 Great Eastern at Heart's Content after laying the first transatlantic cable, July 1866
| |
| History | |
|---|---|
 United Kingdom | |
| Name | Great Eastern |
| Operator | Eastern Steam Navigation Co. (1858-1864) |
| Port of registry | Liverpool, United Kingdom |
| Ordered | 1853 |
| Builder | J. Scott Russell & Co., Millwall, England |
| Laid down | 1 May 1854 |
| Launched | 31 January 1858 |
| Completed | August 1859 |
| Maiden voyage | 30 August 1859 |
| In service | 1859 |
| Out of service | 1889 |
| Stricken | 1889 |
| Homeport | Liverpool |
| Nickname(s) |
|
| Fate | Scrapped 1889–90 |
| Notes | Struck rocks on 27 August 1862. No larger ship in all respects until 1901 by the RMS Celtic. |
| General characteristics | |
| Type | Passenger ship |
| Tonnage | 18,915 GRT, 13,344 NRT [1] |
| Displacement | 32,160 tons |
| Length | 692 ft (211 m) |
| Beam | 82 ft (25 m) |
| Decks | 4 decks |
| Propulsion | Four steam engines for the paddles and an additional engine for the propeller. Total power estimated at 8,000 hp (6,000 kW). Rectangular boilers[2] |
| Speed | 14 knots (26 km/h; 16 mph)[3] |
| Boats & landing craft carried | 18 lifeboats; after 1860 20 lifeboats |
| Capacity | 4,000 passengers |
| Complement | 418 |
SS Great Eastern was an iron-hulled steamship designed by Isambard Kingdom Brunel, and built by John Scott Russell & Co. at Millwall Iron Works on the River Thames, London, England. Powered by both sidewheels and screw propellers, she was by far the largest ship ever built at the time of her 1858 launch, and had the capacity to carry 4,000 passengers from England to Australia without refuelling. Her length of 692 feet (211 m) was surpassed only in 1899 by the 705-foot (215 m) 17,274-gross-ton RMS Oceanic, her gross tonnage of 18,915 was only surpassed in 1901 by the 701-foot (214 m) 20,904-gross-ton RMS Celtic and her 4,000-passenger capacity was surpassed in 1913 by the 4,234-passenger SS Imperator. The ship having five funnels (which were later reduced to four) was unusual for the time. The vessel also had the largest set of paddle wheels.
Brunel knew her affectionately as the "Great Babe". He died in 1859 shortly after her maiden voyage, during which she was damaged by an explosion.[4] After repairs, she plied for several years as a passenger liner between Britain and North America before being converted to a cable-laying ship and laying the first lasting transatlantic telegraph cable in 1866.[5] Finishing her life as a floating music hall and advertising hoarding (for the department store Lewis's) in Liverpool, she was broken up on Merseyside in 1889.
- ^ Dawson, Philip S. (2005). The Liner. Chrysalis Books. p. 37. ISBN 978-0-85177-938-6.
- ^ Image:Oscillating engine, and boilers, of Great Eastern - gteast.gif224kB.png
- ^ "Ocean Record Breaking". New York Times. 7 July 1895.
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
:4was invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ Wilson, Arthur (1994). The Living Rock: The Story of Metals Since Earliest Times and Their Impact on Civilization. Woodhead Publishing. p. 203. ISBN 978-1-85573-301-5.
