Blue Funnel Line.

[Waterways]

Chippie yes when my dau and i came for a day trip over 4yrs ago i was taken by Liverpool the beautiful buildings they were fantastic and of course cos all my maternal side were born and bred there.I think next year will fantastic for everyone and for Liverpool to be real proud..

Caterina [ Honary Scouser]

I went to the Lake District for over a week in July with some French people. On the way up we stopped off in Chester for a night, which they liked. I decide to drop into Liverpool on the way to the Lakes. I never told them. They thought Liverpool was a poor slum not knowing anything about the place apart from the Beatles.

I entered via the Runcorn bridge and went to Woolton showing them the village and John Lennon's house, then Paul McCartney's house, Strawberry Field, then through the leafy suburbs with huge mature oak trees everywhere and through parks to Aigburth then along Riverside drive to the Albert Dock for coffee. They were very impressed (one is from Paris) with the Albert Dock and with the level of construction, and wondered what the church was with the birds on top. I was giving running commentaries: the French wall, the dock system, the American connections, the 1.3 million Irish who entered in the famine, etc. The three Graces impressed them. They were amazed at the size of the cathedral - I told them the world's largest tower and largest gothic arches. They were impressed with the red colour not having seen red sandstone churches before - never occurred to me it was that different. I pointed out the world's largest brick building too - the the Tobacco warehouse.

I stopped outside Oriel Chambers and pointed out it that it was the first steel framed glass curtain walled buildings in the world and all modern building are generally based on it. One said, "it is a very important building then". The were impressed at seeing the White Star Line Building (the Titanic).

I told them about most of the centre being a World Heritage site and buffer zone. They said how come Liverpool has all these wonderful buildings and supposed to be so poor. I told them it was one on the richest cities in the world at one time - they were surprised but said "it all fitted as poor cities do not have buildings like there are here". We went out via Riverside Drive, Rose Lane, Penny Lane and Queens Drive and the M62. We drove through miles and miles of Liverpool and not a slum in sight anywhere. They liked the red sandstone walls around buildings in the south end of the city.

On the way home to France, I overheard them saying to others that they were very impressed with Liverpool and never expected it to be so nice.

[caterina]

Hi Waterways your input is very interesting i have only been to Liverpool once but was so struck by the magnificent buildings next year i am coming for a big family reunion and hope to explore a lot more..


Caterina

[lindylou]

Thanks Waterways for showing the best assets of our city.

Nice to hear that someone left with a good impression.

[caterina]

Lindylou Liverpool is a marvellous place the day i had was not long enough my Mum was born in Liverpool and all of my family on her side come form there and Ireland of course. The Catholic Cathedral i bet is breathtaking to see inside you should all be very proud..


Caterina

[Waterways]

Lindylou Liverpool is a marvellous place the day i had was not long enough my Mum was born in Liverpool and all of my family on her side come form there and Ireland of course. The Catholic Cathedral i bet is breathtaking to see inside you should all be very proud..
Caterina

Caterina, you should see what we lost. Most of Lord Street and Church Street were wiped out in WW2. Countless fine Victorian, and before, buildings were demolished post WW2 in the name of progress. This added to what the German air force did as well. A whole elegant Georgian sector was demolished around Upper Parliament St. Many fine 200 to 300 years old warehouses were demolished - whole massive blocks of them. A complete and unique elevated electric railway running the length of the docks was demolished too. Historic docks have been filled in to make car parks.

Liverpool still has more Georgian buildings than Bath. Nevertheless many landlords allow the Georgian buildings to rot and the council come and order demolition on safety grounds, even though they are listed buildings.

[chippie]

two of the ships my family sailled on. The Arakaka was a Blue Funnel and I,m not sure about the Colarado Star. When I find my list I will get more photos.

[chippie]

pic of the Merchant Navy Medal and the Lucitania at the Pier Head curtesy of another sole

[Waterways]

two of the ships my family sailled on. The Arakaka was a Blue Funnel and I,m not sure about the Colarado Star. When I find my list I will get more photos.

None are Blue Funnel - they don't look like Blue Funnel designs. The Arkaka is Booker McConnell and Colorado Star the Blue Star Line. Blue Funnel ships were given Homeric names.

This is a typical Blue Funnel design. Note the wasteline and gentle sweep up to the rakish bows. They were about the first to have a rounded bow and the bows splayed out to divert water away from the ship is heavy seas. The upright funnel is distinctly Blue Funnel.



Two in Singapore:

[chippie]

I stand corrected then Waterways

[chippie]

Waterways, I,ve just remembered another one, m.v. Laomedon, two of my family salts went to Port Swetenham together in 1956. Is that Blue Funnel?

[Waterways]

Waterways, I,ve just remembered another one, m.v. Laomedon, two of my family salts went to Port Swetenham together in 1956. Is that Blue Funnel?

With a name like Laomedon, most certainly Blue Funnel. Laomedon was the son of Ilus and a king of Troy.

[chippie]

I,ve got a photo of my two uncs from the Laomedon,s football team Waterways. When I dig it out I,ll post it up

[chippie]

Here it is, my uncs are the two front lads, Bobby and Jimmy

[HollyBlack]

Does anyone have any information on this at what date did it start to operate and where exactly did the Seamen come from was it always China or not.. Very interested to know.. Caterina..

My father sailed for Blue Funnel in the WW2 era.

They used to have vessels designed to bring chilled (not frozen) meat and butter back from Australia and New Zealand. They carried general dry cargo on the way out and, surprisingly, up to 200 first-class passengers.

Often they sailed out via Cape Town (for bunkers) to Freemantle then on to New Zealand and back via the Panama canal and New York. Very long voyages. During the war they brought American airmen (fighter pilots and bomber gunners) from New York to Birkenhead. Only a hundred or so airmen at a time, presumably to spread the risk.

[odyssey]

This topic is getting a bit old but hopefully some of the above will revisit.
I served in Alfred Holt's Blue Funnel and Glen Line ships from 1958 to 1990. As a young officer I was mainly on Glen Line ships sailing out of london; Blue Funnel ships traded from Liverpool. In my latter years I served on giant RO/RO ships on a round the world service.
I had the privilege of sailing with Chinese ratings off and on until 1983 and I have great respect for them.
In Liverpool the Chinese seamen set up a colony at Nelson Street and formed China Town.
The Holt family retired from the business and the company went private. After that it was all down hill until the company, by now known as Ocean Transport & Trading sold all their ships and diverted into other businesses. The company has faded into obscurity now.
I noted that Waterways stated that the company was taken over by a French company. I have not heard that, but nothing surprises me these days. I do know that the tradename 'Glen and Shire Line' has been bought by a British shipping company which is nice to know.
Two of the ships above Idom and Diomed [also known as dirty Diomed] I sailed on in the 1960's. The Diomed to China, hell of a voyage as Mao Tse Tung's Red Guards gave us a bad time, and the Idom to the jungle run around Malaya and Java.
If anyone wants a seafarers eye view of the old company I would be pleased to discuss.
Alfred Holt & Co was the finest company in the world and I was privileged and proud to serve on the ships.