Great Western (Paddle Steamer)

[john sefton]

The wooden paddle steamer 'Great Western' was built in 1837 by William Patterson and Company, Bristol, for the Great Western Steam Ship Company of that port. On completion she was the first true ocean-going steamship and the largest steamer in the world. Designed for the transatlantic trade by Isambard Kingdom Brunel, she completed her first Atlantic crossing in April 1838 just hours after the 'Sirius', carrying just seven passengers and a small amount of cargo.

'Great Western', and not 'Sirius', would thence provide the first regular passenger and cargo service on this route. Sailing initially from Bristol, then from Liverpool, she was for several years the most popular and successful steamer on the Atlantic. In 1847 she was sold to the Royal Mail Steam Packet Company for service on its Southampton-West Indies mail run. In 1856 she was chartered by the Admiralty for troop transport. She twice carried men, horses and equipment to the Black Sea. She was sold to shipbreakers in 1857 and scrapped at Vauxhall, on the Thames.
Liverpool Museum site.
Madagascar SG998