STAR OF AUSTRIA was built in
1886 by Workman, Clark & Co. at Belfast with a tonnage
of 1781grt, a length of 264ft 8in and a beam of 38ft 8in.
The last sailing ship with the same basic specification as
the Star of Italy she was the first ship built by that yard
for Corry's and was fitted with patent bulwark thwarts which
remained shut when hit by the sea but opened to release water
on the deck. In 1895 during a voyage from Santa Rosalia to
Swansea with a cargo of copper ore she disappeared whilst
rounding Cape Horn.
STAR
OF VICTORIA (1) was built in 1886 by Workman, Clark &
Co. at Belfast with a tonnage of 3291grt, a length of 361ft
8in, a beam of 42ft 8in and a service speed of 10 knots. Corry's
first steamship she was delivered in January 1887 and began
service on charter to India. In 1889 she was chartered to
the Colonial Union Company, with Tyser & Co. as agents,
for service to New Zealand with refrigeration plant and cork
insulated holds having been installed by the agent at their
cost. The cost of the refrigeration plant was reimbursed to
Tyser's by Corry's in 1891 when they saw the potential for
ships with refrigerated cargo spaces. In 1911 she was sold
to Fratelli Cosulich of Trieste and renamed Frigida. Operated
by Austro-Americana S.A. she was the first frozen meat ship
in their fleet. On 18th December 1911 she was transferred
to a new company, Societa Importazioni Carne Congelate. In
October 1913 she was sold to Nicholas Mihanovich who were
owned by Soc.Anonyme de Nav. Sud-Atlantica of Buenos Aires
and renamed Moinho Fluminense. In early 1917 she was owned
by Cia des Chemins de Fer Paris-Lyons with the name Marseille
and later in the year was sold to Cie Nationale dÁffretements
of Le Havre. She was finally broken up in 1919.
STAR OF ENGLAND (1) was built
in 1889 by Workman, Clark & Co. at Belfast with a tonnage
of 3584grt, a length of 371ft 10in, a beam of 44ft 2in and
a service speed of 10 knots. A slightly larger version of
her sister the Star of Victoria she had a very similar career.
She was chartered for one voyage on the India run before being
refrigerated by the agents Tyser & Co for operation on
the Colonial Union service to New Zealand. In 1891 Corry's
reimbursed Tyser's for the refrigeration plant and continued
to operate the ship on their own account until 1913 when she
was sold to T. Gazzolo fu A of Genoa and renamed Purificazione.
By 1915 she was owned by Soc.Anon. Liva and in September of
that year sprang a leak and was abandoned at sea.
STAR
OF NEW ZEALAND was built in 1895 by Workman, Clark & Co.
at Belfast with a tonnage of 4417grt, a length of 393ft 6in,
a beam of 46ft 10in and a service speed of 11 knots. By 1902
she was deployed on the South American meat run in conjunction
with the Star of Ireland. On 28th November 1915 she was wrecked
near Molene, Brest during a voyage from Montevideo to Le Havre
with a cargo of meat.
STAR OF AUSTRALIA was built
in 1899 by Workman, Clark & Co. at Belfast with a tonnage
of 6179grt, a length of 440ft, a beam of 55ft 1in and a service
speed of 12 knots. She entered service in 1899 square rigged
on the foremast but this was removed within a year or so.
In 1904 she rescued the crew of a Canadian barque that was
breaking up in heavy seas during a voyage to South America.
During a voyage in 1912 her propeller shaft snapped when she
was some 600 miles east of Aden and was left disabled and
drifting. Not being equipped with radio with which she could
have sent an SOS two officers and four crew members set off
for Aden in a lifeboat to seek help. Two days later they managed
to contact the Glenlochy (Glen Line) which came to the rescue
and towed the Star of Australia to Aden. From there she was
towed to England for repairs by a tug owned by the Dutch company
Smit. On 23rd January 1914 she was transferred to the Commonwealth
& Dominion Line following its incorporation and in April
1916 she was renamed Port Stephens. On 1st August 1918 she
was in collision with and sank Hugh Roberts & Son's North
Cambria some 70 miles west of Ushant. During a voyage from
Australia and New Zealand to Hull via the Panama Canal in
1920 she took in tow the disabled American steamship Tashmoo
and berthed her at Queenstown after experiencing gale force
conditions. The salvage award was £9500 which was more
than the book value of the Port Stephens at the time. She
was eventually broken up in Italy in May 1924.
STAR
OF SCOTLAND was built in 1904 by Workman, Clark & Co.
at Belfast with a tonnage of 6230grt, a length of 440ft 3in,
a beam of 55ft 1in and a service speed of 12 knots. Sister
of the Star of Australia she was transferred to the Commonwealth
& Dominion Line following its incorporation in 1914 and
renamed Port Campbell in 1916. On 7th April 1918 during a
voyage from London to New York she was torpedoed by U-53 115
miles south west of Bishop Rock and sank two days later.
STAR OF JAPAN was built in 1906 by Workman, Clark & Co.
at Belfast with a tonnage of 6236grt, a length of 440ft 3in,
a beam of 55ft 1in and a service speed of 12 knots. Sister
of the Star of Australia she was wrecked at Pedro de Galha
on the west coast of Africa during a voyage from London to
Hawkes Bay with a general cargo without any loss of life.
STAR OF IRELAND was built in
1903 by Workman, Clark & Co. at Belfast with a tonnage
of 4331grt, a length of 380ft, a beam of 48ft 8in and a service
speed of 12 knots. She was built specifically for the South
American meat trade and virtually an updated version of the
Star of Victoria. Although she was refrigerated and as large
as some of the other vessels in the fleet she was not transferred
to the Commonwealth & Dominion Line and in 1915 was sold
to Nelson Steam Navigation Co. of Belfast with H & W Nelson
Ltd as managers for use on a similar trade. She was renamed
Highland Star by the new company in 1916. In 1927 she was
laid up at Dunston-on-Tyne and broken up in 1930 by Thos.
W. Ward at Inverkeithing.
STAR OF CANADA was built in
1909 by Workman, Clark & Co. at Belfast with a tonnage
of 7280grt, a length of 470ft 4in, a beam of 58ft 5in and
a service speed of 13 knots. When she entered service in October
1909 she was the company's first twin screwed ship. On 23rd
June 1912, during a voyage from New Zealand to London, she
was waiting offshore to load meat when a gale blew up causing
her to drag her two anchors on the sandy bottom and was wrecked
on Kaiti Beach, Gisborne.
STAR OF INDIA was built in
1910 by Workman, Clark & Co. at Belfast with a tonnage
of 7316grt, a length of 470ft 4in, a beam of 58ft 5in and
a service speed of 13 knots. Sister of the Star of India she
was transferred to the newly incorporated Commonwealth &
Dominion Line in 1914 and renamed Port Pirie (3) in May 1916.
She remained in service until November 1935 when she was scrapped
by Thos. W. Ward at Briton Ferry, South Wales.
STAR OF VICTORIA (2) was built
in 1914 by Workman, Clark & Co. at Belfast with a tonnage
of 9152grt, a length of 503ft 4in, a beam of 63ft 4in and
a service speed of 13 knots. During her construction there
was a shortage of riveters and compressed air rivet clenching
was successfully substituted. She was designed for quick conversion
into an emigrant carrier and in 1914 was converted to carry
1000 troops. She was completed on 10 January 1914 for J.P.Corry
but on 23rd January was transferred to the Commonwealth &
Dominion Line and in 1916 was renamed Port Melbourne. In March
1917 she was requisitioned by the Shipping Controller under
the Liner Requisition Scheme and immediately re-deployed on
the meat run as the carriage of meat had become a priority.
In 1919 she reverted to normal commercial trade and the passenger
accommodation was reduced to twelve. She had a reputation,
as did her sister, for wandering off course and in 1925 was
fitted with a gyro compass controlled steering gear which
was a new innovation at the time and supposedly cut the passage
time from Melbourne to London by two days. In 1929 the management
decided that as she was only fifteen years old it was worth
the expenditure to re-engine her with Bauer-Wach exhaust turbines
which increased fuel efficiency by some 15%-25% and to recover
the cost over the following six years. Unfortunately the sudden
slump in shipping trade began later that year and by 1931
she was laid up in the River Blackwater. Whilst laid up a
fire broke out and the hot plating was doused by crew members
and volunteers from other ships until the fire fighting equipment
arrived. She was repaired on the Tyne and immediately laid
up there. During 1936/7 she was again laid up in the River
Blackwater until she returned to the meat run where she remained
unscathed for the duration of the Second World War. On 18th
May 1948 she arrived at Blyth, Northumberland and was broken
up by Hughes, Bolckow.
STAR
OF ENGLAND (2) was built in 1914 by Workman, Clark & Co.
at Belfast with a tonnage of 9136grt, a length of 503ft 4in,
a beam of 63ft 4in and a service speed of 13 knots. Sister
of the Star of Victoria she also had air rivet clenching instead
of traditional riveting on the hull. By the time she was completed
the Commonwealth & Dominion Line had been incorporated
and she entered service under that ownership being renamed
Port Sydney in April 1916. She started her career as a troopship
and in March 1917 operated under the Liner Requisition Scheme
until she was decommissioned in the November and reverted
to commercial use. In 1929 she was fitted with Bauer-Wach
exhaust turbines. During the Second World War she continued
to operate commercially but under government control and made
some meat runs to the River Plate for the Royal Mail Line.
On 19th December 1948 she arrived at Preston and was broken
up by Thos.W.Ward. The woodwork and fittings in her saloon
were so nice that they were removed and stored for eventual
use in the crew lounge of the Port Sydney (2). (Photo as Port
Sydney: Dick Henshaw)
STAR
OF VICTORIA (1) was built in 1886 by Workman, Clark &
Co. at Belfast with a tonnage of 3291grt, a length of 361ft
8in, a beam of 42ft 8in and a service speed of 10 knots. Corry's
first steamship she was delivered in January 1887 and began
service on charter to India. In 1889 she was chartered to
the Colonial Union Company, with Tyser & Co. as agents,
for service to New Zealand with refrigeration plant and cork
insulated holds having been installed by the agent at their
cost. The cost of the refrigeration plant was reimbursed to
Tyser's by Corry's in 1891 when they saw the potential for
ships with refrigerated cargo spaces. In 1911 she was sold
to Fratelli Cosulich of Trieste and renamed Frigida. Operated
by Austro-Americana S.A. she was the first frozen meat ship
in their fleet. On 18th December 1911 she was transferred
to a new company, Societa Importazioni Carne Congelate. In
October 1913 she was sold to Nicholas Mihanovich who were
owned by Soc.Anonyme de Nav. Sud-Atlantica of Buenos Aires
and renamed Moinho Fluminense. In early 1917 she was owned
by Cia des Chemins de Fer Paris-Lyons with the name Marseille
and later in the year was sold to Cie Nationale dÁffretements
of Le Havre. She was finally broken up in 1919. 
STAR
OF NEW ZEALAND was built in 1895 by Workman, Clark & Co.
at Belfast with a tonnage of 4417grt, a length of 393ft 6in,
a beam of 46ft 10in and a service speed of 11 knots. By 1902
she was deployed on the South American meat run in conjunction
with the Star of Ireland. On 28th November 1915 she was wrecked
near Molene, Brest during a voyage from Montevideo to Le Havre
with a cargo of meat. 
STAR
OF SCOTLAND was built in 1904 by Workman, Clark & Co.
at Belfast with a tonnage of 6230grt, a length of 440ft 3in,
a beam of 55ft 1in and a service speed of 12 knots. Sister
of the Star of Australia she was transferred to the Commonwealth
& Dominion Line following its incorporation in 1914 and
renamed Port Campbell in 1916. On 7th April 1918 during a
voyage from London to New York she was torpedoed by U-53 115
miles south west of Bishop Rock and sank two days later. 
STAR
OF ENGLAND (2) was built in 1914 by Workman, Clark & Co.
at Belfast with a tonnage of 9136grt, a length of 503ft 4in,
a beam of 63ft 4in and a service speed of 13 knots. Sister
of the Star of Victoria she also had air rivet clenching instead
of traditional riveting on the hull. By the time she was completed
the Commonwealth & Dominion Line had been incorporated
and she entered service under that ownership being renamed
Port Sydney in April 1916. She started her career as a troopship
and in March 1917 operated under the Liner Requisition Scheme
until she was decommissioned in the November and reverted
to commercial use. In 1929 she was fitted with Bauer-Wach
exhaust turbines. During the Second World War she continued
to operate commercially but under government control and made
some meat runs to the River Plate for the Royal Mail Line.
On 19th December 1948 she arrived at Preston and was broken
up by Thos.W.Ward. The woodwork and fittings in her saloon
were so nice that they were removed and stored for eventual
use in the crew lounge of the Port Sydney (2). (Photo as Port
Sydney: Dick Henshaw)
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