My New Year’s resolution (well one of them anyway) is to get
the historical research going again. I am trying to kick start it by setting
out a few facts, dates and names, which I hope will produce a reaction from one
of my readers along the lines of “Hey, that could be Grandpa, I will see if
there is anything in his old photo album”.
Hope springs eternal……
1876/8 - Lightship ‘Cormorant’ built at the Cork
Shipbuilding
Co., Passage West, Ireland, for
the Commissioners for Irish
Lights (CIL).
NB: Not at the Victoria
Shipbuilding Co., which did not exist.
1880 - A
specification for lightships was produced by CIL.
The authors were W. Douglass, Joshua Cole Com. R.N., and
Alex.F. Boxer.
Early 1900s – The Secretary of CIL was C.G(?).Cook
Inspection tours of Irish lightships were carried out by a
‘touring
party’ of wardens from CIL.
Members included
Sir W. Watson, Sir Robert Ball (Astronomer Royal of
Ireland)
and Messrs Douglass, Knight, Thompson, Scovell, Scott, Foot.
Captains Niall, Walker, Deane, Birt and Henning.
1942 - Cormorant sold by CIL to Belfast Harbour
Commissioners
(BHC). Survey carried out in Dublin by James Maxton and Co
(Marine Surveyors).
Modifications done at the Liffey Shipyards in Dublin.
1943 - Cormorant towed to Belfast by John Cooper
(Tug Owner).
Ship
renamed ‘Lady Dixon’ after a Commissioner’s wife
Lady Dixon D.B.E. J.P.
BHC Pilotage
Committee members included Sir Ernest
Herdman D.L. (Chair), Messrs
Berkeley, Davidson, Gotto,
Hamilton and Stewart. Pilots
Craig and Hurst.
1943 - 1960 Pilot
Masters included J.Owens, D.Hunt, R.Craig and
A.P.Kennedy.
Pilots
included E.W.Evans, F.J.Hurst, H.C.Ryding, A.G.Starkey,
J.Auld, J.A.Patton,
J.H.Holmes, A.M.Calmont, G.D.Clelland,
G.Hamilton and A.Trace.
7 Sep 1958 – The crew of the Lady Dixon saved three people
from
a capsized yacht in Belfast Lough.
1960 - Lady Dixon deemed too expensive to repair and
was
retired. The pilots then operated from a shore
station in
Carrickfergus.
1961 - Sold to G.A.Lee Ltd., Earl Street, Belfast
and swiftly on to
Arnold Thompson of Slough, where it began its ill-fated
career as a pirate radio station GBOK.
There are many common names in that lot, but a few unusual
ones too, which may trigger something. Any information or leads will be
gratefully received. On the four nautical/ historical sites I am running this
saga, the visitor total has just passed 100,000 so there should be someone out
there who can help!
David
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