Why is there no Leith Built Ships Official Website funded by Edinburgh Council

It says it all in the heading folks, just why is there no official website funded by Edinburgh Council to show off the history of the many fine ships built at Leith, this question I keep asking myself and it was the main reason why I started up this Blog and my website at www.leithshipyards.com
This has all been carried out by myself with lots of input from interested others of course but all the work of putting everything together is by me and the cost of such is borne by myself as well.
It really ticks me off when I see the great job done by Aberdeen Council, funded by no less than the Heritage Lottery fund to showcase the merits of the very fine and many ships built at Aberdeen as well, so why is most of the heritage of the Leith shipyards locked away in the dusty archives of the Archives of Scotland where no one gets to see it, unless you make an appointment of course and pay for the privilege.


Even ex workers are no exception and anyone would think that the Archives actually owned the information, this information should be out there for all to access, yet another reason for my setting up the website.
Is this yet another instance of the ineptitude of the Council in Edinburgh, just because it in fact features ships built at Leith, I repeat Leith not Edinburgh (Leith only joined with Edinburgh in the 1920's under a rigged vote and much duress)
So not much I can do about this situation as it would need someone in Leith or Edinburgh to pick this up and run with the project as I no longer live anywhere near.
For anyone interested take a look at the Aberdeen Shipbuilders website for yourself and see what I am speaking about, it is way past time that some money was spent by the Council of Edinburgh to rectify this situation and let people who are interested see what is hidden away (unless you pay of course)

The Leith "Motto"



Who knows perhaps the director of the national archives for Scotland will see this request and respond as they certainly do not respond to any other requests sent in to them, we require an official good website to show the history of the Leith Shipyards and you should be spending some money on this project.

Rant is now over for the week folks, thank you,

perhaps if you feel strongly about this subject you will also contact the National Archives of Scotland and ask them why no official website (such as the Aberdeen one not the existing archive website) showing this great history of a time we shall never see again in the Port of Leith

 

Fantastic Photo's of Queen Mary 2 & her Captain

Its been a wee while since time has allowed some updates on the blog however a lot of new things happening and in the meantime check out these amazing photographs of the Captain of the majestic liner Queen Mary 2.
The photographs are from friends of the Leith Shipyards website over at http://freeshipplans.com/
a great site of interest for all things to do with ships and you get free plans as well.

The Great Liners Story This history charts the hey-day of the great liners, those grand and lavish vessels that cruised around the world carrying their glamorous passengers from port to port. Decorated to the highest of finishes, fitted out in the most luxurious of styles, these floating palaces epitomised their opulent age. Their iconic names, from Titanic to Mauretania, from Queen Elizabeth to QE2, conjure up visions of power, grace, elegance and nostalgia for this golden age of travel. Written by maritime and cruise liner expert William Miller, and accompanied by stunning photographs, artworks, Did You Know facts and quotations, The Great Liners Story is a must-have addition to any maritime library.

There is always a bound between a ship and her captain. Mostly they try to have a picture with most of ships they are in command of. Queen Mary 2′s Captain Kevin Oprey posed with his ship in an unusual way, but the result is so amazing.


The Captain of the liner Queen Mary 2 walks on water or so it would seem from this amazing photograph, he is of course standing on her bulbous bow in a very calm sea



The Captain of the Queen Mary 2 stands on her bulbous bow and gives some indication of the scale of this magnificent liner


 

For more great photographs of the Queen Mary 2 and many other visit the Leith Shipyards photos pages.



Transatlantic Liners Prior to air travel there was only one way to cross the Atlantic: by ship. By the late nineteenth century, steam ships dominated the transatlantic passenger trade, growing exponentially in size as maritime technology improved and as more immigrants poured from Europe into the New World. As the liners got bigger, the scope for luxury increased, so that a substantial part of ships such as Titanic would be given over to sumptuous dining saloons, lounges, smoking rooms and even gymnasia for the most affluent passengers. Meanwhile, the bulk of passengers, the poor migrants with one-way tickets to America, were efficiently arranged in small cabins with bunks in the bows and stern of the ship. This book is an introduction to the age of the superliner, from 1900 to the modern day, exploring changes in the liner's design and role over a century that saw competition between shipping lines and between nations. The author describes the history and design of such great ships as Lusitania, Olympic, Imperator, Normandie, both queen Elizabeths, both queen Marys and, of course, the legendary Titanic. He tells the story of the heyday of the great liners before immigration to America was curtailed, the many races for the Blue Riband speed record, the experiences of rich and poor passengers, the role of the liners as troopships and hospital ships during the world wars, and the decline in the Atlantic trade after the 1960s, since when most passengers have travelled by air.

What Happened to THE MILLER

The Miller in winter Ship No 194


The above photograph was sent into the Leith Shipyards website from a lady who lived on this fine old coaster for around 5 years and it has found memories for her and many others which brings me to the question What happened to THE MILLER

Visit the E-Book library of Ships and the Sea

Has she been to the scrap yard or is she still around just wasting away in some back water siding, we are sure that one of our informed readers will be able to let us know, is this very fine example of a Short Sea Coaster still around she was built in 1932 at the Leith Shipyards of Henry Robb Ltd and was one of the many used to ferry freight around the British Isles in the days before road transport took over to block most of our inner city roads and add to the pollution and congestion that we all seem to just take for granted these days, how many trucks were used to replace just one ship such as THE MILLER.

H.M.S. WALLASEA

H.M.S.WALLASEA (Under way)

Ship No 339

Isle Class armed trawler.

An order for an armed trawler of the “Isle Class”

Primarily used for “Minesweeping” duties.

She was 463 tons, with an overall length of 150 feet, with a beam of 27 feet and 6 inches, and a draught of 14 feet and 6 inches.

She was launched from the yard on 22nd of April 1943.

H.M.S. Wallasea was to have a short war service as she was sunk by an E-Boat attack off the coast of Cornwall while on escort duty the 6th Jan 1944.

A Wee bit of History.

The official Henry Robb Shipyard opened up at the end of World War I around 1918.
The yard was closed down by the then Thatcher Government, in there wisdom and wound up around 1984.
This brought to an end over 660 years of Shipbuilding excellence in Leith.
There seems to be a fair amount of information on most of the other Shipyards around at the time in Scotland but as I said before not to much about Henry Robb in Leith, this is a small attempt to rectify this situation just a little bit, so if some of this is wrong or even made up then you will just have to bear with me until we get it correct.
The Company was founded by Henry Robb, a former yard manager for Ramage & Ferguson in 1918.
The Company then expanded through acquisition buying berths fromHawthorns in 1924, the business of Crane & Somerville in 1926 and the yards of Ramage & Ferguson in 1934. The site became known as Victoria Shipyard.
The Company closed its Arbroath and Clyde operations during the 1920's and focused its activities on Leith.
During World War II, Robbs built a large number of naval warships for the Royal Navy, including preparing the designs and building the prototype of the Basset-class anti-submarine /minesweeping trawler.
On 26 February 1940 King George VI and Queen Elizabeth toured the shipyard.
In 1968, Robbs purchased, and amalgamated with, the Caledon Shipbuilding and Engineering Company of Dundee, forming Robb Caledon Shipbuilding. In 1977, under the provisions of the Aircraft and Shipbuilding Industries Act 1977, Robb Caledon was nationalised as part of British Shipbuilders. The Caledon yard in Dundee closed in 1981; Robb's yard in Leith survived two more years, closing in 1983. The land once occupied by Robb's shipyard is now the Ocean Terminal shopping centre, and home to the Royal Yacht Britannia.

Launch of the M.V.Kiatoa for the Union Steamship Co of New Zealand.

Yard No 443