Mersey (1894 ship)

2021-04-02T07:49:26Z

2001:8003:DC45:A801:983A:242A:E70E:4611: Add image

{{More footnotes|date=March 2013}}
[[File:Mersey (ship, 1894) - SLV H91.250-1489.jpg|thumb|Mersey]]
[[File:Bow view of three-masted training ship MERSEY, 1908-1915 (11786442456).jpg|thumb|right|''Mersey'', 1908, near [[Sydney]]]]
The '''Mersey''' was a 1,829 ton{{clarify|date=March 2013}} iron-hulled [[sailing ship]] with a length of {{convert|270.7|ft}}, beam of {{convert|39|ft}} and depth of {{convert|22.5|ft}}. She was built by [[Charles Connell and Company]] of [[Glasgow]], named after the [[River Mersey]] in north-western [[England]] and launched on 18 May 1894 for the [[Nourse Line]]. Nourse Line used her primarily to transport of [[Indian indenture system|Indian indentured labourers]] to the British colonies, a so called, ''Coolie ship''.<ref>http://guyanachronicle.com/2009/05/05/the-coolie-ships Guyan Chronicle</ref><ref>https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/womens-blog/2013/nov/19/journey-coolie-women-history-british-empire-indentured-labourers The Guardian</ref> Details of some of these voyages are as follows:
{| class="wikitable"
|-
! Destination
! Date of arrival
! Number of passengers
! Deaths during voyage
|-
| [[Suriname]] || 10 April 1896 || n/a || n/a
|-
| [[Trinidad]] || 20 October 1897 || 668 || 11
|-
| Suriname || 28 January 1902 || n/a || n/a
|-
| [[Fiji]] || 13 June 1903 || 585 || n/a
|-
| Trinidad || 8 February 1906 || 665 || 5
|}

In 1908 the Mersey was sold to the [[White Star Line]] for use as a training ship for 60 cadets, making six voyages to [[Australia]] as a White Star training ship, traveling around the [[Cape of Good Hope]] outbound and [[Cape Horn]] inbound. In 1910 she became the first sailing ship to be equipped with a radio. She was also the first sailing ship aboard which an operation for [[appendicitis]] was performed on a cadet. In 1915 the White Star Line gave up their training scheme due to the war and sold the Mersey to [[Norway|Norwegian]] owners. She changed hands a number of times and her name was changed to ''Transatlantic'' then to ''Dvergso''. She was scrapped in 1923.

==See also==
* [[Mersey (1805 ship)]]
* [[Indian Indenture Ships to Fiji]]
* [[Indian indenture system]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}
*{{cite book |last=Lubbock |first=Basil | author-link = Basil Lubbock |title=Coolie ships and oil sailors |publisher=Brown, Son & Ferguson |year=1981 |isbn=0-85174-111-8}}
*{{cite book |last=Perry |first=F.W. |title=Nourse Line |location=Kendal | publisher= [[World Ship Society]] |year= 1991 |isbn= 0-905617-62-2}}

==External links==
{{commons category|Mersey (ship, 1894)}}
*[http://www.immigrantships.net/newcompass/pass_lists/suriname.html Immigrant Ships Transcribers Guild: Suriname]
*[http://www.rootsweb.com/~ttowgw/archives/indianships.htm Indian Immigrant Ship List]
*[http://www.encyclopedia-titanica.org/discus/messages/6937/112886.html Encyclopedia Titanica Message Board topic "Mersey"]

{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2014}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Mersey}}
[[Category:History of Suriname]]
[[Category:Indian indentureship in Trinidad and Tobago]]
[[Category:Indian indenture ships to Fiji]]
[[Category:Victorian-era passenger ships of the United Kingdom]]
[[Category:Individual sailing vessels]]
[[Category:1894 ships]]

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Mersey (1894 ship)