ships, the others being Gazelle and Lynx. From 1889 to 1910 she was on the Weymouth-Channel Islands services with stops in St Helier and St Julien. From 1910 she ran from Plymouth to Brest.
The book below has a full list and photos of all ships that did the Channel islands route. I do not have it.
35958
But in the book Victorian and Edwardian Maritime Album by Hardy,
35959
I found a picture of Gazelle, the exact sister of Antelope, in the harbor of St Helier in Jersey (Channel islands) in 1893. The picture is copyrighted by Francis Frith. Enjoy it!
35961
The book has also the following text
In 1889 the Great Western Railway took over the Weymouth & Channel Islands Steam Packet Co, immediately ordering three new ships, ‘Lynx’, ‘Antelope’ and ‘Gazelle’, from Laird Bros, Birkenhead. To save time, an off-the-shelf Laird’s design was chosen; the three-ship deal cost the GWR £100,000. They were to be the first triple-expansion twin-screw packets to operate scheduled services in the English Channel. ‘Antelope’ and ‘Lynx’ were delivered in July 1889, ‘Gazelle’ at the beginning of September. All three had interesting and varied careers. On 10 June 1890 ‘Antelope’ was holed on Cavale Rocks, Guernsey; during a gale in November 1893 she ran out of coal, but managed to get into shelter in Swanage Bay where she was refuelled. On 5 September 1890, ‘Lynx’ was rammed by the tanker ‘Oevelgonne’, which did not stop - she was subsequently arrested on a visit to Falmouth. During the Great War, both ‘Lynx’ and ‘Gazelle’ served as Royal Navy minesweepers, ‘ taking part in the Dardanelles campaign. ‘Antelope’ had been sold in 1913, but by March 1920 the surviving sisters were back on station for the GWR, though both were used for cargo runs only.
Source: Copyrighted by Francis Frith
Indeed Antelope was sold to Yannoulatos during the war and placed immediately on the Cyclades route as Atromitos. After 1919, she was serving the Chios-Mytilene route. She was one of the 20+ Greek passenger ships that were waiting in Mytilene to help the Ionian Greeks displaced from Asia Minor in September 1922. She was particularly responsible for having saved many from Kydonies (Ayvali).
After that she continued as a passenger ship (see schedule below). She was retired by government decree in 1933.
35963
She was launched as Antelope in May 1889, having been built at Laird Shipyards in Birkenhead. She was just 71.8 m long and 8.4 m wide (therefore smaller than Kyknos) although it was listed at 668 tons. The most impressive thing is that she was rather fast at 16 knots! Here is her Miramar listing
1093435 Year: 1889
Name: ANTELOPE Launch Date: 4.5.89
Type: Passenger/cargo Date of completion:
Flag: GBR Keel:
Tons: 668 Link: 1611
DWT: Yard No: 569
Length overall: Ship Design:
LPP: 71.8 Country of build: GBR
Beam: 8.4 Builder: Laird
Material of build: Location of yard: Birkenhead
Number of screws/Mchy/
Speed(kn): 2T-16
Owner as Completed: Great Western Rlwy Co, Milford
Naval or paramilitary marking :
A: *
End: 1933
Subsequent History: 14 ATROMITOS
Disposal Data: BU 3q.33
She was built by the Great Western Railway Co for the Weymouth-Channel Islands services. The Great Western Railway Company started Milford Haven and Fishguard to Waterford, Ireland, passenger services in 1872. Weymouth-Channel Islands and French ports services started in 1889.
Antelope was one of three similar ships, the others being Gazelle and Lynx. From 1889 to 1910 she was on the Weymouth-Channel Islands services with stops in St Helier and St Julien. From 1910 she ran from Plymouth to Brest.
The book below has a full list and photos of all ships that did the Channel islands route. I do not have it.
35958
But in the book Victorian and Edwardian Maritime Album by Hardy,
35959
I found a picture of Gazelle, the exact sister of Antelope, in the harbor of St Helier in Jersey (Channel islands) in 1893. The picture is copyrighted by Francis Frith. Enjoy it!
35961
The book has also the following text
In 1889 the Great Western Railway took over the Weymouth & Channel Islands Steam Packet Co, immediately ordering three new ships, ‘Lynx’, ‘Antelope’ and ‘Gazelle’, from Laird Bros, Birkenhead. To save time, an off-the-shelf Laird’s design was chosen; the three-ship deal cost the GWR £100,000. They were to be the first triple-expansion twin-screw packets to operate scheduled services in the English Channel. ‘Antelope’ and ‘Lynx’ were delivered in July 1889, ‘Gazelle’ at the beginning of September. All three had interesting and varied careers. On 10 June 1890 ‘Antelope’ was holed on Cavale Rocks, Guernsey; during a gale in November 1893 she ran out of coal, but managed to get into shelter in Swanage Bay where she was refuelled. On 5 September 1890, ‘Lynx’ was rammed by the tanker ‘Oevelgonne’, which did not stop - she was subsequently arrested on a visit to Falmouth. During the Great War, both ‘Lynx’ and ‘Gazelle’ served as Royal Navy minesweepers, ‘ taking part in the Dardanelles campaign. ‘Antelope’ had been sold in 1913, but by March 1920 the surviving sisters were back on station for the GWR, though both were used for cargo runs only.
Source: Copyrighted by Francis Frith
Indeed Antelope was sold to Yannoulatos during the war and placed immediately on the Cyclades route as Atromitos. After 1919, she was serving the Chios-Mytilene route. She was one of the 20+ Greek passenger ships that were waiting in Mytilene to help the Ionian Greeks displaced from Asia Minor in September 1922. She was particularly responsible for having saved many from Kydonies (Ayvali).
After that she continued as a passenger ship (see schedule below). She was retired by government decree in 1933.
35963