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About the SS Great Western
Eclipsed by his later ships, the Great Britain and the Great Eastern, the Great Western was his first ship. She had paddlewheels rather than propellors, and four masts to hoist sails. A wooden ship, reinforced with iron, she was the first vessel of the Great Western Steam Company. She sailed until 1856 when she was decommissioned and scrapped.
Contents
The Great Western
The atlantic steamship
Brunel's "The Great Western" at Sea
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The Great Western was the first of "the Three Great Ships" of Isambard Kingdom Brunel. Often overshadowed by the others it was nonetheless an excellent vessel.
Wooden and reinforced with iron, the Great Western had auxillary sails on four masts, but its main power came from two paddle wheels. When built she was the largest steamship afloat, until a larger was launched by a rival company the following year.
Highly successful in service she was capable of great speeds and Blue Riband voyages. Profitable in almost every year of her operation, even when used for mail delivery, her design was widely copied; For example in the 1840's Cunard liner Britannia.
After serving as a troop ship for the Crimean War, she was finally scrapped in 1856.
Isambard Kingdom Brunel
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Rolt's 1957 Biography on the life and works of Brunel is often considered the best introduction to his work, covering the railways, bridges and ships built by the great engineer.
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More about the Great Western
Brunel's Atlantic Steamship
The Great Western of 1838, was the initial unit of the Great Western Steamship Company and the first purpose-built Atlantic steamship. Designed by Isambard Kingdom Brunel, Great Western proved satisfactory in service and was the model for all successful Atlantic wood paddlers. She was capable of making record Blue Riband voyages as late as 1843. Great Western worked to New York for 8 years until her owners went out of business.Kludas, Arnold. "Das blaue Band des Nordatlantiks", 1999, pg 36 (in German) She was sold to the Royal Mail Steam Packet Company and was scrapped in 1856 after serving as a troop ship during the Crimean War.
Further resources about the Great Western
Blogs and news
However she has her own fascinating history, and if you would like to research it further, here are some links to begin with, beginning with an article on Bukisa.
- Bouwen onder een slecht gesternte of "De Brugwachter in de wind"
- Bij schepen hoor je hetzelfde verhaal, Lees de lange lijst van tegenslagen van de SS Great Western er maar eens op na. En gebouwen? Zijn sommige flats ook voorbestemd om met veel tegenslag gebouwd te worden en vervolgens meer last dan ...
- Big, Bigger, Biggest September 15th, 2009 - UK TV Guide
- In 1838, Isambard Kingdom Brunel developed revolutionary construction techniques to reinforce the hull of the SS Great Western - the first purposebuilt Atlantic steamship. Five years later, Brunel required brand new propulsion ...
- Great Designers:: ISAMBARD KINGDOM BRUNEL «
- The SS Great Western, a wooden paddle steamer, was launched at Bristol in 1837 and was to miss, by three hours, being the first ship to cross the Atlantic under steam. Six years later, the SS Great Britain took to the sea as the first ...
- Isambard Kingdom Brunel 1806-1859 : British Pride
- Brunel formed the Great Western Steamship Company and the first ship that he built was the SS Great Western, which made its maiden transatlantic voyage in 1838. The Great Western was a paddle-wheeled, wooden hulled steamship and was by ...
A Print Companion to the lenses
A pocket book about Brunel's Great Ships
Brunel's Three Great Ships
About Brunels Three Great Ships The SS Greast Western, the SS Great Britain and the SS Great Eastern. this is designed as a companion to the lens series on squidoo
http://www.squidoo.com/SS-Great-Britain
Tirial Lens Companion Series: Vol 2
Lulu Price: $0.00 to $2.99
Brunel's other Great Ships
Great Western, Great Britain and Great Eastern
Brunel built three ships in his lifetime, collectively know as his "Three Great Ships".Notably, when they were built, each was the biggest ship afloat at that time.
Each of Brunel's ship's represented a vast leap forward in design. The first, the Great Western, was a wooden ship, a paddleweeled ocean going steamer with sails. The next, the Great Britain, was the first all iron ship. Driven by screw propellers, she set a number of speed records. His last ship, the Great Eastern was the largest and most famous, but it was also the ship that killed him. Equipped with paddle wheels and propellers, she was vastly ahead of her time, and nothing of a similar size would be built until the twentieth century.
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The SS Great Western - Brunel's Atlantic Steamship
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Built in 1838 by the master engineer Isambard Kingdom Brunel, the Great Western led a short but productive life on the Atlantic routes. Eclipsed by his later ships, the Great Britain and the Great Eastern, the Great Western was his first ship. She h...
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SS Great Britain - Brunel's Iron Ship
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THE SS Great Britain was the first all iron ocean-going ship and passenger liner. Built by engineering genius Isambard Kingom Brunel in 1843, she initially took passengers across the Atlantic. Powered by propellors, she performed on the Atlantic run...
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The SS Great Eastern - Brunel's Great Ship
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The SS Great Eastern was the last project of Isambard Kingdom Brunel. Dogged throughout with problems, it was also the project that broke him. The last, largest, and shortest lived of Brunel's Great Ships, the SS Great Eastern was in service from 18...
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- Mac33 Mac33 Jul 15, 2009 @ 6:05 pm
- It's interesting to learn about those ships that bridged the gap between the age of sail and the age of steam. Welcome to the Tall Ships group!
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