...and his daughter Rebecca, wife of George A Unwin
Mary Wood, b 1789, Whitehaven, Cumbria
Steam Tugs on the Mersey
As far as we can make out, Jack and Alexander's ancestor James Wood, b Cumbria, 1791, became involved in the fledgling steam tug business on the Mersey.
The switch is likely to have given the family the wherewithal to move from Sparling Street to Park Road, Liverpool, at some time between 1841 and 1851. James was a boatman in the 1841 census, and, by 1851, was likely to have died - however, his family were better off for his efforts.
To help our own research, we're building up a timeline of the tug business, to include key national events as well as happenings on the Mersey, which we're hoping will pin down the role played by James. If you come across James in your research, please let us know!
As well as stuff from the internet, we've used information from British Steam Tugs, by P.N.Thomas, published in 1983 (ISBN 0 905184 07 6). As it is second-hand, we cannot guarantee the accuracy of the information below.
1815: Passenger steamer, named Industry, tows barges on the Clyde.
August 1816: First claim for "first steamer employed in towing ships". The steamer Majestic towed Hope, an East Indiaman, from Deptford to Woolwich, against the wind.
October 1816: Similar claim made for Liverpool steam ferry Charlotte, which towed Harlequin out of the Mersey.
1817: Steamboat built in Dumbarton, Scotland, for purpose of towing from Leith to Grangemouth. The boat's name? Tug! This is the first time a vessel used for towing was called a tug.
1821: Hero built. She was intended as a ferry but became a Mersey tug when bought by the Liverpool Steam Tug Company in 1839.
1836 Bristol dockers and boatmen smash up and scuttle the tug Fury which they saw as a threat to their livelihood.
1839: Three embarking sailing ships driven ashore during storm in Liverpool Bay. Tug Victoria, built 1837, towed out a lifeboat, which then had to run for shelter. Victoria remained on station and got a cable to one of the ships, rescuing some passengers. She returned the next day with another tug and saved more lives.
1839: Mona, ex Isle of Man Steam Company, bought by Liverpool Steam Tug Company.
Early 1840s: Experiments and rivalry between advocates of the archimedes screw and the paddle.
1841 First iron paddle tug built as a ferry. Entered fleet of J.Tyrer of Liverpool in 1853.
1844: The tug Liverpool Screw excelled against other steamers in towing out vessels in rough seas.
1848 Liverpool Steam Tug Co has nine new vessels, William Willoughby and Son has six.
1853 Iron-built tug Satellite used by John Watkins of Liverpool (See also "1841, Defiance").
1866 Mersey tugs wait off Anglesey for incoming business after seeing off departing vessels: shipowners complain in the press of the "exorbitant" charges demanded by the tug firms.
At the peak of the Mersey tug business, there were 40 fleet owners excepting owners of single tugs. Names included Mersey Original Steam Tug Co (John Prendeville, manager); The Old Steam Tug Co (incl tugs Reliance, Retriever and Resolute, all built 1857); two Mersey Steam Tug companies, United Steam Tug Co; Ward and Son's King Line (incl Iron King, Sailor King, etc); Liverpool Steam Tug Co (1836-1910); Prendeville and Sons (tugs named after knights); W&T Jolliffe (est 1852, named later tugs after family members, became part of Alexandra Towing Co); Liverpool Screw Towing and Lighterage Company (1877)); Alfred Lamey, and Richard Abel. In addition to tugs, major shipping lines like Canadian Pacific also kept their own tenders at Liverpool.
