PS ''Scotia'' was a steam paddle passenger vessel that ran between Wales and Ireland from 1847 to 1861, and then became an American Civil War blockade runner. Renamed ''General Banks'', then ''Fanny and Jenny'', she ran aground in February 1864 attempting to reach Wilmington, North Carolina.

History

In January 1847, the Chester & Holyhead Railway Company ordered four steamers, from four different shipbuilders, to commence an

Irish Sea The Irish Sea is a body of water that separates the islands of Ireland and Great Britain. It is linked to the Celtic Sea in the south by St George's Channel and to the Inner Seas off the West Coast of Scotland in the north by the North Ch ...

service between

Holyhead Holyhead (; , "Cybi's fort") is a historic port town, and is the list of Anglesey towns by population, largest town and a Community (Wales), community in the county of Isle of Anglesey, Wales. Holyhead is on Holy Island, Anglesey, Holy Island ...

Anglesey Anglesey ( ; ) is an island off the north-west coast of Wales. It forms the bulk of the Principal areas of Wales, county known as the Isle of Anglesey, which also includes Holy Island, Anglesey, Holy Island () and some islets and Skerry, sker ...

and

Kingstown Kingstown is the capital and largest city of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines. The city, located on the main island of Saint Vincent, has the main port and the biggest commercial center of the islands. With a population of 12,909 (2012), K ...

, near Dublin. ''Scotia'' was launched by

Money Wigram & Sons Money Wigram (14 March 1790 – March 1873) was an English shipbuilder and ship owner, and a director of the Bank of England. Life Wigram was born in Walthamstow in 1790, a son of Sir Robert Wigram, 1st Baronet and his wife Eleanor. From 1806 he wo ...

at their

Blackwall Yard Blackwall Yard is a small body of water that used to be a shipyard on the River Thames in Blackwall, engaged in ship building and later ship repairs for over 350 years. The yard closed in 1987. History East India Company Blackwall was a sh ...

, London on 14 September 1847, and engined by

Maudslay, Sons and Field Maudslay, Sons and Field was an engineering company based in Lambeth Lambeth () is a district in South London, England, which today also gives its name to the (much larger) London Borough of Lambeth. Lambeth itself was an ancient parish in ...

Lambeth Lambeth () is a district in South London, England, which today also gives its name to the (much larger) London Borough of Lambeth. Lambeth itself was an ancient parish in the county of Surrey. It is situated 1 mile (1.6 km) south of Charin ...

. From 1858 to 1859 she was loaned to the Scilly Isles Steam Navigation Company until their new ship the ''Little Western'' was ready. She was transferred in 1859 to the

London & North Western Railway The London and North Western Railway (LNWR, L&NWR) was a British railway company between 1846 and 1922. In the late 19th century, the LNWR was the largest joint stock company in the world. Dubbed the "Premier Line", the LNWR's main line connec ...

Company.

American Civil War

At Liverpool in December 1861, she was sold as a blockade runner and she made four runs and on the fifth attempting to reach Charleston she was captured by the Federals on 24 October 1862 at Bull's Bay, South Carolina. By 23 January 1863, she had been sold and was registered at New York as ''General Banks''. By then end of 1863 she had again been sold a number of times and ended up registered at Nassau as ''Fanny and Jenny''. She made two more runs against the Blockade but was driven ashore by the USS Florida on Wrightsville Beach, Masonboro Inlet, North Carolina on 10 February 1864.New York Times, 16 February 1864

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Scotia 1847 ships Passenger ships of the United Kingdom Steamships Ships of the London and North Western Railway Transport in the Isles of Scilly Blockade runners of the Confederate States Navy Shipwrecks of the American Civil War Paddle steamers of the United Kingdom