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vessels from America, Scandanavia, and
Russia sailed into the town in addition
to those from Great Britain and the continent.
A sizeable fleet of steam vessels soon
became established in Newry. In 1869 the
Newry Steam Packet Company purchased the
"City of Belfast" renamed her
the "Newry" and began operating
cross channel passenger and livestock
services from the Albert Basin. In 1871
the company was assimilated into the Dundalk
and Newry Steam Packet Company, which
had a new Newry registered steamer "Bessbrook"
built in 1877 followed in 1892 by the
S. S. "Iveagh" also registered
in Newry. For almost 60 years this innovative
little company operated regular cross
channel passenger services from the Steam
Packet Quay in the Albert Basin to Liverpool
and Glasgow.
Joseph Fisher established
a coal importing business on the opposite
side of the basin in 1852 purchasing his
first vessel, the elderly brigantine "Brothers"
in 1867. From a few small schooners and
brigantines the fleet expanded into one
of the best-known steam collier fleets
operating in Great Britain and Ireland.
These little steamers or "coasters"
could be found sailing throughout Britain,
Ireland and the continent. Initially called
after town lands, Newry ships were later
identifiable by the fact that they were
named after trees such as " Pine,"
"Upas," "Opepe" and
"Karri". By 1940 Fishers of
Newry had fifteen of these vessels in
operation. Another well- known Newry fleet
was owned by the Clanrye Steam Ship Company.
Conditions on these
vessels were harsh. They sailed in all
weather and were steered from an open
bridge until the Second World War. Electricity
was unheard of on board of until the late
1930s. Between 1900 and 1942, seventeen
Newry registered colliers were lost at
sea. Four, the steamers "Clonallon",
"Orior", "Privet",
and "Walnut" disappeared without
trace, whilst several others foundered
with heavy loss of life. In November 1916
the S.S "Retriever" of the Clanrye
Steamship Company collided with the passenger
steamer "Connemara" at the entrance
to Carlingford Lough with the loss of
over 90 lives in one of the worst maritime
disasters in Irish history.
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