12. The Ships of John Summers & Sons
John Summers & Sons owned a fleet of ships which were used to ferry steel from their own wharf at Shotton to Liverpool, where they were transferred to sea-faring ships.
The fleet was known locally as the "Beetle Fleet" and in 1918 it consisted of 19 ships. The first two ships purchased were "Buffalo" and "Rio Formosa," both steamers, in 1897.
In 1935 one of the Summers' ships, "Maurita," was sold to a firm in Lancaster but, coincidentally, during the war, she sank only a few miles away from her former home. She hit a mine in the Dee estuary with the loss of all hands.
Many of the Summers' fleet were commandeered by the Government during World War 2 for use as petrol carriers. The airforce took one for use as a bouy-boat and the navy took two. "Stalybridge" and "Hawarden Bridge" were fitted out with guns at Liverpool in readiness for the Normandy landings.
"Hawarden Bridge" had an interesting history. It was the first ship to enter Dunkirk Harbour after the liberation of the town. After returning to duties on the River Dee, she was sold to a Barbados company in 1967. Eleven years later she was found abandoned and adrift - her crew lost and engine flooded - a victim of the "Bermuda Triangle." She was towed to Miami, the fate of her crew remains a mystery to this day.
The SS Hawarden Bridge - victim of the Bermuda Triangle
|
Name |
Type |
Tonnage |
Builder |
Year Built |
|
Buffalo |
Steamer |
? |
? |
1897 |
|
Rio Formosa |
Steamer |
? |
? |
1897 |
|
Ogarita |
? |
? |
? |
? |
|
Fleurita |
Motorship |
171 |
Abdela & Mitchell Queensferry |
1913 |
|
Innishowen |
Motorship |
146 |
McGregor & Sons |
1913 |
|
Lewes Castle |
Motorship |
126 |
Gerber Boot, Germany |
1914 |
|
Felita (Formerly Sir William) |
Motorship |
170 |
Abdela & Mitchell Queensferry |
1914 |
|
Red Hand |
? |
? |
? |
? |
|
Carita |
? |
? |
? |
? |
|
Warita |
Motorship |
305 |
? |
1919 |
|
Indorita |
Motorship |
201 |
Abdela & Mitchell Queensferry |
1920 |
|
Eldorita |
Motorship |
201 |
Abdela & Mitchell Queensferry |
1920 |
|
Georgita |
? |
? |
? |
? |
|
Marcita |
Motorship |
150 |
J. Crichton & Co., Connah's Quay |
1920 |
|
Jonita |
T/S Motorship |
151 |
? |
1920 |
|
Barrett |
? |
? |
? |
? |
|
Wilita |
? |
? |
? |
? |
|
Maurita |
Steamer |
197 |
? |
1920 |
|
Dorita |
? |
? |
? |
? |
|
Polita |
T/S Motorship |
109 |
Lytham Ship Builders |
1920 |
|
Stratum |
Motorship |
174 |
Livingstone & Cooper |
1921 |
|
Carmenita |
? |
? |
? |
? |
|
Alita |
? |
? |
? |
? |
|
Stalybridge |
Motorship |
? |
Scotland |
1940 |
|
Hawarden Bridge |
Motorship |
? |
Scotland |
1940 |
The Shipping wharf of John Summers on the Dee
Copyright © Keith Atkinson 1998 - 2006
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