Hayle And Bristol Steam Packet Company
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The Hayle and Bristol Steam Packet Company operated steam ship services between
Hayle Hayle (, "estuary") is a port town and civil parishes in England, civil parish in west Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. It is situated at the mouth of the Hayle River (which discharges into St Ives Bay) and is approximately northeast of ...
,
Ilfracombe Ilfracombe ( ) is a seaside resort and civil parishes in England, civil parish on the North Devon coast, England, with a small harbour surrounded by cliffs. The parish stretches along the coast from the 'Coastguard Cottages' in Hele Bay towar ...
and
Bristol Bristol () is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city, unitary authority area and ceremonial county in South West England, the most populous city in the region. Built around the River Avon, Bristol, River Avon, it is bordered by t ...
in the mid nineteenth century. Confusingly from 1848 to 1860, the company name was used by two separate operators.


History

Although a steamer first called at Hayle in 1824, regular weekly services began in 1831, when the ''Hayle Steamship Company'' was formed operating with the wooden vessel ''Herald'', under the command of John Vivian. The engineering company
Harvey's of Hayle John Harvey was a Cornishman whose career started as a blacksmith and engineer at Carnhell Green near Hayle, in west Cornwall. In 1779 he established a foundry and engineering works at Hayle called Harvey & Co. By 1800 the company employed more ...
built the engines for the PS ''Cornwall'' of 1842. When the
Great Western Railway The Great Western Railway (GWR) was a History of rail transport in Great Britain, British railway company that linked London with the southwest, west and West Midlands (region), West Midlands of England and most of Wales. It was founded in 1833, ...
arrived in Bristol, this stimulated more travel between London and the South West of England, and the PS ''Cornwall'' was added to the Hayle service under the command of John Vivian. The extra business attracted a rival when Vivian Stevens of St Ives put his PS ''Brilliant'' on to the Hayle to Bristol route. The ''Hayle Steamship Company'' was renamed the ''Hayle and Bristol Steam Packet Company'' in 1848, and confusingly Vivian Stevens with the PS ''Brilliant'' adopted the same title. The original ''Hayle and Bristol Steam Packet Company'' launched a prospectus in 1857 to attract capital investment. The secretary of the new company was Mr John Vivian of Hayle. The company was launched with nominal capital of £28,750 () and working capital of £23,000 (). The company prospectus announced that a First Class A.1. 12 years Iron Steamer was being built at Hayle, by Harvey and Co, capable of carrying 200 Tons of Cargo, with ample accommodation for passengers. The cost of this new steamer was £18,000 (), and in 1858, the company launched the Cornubia. The company also planned to sell the Cornwall for £2,000 () when the SS ''Cornubia'' was launched. The additional traffic was short-lived, as the extension of railway services from London and Bristol through into Cornwall was completed when the
Royal Albert Bridge The Royal Albert Bridge is a railway bridge which spans the River Tamar in England between Plymouth, Devon and Saltash, Cornwall. Its unique design consists of two lenticular iron trusses above the water, with conventional plate-girder app ...
was completed and opened on 2 May 1859. Both Hayle and Bristol Steam Packet Companies amalgamated around 1860, probably as a result of traffic diminishing. The company undertook
voluntary liquidation Liquidation is the process in accounting by which a Company (law), company is brought to an end. The assets and property of the business are redistributed. When a firm has been liquidated, it is sometimes referred to as :wikt:wind up#Noun, w ...
following a meeting of the shareholders on 6 November 1861. Steamer services continued, and attempted competition with screw vessels. Having sold off the SS ''Cornubia'', Harveys built and owned the SS ''Bride'' of 1863 and SS ''Bessie'' of 1865. However, the two ships could not compete with rail travel for both passengers and freight, and were moved to other trades. The Hayle to Bristol services reduced and were operated by ''Hosken, Trevithick, Polkinhorn and Company Ltd'' of Penzance which bought the screw steamer ''Norseman'' in 1893. The ''Norseman'' was replaced with the ''M.J. Hedley'', a steam coaster carrying passengers until 1917 on a weekly service linking Bristol, Hayle and
Liverpool Liverpool is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. It is situated on the eastern side of the River Mersey, Mersey Estuary, near the Irish Sea, north-west of London. With a population ...
.


References

{{Reflist 1848 establishments in England 1863 disestablishments in England Shipping companies of England Packet trade Transport in Cornwall Transport in Bristol British companies established in 1848 British companies disestablished in 1863 Transport companies established in 1848 Transport companies disestablished in 1863 Hayle