MONGOMERYSHIRE (1) was built in 1873 by London & Glasgow
Shipbuilding Co. at Glasgow with a tonnage of 1725grt, a length
of 308ft, a beam of 32ft 9in and a service speed of 9 knots.
An enlarged version of the Flintshire she undertook her maiden
voyage to China in December 1973. She was sold in 1877 to
Yubin Kisen Mitsubishi Busan K.K. of Yokohama with the name
Akitsushima Maru and on 10th October 1883 she was wrecked
about 10 miles southwest of Odanozawa, Aomori in Japan.
RADNORSHIRE (1) was built in
1876 by London & Glasgow Shipbuilding Co. at Glasgow with
a tonnage of 1810grt, a length of 301ft, a beam of 34ft 2in
and a service speed of 10 knots. She was delivered in November
1876 and deployed on the London-Hamburg-London-China-Japan
route. On 19th June 1885 she was wrecked on the Sorelle Rocks,
Malta during a voyage from Hamburg-London-Yagasaki.
BRECONSHIRE (1) was built in
1878 by London & Glasgow Shipbuilding Co. at Glasgow with
a tonnage of 1800grt, a length of 299ft 7in, a beam of 34ft
4in and a service speed of 10 knots. She was delivered in
February 1878 for the Far East service and on 17th February
1886 was wrecked in sea fog at Lamoka, China whilst inbound
from Swatow with a cargo of tea. It is interesting to note
that navigational aids in coastal waters were few and far
between in those days.
MERIONETHSHIRE (1) was built
in 1878 by London & Glasgow Shipbuilding Co. at Glasgow
with a tonnage of 1817grt, a length of 301ft 5in, a beam of
34ft 4in and a service speed of 10 knots. Sistership of the
Breckonshire she was delivered in April 1878. In 1890 she
was sold to the Quebec S.S. Co. of London and renamed Caribee
for their UK-St Lawrence service with calls to the maritime
provinces during the winter. She was sold on in 1907 to W.H.A.
Walker of London without a change of name and based in New
York for their Caribbean services. On 8th June 1908 during
a voyage from Mantanzas to New York she foundered off the
east coast of the USA and was one of 33 ships subsequently
investigated by the Load Line Committee of Lloyds to see if
her loss could have been attributed to the change of registered
freeboards in 1906 which could have made her unsafe in storm
conditions. She was cleared as her draught was within the
limits set in 1906 as were the other 32 ships investigated.
PEMBROKESHIRE (2) was built
in 1882 by London & Glasgow Shipbuilding Co. at Glasgow
with a tonnage of 2632grt, a length of 330ft, a beam of 38ft
8in and a service speed of 10 knots. She was sold in 1893
to the Quebec S.S. Co. of London for their Canadian routes
and renamed Fontabelle. In 1906 she became the Canoe under
the ownership of Cia Commercio e Navegacao of Rio de Janeiro
and in 1913 was hulked at Rio and used for storing case oil
where the oil wharves are located today. She was discarded
during the 1920's and presumably scrapped.
GLAMORGANSHIRE (2) was built
in 1884 by London & Glasgow Shipbuilding Co. at Glasgow
with a tonnage of 2835grt, a length of 340ft 2in, a beam of
40ft 2in and a service speed of 10 knots. She was the sister
of the Pembrokeshire and delivered in November 1884 for the
Far East service. On 7th March 1897 she was wrecked near Cape
James during a voyage from Hong Kong to London.
CARDIGANSHIRE (2) was built
in 1883 by C.S. Swan & Hunter at Newcastle with a tonnage
of 2486grt, a length of 317ft 3in, a beam of 38ft 1in and
a service speed of 10 knots. She was launched on 24th May
1883 for Shire Line's Far East service. In 1894 she was sold
to Hokkaido Tanko Tetsudo K.K. of Tokyo and renamed Iburi
Maru. On 23rd January 1909 she sank in Tokyo Bay after being
in collision with the ss Sydney of the Melbourne S.S. Co.
DENBIGHSHIRE (2) was built
in 1885 by C.S. Swan & Hunter at Newcastle with a tonnage
of 2538grt, a length of 317ft 3in, a beam of 38ft 1in and
a service speed of 10 knots. Sister of the Cardiganshire she
was deployed on the Far East run with Shanghai as the main
port of call. In 1894 she was sold to Osaka Syosen K.K. for
their weekly Osaka-Taiwan service and renamed Fukuoka Maru.
She was sold again in 1912 to Goshi Kaisya Akita Shokwai of
Nishinomiya and again in 1920 to Yamasaki Kisen K.K. of Hakodate
retaining her name on both occasions. On 23rd January 1927
she was wrecked near Nanao during a voyage from Fushiki to
Tsuruga. For many years the ship's bell was aboard the Japanese
sail training ship Nippon Maru.
MONMOUTHSHIRE (1) was built
in 1886 by London & Glasgow Shipbuilding Co. at Glasgow
with a tonnage of 2874grt, a length of 344ft, a beam of 40ft
2in and a service speed of 11 knots. A enlarged version of
the Pembrokeshire she was the company's first ship to have
a steel hull and a triple expansion engine. In November 1894
Ernest Shackleton, later to be knighted for his exploration
of the Antarctic, was third mate and continued to serve with
the company until 1899. She was sold to the Quebec S.S. Co.
of London for their weekly London to Canada service and renamed
Korona. By 1920 she was owned by the Korona S.S. Corp of Callao,
with Globe Line as managers, and deployed on the Callao-Panama
Canal-New York Service and scrapped in 1924.
FLINTSHIRE (2) was built in
1888 by London & Glasgow Shipbuilding Co. at Glasgow with
a tonnage of 2879grt, a length of 344ft, a beam of 40ft 2in
and a service speed of 11 knots. Sistership of the Monmouthshire
she was delivered in the December for the Far East service.
In 1895 she was sold to Nippon Yusen Kabusiki K.K. of Tokyo,
renamed Toyohashi Maru, but was used as a Naval supply ship
during hostilities with Manchuria and didn't serve with the
company in any capacity. The Imperial Japanese Navy requisitioned
the ship in 1897 with the name Toyohashi and used her as a
torpedo depot ship. In 1915 she became a training ship for
the Japan Seaman's Relief Association and was broken up in
1922.
BRECONSHIRE (2) was built in
1883 by Sunderland Shipbuilding Co. at Sunderland with a tonnage
of 2544grt, a length of 299ft 7in, a beam of 37ft 2in and
a service speed of 10 knots. She was delivered to Porteus
& Senior of London as the Numida and acquired by Shire
Line in 1886. In 1893 she was sold to Breconshire S.S. Co.
of Newcastl,e with Thompson & Elliott as managers, and
on 30th April 1894 was wrecked at Bethel Creek, Pennsylvania
whilst on a voyage from New York to Tampa.
CARMARTHENSHIRE (2) was built
in 1887 by C.S. Swan & Hunter at Newcastle with a tonnage
of 2726grt, a length of 329ft 5in, a beam of 40ft and a service
speed of 11 knots. She was launched on 25th January with the
customary grey hull but around 1895 was given a black hull
with a white band. In 1901 she was sold to Trinidad Shipping
& Trading Co. of London for their West Indies trade and
renamed Maracus. She was acquired by New York Transatlantic
Corp. of New York for the New York-Trinidad service to maintain
trade severed by the US Neutrality Act following the outbreak
of the First World War but only until 1915 when she was replaced
by standard US ship construction and sold to A/S Solgran of
Stavanger, with A. Meling Jrn. as manager, and renamed Marjoren.
On 3rd September 1917 she was torpedoed southwest of Ireland.
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