Here is a small passenger ship with a significant history in the Greek seas, gulfs and bays over a period of more than 30 years, after an initial glorious period in the British isles for another 30 years, when she was forcefully retired, she was 63 years old!

Poros, Georgios or Eurotas (depending on how you encounter her in your Greek histories) was built as the yacht Mona in 1871 (not in 1875 as mentioned by Tzamtzis in his 2002 book) by the Day, Summers & Co of Southampton, UK. The Day Summers company specialized in smaller ships, tugs, trawlers and yachts. Several old Greek ships of small tonnage had been built there including Kleoniki/Aetos.

Mona was built as an 193 tons vessel (later, during her Greek days, increased to 274 tons) with a length of 46.1 m and a width of 6.4 m. She was registered in Southampton in 1871 and in Greenock in 1883.

Her owners were Earl House 1871-80; James Clark of Ralston, Paisley 1880-1901; and James McCall of Greenock, 1901-3. She was a classic pleasure yacht, not participating in races and regattas, as far as I know.

In 1903 or 1904 she was bought by the small shipping company Ioannis Ch. Papadopoulos Line that proceeded to remodel her (she was already 33 years old) and increase its tonnage to 274 tons. The changes were made at Neorion, Syros under the successors of the John McDowall Co.

In 1907 she was named Poros and started voyages in the Argosaronikos, Argolikos and Corinthian bay routes....

Here is a nice announcement from July 28, 1908.
19080728 Poros.jpg

Let us see several nice ads from the early years of Poros in Greece.

First, an ad from June 10, 1911
19110610 Poros.jpg

And then one of these cruises our small ships used to do all the way to ... Vouliagmeni (on July 15, 1916)
19160715 Poros.jpg

And here is a small photo of Poros in 1912 at the port of Poros
Poros.jpg