P and A Campbell
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P & A Campbell was a shipping company based in
Bristol Bristol () is a city, ceremonial county and unitary authority in England. Situated on the River Avon, it is bordered by the ceremonial counties of Gloucestershire to the north and Somerset to the south. Bristol is the most populous city in ...
which operated steamship services in the Bristol Channel between 1893 and 1979.


History

In the early 19th century, steamships were introduced to Europe with
Clyde steamer The Clyde steamer is the collective term for several passenger services that existed on the River Clyde in Scotland, running from Glasgow downstream to Rothesay and other towns, a journey known as going ''doon the watter''. The era of the C ...
sailings which grew rapidly, with many private ship owners taking trippers and commuters from
Glasgow Glasgow ( ; sco, Glesca or ; gd, Glaschu ) is the most populous city in Scotland and the fourth-most populous city in the United Kingdom, as well as being the 27th largest city by population in Europe. In 2020, it had an estimated popul ...
down the River Clyde to previously remote areas where holiday houses developed around the
Firth of Clyde The Firth of Clyde is the mouth of the River Clyde. It is located on the west coast of Scotland and constitutes the deepest coastal waters in the British Isles (it is 164 metres deep at its deepest). The firth is sheltered from the Atlantic ...
. Robert Campbell, known as "Captain Bob", came from a family associated with sailings to the
Gare Loch The Gare Loch or Gareloch ( gd, An Gearr Loch) is an open sea loch in Argyll and Bute, Scotland and bears a similar name to the village of Gairloch in the north west Highlands. The loch is well used for recreational boating, water sports and f ...
. In 1854 he became master of the Gareloch steamboat ''Duchess of Argyle'' bought by two of his uncles, and developed a good public reputation as captain of successive ships as their fleet took on sailings from
Kilmun Kilmun ( gd, Cill Mhunna) is a linear settlement on the north shore of the Holy Loch, on the Cowal peninsula in Argyll and Bute, Scottish Highlands.It takes its name from the 7th century monastic community founded by an Irish monk, St Munn (Fin ...
on the
Holy Loch The Holy Loch ( gd, An Loch Sianta/Seunta) is a sea loch, a part of the Cowal peninsula coast of the Firth of Clyde, in Argyll and Bute, Scotland. The "Holy Loch" name is believed to date from the 6th century, when Saint Munn landed there afte ...
. In 1864 one was sold as a Confederate blockade runner, its replacement ''Vivid'' was built to run "in connection with the express trains on the Greenock Railway". Captain Bob Campbell's sons Peter and Alexander Campbell were also captains, and when he suffered long term illness they took over running of the fleet. In 1887 their paddle steamer ''Waverley'' was taken by Peter to the Bristol Channel on a charter, with great success, after a shaky start when the Campbells were summoned before the Bristol Magistrates in July 1887 for having an uncertified engineer for the Waverley. At this time the
Caledonian Railway The Caledonian Railway (CR) was a major Scottish railway company. It was formed in the early 19th century with the objective of forming a link between English railways and Glasgow. It progressively extended its network and reached Edinburgh an ...
was extending the Greenock Railway to Gourock railway station and pier. In 1888 the Campbells agreed to sell them two of their steamers as the nucleus of the Caledonian Steam Packet Company, along with the goodwill of the Kilmun business. After Captain Bob died, Peter and Alexander Campbell moved their business to Bristol, and set up the White Funnel fleet for coastal cruising. The company was formally formed in 1893 and they used the White Funnel image as a company logo. During the
First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
, twelve of the fleet were requisitioned by the Admiralty as minesweepers and a troop ship. Two ships, ''Brighton Queen'' and ''Lady Ismay'' were lost. During the
Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposi ...
the fleet was requisitioned again. Four new vessels were planned after the war, but only and were built. They lasted until 1967 and 1968 respectively. After this the company used motor vessels until 1979 when it finally folded. The company had a brief fling with high speed craft in the summer of 1963, using the experimental SRN2 as a ferry between Penarth and
Weston-super-Mare Weston-super-Mare, also known simply as Weston, is a seaside town in North Somerset, England. It lies by the Bristol Channel south-west of Bristol between Worlebury Hill and Bleadon Hill. It includes the suburbs of Mead Vale, Milton, Oldmix ...
.


Archives

Records of P & A Campbell are held at
Bristol Archives Bristol Archives (formerly Bristol Record Office) was established in 1924. It was the first borough record office in the United Kingdom, since at that time there was only one other local authority record office (Bedfordshire) in existence. It ...
(Ref. 37980)
online catalogue 1
, (Ref. 40140)
online catalogue 2
, (Ref. 40505)
online catalogue 3
.


Vessels operated by Campbell


References

* {{DEFAULTSORT:P and A Campbell 1887 establishments in England Transport companies established in 1887 Transport companies disestablished in 1979 Defunct shipping companies of the United Kingdom Defunct companies based in Bristol 1979 disestablishments in England Bristol Channel