SS Snaefell (1863)

Snaefell pictured berthed in Douglas.
History
Name:	Snaefell
Namesake:	Snaefell
Owner:	1863–1875: IOMSPCo. 1875–1888: Royal Netherlands Steamship Company.
Operator:	1863–1875: IOMSPCo. 1875–1888: Royal Netherlands Steamship Company.
Port of registry:	Douglas, Isle of Man
Builder:	Caird & Co. Greenock
Cost:	£22,000 (equivalent to £1,898,403 in 2015).[1]
Yard number:	45468
Launched:	22 May 1863
Completed:	1863
In service:	1863
Out of service:	1875
Identification:	Official Number 45468 Code Letters V D L F [2]
Fate:	Sold to Royal Netherlands Steamship Company in 1875. Finally sold for scrap in 1888.
Status:	Scrapped
General characteristics
Type:	Paddle steamer
Tonnage:	700 gross register tons (GRT)
Length:	236 feet (72 m)
Beam:	26 feet (7.9 m)
Depth:	14 feet (4.3 m)
Ice class:	N/A
Installed power:	1,300 shp (970 kW)
Propulsion:	Two-cylinder oscillating engines working at 25 pounds per square inch (170 kPa), producing an indicated horsepower of approximately 1,300 shp (970 kW)
Speed:	15 knots (28 km/h; 17 mph)[3]

SS (RMS) Snaefell (I) – the first ship in the Company's history to bear the name – was an iron paddle steamer that served with the Isle of Man Steam Packet Company until she was sold in 1875.

Construction and dimensions

Snaefell was the first of three similar vessels to be built for the Company by Caird & Co. of Greenock. Costing £22,000, she entered service in 1863.

Length 236'; beam 26'; depth 14'. Snaefell had a registered tonnage of 700 GRT.

All three sisters – Snaefell, Douglas and Tynwald were driven by two-cylinder oscillating engines with in the case of Snaefell, a nominal horsepower of 240, producing an indicated horsepower of approximately 1,300.

Snaefell was reboilered in 1869 for £3,500 (equivalent to £291,574 in 2015).

Service life

Snaefell pictured berthed at the Red Pier, Douglas.

Snaefell was considered fast for her day, and had a service speed of 15 knots (28 km/h; 17 mph).^[4] She reduced the passage time from Douglas – Liverpool to 4hrs 20mins, suggesting a service speed of approximately 17 knots (31 km/h; 20 mph).

She ran aground in 1871, after which her Master, Capt. Corlett tendered his resignation. The Company's shareholders asked the board to reappoint him, but after much discussion the board declined. Capt. Thomas Lewis was given command at a salary of £225 (equivalent to £18,894 in 2015) a year, reduced to half pay during lay up.

Disposal

After only 12 years with the Manx fleet, Snaefell was put up for sale. She was sold to the Royal Netherlands Steamship Company of Amsterdam for £15,500 (equivalent to £1,316,874 in 2015) in 1875. She was renamed the Stad Breda and plied between Sheerness and Flushing. In 1888, she was sold for scrapping.

References

1. UK CPI inflation numbers based on data available from Gregory Clark (2016), "The Annual RPI and Average Earnings for Britain, 1209 to Present (New Series)" MeasuringWorth.
2. Ships of the Isle of Man Steam Packet Company (Fred Henry) p.66
3. Ships of the Isle of Man Steam Packet Company (Fred Henry, 1973) p.64
4. Ships of the Isle of Man Steam Packet Company (Fred Henry, 1973) p.64

Bibliography

• Chappell, Connery (1980). Island Lifeline T.Stephenson & Sons Ltd ISBN 0-901314-20-X