Associated Humber Lines


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The Goole Shipping Company was formed in 1864, and started carrying passengers in 1879. The first ships were named after directors of the company, of which only the Robert Crake of 1879 survived when they were taken over by the Lancashire & Yorkshire Railway (LYR) in 1905. The Ouse of 1884 initiated the use of northern river names, which were applied to most subsequent newbuildings. In 1895, the Humber SS Co and the Yorkshire Coal & Shipping Co were taken over, adding a total of eight ships to the Goole fleet.

Following the 1905 takeover, the LYR retained the Goole funnel colours of buff with a broad red band below a black top, and the Goole name was retained for use in publicity. Ownership passed to the London & North Western Railway (LNWR) in 1922, and then the London Midland & Scottish Railway (LMS) in 1923.

Humber shipping interests of the LMS and London & North Eastern Railway (LNER) were combined into the Associated Humber Lines (AHL) in 1935, although individual companies retained their titles.

The Goole Shipping Company operated routes from the Humber ports of Goole, Hull and Grimsby to a wide range of European destinations including Amsterdam, Antwerp, Dunkirk, Gent, Zeebrugge, Vlissingen, Hamburg and Rotterdam. They mainly operated small cargo/passenger steamers, but in 1906, the LYR started a summer service from Hull to Zeebrugge with the Fleetwood steamer Duke of Clarence. The service resumed after WW1, again with Duke of Clarence, until she was sold for scrap in 1930. For the next four years her place was taken by Duke of Connaught. After the formation of AHL in 1935, one of the Humber-based ex-Great Central ships such as Dewsbury operated the service.

The Hull & Nederlands Steam Ship Company was formed in 1894 to run services between Hull and Dutch ports. In 1908 they were taken over by the North Eastern Railway (NER). NER became part of the London & North Eastern Railway in 1923. Shipping interests were managed by Associated Humber Lines in 1935.

The Associated Humber Lines were formed in 1935 to manage the fleets of - Goole Steam Shipping Company, Hull & Netherlands Steam Ship Company, London & North Eastern Railway (Great Central section), London Midland & Scottish Railway (Goole services) and Wilson's & NER Shipping Company (Wilson Line). Thus Humber shipping interests of the LMS and LNER were combined into Associated Humber Lines in 1935.

1948    British Transport Commission formed on the nationalisation of the railways.

- Railway Executive

- Hotels Executive

- Docks & Inland Waterways Executive

- Road Passenger Executive

- Road Haulage Executive

- London Transport Executive

Clyde Shipping Services (LNER and Caledonian Steam Packet Co. operations) become a division of British Railways on nationalisation. British Railways acquires the LMS share in David MacBrayne Ltd. Other Railway Shipping Services of the previous Big Four companies become part of BR regions. Associated Humber Lines (AHL) became part of the Road Haulage Executive.

Ordered by British Railways Board (part of the British Transport Commission – BTC), the 1,372 gross tons sisters, Kirkham Abbey and Byland Abbey, were completed in 1956 and 1957, respectively, to replace two aging steamers on the Goole – Copenhagen route.

This pair of small cargo liners, built by Austin and Pickersgill Ltd during the 1950s, were two of the more unusual post-war vessels launched by the company's Wear Dockyard. Streamlined in appearance, the two Abbeys were just over 265 feet long, with raked stems and cruiser sterns. Propelled by Ruston and Hornsby diesel engines, each afforded accommodation for 12 passengers in six attractively decorated two-berth cabins, panelled in different wood types. A smoking room and bar were situated on the boat deck, with a dining saloon below. Three refrigerated holds enabled butter, bacon and eggs to be shipped from Denmark.

On entering service, the two vessels replaced the steamships Don and Dearne, both of which had been built in 1924 for the London, Midland and Scottish Railway by Vickers' shipyard at Barrow-in-Furness. Dearne was scrapped at Dunston-on-Tyne in 1957, while Don arrived in Holland for breaking-up during late 1958.

Kirkham Abbey and Byland Abbey became known on the Humber as the "butter boats," because of their weekly imports of Danish dairy produce.

Together with other ships in the fleet, they were managed by Associated Humber Lines (AHL), which had been formed in 1935 as a consortium of five rail ferry companies, before being absorbed into the BTC on the 1948 rail nationalisation.

Both ships were sold to Hull-based Ellerman's Wilson Line in 1965, with Kirkham Abbey and Byland Abbey being renamed Ariosto and Angelo, respectively, in 1968.

Further ownership and name changes took place in 1970, with their purchase by Maldives Shipping Ltd. Ariosto then became Maldive Importer, with Angelo becoming Maldive Exporter. Having been built on the Wear and enjoyed successful careers within the same fleets, it is ironic that both ships should share their ultimate fate at the hands of the same shipbreakers. Maldive Exporter arrived at Pakistan's notorious Gadani Beach, near Karachi, in 1980, with her older sister following suite in 1983.

1962    The British Transport Commission is abolished.

                        - Railway Executive > British Railways Board

                        - Hotels Executive > British Transport Hotels

                        - Docks & Inland Waterways Executive is split

                                                - Docks > British Transport Docks Board

                                                - Inland Waterways > British Waterways Board

                        - Road Passenger Executive > Transport Holding Company

                        - Road Haulage Executive > British Road Services

                        - London Transport Executive > London Transport Board

At the abolition of the British Transport Commission in 1962, Associated Humber Lines became under the the Transport Holding Company. Later it came under the National  Freight Corporation from 1969. The NFC, composed of Freightliners Ltd, (which had been operating since 1965) and National Carriers Ltd (NCL), was to take over the total assets of BR's collection and delivery service, the subsidiary companies within the Transport Holding Company, and British Road Services.

In 1971 a nationalised asset was also lost when the NFC sold the Atlantic Steam Navigation Company; the BRB was interested in acquiring the company, but the Government had other ideas and sold it to European Ferries.

In 1971 Associated Humber Lines ceased operation due to competition from the rival operator, North Sea Ferries.

North Sea Ferries had been operating on the routes from Hull to Rotterdam and Zeebrugge since the 1960s. In 1996 they were taken over by P&O and renamed P&O North Sea Ferries. In 2005 P&O reorganised their P&O North Sea Ferries, P&O European Ferries and P&O Portsmouth as P&O Ferries.

Ferry Routes of Associated Humber Lines (AHL):

Goole - Rotterdam / Amsterdam / Copenhagen / Bremen.

Grimsby - Hamburg / Antwerp / Rotterdam.

Hull - Amsterdam / Bremen / Hamburg / Antwerp / Rotterdam.


Websites:


P&O Ferries

http://www.poferries.com

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