Samuel Trenaman (1791 – 1845), Robert Harris Trenaman (1822 – 1902), Samuel Robert Trenaman (1845 – 1903) and Robert William Trenaman (1858 – 1906). Three generations of Devon Master Mariners

Introduction

I first came across the Trenaman family of master mariners when a friend told me his great grandfather, Robert William Trenaman. had served on one of the last clippers, the “Torrens”, which had the reputation of being one of the finest ships of this type ever built and indeed was a vessel on which Joseph Conrad, the famed author, had served.  It was some time since I had dipped into the history of sailing ships and I jumped at the chance to re-enter this era of marine transport, so often depicted as romantic but, in reality, one of hard discipline and even harder toil.  What I found was a multi-generation pedigree of distinguished mariners which had served its country in both military and civilian capacities.  This is the story of three of those generations spanning the transition from wind to steam and ranging from coasting to routine, trans-oceanic commerce.

The origin of the Trenamans

At the 1881 Census, “Trenaman” was mainly a Cornish and Devonian surname, though with a significant subsidiary locus in London too.  It was and is quite a rare surname in Britain with a localised geographical distribution.  Superficially, it is tempting to classify it as having a Cornish origin.  “By Tre, Pol and Pen / Shall ye know all Cornish men”, the prefix “Tre” meaning a settlement in the Cornish language.  But the name comes in many variants (several of which could be used within the same family), such as “Treneman”, “Treniman”, “Trinaman”, “Trinniman”, etc and, unlike many Cornish surnames, there was no distinct decline in frequency at the boundary between Cornwall and Devon.  It has been suggested that the name was only recently introduced by continental immigration and it is the case that some 16^th century Devonian Trenamans had French given names, such as “Eulalie”, “Philippe” and “Henrie”.  However, it seems unlikely that this French connection is a consequence of the Huguenot exodus from France.  The surname “Trenaman” has been present in significant numbers in Devon since at least the early 16^th Century and before the name appeared in London, whereas the main influx of Huguenots occurred about 1690 following the revocation of the Edict of Nantes in 1685.  Suffice to say that “Trenaman” has been a Devonian name for many centuries and that some Trenamans in the London area in the latter half of the 19^th century, as will be shown below, were recent immigrants from Devon, brought east by the coasting trade.

The estuaries of the River Tamar and River Plym, together with Plymouth Sound in south Devon have been the location for important military and civilian harbours for many centuries.  Several separate settlements in the area eventually merged under the name of Plymouth.  These included, from west to east, Devonport, Stonehouse, Stoke Damerel and Plymouth.  The Trenamans were not widely scattered in Devon in the 19^th century but concentrated in Oakhampton in the centre of the county and Plymouth, Stoke Damerel and Stonehouse in the south.  Unsurprisingly, the members of the Trenaman genealogy, which is the subject of this article, being mariners, were all concentrated in and around the southern location.

Samuel Trenaman (1791 – 1845) and vessels “Union” and “Peter and John”

Samuel Trenaman was born in 1791 to Robert (born 1763) and Rebecah Trenaman and was the last of their six children.  He was baptised in the small village of Bere Ferris which lies six miles north of modern Plymouth on the River Tavy, near its confluence with the River Tamar.  All his five brothers and sisters were born and baptised in the same village.  The trade or calling of Robert Trenaman (1763 – 1826) is not known but may have been related to the marine industries, given the location of his home village.  One of his sons, William appears to have been a shipwright who lived in Stoke Damerel and Robert himself died at that place also.

Information on the merchant and fishing boats registered at Plymouth in the 19^th century and the first half of the 20^th century has been exhaustively compiled by Garry Hicks and published in an accessible form on a CD.  It has proved invaluable in sourcing data on many of the boats with which the Trenaman family were associated.

The first reference found to a Trenaman owning or captaining a sailing vessel was in the Exeter Flying Post of 20 August 1807 when the coasting vessel, “Union” arrived at Exmouth from Plymouth carrying “paper-stuff”.  The “Union” was regularly recorded following that date, sailing to and from Plymouth, until April 1811.  Hicks records several Plymouth vessels named “Union” but the earliest of these was built in 1811 and seems not to have been this Trenaman vessel.  From September 1816, “Trenaman” was recorded as master of another coaster, the “Peter and John”.  The “good Sloop Peter and John, one of the first class Trawling Smacks registered 44 tons, but will carry 50 … strong and well-constructed, calculated for the coasting trade; was built about four years since, at Mr. Odgers yard Plymouth”, was put up for sale in the Plymouth & Dock Telegraph of 30 December 1815.  Perhaps the Trenamans bought the “Peter and John”, or at least a part shareholding, following this sale offer?  “Trenaman” was not recorded as master of the two vessels contemporaneously, so it appears that there was one master who changed vessels between the two dates.  The only other specific cargo reported for the “Union” was timber, but the vessel regularly travelled between Plymouth and South Wales, the only specific destination known being Neath.  This suggests that the “Union” was frequently visiting the Principality to collect cargoes of coal for sale in Plymouth and perhaps other south-west ports.

Which Trenaman was the master of the “Union” and of the “Peter and John”?  When the first reference to the “Union” was made in 1807, Robert Trenaman would have been 44 and Samuel, his only son known to have been a mariner, was 16.  Samuel appears to have been too young to be master of the vessel, so it may be that his father captained the “Union”, at least in the early years of the 19^th century.  In 1822 it is known that “S Trenaman” was master of the “Peter and John” and in 1830 it was confirmed that “S Trenaman” was indeed “Sam Trenaman”.  He continued as master of this boat until the end of 1831.  In 1828 a one third share in the schooner, “Peter and John”, was put up for sale by auction in Plymouth.  The advertisement for the sale revealed that the vessel had a registered displacement of 78 tons and “carries 95 tons”.  Further, “The above vessel is in good condition and well found in all necessary stores and is now and has for some time past been engaged in the coasting trade.  The vessel is now lying in Sutton Pool, Plymouth and may be viewed on application to Mr S Trenaman the master on board and further particulars may be known at the office of Mr H Marshall, solicitor, Cornwall-street, Plymouth.”  It appears that Samuel Trenaman then bought the 1/3 share of the vessel (actually 22/64) from the trustees of the Will of William Parr.  Six years later, in 1834, Samuel Trenaman sold at least some and possibly all of his shareholding (21/64) in the “Peter and John” to William Phillips of Plymouth.

Samuel Trenaman married Jane Bulley in June 1822 at Stoke Damirel.  She had been born in the then small village of Knackersknowle, which lay about 2 miles north of the place of marriage.  Nothing is known of her family circumstances.  The couple went on to have a family of two children, Robert Harris and Maria Amelia.  Their daughter died less than a month after birth.  It is a characteristic of the families of many seafarers that they are often small in size, due to either long or frequent absences from the marital home.

The South Devon (United) Shipping Company

The South Devon (United) Shipping Company (SDUSC) was founded at Plymouth in May 1828.  “On Wednesday a numerous meeting of the shipowners and traders of this port (doubtless including Samuel Trenaman), was held at the Exchange, Mr. J. N. Tanner in the chair, when resolutions were passed, and a subscription entered into to form a new shipping establishment, to trade between this port and London.”  It seems likely that Samuel Trenaman became a shareholder in the new firm.  One of the early actions of the company was to put out to tender the construction of five schooners for the operations of the recently established trading entity.  Vessels bought by the SDUSC in the period 1829 – 1841 had a cost of about £11/ton, ie about £1000 (about £123,000 in 2018 money) for a boat displacing approximately 90 tons, of the type in use by the company. 

The company appears to have been immediately successful.  At its first AGM held in April of the following year, “It was stated that, in the four months since the vessels started operating, the outstanding debts on freight were only £4 7s out of a sum of upwards of £2,000 (about £198,400 in 2018 money); and in the same time the vessels have been clearing the shareholders at the rate of 30% per annum, deducting all expenses, and a large fund for contingencies.”  By 1833, the company paid a dividend of 17% to shareholders and put aside a further 5% in reserves.  The following year the dividend fell to 10%, still a healthy rate, and a further 5% was added to the Building Fund.  In 1840 the SDUSC posted a dividend of 24%.  The success of the company continued in the following years and in 1849 a dividend of £10 per share was paid, a 20% annual return on shares which only cost £50 each at the inception of the company. 

Following the success of its operations in the early years of its existence, in September 1838 the SDUSC announced that it had formed a business relationship with John Bromham, who had been involved in trading with Bristol for some years.  The new cooperation would involve two SDUSC vessels (the “Plymouth” and the “Liskeard”) and two belonging to Mr Bromham (the “Erin” and the “Helen”) running between Plymouth and Bristol every 12 working days.  Goods would also be transported from Bristol for onward transmission to Beal’s Wharf, Tooley Street, Southwark, London every week. 

 

The home port of the “Peter and John” was Plymouth and the vessel ranged out from there, often on triangular trades.  The boat was captained by the Trenamans for at least 15 years, between 1816 and 1831.  It was also at least fractionally owned by the family from 1828 and perhaps from an earlier date.  Reporting of coaster journeys in the press was still sporadic at that time, but it was clear that at least half of the journeys of the “Peter and John” involved the export of coal and possibly iron.  Cardiff, Llanelly, Newport and Neath were all visited to load with coal, Newport appearing to be the most frequent location.  Destination ports ranged from Par, Fowey and St Michael’s in Cornwall, to Bristol, Glasgow and Newry.  Continental trips were also undertaken to Rouen, Santander and Faro.  The cargo on the known return journey from Faro was oranges, some imported on Captain Samuel Trenaman’s account and some to order.

During the visit to Newry, which lies on the border between counties Armagh and Down, an apprentice seaman on the “Peter and John”, Richard Dugdale, was brought before the magistrates and charged with disobeying the legitimate commands of Samuel Trenaman, absenting himself from service without permission and challenging the ship’s master to a fight.  For his rebellion he was awarded 14 days’ hard labour in Down Gaol and forfeited the balance of wages he was due.  Obedience to the ship’s master was an absolute requirement on all sailing vessels.

The “Thistle”

    

The “Thistle” was a two-masted sailing vessel built in Canada in 1827.  Until 1836 she was rigged as a brig, ie carrying square sails on both masts but in addition having a gaff sail and boom on the main mast.  However, in that year she was re-rigged as a brigantine (very similar to a brig, but with a reduction, probably to one, of the square sails on the main mast).  In 1833 the vessel was registered in London but in 1834 she was bought entirely (64/64) by Samuel Trenaman and her registration transferred to Plymouth.  The purchase of the “Thistle” was clearly the reason for Samuel Trenaman selling his holding in the “Peter and John”. He sailed in the “Thistle” until at least 1838.  The pattern of voyages for the “Thistle” was similar to that which had been undertaken by her predecessor, the “Peter and John”.  Directly known cargoes were coal and iron, both loaded in South Wales, principally at Newport.  Destination ports were Plymouth, Teignmouth and Topsham in the South West, Liverpool and, in Ireland, Londonderry and Waterford, and Ostend in Belgium.  The “Thistle” was offered for sale in 1843 and the advertisement acknowledged her recent role, “well adapted for the Coal Trade, in which she has been employed”. 

In 1836 Samuel Trenaman posted a notice in the Western Times about his apprentice who had absconded.  “Run Away.  Whereas John Horsham my apprentice aged about 19 years fair complexion and about 5ft 2in high did abscond on the morning of the 1^st of this month I do hereby caution the public from employing or harbouring the said apprentice under the penalty provided by the law for so doing and I do offer a reward of £1 for such information as may lead to the apprehension of the said John Horsham and his return to his Master’s service.  Samuel Trenaman Marine Parade Plymouth 11^th May 1836.”  Life was hard on these small sailing coasters and often became too much to bear for apprentice seamen, who absented themselves despite the likely consequences.

At the 1841 Census, Samuel Trenaman was described as a 50-year-old shipowner living at How Street, Charles, Plymouth.  Also in the house were his wife, Jane and a 15-year-old servant, Jane Jillard, who would later marry Samuel Trenaman’s only son, Robert Harris Trenaman.  Samuel Trenaman, master mariner, died in April 1845 at the age of about 54 at 82 Union Street, East Stonehouse.  He had sufficient assets to require Letters of Administration, which were granted at Exeter to Robert Harris Trenaman.  Samuel’s estate was initially sworn at under £20 but later re-sworn at under £450 (about £54,500 in 2018 money).  At the 1851 Census, Jane Trenaman, the widow of Samuel, was still living at 82, Union Street, East Stonehouse. Jane, her daughter-in-law (her former servant) and Jane’s young family were also in the house.  Son Robert Harris was not present, presumably being away at sea.

The South Wales coal industry

The coal industry of South Wales features heavily in this story.  It has existed for several centuries, but early mining was limited to adits driven into the valley sides from exposed seams.  The export of coal to Devon and Cornwall is known to have occurred on a limited scale from the 14^th century.  But, even in the 16^th century, total coal exports were estimated to be only about 2,000 tons per year.  Coal was mined in the valleys around Neath from the 17^th century and exported through the port of Neath which lies about 5 miles from the mouth of the River Neath.  The earliest Trenaman vessels, “Union” and “Peter and John” both collected coal from this location.

The South Wales coalfield stretches in a band running east to west and includes some seams in Pembrokeshire which are geographically separated from those in Glamorgan.  The quality of the product varied from bituminous coals in the east to anthracite, the hardest coal, in the west, mostly to the north and west of Neath.  The central part of the coalfield, particularly the Rhondda Valley, produced steam coal, the demand for which greatly increased during the 19^th century with the increasing use of steam to power railway locomotives, steam ships and pumping engines.  Welsh steam coal was particularly valued because of its high calorific value and low smoke production, which was especially valued for use in warships.  The Royal Navy insisted on Welsh steam coal for its vessels.

There was a marked contrast between the South Wales coalfield and that of the North East of England around the Tyne and Wear valleys.  Much of the coal from the North East was exported by ship to London while, because of the grade of coal, much of the South Wales coal was exported overseas for bunkering stations and to power industry in developing countries, especially in South America.  Argentina and Brazil especially came to rely on Welsh coal for their industrial development.  Another export advantage of the Welsh coalfields was that they were 500 miles nearer to the major overseas markets than those in the North East of England.   

It took the development of deep mines, railways and canals for transport, and major docks at the coastal ports, particularly around Cardiff, to create the massive South Wales coal-exporting industry of the second half of the 19^th century.  West Bute Dock, Cardiff was completed in 1839, the Taff Valley railway opened in 1841 and East Bute Dock came into use in 1862, making Cardiff the centre of the coal-exporting trade.  By this latter year the export of steam coal through the Welsh capital had reached two million tons annually.  Demand was such that other Welsh ports were also developed for the trade, including Penarth Docks in 1865 and Barry Docks in 1889.  Roath Dock, Cardiff, opened in 1887.

Steam versus sail

Steam engines were first used to power ships in the early years of the 19^th century.  These imitial steam-powered vessels used paddlewheels.  The first screw-propelled vessel appeared in 1839 and by 1850 most steamers were screw-powered.  However, steamers had a higher capital cost than wind-powered vessels and the technical limitations of the early models restricted their use to the carriage of valuable cargoes, which could be delivered on a predictable schedule, free from the vagaries of the wind. 

In the first half of the 19^th century coal was carried exclusively by sailing colliers and the predominant trade was from the North East of England to London.  In 1840 there were about 700 sailing colliers plying their trade along the east coast, each vessel carrying, on average, about 220 tons of coal and completing about ten round trips each year.  The first steam powered collier, the John Bowes, entered service in 1853.  This vessel had twice the capacity of a sailing collier and could complete a round trip from the North East to London in five days.  Although more steam colliers were quickly introduced, the bulk of sea coal was still transported in sailing vessels.  From about 1850 another competitor, the steam train, came on the scene and this eventually eliminated the sea coal trade.  By 1875 most coal entering the London market (five out of eight million tons annually) arrived at the capital in railway waggons.

Clipper ships, wind-powered vessels which sacrificed load capacity and economy for speed, were mostly built between 1840 and 1869.  They, of course, did not need bunkering facilities and ranged over the world’s oceans.  Steam gradually replaced sail after 1850.  Many of the early steamers had low power engines, retained a full complement of masts and sails and were referred to as auxiliary steamers.  But engines became more powerful, bunkering facilities improved and extended and in 1869 the Suez Canal opened.  This shortened the journey to India and the Far East by about 2000 miles.  It proved to be a great stimulus to the building of steamers, but it did not eliminate the construction of large wind-powered vessels, which still held an economic advantage over very long routes, such as Britain to Australia and Britain to the West Coast of America.  In 1871 – 72 only about 15% of the British tonnage constructed was of sailing vessels.  However, a legacy of ageing sailing vessels continued to trade and in 1890 25% by weight of the British merchant fleet was still wind powered.

       

Robert Harris Trenaman (1822 – 1902)

Samuel Trenaman and his wife Jane had two children, one of each gender but only his son Robert Harris Trenaman survived to adulthood.  He was born in 1822 and followed his father into the coasting trade, probably from the age of about 14 (1836). Nothing is known of the vessels on which he served during his apprenticeship.  The first record which has been found of Robert Harris being a member of a ship’s crew was as mate of the Scilly-based vessel “Eliza” between June 1845 and June 1847.  His age would have been 23 when he joined the “Eliza”, not unusual for the mate of a sailing vessel.  It is difficult to identify the voyages of the “Eliza”, because of the frequency with which this name was used for coasting vessels operating around South West England.  Most of these vessels appeared to be involved in running coal from South Wales to the North Devon coastal towns of Ilfracombe, Barnstaple and Bideford   Robert Harris then moved on to be mate on another Scilly vessel, the “Tamandra” from May 1848 to October 1849 but, despite its unusual name, no voyages of this vessel have been discovered.  Robert Harris Trenaman’s next vessel was the “Mount Edgecomb”, which was based in Plymouth and which he joined in November 1849.  He served as mate on this vessel, probably until about October 1850.  The vessel was named after Mount Edgcumbe, the estate and house of the Edgcumbe family, located in South East Cornwall, overlooking Plymouth Sound.  In April 1850, the “Mount Edgecomb” arrived in ballast at the Glamorganshire Canal.  This waterway was built to facilitate the transport of iron from the heads of the valleys to Cardiff.  The vessel then loaded with iron, possibly from Merthyr Tydfil at the head of the canal and left for London.

“Launceton”

Robert Harris Trenaman gained his second-class certificate at Plymouth in October 1850.  The following year he gained his master’s certificate, which was issued at the same place.  Robert’s first known command was the “Launceton”, which left London for Plymouth on 4 December 1850.  He was master of the “Launceton”, whose port of registration was Plymouth during his captaincy, until June 1852.  This vessel was a 95-ton schooner built at Mr Moore’s yard in Plymouth in 1829 for the SDUSC, presumable as part of that company’s order for five schooners.  At the time of her launch, two others were “in a state of forwardness”.  “Launceton” was 64 ft long, 18ft broad and had a hold almost 11ft deep.

 

She was sold in 1853 “to be replaced by others of larger tonnage”.  Under Robert Harris Trenaman’s captaincy this vessel ranged as far around the coast eastwards as London (landing cargo at Beal’s Wharf) and westwards to Bristol.  No record has been found of the vessel travelling to the South Wales coal ports in this period.  Her only known specific cargo was 41 bags of nuts being taken from Plymouth to Bristol.

The South Devon Shipping Company

It was in March 1853 that a new, joint stock company was formed, the South Devon Shipping Company (SDSC).  All the vessels then belonging to the SDUSC were transferred to the new company.  In 1852 the firm acquired the South Devon Wharf near St Katherine’s Dock and subsequently stopped using Beal’s Wharf.  At this time the company’s vessels (all schooners) on the London run were listed as “Union”, “Devon”, “Queen”, “Prince”, “London”, “Mount Edgcumbe”, “Saltram”, “Stonehouse”, “Launceton”, “Erin”, “Little Liz”, “Plymouth” and “Osprey”. The company continued to operate as both a shipping company and a wharf-owner until 1881, by which date all the sailing fleet had been sold, the coasting business having been severely constrained by the burgeoning rail network.  South Devon Wharf in London was retained and operated until the company went into voluntary liquidation in 1912.

South Devon Wharf  

“Tavistock”

Possibly at the start of 1853, Robert Harris Trenaman became master of the “Tavistock”, a schooner built for the SDUSC by George Cox at Bideford and launched at the end of February 1853.  With a length of 74 ½ ft, she was longer than the “Launceton” but had a slightly narrower breadth and a slightly shallower hold.  Her area of operations was almost identical to the “Launceton”, Plymouth – London – Plymouth and Plymouth – Bristol – Plymouth being typical.  Captain Robert Trenaman continued as master of the “Tavistock” until at least April 1857.  In 1863 this vessel was sold by the SDSC to William Burch and Edward Fowler, both of Plymouth.

“Tamar”

By mid-1858, Robert Harris Trenaman was master of a different boat, the schooner “Tamar”.  This new charge also operated along the south coast between London and Plymouth but, significantly, also extended in a westerly direction to the ports of South Wales on a regular basis.  She was also sometimes referred to in contemporary newspapers as a “collier” when she arrived in the Thames Estuary.  Indeed, the most typical journey for this vessel was Plymouth – South Wales – Plymouth – London – Plymouth.  Nothing is known directly of her cargoes, but it must be presumed that, travelling from South Wales, she would frequently be carrying coal for the London market.  It is likely that the “Tamar” was owned by Robert Harris Trenaman.  In 1869 he was the definite owner of a schooner called the “Tamar” even though he had become master of another vessel by that year.

“Leader”

In mid-1862, Robert Harris Trenaman changed boats again, this time to the schooner “Leader” and this command was retained until his retirement from the sea in 1875.  She was built at Frank’s Quarry Yard by Joseph Banks for the SDSC in 1852 and was longer than both the “Tavistock” and the “Launceton” at more than 83 ft.  The “Leader” was variously reported as having a displacement of 90 – 190 tons, though predominantly the figure given was 145 tons register.  It is likely that she carried a cargo of about 100 tons.  An incomplete, but nonetheless detailed, record of the voyages of the “Leader” is available for the whole of the period of Robert Harris Trenaman’s captaincy, which allows an accurate description of her working life.  Like her predecessor the “Tamar”, the “Leader” had a schooner rig, that is fore-and-aft sails on two masts, with the foremast shorter than the main mast.  This rig was popular in the 19^th century for coasting vessels as it was efficient and economical, requiring only a small crew.  The “Leader” was clearly smaller than the average sailing collier on the east coast run.  Although the “Leader” was predominantly used to carry coal from South Wales to London, she also carried mixed cargos, at least in a westerly direction and particularly from London to Plymouth.

On the journey between South Wales and London, the “Leader” only occasionally called in at Plymouth, where the crew lived.  On the journey in the opposite direction, a call at Plymouth seemed always to be scheduled, perhaps because return cargoes from London were most likely to be destined for that south Devon town.  In London the vessel mostly docked at the South Devon Wharf which lay on the north bank of the Thames, just east of the Tower of London, near the entrance to the St Katherine Docks.  Occasionally she was to be found at the Brighton and South Coast Railway Wharf at Deptford on the south bank of the Thames, the Victoria Dock, the Regents Canal Dock or at the West India Dock.  In Plymouth the vessel used the South Devon Dock.  The “Leader” is known to have called at Southampton and at Bristol on one occasion each.

The analysis of the substantial, though incomplete, data set for the journeys of the “Leader” identified 97 round trips involving a call at London, an average of 7.6 journeys per year, 48.03 days/journey.  It is possible that this total is a slight underestimate of the true number of sailings due to gaps in the information gleaned from newspapers.  Data were also extracted to estimate the average times spent at sea and in the various ports, giving values as follows.

London – Plymouth  5.51 days

In port Plymouth  10.60 days

Plymouth – South Wales  2.75 days

In port South Wales  8.50 days

South Wales – London  8.30 days

In port London  10.14 days

Total round trip  45.80 days

This average round trip figure is similar to, but slightly lower than, the estimate derived from the total number of journeys detected (48.03 days) and is consistent with the suggestion made above that the total number of round-trip journeys may have been underestimated.  It is also important to bear in mind that the data from which the average times were derived varied considerably from voyage to voyage.

The distance to be sailed on one round trip, taking Cardiff as the typical destination port, was about 1050 nautical miles, the average sailing speed being a little over 2.6 nautical miles/hour travelling east to west (lower loading but mostly against the prevailing wind) and west to east (higher loading but mostly with the prevailing wind).

At the 1871 Census, the “Leader” was in port at the Brighton and South Coast Railway Wharf, Deptford, in the Port of London, which revealed crew details.  Her complement was six in number, consisting of master, mate, three able-bodied seamen and a boy apprentice.  Five of the crew were born in Devon and one sailor hailed from Sweden, but had become naturalised.  The presence of the “Leader” at this wharf suggests that she was delivering steam coal for use on the railway.

One hundred and two separate visits by the “Leader” to South Wales ports were detected, in most cases just a single destination port on each trip, but occasionally two.  The South Wales ports fell into five groups, as follows, listed from east to west.  1. (34.35%) Newport.  2. (5.9%) Cardiff and Penarth.  3. (10.8%) Neath, Briton Ferry, Port Talbot and Swansea.  4. (46%) Pembrey, Burry Port and Llanelly.  5. (1%) Pembroke.  Newport was Wales’ most important coal-exporting port in the first half of the 19^th century.  It was also used for the export of iron.  Cardiff was best-known for the export of steam coal.  The Llanelly area became important in the 19^th century for both coal mining and the manufacture of tinplate.  Burry Port lies about five miles west of Llanelly.  It grew up in the 19^th century as a result of coal exporting from the Gwendraeth Valley.  Both lie on the Carmarthenshire coalfield, which produced anthracite, the highest-value grade of coal.  In 1861 the “Leader” was sold to a Welsh consortium and her registration transferred from Plymouth to Caernarvon, where she was used in the slate trade.  In 1888 the vessel was lost off Spurn Point, Yorkshire.

Accidents and incidents involving Robert Harris Trenaman’s commands 

Coasters were at much higher risk of running aground, or of suffering collisions, than deep sea vessels, in addition to the normal hazards of the sea caused by bad weather.  In July 1853, the “Tavistock” got ashore on the Foreness Rock near Margate but managed to get off again, without damage, she “makes no water”.  On a journey from Newport to London in May 1866, the “Leader” had to put in at Plymouth, having lost her mainmast and her topforemast in a gale.  Earlier the same year, in February, the “Leader” had been wind-bound in Weymouth Bay, sheltering from a northerly gale.  The “Leader” also suffered a collision off Margate in February 1871, as she was leaving the Thames Estuary for Plymouth, when she ran into the “Arrow”, which was on a voyage from Falmouth to Leith.  The “Leader” lost her bowsprit, damaged her bow and, consequentially, had to put back to Gravesend for repairs. The “Arrow” was badly holed and sank before she could be beached.  All members of her crew were saved.  There was a subsequent court case where each master blamed the other for the collision, but the court found the “Arrow” to be entirely to blame.  The “Leader” was involved in a further collision in March of the following year as she was leaving Plymouth Sound for Llanelly.  An extract from Captain Trenaman’s report explained the circumstances.

“Proceeded and on Sunday the 17^th inst at 7.20 tide about high water weather clear wind SW a light breeze ship weighed anchor in Plymouth Sound and went off on port tack under fore and aft canvas.  On nearing the southern end of Drake’s Island tacked and setting topsail fetched Bovisand on the starboard tack.  There again tacked and set flying jib ship heading about W by N.  At this time, I observed a steamer coming out of the Merchant anchorage and making for the W end of the breakwater.  I continued my reach and when about a quarter of a mile inside the lighthouse hailed the steamer which was coming up on my lee.  She soon after ported her helm and seeing a collision was imminent I starboarded my helm which brought the bluff of my starboard bow against the port quarter of the steamer breaking our main rail stanchions and cathead and doing other slight damage.  I hailed the steamer to stop but no notice was taken, and she continued her course to sea.  She was named the “May” of West Hartlepool.”  The voyage continued a week later after the “Leader” had been repaired.  She was carrying iron and general goods.

During the Second Schleswig War of 1864, the hostilities between Denmark and Prussia remarkably spilled over into the seas around Plymouth.  The Danish warship, the “Niels Juel”, a 42-gun steam frigate of the Danish Royal Navy, was attempting to capture Prussian merchantmen in the English Channel.  A particular incident was observed by Robert Harris Trenaman from the “Leader” on Friday 19^th February, soon after the start of the war.  He was off Deadman’s Bay to the east of the port on his way to London when he observed the “Niels Juel” under close-reefed topsails.  She had driven the Bremen-based barque “Java” into Plymouth, but that vessel then managed to evade the Danes, leaving Plymouth Sound on the evening of Saturday 20^th February.  The “Niels Juel” anchored in the Sound to make despatches, take on provisions and load 30 tons of coal.  When she departed two days later, she left behind an injured member of her crew who had broken both legs in a fall from the rigging.

Opinions of Robert Harris Trenaman 

On at least two occasions Robert Harris Trenaman wrote to the newspapers giving his opinion on maritime matters.  In May 1867, while in dock in Newport, he wrote a letter to the “Shipping and Mercantile Gazette” concerning navigation lights on vessels.

 

“Sir, In your impression of 17^th ult you have a leading article on the subject of Steam and Sailing Ships’ Lights on which I beg to offer a few remarks. 

In my opinion the cause of steamers not being able to discern each other’s lights is on account of their own smoke which will never be remedied, place them where they may, until that is consumed by their own furnaces.  I have frequently noticed in the Channel previous to a SW wind and dirty weather when I could see land 20 miles off that a steamer coming towards me with a fine breeze before the wind would be so covered by her own smoke as not to be visible a mile in the daytime.  In such case lights would be visible at night but a short distance.  I have never experienced any difficulty in making out steamers’ lights when they are approaching in any other direction than before the wind and have always considered it an admirable system.  If sailing ships’ lights are properly screened, I see no objection to them being abaft as well as forward.  I have run up the Channel in very severe gales and have never experienced any difficulty in keeping clear of the ship by the wind since the side lights have been used for in blowing weather the ship by the wind makes but little headway compared to the one running.  My screen boards are placed outside the main rigging on two iron stanchions eight feet above the rail which I considered the best place at first and have found them answer well.

 

Hoping these few remarks may lead to a discussion among Steamboat Masters on the smoke nuisance. 

I am, Sir, your obedient servant Robt H Trenaman”.

In March 1873, while docked at Llanelly, Robert Harris Trenaman wrote again to the “Shipping and Mercantile Gazette”, this time proposing that steamers should deploy life chains along their sides.

“Sir,- As the practice is so predominant of steamers running away after collisions with sailing vessels I venture to offer the following suggestion, which would probably lead to the saving of life and detection of the men who perform such inhuman acts , five or six of which I have noticed in your valuable Paper within the last four months.  The modern iron steamer has perfectly smooth sides, is without bowsprit shrouds, her chain plates are inside the bulwarks, and there is nothing a person can lay hold of to get on board in case of collision; but they might be compelled to have vertical chains from the rail to the water’s edge one each side of the stem and continuing every six feet to abreast of the foremast, fitted in the same manner as the horizontal chains are to river steamers and Thames Conservancy piers, they could be in two lengths from light water mark to load line and from load line to the top of the rail: the lower ones could be taken off easily before loading and put on before proceeding to sea when light as is the case of screw colliers.  This would enable any seaman to get on board them, in case of collision, before they could back out, which is impossible at present. – Yours&c Robt. H Trenaman, Schooner Leader, Llanelly, March 3, 1873”

The family of Robert Harris Trenaman

Robert Harris Trenaman married the family maid, Jane Jillard, in the first quarter of 1842.  She was heavily pregnant at the time, the birth of the child, Jane West Trenaman, being registered in the second quarter of that year.  The couple went on to have six further children, Samuel Robert (1844), Emma West (1847), Rowena Adelaide (1850), Clara (1852), Amanda 1856) and Robert William (1858).  All the children were born in either Stonehouse or Plymouth.  Clearly, Robert Harris Trenaman’s coasting lifestyle, with frequent home visits, did not seriously constrain the couple’s fecundity.  Jane Jillard, Robert Trenaman’s wife died in 1862 at the early age of 41.  Both sons of Robert Harris Trenaman, Samuel Robert Trenaman, born 1844 and Robert William Trenaman, born 1858, became mariners but unlike their father and Trenaman grandfather, they served the bulk of their careers in the foreign trade, as will be seen.

Retirement of Robert Harris Trenaman

The last sailing of the “Leader” with Robert Harris Trenaman as master is thought to have been in April 1875.  At the subsequent census in April 1881, Robert is recorded as the Deputy Manager of the South Devon Wharf Docks, St Katherine, London.  He must have known these docks well because he had been sailing there, discharging and loading cargo, since the early 1850s.  Robert was ideally qualified for the role he had now undertaken.  The contemporary electoral register shows that Robert Trenaman was occupying a house at the dock.  Living with him was his unmarried daughter Amanda, his now married daughter, Rowena Adelaide Richards, her husband Joseph and their two young children.  Joseph Richards was a joiner.  During the next decade the family moved twice, first to 78 Coburn Road about 2 ½ miles north-east of the South Devon Wharf and close to the site which would become the 2012 Olympic Park and secondly to 7 Gower Road, Upton Park.  By 1881 Robert was aged 78 and had retired. 

Robert Harris Trenaman died at Gower Road in 1903.  Probate was granted to his two sons, Samuel Robert and Robert William, both now master mariners themselves.  Robert Harris Trenaman’s movable estate was valued at £2,187 (about £254,000 in 2018 money).  He may also have owned property.

During his sailing career of almost 25 years as a master, Robert Harris Trenaman was in charge of the “Launceton” for about two years and three months, the “Tavistock” for four years, the “Tamar” for five years and seven months and the “Leader” for twelve years and nine months.  In the “Launceton” he is estimated to have travelled about 107,000 nautical miles.  The other vessels he skippered had similar work patters and between 1850 and his retirement in 1875 he is likely to have sailed about twice that distance.

Samuel Robert Trenaman (1844 – 1903)

“Tamar”

   

Samuel Robert West Trenaman was born and brought up in East Stonehouse, Plymouth, within sight and sound of the sea in a community of seafarers and those serving the marine trades.  His father was a master mariner, but frequently home.  It is not surprising that Samuel Robert too should have gone to sea.  His first known service aboard ship was as a boy apprentice, aged about 13, on his father’s schooner, “Tamar” in June 1859 and he continued on this vessel until September 1861, which seems to correspond precisely with the period of his father’s captaincy.  By the latter date he had become an ordinary seaman.

“Midlothian”

 

At the end of his stint on the “Tamar”, Samuel Robert served as an ordinary seaman on the barque, “Midlothian”, 393 tons register, to the end of July 1862.  A barque is a three-masted sailing ship, fully rigged on the fore- and main-masts but fore and aft-rigged on the mizzen mast.  The “Midlothian” was optimistically described as a “clipper”, but the barque rig was noted for economy rather than speed.    Interestingly, the “Midlothian” sailed from the St Katherine Dock, London, which was closely adjacent to the South Devon Quay, to and from which Samuel Robert’s father, Robert Harris Trenaman, sailed and where he would be very well-known.  Did Robert Harris Trenaman place his son on the “Midlothian”?  Also, was Samuel Robert unable to continue on his father’s vessel because the new vessel, the “Leader” was not yet ready?  The “Midlothian” left for the Cape of Good Hope, under Captain George Bruce on 2 October 1861.  This ship returned via St Helena and Tobago, reaching London, probably on 30 July.  Sadly, for Captain George Bruce, the master’s wife Elizabeth died, at the early age of 30, while he was away.  Samuel Robert continued his career as an able seaman on his father’s new charge, the “Leader”, between 2 August and 16 September 1862, ending in Plymouth after a passage from London.

St Katherine's Dock

On 27 September 1862, Samuel Robert Trenaman applied to be examined at Plymouth for a certificate of competency as a second mate on foreign-going ships and this was duly awarded on 1 October.  These examinations, both for mates’ and masters’ certificates, were not a formality.  In the year 1856, 1809 masters went up for examination and 1201 (66%) were successful.  During the same year 3962 mates were tested and 2831 (71%) passed.  However, there appears to be no record of Samuel Robert Trenaman sailing as a second mate until January 1864.  Perhaps he continued as a crew member on the “Leader” between October 1862 and January 1864 and did not subsequently mention this service because it was in the coasting trade?

“Matilda Atheling”

Samuel Robert Trenaman was subsequently associated with the barque “Matilda Atheling”, 676 tons register, between January 1864 and August 1871.  Matilda Atheling (about 1080 – 1118) was firstly Matilda of Scotland and subsequently Queen of England, as the first wife of King Henry I.  “Atheling” means “Noble”.  The “Matilda Atheling”, with Samuel Robert Trenaman serving as second mate and under the command of Captain Power loaded her cargo in the West India Dock, London, starting in mid-December 1863.  She cleared out to Gravesend on 16 January 1864, probably to pick up passengers, before sailing for St Helena three days later.  Her final British port of call was Torbay, which she reached on 27 January.

 

St. Helena is a volcanic island lying in the South Atlantic about 1500 miles from the Cape of Good Hope.  It is only about 7 miles across at its widest aspect.  The island was a British Crown colony between 1834 and 1981.  Before 1869, when the Suez Canal opened and during the golden age of sail in the mid-19^th century, St Helena was a strategically important location for sailing ships to load fresh water and food on the journey back to Britain from China and India.  Famously, the island was the place of detention of Napoleon Bonaparte between 1815 and 1821, when he died there.  There was a progressive decline in the population of the island after Napoleon’s demise and with the diminishing of the island’s strategic importance. In 1864 the British naval station was closed.  Some of the garrison on St Helena was composed of troops from the West India regiments.  Many of the black soldiers recruited to these regiments initially were slaves, bought for the purpose, though after the abolition of slavery such soldiers were volunteers.  The purpose of the “Matilda Atheling”’s voyage to St Helena was to embark troops from the 4^th and 5^th West India regiments and take them on to Jamaica.

On 20 February 1864 the “Matilda Atheling” was spoken to off West Africa, about 2500 miles from St Helena, which she reached in early April and on 19 April, 167 black troops, various white officers and NCOs and their families were embarked.  The Army and Navy Gazette recorded the smart appearance of the regiment at inspection, though with overtones of racial condescension which were typical of the time.  “The men, 167 in number, were inspected on Monday by the Hon Colonel Stace as colonel-commanding the troops and we believe he expressed his approval and satisfaction with their general appearance.  Many persons doubted, when the enlistment of the Africans at Ruperts was about being commenced, whether the experiment would succeed to perfect satisfaction and whether such specimens of humanity could be, by any ordinary process, licked into shape, but the result of the trial so far has been most satisfactory and without (literally) licking; the firmness with kindness exercised by Col MacBean (who will not tolerate the stick in any shape, or in any hands) in their transition from barbarism to civilisation has produced the result to which no doubt that officer looked forward through all the difficulties that must, in the early part of the process, have been neither slight nor few.”

The “Matilda Atheling” reached Port Morant, a major port at the eastern end of Jamaica in June 1864, where she ran aground within the harbour but managed to get off without damage.  The troops were discharged and the vessel loaded for her journey back to London, a record of the cargo still being available, “420 hhds, 22 tcs sugar, 216 puns rum, 231 bags pimento, 4 kegs tamarinds, 175 tons logwood, 16 tons fustic (a yellow dye), 17,000 cokernuts, 2 bags wool, 3 brls wine, 23 canvas sails”.  The ship arrived back at Gravesend on 31 August before discharging her cargo at the West India Dock, the sugar being sold on the London Sugar Market.

Samuel Robert Trenaman continued as second mate on the “Matilda Atheling” for her next voyage, still under the command of Captain Power, which was to Australia.  Samuel Robert served between 29 October 1864 and 28 September 1866.  The vessel entered the West India Dock on 30 September 1864 to load and finally sailed on 3 November.  Two days before departure an urgent advertisement was placed in the London Evening Standard, “Wanted a baker for an emigrant ship bound for Port Adelaide.  Apply immediately on board the “Matilda Atheling” in the West India Dock”.  This was a time of active promotion of emigration to the colonies, partly to populate these British possessions and partly to relieve unemployment at home.  A Government agency, the Emigration Commissioners was set up for the purpose.  The “Matilda Atheling” was contracted to take emigrants from Plymouth to Adelaide, South Australia, at a price of £12 10s 6d (about £1560 in 2018 money) per statutory adult (ie taking a fractional account of infants and children). 

The vessel left Plymouth on 16 November, having embarked 262½ statutory adults, a mix of English, Irish and Scots.  However, she did not get far before she was forced to turn back, due to a violent gale which sprang up four days after departure.  The ship sheltered off Plymouth until 22 November before making her proper departure.  “Matilda Atheling” arrived at Adelaide on 20 February 1865 after a generally favourable passage of 89 days.  There were no illnesses and no deaths during the voyage (deaths were not uncommon on emigrant ships) and one birth.  The report to the Adelaide authorities made after arrival was very complimentary about conditions on board.  Under Captain Power, the “Matilda Atheling” was clearly a well-run ship.  However, the immigration authorities were less happy, as several female emigrants had clearly falsified their ages by using forged baptismal certificates.  Women who claimed to be about 30 were clearly more like twice that age and one was even “in a state of idiocy” on arrival.

While many of the clipper ships taking out emigrants to Australia during the gold rush days of the early 1850s returned to Britain via Cape Horn, with a few passengers, gold and specie on board, more typically vessels returned via India, with the intention of trading along the way.  This was the route taken by the “Matilda Atheling”.  She left Adelaide on 8 April 1865 bound for Madras (modern Chennai) on the south-west coast of India.  Her full cargo is not known but she was carrying mail, for onward despatch to the East Indies and China, and 70 horses.  From Madras she travelled on up the east coast to Calcutta (modern Kolkata) the capital of Bengal, which was reached on 20 August 1865.  The vessel then performed a round trip to Mauritius, arriving on 13 October, and back to Calcutta about the beginning of November.  The return cargo was almost certainly sugar, which was the principal product of that island in the mid-19^th century.

The “Matilda Atheling” continued trading around India travelling first to Chittagong at the head of the Bay of Bengal and then to Cochin on the south-east coast of the subcontinent before heading north to Bombay (modern Mumbai) to load with cotton for Le Havre in Normandy.  This was in the immediate aftermath of the American Civil War when there was a cotton famine due to a blockade of the southern states of the USA.  This caused cotton merchants to seek supplies in other parts of the world, such as Egypt and India.  The vessel left Bombay on 10 April 1866 with a cargo of 2761 bales of cotton, 100 bales of wool and 12 tons of horns.  By the time she had reached Mauritius on 7 July, the “Matilda Atheling” had developed a serious leak and was making 3 ½ in of water per hour.  It is presumed that the leak was repaired in Mauritius before the vessel resumed her journey back to Europe, reaching Le Havre on 15 September.  She then made the short hop across the Channel, arriving at Gravesend on 26 September 1866, 23 months after she last left the Thames Estuary.  Samuel Robert Trenaman was discharged two days later.

The elder son of Robert Harris Trenaman then returned to Plymouth, where he made application to be examined for a certificate of competence as a first mate.  He passed that examination and received his first mate’s ticket from the Plymouth Local Marine Board on 26 October 1866.

It is likely that Samuel Robert Trenaman remained on the “Matilda Atheling” as second mate on her next voyage, which was to Singapore, again under the command of Captain Power.  She sailed from London on 26 February 1867, her initial port of call being Calcutta, which was reached in mid-June.  From there the vessel travelled on to Penang in Malaya, before reaching Singapore on 3 September.  The return journey to London began on 19^th September and she reached the capital on 15^th January 1868, unloading, anomalously, in the West India Dock.  Her varied and rather exotic cargo is known, “300 bkts 2823 bgs sago flour, 420 cs prl sago, 148 slbs tin, 61cs gum Benjamin (aromatic sap from which incense is made), 97 bgs  white pepper, 57bdls malacca canes (used for manufacturing walking sticks), 15 bkts assam rubber (made from the sap of the fig, Ficus elastica), 999ps hides, 2164 ps sapan wood (used for medicinal purposes and to produce brazilin, a red dye), 505 bgs 1483 bxs tapioca, 17 cs essential oil (containing the essence of the plant, such as clove, from which it was produced), 105 bgs cubebs (dried fruit of an Indonesian plant which looks and tastes like black pepper), 17brls borneo canes (rattans, derived from a variety of climbing palms), 303 bkts gutta percha (solidified sap of trees in genus Palaquium used as an electrical insulator in early marine cables), 1031 bgs black pepper, 13 bxs gamboge (tree resin used as a yellow pigment), 4324 bdls rattans, 1686 bgs coffee”.  For her next voyage, the “Matilda Atheling” was chartered by the Government to carry convicts, including Fenian convicts, to Gibraltar to work on defence structures but, at this point, Samuel Robert Trenaman left the vessel and gained a new posting, this time as first mate.

“Rajasthan” 

On 28 April 1868, Samuel Robert Trenaman embarked on the ship “Rajasthan”, 627 tons register, then loading in London for Ascension.  This South Atlantic volcanic island was discovered by the Portuguese on Ascension Day 1501 but was never occupied until 1815.  At this date Napoleon Bonaparte was a prisoner on St Helena 1000 miles to the south and it was thought prudent by the British to take military possession of the island and to establish a Naval Station and Depot there.   “Rajasthan” had been contracted to deliver supplies to the navy garrison at Ascension.  About 1 May 1868 the “Rajasthan” left London and called at Gravesend, possibly to collect some passengers before sailing for the South Atlantic.  She reached Ascension about 6 August 1868 and discharged her cargo of bread, beef and compressed hay.  The importance of Ascension for merchant shipping was that it had a supply of fresh water and could be used by vessels returning from the East Indies, China and India to Britain, to replenish their tanks. 

The “Bremensis”, under Captain Webster, was a barque-rigged sailing ship which was returning to Liverpool from Bombay with a cargo composed of coir yarn and a quantity of seeds, but principally of 6181 bales of cotton.  She was 1351 tons burthen and left Bombay on 26 May 1868.  After rounding the Cape of Good Hope, she headed up the Atlantic with the intention of calling at Ascension for water.  On 11 August she got on shore on the north west point of the island, quickly lodged on a reef and had to be abandoned.  The remarkable story of the salvage of the Bremensis cargo and the bizarre behaviour of the acting governor of Ascension, Captain Wilmshurst, which led to him being court-martialled, is told elsewhere on this blogsite – see “The Wrecking of the “Bremensis” in 1868 and the Court-martial of Captain Arthur Wilmshurst (1817 – 1891)”

When the “Bremensis” was stranded on Ascension, the “Rajasthan”, under Captain John Goodridge, was still at the island and was the only vessel available for charter to take the salvaged cotton on to Britain.  On the first two days after the stranding, the “Rajasthan” provided some men to help with salvage, but this supply dried up when Captain Webster failed to negotiate a salvage rate with the “Rajasthan”’s second mate, the men then refusing to work on salvage in case they were not rewarded for their efforts.  On 19 August 1868 a charter-party was signed between Captains Webster and Goodridge to transport the salvaged cotton to London at a price of £1,400 (about £148,400 in 2018 money).  John Goodridge also bought three boats salvaged from the “Bremensis” for £5 (about £530 in 2018 money).  Although the charter-party allowed 28 days for loading, Captain Goodridge was naturally keen to get away as soon as he could.

The “Rajasthan” eventually loaded about 2084 bales of cotton, though the exact number was uncertain, due to a portion of the cotton which was salved being loose. Some of the bales were also wet when loaded and in danger of heating up, due to microbial action, producing a risk of spontaneous combustion.  For this reason, about 25 bales with water penetration were jettisoned into the ocean.  “Rajasthan” finally left Ascension with over 2,000 bales of cotton and some of the crew of the “Bremensis” on 5 September 1868, bound for London.  The vessel arrived at Gravesend on 25 October to disembark her passengers and the following day she entered inwards at the London Custom House and then moved on to unload at the West India Dock.  Samuel Robert Trenaman was discharged from the “Rajasthan” the following day.

“Matilda Atheling” again

For his next voyage, Samuel Robert Trenaman rejoined the “Matilda Atheling”, this time as first mate.  On 16 December 1868 the vessel under Captain Whereat entered outwards at the East India Dock to be loaded with cargo for Madras.  She cleared out on 19 February and sailed from Gravesend three days later.  “Matilda Atheling” reached Madras on 30 May and collected 300 bales of cotton which were freighted at a price of £3 per ton.  She sailed on 15 July for Concanada (Kakinada in modern India), a small port town about 400 miles north-east of Madras.  At the point of departure her cargo was listed as “3427 bags jaggery (a coarse sugar made in India from palm sap) 21 bags turmeric, 5bls hemp, 25bls skins, 14,262 buff horns, 10bls hides, 330cs castor oil, 373 coils coir rope, 75bdls deer horns, 240 bdls 4,080 dhols coir yarn, 2,729 bls cotton, 1,297 ps redwood”.  Although her cotton was billed as being destined for Liverpool, the “Matilda Atheling” sailed for London on 8 September.  She passed St Helena on 2 November, arrived at London on 21 December and proceeded to the West India Dock.  Samuel Robert Trenaman was paid off on 19 December, probably when the vessel reached Gravesend.

Samuel Robert Trenaman was retained as first mate on the “Matilda Atheling” on her next voyage, being engaged on 31 January 1870.   The vessel continued under the command of Captain Whereat and the ship cleared out with cargo from the London Custom House on 3 February and sailed for Kurrachee (Karachi, in modern Pakistan) from Gravesend the same day.  Kurrachee was a major port and trading centre in British India and the “Matilda Atheling” arrived in Kurrachee Roads on 8 June 1870.  At this Indian port she loaded with 3,168 bales of cotton and left for Hong Kong on 26 August, sailing through the Straits of Malacca, between Malaya and the island of Sumatra.  She reached Hong Kong on 15 October, having suffered a heavy gale between 9 and 12 of that month.  On 11 November the vessel sailed on from Hong Kong for Swatow (Shantou in modern China) about 200 miles further east.  She returned via Singapore and the Sunda Straights (between Sumatra and Java) so it is likely she also called at Batavia (modern Jakarta, capital of Indonesia).  Her cargo on the return leg of the journey to London is not fully known, but she collected 1,638 bags of coffee somewhere in the Far East.  “Matilda Atheling” arrived at Gravesend on 16 June and London a day later, where Samuel Robert was paid off.

The bizarre, first marriage of Samuel Robert Trenaman

By this time, in summer of 1871, Samuel Robert Trenaman had had considerable experience as a mate and he now applied to be examined for an ordinary certificate of competence as a master.  This test was passed on 11 August 1871 at Plymouth, where his home address was given as 14, Trafalgar Street, but the certificate was issued in London on 18 August.  The reason for him wishing to collect the certificate in London was probably that he was actually staying there.  He was now 27 and still a bachelor, but he had met a lady, Consuelo Roland Adams, in the capital and romance had blossomed.  Amazingly, the couple decided to marry before Samuel Robert embarked on his next voyage, as second mate on the sailing ship “Lothair”, which was due to leave for Japan towards the end of October 1871. As with many ship names, Lothair was a significant historical figure.  He was the Holy Roman Emperor from 817 to 855 and the grandson of Charlemagne.  Lothair was also King of Bavaria, Italy and Middle Francia.

Consuelo Roland Adams was 19 years old and a milliner.  Her father, John Pull Adams, was a clerk and at the 1871 Census the Adams family was living at 131 Jubilee Street, Mile End Old Town, which lies about 2 ½ miles north-east of the St Katherine Dock.  This was also the address that Samuel Robert gave as his accommodation address when he and Consuelo married later the same year.  The marriage, by licence, took place on 4 October 1871 at St Philip’s Church Stepney.  Using the authority of a marriage licence allowed the couple to wed without the delay which would have been incurred by having banns read in church on three successive Sundays.  They also avoided the associated publicity.

 

At the time of the marriage, the “Lothair” 793 tons register, whose master was Captain Peacock, was lying in the West India Dock being loaded.  She cleared out with cargo on 21 October 1871, two and a half weeks after the marriage of her second officer and she sailed from Gravesend on 23 October for Yokohama, the main port serving Tokyo, and Hiogo (Hyogo in modern Japan), a port close to the city of Kobe, 300 miles west of the Japanese capital.  The vessel arrived at Yokohama on 13 February 1872.  Between this date and 15 December 1873, the “Lothair” was engaged in “the Japanese coasting trade” as Samuel Robert Trenaman would later describe it.  The reality was that the vessel not only travelled between different ports in Japan but also sailed to neighbouring countries.  Port visits which have been detected were Yokohama - 3, Osaka/Kobe/Hiogo - 7, Hong Kong/Foo-Chow-Foo - 5 and Guam - 1.  On one journey in ballast from Foo-Chow-Foo to Hiogo, in August 1872, the “Lothair” lost her main, mizzen and foretop masts in a storm.  Fortunately, the hull was not damaged, and the vessel put into Yokohama for repairs.  On 15 December 1873, the “Lothair” sailed from Kobe/Osaka for New York, a journey which she appeared to undertake from east to west, since she passed through the Sunda Straights between Sumatra and Java.  The arrival of the “Lothair” at New York on 9 April 1873, after a journey of over 15,000 nautical miles, marked the end of Samuel Robert Trenaman’s association with the “Lothair”, as he was paid off two days later.

It is not clear why Consuelo Adams and Samuel Robert Trenaman married in such a hurry, or whether both he and his wife were aware of just how long he was likely to be away, but there were some circumstances surrounding the marriage which suggested that Consuelo Adams knew it would be a considerable time and that she may have had little intention of living a cloistered life during her husband’s prolonged absence.  Consuelo persuaded Samuel to keep the marriage a secret from family and friends.  None of the parents acted as a witness to the marriage and the actual witnesses appeared not to be relations on either side of the family.  Probably there were no family members present at the wedding.    Consuelo lived in the parental home in Jamaica Street, Mile End Old Town, while Samuel Robert was at sea and he made some financial arrangement to support her in his absence.  The subterfuge was extended further by Samuel Robert addressing his letters to his wife to “Miss Adams” until May 1873, which may indicate the date at which the marriage between the pair became public knowledge.  Did Samuel Robert ever question his wife’s motives, or even think through how the deception perpetrated on the parents could be revealed and justified, when they eventually discovered the truth?  Perhaps he was besotted with the lady and prepared to go along, unthinkingly, with her wishes? 

During November 1871, a maximum of five weeks after her husband sailed for Japan, Mrs Consuelo Trenaman, masquerading as Miss Consuelo Adams, went to a ball and met Edward William Gandy a 27-year-old clerk for a lead manufacturer.  In his own subsequent words, “afterwards they were intimate”.  He was a lodger at a house in Jubilee Street which ran parallel and adjacent to Jamaica Street, where the Adams family home was located.  When the pair began their relationship, Gandy was unaware that Consuelo was married.  Edward Gandy subsequently moved his lodgings to the Adams house in Jamaica Street and adultery was committed “many times”.  It is difficult to see how the pair could have kept their deep intimacy from the notice of the rest of the family living in the same house, especially since Edward Gandy subsequently claimed that by summer 1872 he considered he was engaged to Consuelo and that she promised to marry him.  However, true to form, she insisted they keep the engagement secret!

Between November 1871 and April 1873 Consuelo Trenaman and Edward Gandy managed to avoid conception, perhaps because, by that time, condoms were being manufactured by several major rubber companies.  However, about 15 April 1873 their luck ran out and Consuelo Trenaman became pregnant, though she would not know for sure that this was so for perhaps another six weeks.  Sometime in the same month, Consuelo confessed to Edward that she was married.  He claimed that after this revelation the couple stopped having sexual relations, though their friendship endured.

Samuel Robert Trenaman on board the “Lothair” arrived at New York on 9 April 1873, oblivious to the events unfolding in Mile End Old Town.  He was paid off from the vessel and quickly obtained another post as first officer on the steamer “Lagos”, which plied between New York and the West Indies.  It is perhaps curious that he did not seek a position that would immediately take him back to Britain and the wife that he had not seen since late October 1871.  In May 1873, Consuelo discovered that the “Lothair” had arrived in New York and decided to travel to that city to join up with her husband and she informed him of her plans.  She was encouraged in her venture by Edward Gandy who supplied her with the money for the ticket, though he was subsequently reimbursed by Robert Harris Trenaman, Samuel Robert’s father, who must by then have been informed of his elder son’s marriage.  What was Consuelo Trenaman’s motive in crossing the Atlantic to meet up with her husband in such a hurry?  It could hardly be that she was missing his company.  Is it possible that both Consuelo Trenaman and Edward Gandy either knew that she was pregnant or, more likely, feared that she might have recently become pregnant?  By travelling to New York and resuming conjugal relations with Samuel Robert Trenaman as soon as possible the couple might then have been able to claim that her husband was responsible if a pregnancy ensued.  However, to make such a journey she would have to reveal to her family and also to Robert Harris Trenaman that she and Samuel Robert were already married.

The fully powered (ie not an auxiliary steamer), iron screw-steamer “Lagos”, 1799 tons was a British vessel operated by the Atlas Steamship Company, principally between New York and various destinations in the West Indies.  Her master was Captain Pegden.  The vessel specialised in taking wealthy Americans to and from the Bahamas for the winter.  Samuel Robert Trenaman became her first mate on 6 May 1873.   The voyages of the “Lagos” in the spring and summer of 1873 were as follows.  Departures from New York for Havana were made on 12 April, 10 May and 6 June.  Consuelo Trenaman arrived in New York on 7 June, the “Lagos” having left for Havana the previous day.  By this time, she would have been fairly sure that she was pregnant. If Consuelo and Edward’s motive for arranging the journey to New York was to obscure the parentage of the growing foetus, the plan fell apart at this point.

Consuelo’s husband had arranged for her to stay in New York while he was away.  The “Lagos” returned to New York from Havana on 21 July 1873.  After his return to New York, Samuel Robert Trenaman cohabited with his wife for ten days.  Some subsequent newspaper reports said that she then returned to Britain, though others declared that she did not return until November 1873.  When she re-crossed the Atlantic she did so, in her words, “to her friends”.

Consuelo Trenaman gave birth to a boy on 13 January 1874.  How and when Samuel Robert Trenaman discovered his wife’s state of pregnancy is not certainly known.   At the registration of the boy’s birth, he was given the names “Willie Rowland Gandy” to add to the family name “Trenaman”, clearly acknowledging the identity of the biological father.  But the story at the same time became more bizarre because, at the birth registration, the father’s name was given as Robert Harris Trenaman, the father of Samuel Robert!  Was Consuelo, who was the informant, trying to avoid the stigma of illegitimacy for her son?  If so, why use her father-in-law’s name and not her husband’s?  Consuelo Trenaman’s capacity for deception appears to have been substantial.

“Claribel”

Samuel Robert Trenaman continued his sailing career on the east coast of the USA in late 1873.  He was appointed first mate on the steamer “Claribel”, operating between New York and the West Indies, on 13 December.  The routes taken by the “Claribel” are not fully known but involved calls at Curacao, Porto Cabello and La Guayra (both Venezuela), Jamaica, Port au Prince (Haiti) and St Kitts.  By early January 1874, Samuel Robert Trenaman had been appointed master of the “Claribel” and during that year he suffered several strandings, though on no occasion did his vessel suffer significant damage.  The most serious event occurred on 14 June when, on a journey from New York to Port au Prince and Jamaica, the vessel ran ashore off Bird Rock, St Kitts.  The “Claribel” had to be lightened, partly by transferring cargo to the schooner “Electric” and partly by being jettisoned, but later recovered.  “Claribel” was then floated off and able to continue her voyage.

Samuel Robert Trenaman divorces his first wife

Samuel Robert Trenaman returned to Britain from New York on the White Star steamer “Republic”, leaving on 1 August 1874 and arriving at Liverpool ten days later, after a brief stop at Queenstown, Ireland.  It is not known if he travelled on directly to Plymouth after landing but on 8 September he swore and signed a petition for divorce in that place, citing his wife’s adultery with Gandy as the reason for seeking a divorce and giving evidence for this claim.  The petition was then filed with the Court for Divorce and Matrimonial Causes in London on 14 October and, at a hearing on 29 April 1875, he was granted a decree nisi.  The case, because of its prurient content, was widely reported in both national and local newspapers.  Edward William Gandy sought to avoid costs being awarded against him as the co-respondent by claiming that he did not know that Consuelo Adams was married when the affair started and that he ceased intimacy once she confessed her status to him. The judge took account of Samuel Robert’s acquiescence in his new wife maintaining the pretence that she was single while he was away in the Far East, when making his decision and he agreed not to award costs against Gandy. Edward William had been given the benefit of the doubt but, since the couple remained good friends and then subsequently married, a hint of suspicion lingers that not much changed after Consuelo’s April 1873 confession that she was married.

Consuelo Roland, now styling herself as “Adams” did not wait for the divorce decree to become absolute.  She and her paramour Edward William Gandy were married at Christchurch, St Marylebone on 10 May 1875.  He was described as a commercial clerk and she maintained the fiction that she was a spinster!  They went on to have a family of five children.  Consuelo Roland Gandy died in 1900 at the age of 49.  Edward William Gandy survived his wife by many years, dying in 1936.  By 1891 he had become the manager of a lead works and when he died his personal estate was valued at almost £15,500 (about £1,050,000 in 2018 money).

Lamport and Holt

The Lamport and Holt Line (L&H) was to play a significant part in the careers of both Samuel Robert Trenaman and of his younger brother, Robert William.  It came into existence in 1845 as a ship-owning and ship-operating partnership between William James Lamport and George Holt.  In the following years the line operated both to India and to Egypt, the latter destination being principally for the cotton trade.  Until 1861, the firm exclusively employed sailing ships but, in that year, it ordered its first auxiliary steamer and subsequently became exclusively a steamship operator.  In the period up to the start of WW1 the company established itself as the main player in the trade between Liverpool, London, Antwerp, Brazil, Uruguay, Argentina and New York.  It particularly carried passengers (some of whom were emigrants, especially from Portugal), mail, live cattle, frozen meat, coffee and cotton.  In the early years, this trade progressed well, and the business was established as a limited company, “The Liverpool, Brazil and River Plate Steam Navigation Company” in 1865.  In 1877 L&H set up a Belgian subsidiary company, Societe de Nav. Royale Belge Sud-Americaine, which undertook the transport of Belgian mails to South America.  A characteristic of L&H was that its vessels were usually named after significant scientific, philosophical or artistic personalities, as will be seen. 

The two Trenaman brothers, Samuel Robert and Robert William would become associated with L&H, with South America and particularly with three countries, Argentina, Uruguay and Brazil, in the period 1874 – 1906.  This was a time of major economic development in these Latin American republics.  Argentina gained its independence from its colonial master, Spain, in 1816 and was established as a democracy with a constitution in 1853.  It was a country blessed with substantial natural resources, especially for agriculture, but the development of its full economic potential was dogged during the 19^th century by political instability and corruption.  Even so, the second half of the century saw considerable economic development take place.  In 1880 the rail network extended to only 1,570 miles but by 1910 this had increased to 17,350 miles.  Although in mid-century sheep farming was a substantial activity, by the 1880s this had been marginalised by the development of cattle ranching and cereal growing.  But Argentina was a long way from the lucrative markets for fresh beef in Europe, fat cattle could not easily be carried over such long distances and salt-beef was not popular there.  From 1882 frozen beef was produced in large quantities in Argentina and ships were built which could transport this commodity over long distances.  The need to improve native cattle breeds also led to the importation of beef cattle from Europe, especially Herefords, Shorthorns and Aberdeen Angus from Britain.  But cattle importation was periodically banned due to the outbreak of cattle diseases such as Foot and Mouth.  The developing economy brought with it the demand for capital from abroad and also attracted immigrants, especially from Europe, but not particularly from Britain.  The economic development of Uruguay had similarities to its much larger southern neighbour.  Uruguay had agricultural potential, but it too was dogged by political instability.  Beef, hide and wool exports were significant from the mid-19^th century.  Brazil gained its independence from Portugal in 1822.  Agricultural development led to sugar and cotton being produced mainly in the north-east and exported through the port of Recife, while coffee, which became economically important from about 1840, was produced mainly in the south and exported, particularly through the ports of Rio Janeiro and Santos.  In the late 19^th century Brazil produced 75% of the world’s coffee, much of it being exported to the USA.  The former colonial masters of these South American countries, Spain and Portugal, lacked merchant fleets of sufficient size to satisfy the demands of these developing economies and this vacuum was filled by the British merchant fleet, then the biggest in the world.  Lamport and Holt was by far the most significant steamer line serving the east coast of South America.

“Newton”

Samuel Robert Trenaman became an employee of L&H in 1874, when he was appointed first mate on the steamer “Newton” on 8 October.  The “Newton”, which was of 748 tons register and 1329 tons burthen, was built by McNab and Co at Greenock on the Clyde and was launched in 1864.  Sir Isaac Newton, 1642 – 1727, was an English mathematician, physicist and astronomer, and a towering figure in the history of science.  Newton was responsible for the theory of gravity, the laws of motion, the discovery of calculus and the invention of the reflecting telescope.

The “Newton” was booked to travel to “the Brazils” (the archaic name for Brazil) and “River Plate” (Argentina and Uruguay).  However, the vessel, under Captain Taylor, had suffered a major mechanical malfunction on her last voyage from Hamburg to Liverpool and had to be towed from Falmouth to her home port for repairs, arriving on 14 October 1874, and it was mid-December before she made her exit, now under the command of Captain Brown, from the Mersey.  She was heading for her first port of call, Lisbon, which was reached on the 18^th of the month.  Bahia in Brazil was attained about 10 January 1875 before the vessel travelled on to Rio Janeiro.  In the month of January this city had been visited by the following L&H vessels, “Ptolemy”, “Biela”, “Galileo” and “Halley”, in addition to “Newton”, which illustrates well the dominance of L&H’s business interests on the east coast of South America.  Samuel Robert Trenaman subsequently served in all of these vessels.  Buenos Ayres was the final port of call of the “Newton” before her return, via Rio Janeiro and Madeira, to Hamburg, which was reached on 1 March.  In the early morning of that day, “Newton” ran aground in the River Elbe between Gluckstadt and Stohr and was “much lying over”, according to Lloyds List.  By late morning the vessel had been got off and re-floated with the help of the steamer, “Enock”, but her cargo had clearly been displaced by the stranding and she had to discharge her load into lighters before entering Gluckstadt.  “Newton” appeared not to have been seriously damaged (though her master’s prestige may have been) because she left Cuxhaven for Liverpool on 10 March.  This was not an auspicious start to a career with L&H for the “Newton”’s first mate.

“Biela”

Samuel Robert Trenaman did not go to sea again until July 1875, which would have allowed him to attend court for the action he had brought against his wife for divorce.  The case was heard in late April and early May of that year.  Samuel Robert’s next appointment was as first mate on the “Biela”, another L&H steamer which was also involved in the South American trade.  This vessel had, like many other L&H commissions, been built by Andrew Leslie and Co, Hebburn on the Tyne in 1870.  A typical advertisement appeared in Gore’s Liverpool General Advertiser.  “Liverpool Brazil and River Plate Mail Steamers.  The following or other screw steamers will be despatched from Liverpool (occasionally calling at Lisbon) with first- and third-class passengers (ie serving the needs of both the wealthy and poor emigrants) and cargo for ports in Brazil and the River Plate.  For Rio de Janeiro, Monte Video and Buenos Ayres, “Biela” 2196 tons (gross) on Saturday 17^th July not receiving cargo after midnight of Thursday 15^th.  Lamport and Holt, 21 Water Street, Liverpool or 12 St Helens Place, London EC.”  Baron Wilhelm von Biela (1782 – 1856) was a German-Austrian military officer and amateur astronomer, who discovered several comets and calculated cometary orbits.

The vessel, under Captain John Carroll, cleared out of Liverpool on 16 July 1875 and sailed the following day for Lisbon.  She was carrying mails for Brazil, Uruguay and Argentina.  Her route involved calls at Rio Janeiro, Monte Video, Buenos Ayres, Santos, New York, Southampton (where incoming mail was deposited) and back to Liverpool, arriving about 17 October.  The call at Santos had been for the collection of a cargo of coffee for sale on the New York coffee market.  “New York Coffee.  522 bags per Biela at 20 ½ c 500 bags ordinary Rio per Biela 18 ½ c, 665 bags good to prime per Biela 21 ¼ c gold.”  In Liverpool other components of the “Biela”’s cargo appeared for sale.  “Edward Chaloner sale of woods.  266 pieces Bahia Rosewood ex-Biela from Bahia.  On account of Messrs Heilbut, Symonds and Merchants”.  The “Biela” was also carrying a variety of other products.  “Exports from New York for Liverpool.  Biela Oct 2 cotton 1798 bls, wheat 19,448 bshls, corn 18,281 bshls, leather 117 rlls 220 bls, staves 3600.”

The “Biela”, still under the command of Captain John Carroll and with First Mate Samuel Robert Trenaman, completed two further round trips to South America between 11 November 1875 and 25^th April 1876.  The earlier voyage was advertised as a direct sailing, its first port of call being Monte Video in Uruguay.  The vessel sailed back directly to Southampton with mail and disembarking two passengers, before diverting to Havre with a general cargo and then on to London.  Her First Mate was paid off in London on 23 January 1876 only to be re-signed the following day.  The second voyage of the “Biela” left London on the short haul for Antwerp on 27 January.  However, another L&H steamer, the “Rubens”, on a journey from the River Plate to Antwerp, ran ashore at Birling Gap near Beachy Head at this time.  After re-floating she was towed to Southampton and “Biela” was diverted to trans-ship 625 bales of wool from the “Rubens” and land it in Antwerp.  The “Biela” then sailed on to Havre before crossing the Atlantic, passing Madeira on the way, and reaching Rio Janeiro on 29 February.  The vessel then moved on to the River Plate, back to Rio Janeiro and down to Buenos Ayres again before leaving Monte Video for Lisbon, arriving there on 15 April, Southampton on 20 April, Havre on 23 April and Liverpool on 25^th April 1876.  Of the cargo landed at the final destination, a major component was 1366 bundles (“extra clean”) of piassava, a fibre extracted from the leaf stalks of a variety of palm trees.  The material was offered for sale in Liverpool. Other items imported on the “Biela” included one hundred and twelve bags of Rio Janeiro coffee “just landed from the Biela”.  It was also offered for sale, as were 49 casks Southern whale oil. 

On the journey back from South America, a steerage passenger, Samuel Jones, who boarded in Bahia, Brasil, and who was carrying 31 milrea (a Portuguese coin) and a number of other gold pieces in a portmanteau-type travelling bag, noticed that it had been broken open and that the coins had disappeared.  This discovery was made shortly before the “Biela” reached Lisbon.  A search was made of the vessel, but nothing was discovered.  Samuel Jones subsequently disembarked at Havre without his valuables, but then evidence emerged pointing to a possible perpetrator of the theft.  William Davies, a member of “Biela”’s crew went ashore at the French port and got drunk.  He was apprehended by the police and searched, when 19 milrea were found on his person.  Davies was handed over to Captain Carroll.  The seaman’s explanation for his possession of these valuables was that he had found them in a canvass bag amongst some old ropes (money from old rope!).  On reaching Liverpool, he was charged with the theft of coins valued at about £110 (about £12,100 in 2018 money), the property of Samuel Jones, and then remanded in custody to await trial.  But Jones, the accuser, never showed up in Liverpool, which posed the question of how he had obtained the coinage in the first place.  Davies had been given a good character reference by Captain John Carroll, the trial could not proceed, and Davies could be held no longer.  He was released and it is presumed that the gold coins were returned to him.

“Hipparchus”

The L&H steamer “Hipparchus” was another Andrew Leslie vessel which was launched in 1867.  She had a register weight of 1251 tons and a gross tonnage of 1853 tons.  Hipparchus, after whom the vessel was named, was a Greek astronomer, geographer and mathematician who lived from about 190 BC to 120 BC.  He founded the discipline of trigonometry.  The “Hipparchus” was the next posting of Samuel Robert Trenaman.  He joined the ship on 10 May 1876 and served as first mate until 15 February 1877.  During this period three return journeys to South America were completed.  The itinerary of each voyage was unique and clearly adapted to the demands for cargo and passenger transport at the time.

The sequence of ports on the first of these voyages, which extended from 17 May 1876 to 11 August of that year, was Liverpool, Lisbon, Rio Janeiro, Monte Video, Buenos Ayres, Madeira, Southampton, Antwerp, Liverpool.  The master of the vessel was Captain Galgey.  Following this journey, the “Hipparchus” left Liverpool on 18 August, this time under the command of Captain Hudson.  The first port of call was again Lisbon but then the vessel appears to have taken an unusual diversion for an L&H steamer, travelling to Alexandria in Egypt to deliver £207,000 (approximately £23M in 2018 money).  As a result, “Hipparchus” did not reach Rio Janeiro until 10 October.  The return journey took in a call at St Vincent in the Cape Verde Islands, which lie off the coast of West Africa, about 300 miles from Dakar in Senegal, probably to bunker.  There news was received of the political situation in nearby African countries.  “On 15^th Sep the Dahomians (Dahomy is now part of Benin.  Previously it was a French colonial possession.) attacked two villages near Grand Popo slaughtered all the men and carried off 80 women and children.  The attack was provoked by the friendly relations existing with the English.  An attack is feared at Grand Popo.”  “A letter from a European resident at Whydah reports great difficulty in obtaining food.  A large number of natives are dying from poison.  Fifteen Europeans are imprisoned.  The Whydah authorities are much exasperated.”  “Everything was quiet at Whydah.  The Acting Commissioner at Lagos had sailed up the lagoon in the steamer Eko and reached within 20 miles of Abomey.  The natives generally appeared well disposed though in some instance symptoms of hostility were apparent.”  (Whydah (Ouidah) is a city in southern Benin which was involved in the slave trade.)  On reaching Southampton, where five passengers, £12,130 (about £1.3M in 2018 money), mails and South American newspapers were unloaded, news also emerged of events in Argentina.  “Buenos Ayres Standard says crops in splendid condition.  A great locust invasion has occurred at Tacuazembo.”  (Tacuarembo – a town in Uruguay.)  The final call was at Antwerp before reaching Liverpool on 5 November 1876.  Part of the cargo unloaded in the home port was “mutton lard 12 quarter casks suitable for cooking purposes ex-Hipparchus (s) from Buenos Ayres for sale”

Samuel Robert Trenaman’s third voyage as first mate on the “Hipparchus”, on this occasion, too, under the command of Captain Hudson, left Liverpool on 22 November 1876, travelling to Lisbon and Madeira, before reaching Brazil.  The vessel did not travel on to the River Plate because the main purpose of the voyage was to load coffee in Brazil.  Three ports were visited, Bahia, Rio Janeiro and Pernambuco, before sailing on to New York where 15,000 bags of coffee were sold on the New York coffee market.  On 4 January 1877, on the way to New York, the “Hipparchus” went ashore at Morro San Paulo, Bahia, Brasil but was able to get off without damage.  She finally arrived back in Liverpool on 15 February, when her first mate was paid off.

“Delambre”

The L&H steamer “Delambre”, named after a French mathematician and astronomer, was built by William Hamilton & Co at Port Glasgow in 1873.  Her displacement was 998 tons register, 1308 tons burthen.  Samuel Robert Trenaman was appointed as first mate of this vessel, which was commanded by Captain Palmer (he remained as master throughout the year), on 5 April 1877.  Samuel Robert left the ship in December of the same year.  During that period as first mate, the vessel completed three return journeys to South America.  The first of those voyages was billed as a direct route to the River Plate, taking in Monte Video, Buenos Ayres, where the vessel arrived on 11 May, and Rosario, a port city on the River Parana, about 250 miles inland from the Argentinian capital, probably to collect agricultural cargo.  The return journey to Europe took the “Delambre” first to “the Brazils”, then past Madeira on 24 June to Southampton on 1 July, where £10,000 destined for the London Money Market was unloaded along with mail and passengers.  The vessel then called at London before crossing the North Sea to Antwerp, where a “full general cargo” was unloaded, and then on to the home port of Liverpool, which was reached on 8 July.  The next voyage of the “Delambre” left Liverpool for Pernambuco in Brasil on 17 July 1877.  The vessel called at Lisbon before crossing the Atlantic.  Pernambuco is a state in the north east of Brasil and a fertile agricultural region.  The “Delambre” loaded 4099 bags of sugar, 313bags of cotton and 1105 hides before moving on to nearby Maceio to collect a further 1435 bags of sugar and 3259 bags of cotton for sale in Liverpool, where the vessel arrived on 14 September.  The third voyage of the “Delambre” started on 29 September with a passage from Liverpool to Pernambuco via Lisbon.  The Brazilian port was reached on 20 October.  The cargo collected in Pernambuco is not directly known but is likely to have included cotton and sugar.  “Delambre” then sailed to New Orleans, probably to load cotton.  The vessel left New Orleans on 26 November and called at the remote settlement of Port Eads at the mouth of the Mississippi river, before returning across the Atlantic to Liverpool.  This last leg of the journey took the unusually long time of three weeks, Liverpool being reached on 20 December.  The reason for the slow passage is not known but the vessel may have been labouring due to a mechanical defect.  “Delambre”’s first mate parted company with her the following day.

“Halley”

Samuel Robert Trenaman’s next position was as first mate on another L&H steamer, the “Halley”, which he joined on 18 Jan 1878 and he remained in post for three return journeys to Brazil, leaving the vessel after her return to Liverpool on 22 November.   This vessel was named after Sir Edmund Halley (1656 – 1742), the second Astronomer Royal, who first determined the periodicity (75 – 76 years) of the comet which now bears his name.  All three voyages of the Halley were remarkably similar, Liverpool, Lisbon, Brazil, New York, Liverpool.  The master of the vessel was Captain Cross for the first journey and Captain Brown for the second and third iterations.  Cotton for the Lancashire textile industry is known to have been part of the cargo and the pattern of the voyages suggests that Brazilian coffee transported to New York was another significant component.

During the second of “Halley”’s three completed voyages in 1878 an action against L&H by the General Steam Navigation Company, owners of the steamer “Velocity”, took place in London.  It related to a collision which occurred between the two vessels in December 1876, which led to the sinking of the “Velocity”.  This incident occurred before Samuel Robert Trenaman became associated with the “Halley”.  In summary, the master of the “Velocity” claimed that the “Halley” did not exhibit a proper riding light while at anchor, while the “Halley”’s counter-claim was that the “Velocity” was travelling too fast and did not keep a proper look-out.  The jury in the case found both parties to blame and awarded half the cost of the damage to the owners of the “Velocity”.

“Olbers”

The “Olbers” was an Andrew Leslie-built L&H vessel, launched in 1870 and displacing 1388 tone register, 2162 tons when loaded.  She was named after Heinrich Olbers (1758 – 1840), an astrophysicist and cosmologist.  Samuel Robert Trenaman joined the “Olbers” as first mate on 17 December 1878 and sailed in her for one return journey to South America, commanded by Captain Clarke. Samuel Trenaman left the vessel on 21 March 1879.  The itinerary of the “Olbers” was a routine L&H sequence.  Liverpool, London, Antwerp, Buenos Ayres, Rio Janeiro, Madeira, Southampton, Antwerp, Liverpool.  In Rio Janeiro the vessel took on board 450 x 60 Kg bags of coffee.  Passengers, mail, several packages of samples and £4,867 (about £550,000 in 2018 money) “in specie” (usually valuable coinage) for London were, as routine, dropped off in Southampton.  Cargo destined for Antwerp and Liverpool mostly consisted of South American produce.

“Galileo”

Samuel Robert Trenaman next joined the L&H steamer “Galileo”, still with the rank of first mate.  Galileo Galilei (1564 – 1642) was an Italian astronomer, physicist and engineer, who championed heliocetricism and was tried, and had his views repudiated, by the Roman Inquisition.  This “Galileo”, built in 1873 by Andrew Leslie, was the second vessel in the L&H fleet to bear that name.  Her displacement was 1445 tons register and 2267 tons burthen.  Samuel Trenaman joined the ship, whose master was Captain Eills on 1 April 1879 and Samuel Robert completed two round trips in her.  “Galileo” sailed from Liverpool on 4 April for the River Plate.  The route was Rio Janeiro, Monte Video, Buenos Ayres, Lisbon, Southampton, Antwerp and Liverpool, where she arrived on 14 June.  In Southampton she landed mails, 30 passengers and £2,580 (about £292,000 in 2018 money) in specie.  A cargo of South American produce was landed in Antwerp and Liverpool.  On her next voyage, which began from Liverpool on 5 July, “Galileo” took a similar route to her previous voyage, except that her final destination was London, where she arrived on 13 September.  Her cargo was also similar, with the addition of 17 horses landed in Southampton.

“Maskelyne”

A further change of vessel then occurred for Samuel Robert Trenaman.  On 31 October 1879 he joined the L&H vessel, “Maskelyne” as first mate under Captain Edward Hairby.  The Rev Dr Neville Maskelyne (1732 – 1811) was the fifth Astronomer Royal and the first person scientifically to measure the mass of planet Earth.  The return journey to South America was routine and one with which the first mate had become very familiar.  Liverpool, Monte Video, Buenos Ayres, Monte Video, Rio Janeiro, Southampton, Antwerp, Liverpool. In Southampton the “Maskelyne” landed 14 bags of mails, ten passengers, £870 (about £98,000 in 2018 money) in specie, one box of gold dust and 12 packages of samples.  She subsequently sailed for Antwerp and Liverpool with a “full general cargo”, arriving in her home port on 19 January 1880.

“Laplace”

Samuel Robert Trenaman was now 36 and had been acting as first mate since 1864, 16 years ago.  He had obtained his master’s ticket in 1871, nine years ago and he had been employed by L&H since 1874, six years ago.  He must have wondered if he would ever be given charge of an L&H vessel, a vote of confidence bestowed on the best mariners in their late 20s.  He had been captain on the “Claribel” briefly, in 1874, but that experience had seemed to carry no weight with L&H.  Until 1880.  In that year he was appointed master of the L&H steamer “Laplace”, which was named after the French mathematician and astronomer, the Marquis de Laplace (1749 – 1827)

The “Laplace” was a 1,410-ton (gross) steamship (901 tons register) built by Andrew Leslie and Co on the Tyne in 1866 and her recent sailing history illustrated well the business of L&H.  From July 1875 until Samuel Robert Trenaman became her master in January 1880, she undertook 16 return journeys between the UK and South America.  All the journeys were similar to each other, but each was nonetheless unique.  Liverpool, her home port, was the starting point for all journeys but one, when London was the UK port of departure.  European ports which were visited on some occasions, either at the start or the end of a trip, were London, Antwerp, Cuxhaven (a port at the mouth of the River Elbe), Hamburg, Havre, Lisbon and Southampton.  In South America, ports of call were Pernambuco, Bahia, Rio Janeiro, Santos (the port for Sao Paulo) in Brazil, Monte Video in Uruguay and La Plata and Buenos Ayres in Argentina, though not every South American port was visited on every return journey.  The trips proceeded in a clockwise direction, with the last leg typically but not exclusively being New York to Liverpool.  While L&H had established a dominant position in providing passenger and freight services between Europe and the eastern seaboard of South America, the service did not conform with a fixed schedule of port visits, each itinerary being determined by market demand.  Thus, to some extent, the L&H vessels acted like tramp steamers.

In July 1875 the master of the “Laplace” had been Captain Blair who completed seven return trips before handing over to Captain Prince Gilpen.  Captain Gilpen was born in 1841 at East Stonehouse, Devon and was the son of a master mariner.  Also, in London he lived close to the St Katherine Dock.  It is thus quite likely that he was known to the Trenaman family.  Prince Gilpen was no stranger to bad weather on board ship, having been first mate of the “Francesca Calderon” in 1873 when she was turned on her beam ends in a South Atlantic gale. Tragically, he only completed one round trip on the “Laplace” before he met a sad and early demise.  On the final leg of his second journey, from New York to Liverpool, at 5.30am on 19 February 1878, a heavy sea washed away two boats and their davits and crushed the master against the engine room skylight, breaking his ribs and damaging his lungs.  He died soon afterwards, and the voyage was completed under the command of the first mate, Matthew Lane Tranmar.  Captain Scofield was then appointed to command the “Laplace”. He was in charge for six round trips to South America, terminating at the end of 1879.

 

Compared with the days of sail, journey times by steam ships were becoming much more predictable and were only occasionally disrupted by malfunction or bad weather.  The journey time from New York to Liverpool was typically about 10 days but in January 1879, Captain Schofield encountered very severe weather and had his boat, wheel and skylight severely damaged and his journey time extended to 17 days.  In September of the same year, also on the leg from New York to Liverpool the “Laplace” broke her crank shaft and had to set sail for several days while a replacement shaft, which she was carrying, was fitted to the engine  This mishap extended the journey time to 21 days.

Captain Schofield commanded the “Laplace” on the first leg of her journey to South America, from Liverpool to London, leaving the Mersey on 10 January 1880.  He then handed over command to Samuel Robert Trenaman.  The vessel cleared out of the Victoria Dock with cargo on 16 January on a direct voyage to Rio Janeiro, calling at Bahia on the journey back to London.  Captain Trenaman then remained as master for a further nine return voyages until about the middle of October 1882.  Samuel Robert Trenaman’s accession to the command of the “Laplace” corresponded with a change in the pattern of the voyages.  London was now the start and end point of the round trip, Antwerp was usually included in the itinerary, but other north European ports were omitted.  The voyage was often direct to the River Plate, both travelling out and on return, thus eliminating the legs from Brazil to New York and New York to Liverpool.  Perhaps this arrangement suited Samuel Robert, since it allowed him to live in London.  He ended his association with the “Laplace” on 31 March 1882.

“Ptolemy”

Captain Samuel Robert Trenaman was quickly assigned to a new charge, the “Ptolemy”, another Andrew Leslie-constructed vessel which had been in the service of L&H for some 15 years.  She had a gross tonnage of 1401 tons (891 tons register).  The vessel had been re-engined in 1880 and had a brigantine rig, ie two masts with square sails on the fore mast and one square sail and a gaff-sail (fore- and aft) on the main mast.    Ptolemy, after whom the vessel was named, was a mathematician, astronomer and astrologer who lived in Alexandria, Egypt when it was part of the Roman Empire.  Captain Trenaman began his service in the vessel on 5 April 1882 when she was loading at Liverpool for Bahia and Rio Janeiro, via Lisbon.  She reached Rio Janeiro on 3 May, where she probably loaded with coffee, before moving on to Bahia and hence to New York, arriving there on 31 May.  In New York the vessel took on a cargo of cotton (1073 bales) and a wide variety of manufactured goods (shooks, clocks, revolvers, springs, pumps, soap and lamps) for delivery to Liverpool. 

Then, for some presently unknown reason, Captain Samuel Robert Trenaman left the position of master of the “Ptolemy” and ceased to be an employee of L&H, never to return.

The Wilson Line of Hull

Thomas Wilson (1833 – 1869) founded Beckington, Wilson & Co in 1822 and by 1825 the company had acquired a steamship to import iron to Hull from Sweden.  This firm was an early operator of steam-powered vessels because of the difficulty of accessing Hull with sailing ships.  The Wilson shipping business developed to become one of the most important shipping operations in this East Yorkshire port.  The company’s name changing to Thomas Wilson & Son Ltd in 1841 and to Thomas Wilson and Sons in 1851.  Thomas Wilson died in 1869.  His sons Charles and Arthur continued to manage the firm from 1867.  Another son David was a part-owner but not involved in management.  This shipping operation was generally known by the name “Wilson Line of Hull”.  Initially the company was involved in trade with Scandinavia and the Baltic but later expanded its area of operations to include the Mediterranean, America and India.  It also ran a steamer service between Hull and Liverpool.

Tug “Emperor”

After his departure from L&H, Samuel Robert Trenaman became master of the “Emperor”, an iron screw tug belonging to the Wilson Line, on 6 August 1882.  He may have joined the vessel in Falmouth, and he sailed her to Pernambuco in Brazil, reaching that port on 3 September, Rio Janeiro eight days later and, finally, the vessel travelled on to the River Plate.  There is no evidence for a return journey, and it seems possible that this was an assignment to deliver the tug “Emperor” for service in the Buenos Ayres and Monte Video area.  Samuel Robert Trenaman’s experience of the South American run would have suited him well for this voyage.  It is not known how or when he returned to Britain.

“Liscara”

There is no record in Lloyds Captains Register of Samuel Robert Trenaman going to sea again, in any capacity, until 2 August 1884, when he was taken on as first mate on the steamer “Liscara”, which sailed to Bombay in India, calling at Malta on 1 November.  Nothing further has been discovered about the vessel, her ownership, her outward voyage, or any return journey to Britain.  To that extent there is a similarity with Samuel Robert Trenaman’s journey in the “Emperor”.  Is it possible that the “Liscara” was also a tug and that the gaps in his sailing record were due to him serving locally at the destinations of the two vessels as a tugboat master or mate?  At a later stage in his career (see below) he again served as a master on tugboats.

“Kovno”

Most of the Wilson Line’s vessels were given names ending in the letter “o”, one of them being the “Kovno”.  This name refers to Kaunas in Lithuania, Kovno being the Russian version of Kaunas.  Samuel Robert Trenaman became first mate on the vessel “Kovno”, under Captain Neill on 10 October 1885.  She probably left the following day from London for Boston, where she arrived on 27 October.  The vessel then sailed on to New York before returning across the Atlantic to Antwerp.  Her journey ended in London about 26 November.  Samuel Robert Trenaman also served as first mate on the “Kovno” on a round trip from London to Boston, starting on 5 December 1885 and ending on 16 January 1886.  There followed two voyages of a different pattern.  On 17 February 1886 the “Kovno” sailed from London to the Tyne in ballast to collect a cargo of coal from the Northumberland Dock and Commissioners’ staiths, which was delivered to New York on 18 March, the vessel returning to Shields on 15 April.  On this return journey the cargo for the Tyne consisted of flour, pork, peas, lard, tallow, bacon, hams, apples, sugar, corn, canned goods, lubricating oil and beef. 

This pattern of coal outwards and predominantly foodstuffs on the return journey was then repeated, the “Kovno” returning to Shields on 9 June, carrying oatmeal, flour, bacon, oilcake, canned goods, shooks, pork, hams, wheat, tallow, lard, cheese and lubricating oil.  Samuel Robert Trenaman’s final voyage as first mate on the “Kovno” involved transporting a 2400-ton cargo, predominantly of coal, from the Tyne to Stettin, then a major Prussian port.  From this Baltic city, the “Kovno” travelled first to Gothenberg in Sweden and then on to New York.  It is not clear at what time Samuel Robert Trenaman left the vessel.  He may have left after the return of the “Kovno” to Europe from New York about August 1886, or he may have remained with the vessel for several further journeys between the Baltic and the USA.

“Helen Newton”

The next posting, for which definitive evidence exists, for Samuel Robert Trenaman was his appointment as the master of the Hull-registered steamer “Helen Newton” on 9 June 1887.  He served in this capacity for three voyages.  This 1300-ton gross (856 tons register) iron screw steamer was built for A J Newton of Hull by Robert Thompson of Southwick, Sunderland in 1880.  She had a compound steam engine and her two iron masts were schooner-rigged.  Alfred James Newton, later Sir Alfred and Lord Mayor of London, left the family shipping business in 1886.  The firm then became Newton Brothers & Co of Hull, under the control of two of his sons and the vessel was sold by AJ Newton to Newton Brothers & Co.

The “Helen Newton”, with Samuel Robert Trenaman in command left Grantown, near Leith, for Savona, a port in north western Italy, close to Genoa, on 10 June 1887.  From there she travelled on to Ibrail (Braila in modern Romania) an inland port on the Danube, having called at Constantinople (now Istanbul in Turkey), at the entrance to the Bosphorus.  In the 19^th Century Ibrail was one of the three most important ports on the Danube.  The vessel had been chartered at a price of £7,500 (almost £1M in 2018 money).  She then called at Sulina, at the mouth of the Sulina branch of the Danube, on the Romanian sector of the Black Sea.  The destination of the “Helen Newton” on the return journey was Rotterdam, where she arrived in mid-August.  There was then a repeat of this route to Ibrail and Sulina, leaving Rotterdam on 26 August 1887 and returning to Antwerp on 26 October.  From there she sailed to Cardiff, arriving on 7 November, to load with 1450 tons of coal and 5 tons of coke, which she was contracted to carry at 9/9d per ton.  On the journey from Antwerp to Cardiff, the “Helen Newton” experienced heavy weather in the Channel and, running short of fuel, she put in at Portsmouth to bunker.  The vessel returned from the Danube to Antwerp on 14 January 1888.

The “Helen Newton” had been due to take another load of coal from Cardiff but instead diverted to the Tyne.  The reason for the change of plan was that the vessel needed maintenance and the facilities for the work were available in the North East.  She remained in the Tyne for over a month while an overhaul of her engine, boilers and hull were undertaken.  She then loaded with coal and coke on the Tyne and left for Naples on 2 March 1888.  It is likely that Samuel Robert Trenaman then left the position of master of the “Helen Newton” and that role was next undertaken by Captain Rawson.

“Bempton”

Samuel Robert Trenaman then seems not to have gone to sea again until 15 August 1888 when he was appointed first mate on the steamer “Bempton”, 1306 tons register, 2400 tons burthen.  Bempton is a parish near Bridlington, Yorkshire, which is famous for its high, seabird-populated cliffs.  The vessel was built in 1885 by Edward Withy & Co of West Hartlepool for W & ES Lamplugh of London.  The “Bempton” was operated by her owners as a tramp steamer, going literally anywhere that cargo availability took her.  She also seemed to change master frequently.  After Samuel Robert Trenaman joined as first mate the vessel, under Captain Patten, sailed from Liverpool to Roath Dock, Cardiff to take coal onboard.  Her destination was initially advertised as “Brazils, River Plate”, but she headed for the Mediterranean, calling at Marseilles, where she arrived on 3 September, then on through the Bosphorus to Sulina on the Danube.  She finally arrived back in Liverpool on 11 October.  After loading in Liverpool, the vessel sailed for the River Plate on 20 October, coaling on the way at St Vincent in the Cape Verde Islands and arriving in Buenos Ayres on 22 November.  Her return journey took her to Monte Video, then up the Brazilian coast calling at Pernambuco and Maceio on the way to New York.  The vessel was then chartered to carry grain from Baltimore to Cork and travelled northwards along the coast, getting on shore at Nantucket on the way.  She managed to get off again, apparently undamaged.  After discharging her cargo of maize at Cork the vessel proceeded to Cardiff, reaching the Welsh capital on 28 March 1889, to load iron.  Probably at that point Samuel Robert Trenaman left the “Bempton”, as did Captain Patten.

It is worth briefly following the “Bempton” on her next and final voyage to appreciate fully how the vessel was deployed by her owners.  The cargo of iron was destined for Calcutta, the ship’s route taking her through the Mediterranean Sea and the Suez Canal.  She was then contracted to carry rice from Rangoon to the Black Sea.  On the journey back to Europe, “Bempton” was carrying a load of wheat and barley from Ibrail, Romania, for Antwerp.  As she approached Lisbon in thick fog on 28^th August 1889, she struck rocks at the mouth of the River Tagus and quickly became a complete loss, though her crew and about 500 tons of cargo were saved.  The first officer, Arthur Murrison, was in charge of the vessel at the time of the stranding.  However, at the subsequent Board of Trade inquiry the “Bempton”’s captain, David Evans, was held to be entirely at fault for the wrecking.

Samuel Robert Trenaman marries again

After his bruising experiences during his first entry in the matrimonial stakes, Samuel Robert Trenaman remained single until 1889 when he married Amelia Bate.  She was a twice-widowed lady who had been born in Maker, Cornwall, less than two miles from Plymouth across the Tamar estuary.  She had one daughter by her first marriage to John Nodder, a Royal Navy carpenter who died in 1866.  She then married James Lee, a gardener who was much older than her.  James died in 1887 in East Stonehouse.  In 1881, James and Amelia had been lodgers at 68 East Street, East Stonehouse, close to the Trenaman family home in the same street.  It is likely that Samuel Robert and Amelia knew each other as neighbours and formed an attachment after the death of Amelia’s second husband, James in 1887.  When they married in 1889, Samuel Robert was 45 and Amelia was 54.  There were no children of the marriage.

“Holme Eden”

Holme Eden Abbey near Carlisle was designed in 1833 by John Dobson, the Newcastle architect, for Peter Dixon, a cotton mill owner.  A steamer was built in 1889 by John Redhead at South Shields and the vessel was named “Holme Eden”.  She was of 2219 tons register, 3400 tons gross.  The vessel was quickly sold to new owners, Angier Line (1887) Ltd of London, in 1890.  Samuel Robert Trenaman was appointed first mate of the vessel on 1 October in that year.

The commercial life of the “Holme Eden” was both brief and eventful.  She sailed from Penarth, presumable loaded with coal, on 2 October 1890 for Galveston in Texas, where she arrived on 27 October returning to Havre (Le Havre) in Normandy.  When nearing the French port in mid-December, she picked up the crew members of an abandoned Norwegian barque, the “Lindesnaes”, and landed them at “Holme Eden”’s destination, Havre.  There followed a further visit to Cardiff for another cargo of coal, leaving for Antwerp under Captain Prentice on 6 January 1891.  From Antwerp the “Holme Eden” sailed for China, passing Port Said on 11 March and reaching Penang in Malaya on 3 April, before docking at Singapore on 8 April.  The “Holme Eden” then travelled on for Shanghai but was stranded on the Leucenna Islands (barely more than rocks) in thick fog on 23 April and quickly became a total loss. 

Captain Prentice ordered the evacuation of the ship when he realised she was sinking and all the 26 crew, minus their personal possessions, got away in two lifeboats, one commanded by the captain and the other by the first officer, Samuel Robert Trenaman.  The two boats stood by until the “Holme Eden” keeled over, but during the following night they got separated.  About noon the next day Trenaman’s boat was found by the steamer “Myrmidon”.  Captain Prentice’s boat was not so fortunate and it took about 50 hours until its passengers were rescued by a Chinese gunboat, the “Chaon Woo”.  The survivors from both lifeboats were landed at Shanghai suffering from exposure.  “Bellerophon” was a regular steamer on the UK to China route.  She reached Shanghai from Liverpool on 14 May and returned carrying 91,582 lbs of tea amongst other goods.  Samuel Robert Trenaman returned in her, reaching Suez on 28 June and London on 15 July 1891.

“Manhattan”

Samuel Robert Trenaman’s next berth was altogether different from the general-purpose steamers which had been his usual working environment since he left the “Lothair” in 1873.  The “Manhattan” was one of the earliest oil tankers, having been completed in 1889.  She was built by DJ Dunlop & Co at Port Glasgow, had a gross weight of 3,284 tons and belonged to the Anglo-American Oil Company.  Samuel Robert was appointed as her first mate on 5 September 1891.  A typical load was 27,000 gallons of refined petroleum spirit and her typical route, at this time, was Philadelphia or New York to Liverpool, the return journey, including loading and unloading, taking about 38 days.  The exact number of return journeys completed by Samuel Robert Trenaman in the “Manhattan” is unclear but could have been as many as eleven voyages.

Carrying petroleum spirit by sea is a hazardous enterprise but in the early days, when steam propulsion was in use, it was doubly so.  The port of Liverpool put regulations in place, good in intent but perhaps not carefully drafted, to limit the risk posed by such vessels.  On 6 September 1892 the “Manhattan”’s master, Captain Thomas appeared at the Liverpool Police Court charged with having fires and lights on board the “Manhattan”, contrary to the port regulations.  On 1 September the vessel had entered the Herculaneum Graving Dock, discharged part of her cargo and then crossed the Mersey to Birkenhead to off-load the remainder.  On the “Manhattan”’s return to the Herculaneum Graving Dock, a notice was served upon her first officer (this might have been Samuel Robert Trenaman), who was in command of the vessel at the time, requiring him to extinguish all fires and lights before entering the dock.  It was pointed out in court by the “Manhattan”’s legal representative that it would be impossible for the vessel to enter without its boilers being fired up to generate steam!  Bearing in mind Anglo-American’s cooperative attitude towards the Dock Board, the magistrates dismissed the case.  In 1910, the “Manhattan” disappeared, without trace, on a voyage from New York to Algiers.  The cause of her loss is unknown.

Tugs “Venus” “Itapema” and “Alerto”

On 10 November 1892, Samuel Robert Trenaman was appointed master of the steam tug, “Venus”.  Soon after that date she left Southampton in the company of another steam tug, the “Jupiter”, both destined for Rio Janeiro in Brazil.  No further record of the tug “Venus” has been found during her journey across the Atlantic.  Similarly, no trace has been discovered of the movements of Samuel Robert Trenaman until October 1893, when he was appointed as master of the British tug, “Itapema”, also bound for South America.  “Itapema” is a city in Brazil, which lies about 250 miles SW of Santos, the port of Sao Paulo.  The “Itapema”’s master began his posting on 23 October and on 8 January 1894, the “Itapema” arrived in Santos from Havre.  This tug, which displaced 52 tons net, was built in 1892 and initially registered in London.  In 1896 she was transferred to the Brazilian flag.  Lloyds Register contains no entry for Samuel Robert Trenaman for the whole of the following year, 1895.

The next position filled by Samuel Robert Trenaman was also as master of a tug, the “Alerto”.  She was a steel screw vessel of 25 tons, and she was built by John Fullerton & Co of Paisley, for South American owners, in 1896.  The master’s appointment was from 1 June 1896 and he appears to have been involved in a delivery voyage of the vessel, which reached St Vincent, Cape Verde on 13 July on her way to Brazil.  It seems likely that he was working as a tugboat captain in Brazil, or travelling from Britain to Brazil, for the period late 1892 – late 1896.

“Archie”

By 1897 Samuel Robert Trenaman was highly experienced in the sea routes and ports of the east coast of South America but his next posting, while travelling to that region of the globe, was both unusual and unexpected.  He was appointed master of the “Archie”, but the classification of this vessel seemed open to conjecture, due to the variety of ways she was described in the newspapers.  On two early occasions Lloyds List indicated that she was steam-powered and “(? tug)” but after 10 February this journal was consistent in giving her means of propulsion as wind.  Subsequently the “Archie”’s rig was described as “cutter”, “schooner” or “ketch”, though Lloyds List settled on ketch for most of its reports.  A ketch has two masts, with the main mast taller than the mizzen mast, and having a length of 40ft or more.

Samuel Robert Trenaman began his command on the “Archie” on 9 January 1897, probably in Swansea.  It was 24 years since he had crewed a sailing vessel.  The “Archie” sailed on the 12 January from this Welsh port for Punta Arenas in Chile, a distance of 8840 nautical miles.  Punta Arenas lies on the Magellan Straits, which divide Tierra del Fuego from the mainland of South America.  This was a long and inhospitable route to be undertaken in a sailing vessel of rather modest dimensions.  The departure port probably indicated that the vessel was carrying a cargo of coal.  She called at St Vincent, Cape Verde Islands on 9 February, sailing onwards on 12 February.  It was a protracted journey, about three months in length, the “Archie” arriving at Monte Video, Uruguay, on 3 May.  One reason for the slowness of her passage was that her hull was badly fouled with marine organisms and she was put on the slip in Monte Video to be cleaned. 

The “Archie” then sailed on for Punta Arenas but at the entrance to the Magellan Straits she got on shore at Delgado on 23 June 1897.  A small steamer was on hand at Delgado Point but Samuel Robert Trenaman declined her help.  The “Archie” was then re-floated by her crew after 30 tons of coal had been jettisoned.  She then carried on to her destination.  There is no evidence of the “Archie” returning to Britain from Chile, either under Samuel Robert Trenaman, or under anyone else.  It seems unlikely that such a small vessel would be contracted commercially to deliver coal over such a great distance.  It is much more likely that Captain Trenaman was delivering the vessel to a customer in Punta Arenas and that the cargo of coal was on board principally as ballast.

Tug “Conqueror”

Several months elapsed before Samuel Robert Trenaman went to sea again, he being appointed on 30 July 1898 as master of a steam tug named “Conqueror”.  The identity of this vessel is unclear as there were at least five steam tugs with the name “Conqueror” operating in British waters at the relevant time.  Most of them were paddle-driven, appropriate for a tug, due to the manoeuvrability imparted by this method of propulsion.  On 31 July, the “Conqueror” with Samuel Robert Trenaman in command cleared from the London Custom House in ballast for Dakar in Senegal.  She had not long left the Thames Estuary before she came upon the “Pengwern”, which required assistance, carrying a cargo of sugar on a voyage from Dunkirk to Liverpool.  This vessel was taken in tow by the “Conqueror” and left at Falmouth.  After coaling, the “Conqueror” left Plymouth for West Africa on 3 August, arriving at Dakar on 30 August.  On this occasion also, there was no evidence of a return journey to Britain, so it is possible that this was another delivery voyage.

Tugs “Manilla” and Pereira Junior”

According to Lloyds Register of Masters and Mates, Samuel Robert Trenaman next went to sea as master of a steamer called the “Manilla” on 28 June 1899, but without a foreign area of operations being specified, which suggests that this vessel only served locally to Britain.  Only one ocean-going steamer with that name has been identified and she was registered in Genoa.  This was clearly not Samuel Robert Trenaman’s charge.  There was also at least one tug named “Manilla” operating in British waters, variously located in 1899 in the Tyne, at Grimsby, in South Wales, in Falmouth and, on one occasion, at Bremerhaven in Germany.  Given his recent involvement with tugs, it seems likely that a tug named “Manilla” was being captained by Samuel Robert Trenaman during 1899, and possibly in the following year also, since there was no entry for him in the Lloyds Register of that year.  However, a tug named “Pereira Junior” with a master named Trenaman sailed from London for Brazil, in ballast, on 22 September 1900.  This is almost certain to have been Samuel Robert Trenaman, since his brother, Robert William (see below) was at the time fully occupied as master of the L&H steamer “Romney” and the brothers were the only two qualified British masters named “Trenaman”. 

The “Pereira Junior” had been fitting out in the West India Dock, London before she started her journey to Para in Brazil, the state surrounding the Amazon estuary.  Progress was rather slow, since the “Pereira Junior” first anchored off Gravesend and did not leave Deal until 29 September 1900.  Next, she put in to Portsmouth for an unknown reason, sailing from there on 7 October.  The vessel arrived at St Vincent in the Cape Verde Islands on 25 October but did not resume her journey until 22 November, finally arriving in Para on 6 December.  There is no evidence of a return journey, no entry in the Lloyds Register of Masters and Mates for 1901 and no indication of how Samuel Robert Trenaman made his way back to Britain.  This looks like another delivery journey.

“Osborne”

The final known voyage of Samuel Robert Trenaman, before his retiral from the sea, was in 1902, when he was appointed captain of the steamer “Osborne” on a voyage in the direction of the Cape Colonies, Ascension, St Helena, Natal and Algoa Bay on 29 May.  There were many vessels afloat at this time named “Osborne”, but only one which travelled to South Africa.  This was a steam trawler of 47 tons net, 138 tons gross which had been bought by the East London Fishing company to exploit the waters around the Eastern Cape.  She had been purchased from Messrs A&R Osborne of Grimsby.  There is no direct evidence that Samuel Robert Trenaman was the master on the delivery voyage of this “Osborne”, but the circumstantial evidence supports this proposition.

The death of Samuel Robert Trenaman

Although the date of Samuel Robert’s return from South Africa is not known, if probably occurred late in 1903.  He probably returned to his home at 7 Gower Road, Forest Gate, Essex and he died there, aged 59, cause unknown on 20 July of the same year.  In August 1904 probate was granted to his widow, Amelia, his effects being stated at a little over £219 (about £25,400 in 2018 money).  In contrast to his brother, Robert William, a life at sea had not brought him a significant measure of wealth.

Robert William Trenaman, the “Leader” and the “Plym” 

Robert William Trenaman, Samuel Robert’s brother, was the younger by 14 years, having been born in Plymouth in 1858.  He too became a seaman and, like his brother, gained some of his early experience at sea with his father Robert Harris Trenaman.  Between the middle of August 1873 and the middle of April 1875 Robert William served as a boy on his father’s schooner, the “Leader”, principally carrying coal from South Wales to London and mixed cargoes in the opposite direction.  The end of his period on the “Leader” corresponded with his father’s retirement from the sea to become deputy manager of the South Devon Wharf in London.  For the next eight and a half months Robert William served as an ordinary seaman on another schooner, the “Plym”, which was registered in Plymouth.  She was built at Plymouth in 1861, just over 90 ft long and with a registered tonnage of 110 tons.  She was owned from new by the SDSC.  This vessel under Captain Wyatt sailed between the South Devon Dock in London and the South Devon Dock in Plymouth.  During the time that Robert William was an ordinary seaman on board he probably completed six round trips between the capital and Plymouth.  Interestingly, as the “Plym” arrived in Plymouth on 23 September 1875, Robert Harris Trenaman’s old charge the “Leader”, under Captain Dan, was leaving to take on coal at Pembrey.

“Ifafa”

Robert William Trenaman’s next assignment was as an ordinary seaman on the barque “Ifafa”, 365 tons which, in February 1876 was lying at the Export Quay, St Katherine Dock, near the South Devon Quay in London.  The “Ifafa” was loading for a journey to Natal.  This vessel was owned by John T Rennie, Son and Company and sailed under the flag of the Aberdeen Clipper Line of Packets.  London to Natal was one of their major routes.  The vessel had a wooden hull and was built in 1875.  “Ifafa” lies on the coast, adjacent to the Fafa river, about 60 miles south-west of Durban, the capital of Natal.  The ship sailed from London on 27 February 1876 but by 15 March she had put back to Ramsgate Roads for some unspecified reason.  She finally arrived in Natal on 23 May.  Her cargo on the outward journey has not been discovered but on her return to London she was carrying wool and skins.  The return journey commenced on 20 July and the route took “Ifafa” past St Helena and Ascension before reaching London on 21 September.  This was Robert William Trenaman’s only journey on the “Ifafa”.

“Torrens”

Clipper ships represented the ultimate development of fast-sailing wind-powered ships.  Generally, clippers had three masts, were fully ship-rigged, had hulls which were narrow in relation to their length and had relatively large crews.  They sacrificed load-carrying and economy of operation for speed and were mostly used on long distance trans-ocean routes such as Britain to Australia and New York to San Francisco.  Clippers were mostly produced from about 1840 to about 1869 when the Suez Canal opened, making the steam ship a competitive alternative for journeys from Europe to the Far East.  After 1869, only a few vessels were built in the clipper style and one of the most famous of these late clippers was the “Torrens”.

This vessel was built in 1875 and designed for the colonial trade between London and Adelaide, South Australia.  She had a composite construction, with an iron frame covered with teak planking and she weighed 1,276 tons register.  This vessel was named after Sir Robert Richard Torrens who was briefly the third premier of South Australia in 1857 and who most famously invented the Torrens system of land registration and title transfer.  The vessel was jointly owned by Captain HR Angel, her first master and Elder, Smith & Co and she was built in the Sunderland shipyard of James Lang.  The use of a clipper style of design was justified by the passenger market that she served.  She only had first- and second-class births, but no accommodation for steerage passengers, usually the bulk of berths being of this lowest class on emigrant ship.   Occasionally, “Torrens” did carry a small number of assisted passage emigrants.  In addition to passengers, who usually embarked at Gravesend and Plymouth, she typically carried a varied general cargo on the outward journey.  On the return journey regular cargo items were wool, flour and copper ingots.

A measure of the quality of the facilities on the “Torrens” can be seen in the advertisements for passage on the vessel.  The following entry is from the Daily Telegraph and Courier (London) of 5 September 1881.  “Passage to Australia.  Elder Line.  The celebrated regular trader TORRENS 2,500 tons burden, HR Angel, commander, will be despatched punctually on Oct 25 for Adelaide, taking passengers at through rates to other Australian ports and calling at Plymouth.  This splendid clipper, well known as the finest and fastest ship in the trade , has most superior accommodation for first and second class passengers only, and offers a most desirable opportunity for making the voyage out and home, as she will call at Cape Town, St Helena, and Ascension on her return passage.  Is fitted with bathrooms, ice-house, piano, &c., and the saloon cabins are provided with bedding, linen and all requisites.  Will carry an experienced surgeon and a stewardess.  For plans, terms, and full particulars, apply to Trinder Anderson, and Co., 110 Fenchurch-street, London E.C.”

Getting out of and back into the “Thames” was achieved using a steam tug. The “Torrens” made many fast journeys to Australia, for example 67 days, 69 days and 64 days from Plymouth to Adelaide.  It is difficult to compare these times with the famous journeys by the Black Ball clippers “Marco Polo” and “Lightning” in the 1850s because they mostly sailed from Liverpool to Melbourne, an additional 561 nautical miles.  However, the “Torrens”’ fastest time was comparable to the fastest time set by the “Marco Polo” for the outward journey of 66 days.  Unlike the “Marco Polo” and “Lightning”, the “Torrens” did not circumnavigate the globe in returning to Britain in the Southern Ocean via Cape Horn, but came back via Cape Town, St Helena and Ascension.  During the 1877 voyage out to Australia, the passengers “of a most respectable class in excellent spirits” produced a weekly newspaper.  The vessel, largely because she carried wealthy passengers, became famous for the literary figures who had travelled in her, such as John Galsworthy (novelist and playwright), a passenger in 1893 and Joseph Conrad (novelist) who was her first officer between 1891 and 1893.  The vessel is known to have had outstanding sailing characteristics.  Conrad wrote of her, "A ship of brilliant qualities – the way the ship had of letting big seas slip under her did one's heart good to watch. It resembled so much an exhibition of intelligent grace and unerring skill that it could fascinate even the least seamanlike of our passengers."  However, fast sailing passages to Australia had lost their ability to excite public interest.  In 1881 the South Australian Register wrote after a fast passage by the “Torrens”, “In bygone days the performances of the Torrens would have been a subject of comment but when sailing ships have been so successfully rubbed out by the intervention of the steamers it would be difficult to draw any interest in the matter of the Torrens’ passage, which now falls into the relics of the past.”

During the long voyages to and from Australia there was often a small number of births and deaths.  For example, on arrival in Australia in January 1877, the saloon passengers and the captain subscribed to a silver cup with the caption “Ship Torrens, 11^th November 1876.  Captain Angel and the saloon passengers to Bruce Torrens Mellor.  Lat, 29˚ 45̍́ N., 20˚ 20́́́ W.”   The cup was presented to the parents, the infant having been born off the Canary Islands.  On 6 April 1878 on the passage back to London, Duncan Alexander, the eldest son of the late Alexander Macrae of Reraig, Lochalsh, died.

Robert William Trenaman was a member of the “Torrens”’ crew between October 1876 and June 1881.  He signed up for the first round-trip to Australia by the “Torrens” and it is to be wondered if Robert William Trenaman deliberately set out to join the crew of this fine sailing vessel as an opportunity not to be missed.  He completed five return journeys from London to Adelaide, the first as an ordinary seaman, the second and third as an able-bodied seaman and the fourth and fifth as second mate.  This was rapid promotion, his first service as second mate being achieved at the age of 21.  Robert William had sat his examination for his second mate certificate between voyages in 1878 and his examination for his first mate’s certificate in 1881 occurred after completing his last period of service on the “Torrens”.  On both occasions his home address was given as – South Devon Wharf, Lower East Smithfield, East London.  Robert William Trenaman was a young man in a hurry.

Under Captain HR Angel the “Torrens” had largely uneventful journeys to and from Adelaide.  After each voyage the master wrote a summary account of the voyage.  The report by Captain Angel after the return to London from Australia in summer 1879, which follows, gives a good impression of what a trip on the “Torrens” was like. “Report of the ship Torrens, Angel from Adelaide.  Left Adelaide on 25 March and had a pleasant run round Cape Leeuwin and across the Indian Ocean round the Cape of Good Hope and arrived in Table Bay on 6 May.  Sailed from there on 11^th.  Touched at St Helena on 25^th left there on 28^th. Touched at Ascension on 2 June where we took on board a good supply of turtle.  Crossed the line in 23 deg W on the 6 June and for 10 days after crossing had alternate squalls with calms and the NE trades were not reached until the 17^th in lat 11 deg N.  These trades proved good up to 30 deg N when calm weather prevailed for 14 days.  Sighted the island of Flores on July 7 and sent a boat on shore on the 8^th when we obtained a good supply of cattle, butter, eggs, fruit, etc, all at very cheap rates.  The islanders were extremely courteous and hospitable.  They reported not having had a breeze of wind for 14 days.  They also reported the arrival of two boats’ crews from the whaling schooner “Aurelia” after great suffering having lost their ship after striking a whale and had been 4 days without food or water under a broiling sun.  After leaving the island of Flores and getting past the parallel of 40N fine NW winds prevailed the ship making 285 knots a day.  Sighted the Lizard on the 14^th and stood up Channel with a NW wind and arrived in London on July 16.”  In fact, Captain Angel had offered passage to London to the two boats’ crews from the “Aurelia”, but this was declined.  Angel then provided for their immediate wants and, on arrival in the Thames, notified the authorities of their whereabouts.

The “Torrens” had its own choir, the “Amateur Christy Minstrels” and its own band, the “Southern Star Band” made up of crew members and, whilst in port in Australia, they occasionally gave concerts, for example that given by the choir in the Institute at Gawler, South Australia in March 1877.  However, the performance was not much enjoyed by the correspondent of the Barossa Mining News who wrote, “The singing was mostly of a rollicking character, such as would be expected from a jovial lot of tars” and summed up the evening as, “a profitless entertainment to all concerned”.  It is a pity that this judgmental scribbler did not even have the decency to give some praise for effort to the “Torrens”’ crew members.

In early 1879 during the sojourn of the “Torrens” in South Australia on her fourth voyage, her master Captain Angel was a major contributor to a meeting of mercantile marine captains at the Ship Inn, Adelaide, when a proposal to create a “Shipmasters’ Association” for South Australia was considered.  The purpose of this association was to defend the interests of ships’ masters when they used stern discipline on troublesome crew members, especially when magistrates sided with Jack Tar.  Captain Angel spoke in favour of the association and its aims but attracted vilification because his speech was taken to justify brutality in all its forms against crews.  Interestingly, an AB from his own crew (a colleague of Robert William Trenaman, or even perhaps Trenaman himself?) who had been on board the “Torrens” for her last three voyages, wrote in defence of Captain Angel, saying that his speech had been wrongly interpreted and that his relations with his crews were good.  The letter did point out that on the last voyage to Australia there were trouble-makers on board the “Torrens”.  “There were then two or three of the crew who were always trying to raise disturbances without any cause whatsoever, and had some masters been insulted on their quarter-deck the same as Captain Angel was, they would most certainly have punished them most severely… .  During my time with Captain Angel I have always found him a very straightforward gentleman who would, if the crew had any complaint to make, see into the affair thoroughly and give us a fair hearing.  I can’t help but think those gentlemen who have retaliated to his speech have put too strong a construction on his words.”

“Griqua”

At the end of June 1881, following his stint on the “Torrens”,  Robert William Trenaman applied to be examined for competency as a first mate on sailing vessels.  His home address was given as 78 Coborn Road, Bow, the house of his father, Robert Harris Trenaman.  Robert William passed his examination of 20 July and in early August he undertook his initial posting as first mate on the “Griqua”, which belonged to the Aberdeen Line, founded by Aberdonian, George Thompson in 1825.  This shipping line was well known for its clipper, “Thermopylae”, launched in 1868, which set fast passage times to and from Australia and the Far East.  The “Thermopylae” famously beat her great rival “Cutty Sark” in a race back from Shanghai to London in 1872.    In the advertisements for its next passage, the “Griqua” was described as “the favourite clipper ship”, which rather stretched the bounds of the definition of that class of vessel.  “Griqua” was a modest 309 tons register barque.  Another of the Aberdeen Line’s major routes was from London to Durban and the name “Griqua” was taken from a mixed-race group of Afrikaans-speaking people, originally from the Cape Colony, which arose mainly from intermarriage between Boer settler men and indigenous Khoikhoi women. 

In August 1881, the “Griqua” was moored at the Export Quay in the St Katherine Dock, loading for Port Natal, the old name for Durban.  She sailed, under Captain Digman, for southern Africa about 12 August and arrived at Durban on 1 November.  The vessel left for Calcutta on 2 December, reaching the capital of Bengal on 23 January 1882 and then travelled back to Durban, arriving on 6 May.  Next, the “Griqua” made the run to Mauritius, which at the time was a major sugar-producer.  Finally, the “Grique” departed for London on 16 July loaded with 211 bags sugar, 174 casks rum, 209 casks molasses, 352 bales Aloe fibre, 1,700 hides and 3,500 horns.  She called at St Helena about 28 July and arrived back in London on 12 September 1882.  Robert William Trenaman was signed off the following day.  In October 1882, he sat and passed the examination for his master’s certificate for service in square-rigged vessels.  However, despite his new qualification, the trip on the “Griqua” would prove to have been his last posting on a sailing ship.  Sail had been in decline for many years and it must have been obvious to Robert William Trenaman that he needed to make the transition to steam-powered vessels.

“Holbein”

The “Holbein” was named after the German painter and printmaker, Hans Holbein the Younger (1497 – 1543).  She had been built by Andrew Leslie & Co on the Tyne in 1882 and made her delivery voyage from Newcastle to Liverpool arriving in the Mersey on 30 October of that year.  The vessel was of 2050 tons gross and her engine produced 200hp.  Robert William Trenaman now made the move from sail to steam, joining the ranks of L&H.  His older brother, Samuel Robert had crewed in L&H vessels between 1874, when he was appointed first mate in the “Newton” and 1882, and it may have been through his brother that Robert William was introduced to his new employer.  Although Robert William was now qualified as a master on square rigged sailing ships, he had dropped back to second mate with L&H, presumably due to his lack of steamer experience.  Robert William Trenaman joined the new steamer in Liverpool on 11 November 1882 for her inaugural commercial voyage.  The vessel left the Mersey on that date bound for the River Plate.  She sailed from Buenos Ayres on 21 December for Antwerp, coaling at St Vincent, Cape Verde and passing Madeira before reaching Southampton on the night of 22 January 1883.  At the Hampshire port she left mail, 14 passengers and £1074 (£123,500 in 2018 money) in specie.  The vessel quickly left for Antwerp “with a full cargo of general merchandise”.  The “Holbein” finally arrived back in Liverpool on 1 February, where Robert William Trenaman was paid off.   

“Olbers”

Robert William Trenaman took up the post of second officer on the “Olbers”, commanded by Captain Clarke, on 9 February 1883 at Liverpool.  The vessel sailed the same day for Lisbon, arriving on the 15^th of the month and then departing for Rio Janeiro, which was reached on 8 March.  From there the vessel progressed to New York, entering on 10^th April.  The final leg of the voyage began on 19^th April when the “Olbers” departed New York for Liverpool, her home port being reached on 3 May.  Nothing was discovered which directly identified the cargos on this voyage, but it is likely that some of the items were: emigrants from Portugal to Brazil, coffee from Brazil to New York and cotton from New York to Lancashire. The Manchester newspapers frequently referred to “Olbers” as a “cotton ship”, though where the detailed manifest is known it proved to be remarkably varied.  For example, the “Olbers”’ cargo cleared in New York for Liverpool in October 1885 included hoops, staves, flour, wheat, cotton, tallow, hams, lard, bacon, drugs, tobacco, canned goods, hardware, sugar, leather, pork, wire rope, essential oils, cottonseed oil, roots, lubricating grease, lignum vitae (a very hard wood from trees of the genus Guaiacum used, for example for making bowls), ebony, oilcake, twine, sewing machines, tongues, india-rubber goods, beef and nails.

This stint of work on the “Olbers” lasted to 28 May 1886.  It is not known if Robert William Trenaman remained in the post of second mate for the whole of this time, or if he was promoted.  Altogether between 9 February 1883 and 3 May 1886, he completed ten round trips to South America.  All the voyages were closely similar.  They started at Liverpool then called at various Brazilian ports before travelling on to New York.  Finally, they returned across the Atlantic to the “Olbers”’ home base of Liverpool.  Most voyages called at Lisbon on the outward leg and most, if not all, called at both Madeira and Rio Janeiro.  Other ports which were visited on occasion included Bahia and Santos in Brazil, though it is likely that not all Brazilian ports of call were recorded in the British newspapers.  All ten voyages appeared from press reports to have been uneventful.

In November 1883 Robert William Trenaman married Charlotte Little, the daughter of Harry Augustus Little, a Thames Conservator, who lived at Kingston on the west side of London.  (The Thames Conservators were responsible for the regulation of navigation and the maintenance of infrastructure along the whole length of the river.)  Robert was described on the marriage registration document as second mate in an L&H steam ship.  Though the actual vessel was not identified, it proved to be the “Olbers”, the only L&H steamer in which the two Trenaman brothers both served, though not simultaneously.  There were two children of Robert William’s marriage, Edith Amanda was born in 1884 and Dorothy Alice followed in 1890, both arriving in Kingston, the hometown of his wife’s parents.  Charlotte may have lived in the parental home while Robert William was away on the high seas.  Sadly, Edith Amanda died aged 14 weeks while her father was at sea on his ninth voyage on the “Olbers”.  This was another example of a mariner in the foreign trade having only a limited family.

“Handel”

Mate (grade unclear) on the L&H steamer “Handel” was the next assignment of Robert William Trenaman.  The “Handel” was built in 1881 for L&H by Andrew Leslie & Co at Hebburn on the Tyne. This vessel was named after the famous baroque composer George Frideric Handel who was born in Halle (now Germany) but spent most of his life in London.  “Handel” displaced 1977 tons burthen. Robert William served on this vessel, under Captain Dixon, from 25 July 1886 to 25 September 1887.  In that period the vessel completed four round trips to South America.  In contrast to the routing taken by the “Olbers” in 1883 – 1885, the “Handel” did not call at Lisbon on the outward journey or at New York on the return voyage, but she did visit the River Plate (Monte Video in Uruguay, Buenos Ayres and Rosario in Argentina) and Antwerp in Belgium on each voyage.  The return journeys became longer during this period, varying progressively from about 10 weeks to about 16 weeks.  Nothing is directly known of the cargos carried by the “Handel” at this time.

“Olbers” again

Robert William Trenaman returned to the “Olbers”, now under the command of Captain Clarke, in October 1887.  It is likely that by this assignment Robert William had been promoted to the position of first mate, since his next berth was as master.  He served on the vessel probably until February 1889, though Lloyds Captain’s Register is unclear on that point.  In this period the “Olbers” completed six return journeys to South America.  The first four journeys were similar and involved the following sequence of port visits.  Southampton – Antwerp – Southampton – St Vincent, Cape Verde – Monte Video – Buenos Ayres – St Vincent – Southampton – Antwerp – Southampton.  The fifth followed the pattern of the first four until the leg from Antwerp on the return to Europe, but instead of travelling to Southampton, the vessel entered dry dock in London, presumably for maintenance work.  The sixth voyage reverted to the pattern followed by the “Olbers” between 1883 and 1885.  From London the vessel was routed directly to Rio Janeiro and from there to New York before returning, this time to Liverpool.  Presumably, this voyage involved loading coffee in Brazil for sale on the New York coffee market.  As she approached Ireland on this sixth voyage, “Olbers” fell in with the Cunard liner “Samaria”, which was lying disabled off Cork Head.  The “Samaria” had departed from Liverpool on 7 February but three days later, 300 miles from the Fastnet Rock, she broke her propeller shaft.  The “Olbers” put the “Samaria” under tow before handing over to two tugs, which took her into Queenstown (now called Cove) the port of the city of Cork. 

A round trip for the “Olbers” in this period took between 10 and 15 weeks.  One of the principal roles of the “Olbers” at this time was the carriage of mail between England, Belgium and the River Plate, Southampton and Antwerp being the points of collection and delivery at the European end.  On some occasions Madeira and Rio Janeiro were also visited.  General information about the cargo on the return journey is known.  After Robert William Trenaman’s first voyage on the “Olbers” in 1887, the vessel landed 27 passengers, 14 bags of mail and £12,345 (more than £1.5M in 2018 money) in specie at Southampton.  This was a fairly typical cargo for Southampton.  Passengers were also carried on the outward leg, though details have not been uncovered, except in one case.  In April 1888 (Robert William’s third voyage), in the aftermath of a strike by engine drivers on the Midland Railway which resulted in them losing their jobs, a group of drivers emigrated to Buenos Ayres.  At the time the railway network in Argentina was undergoing a major expansion.  A small number of these emigrant railwaymen embarked at Southampton on the “Olbers”.  They were supported financially in their venture by their trade union, the Amalgamated Society of Railway Servants, which had been formed in 1871.  On at least one other occasion horses were carried on the outward journey and in a further instance, coffee was brought back to Europe, 5000 bags of beans being landed at Southampton in November 1888.

Robert William Trenaman becomes master of the “Pascal”

The sixth of March 1889 was a significant date in Robert William Trenaman’s career.  On this day he was appointed master of the L&H vessel “Pascal”. This steamer was another Andrew Leslie design, built on the Tyne in 1869.  She displaced 1960 tons gross and had a schooner rig on her two masts.  The ship was named after the precocious French mathematician and philosopher, Blaise Pascal (1623 – 1662).  At the time of his appointment Robert William Trenaman was 31. He had been made up to captain with L&H five years earlier than his elder brother, while working for the same company.  Although Robert William was undoubtedly a skilled mariner, the immediate cause of his elevation arose from an incident involving the “Pascal” at the end of February 1889, before he took command.  On 27 February the “Pascal”, under Captain Crocker, was leaving the Thames estuary bound for Rosario in Argentina.  She was travelling at full speed, seven to eight knots, three or four miles off Folkestone when she collided with the Norwegian barque, “Carla”, 503 tons register, then nearing the end of a voyage from Pensacola, USA, to London.  The “Carla” came off rather the worse, her jibboom, bowsprit, starboard rigging and stem being entirely carried away by the heavier, iron vessel.  The sailing vessel immediately started to fill with water and her master, Captain Terjeson, had no option but to abandon ship after the “Pascal” backed out before the Carla’s crew could climb on board the steamer.  (This was the kind of bad behaviour by steamer captains of which Robert Harris Trenaman had complained in a letter to the press in March 1873.)  The “Carla”’s master and her crew of ten got away safely from the stricken ship in a local boat that they had under tow and they were landed at Folkestone.  The “Carla” did not sink but was only barely kept afloat by air trapped in her cargo.  The “Pascal” also suffered minor damage and started shipping water but was in no danger of sinking.  She returned to the Royal Albert Dock, London, for repairs.

Captain Crocker was immediately removed from command and the likely reason became clear during the subsequent court action, which took place two months later.  Each vessel had seen the other before the collision, which occurred in fine weather, but the avoidance of contact eluded them.  In court, the legal representative of L&H declined to continue with his defence after hearing the evidence of the plaintiff, the owner of the “Carla”. Inevitably, the court found the master of the “Pascal” entirely to blame for the collision.  One of the principal laws of the sea is that steam gives way to sail.  Thus it was that a vacancy for the captaincy of the “Pascal” came about, and on 7 March 1889 Captain Robert William Trenaman weighed anchor at Gravesend and set out down the Thames estuary to complete the vessel’s interrupted journey to the River Plate.

Robert William Trenaman was master of the “Pascal” until about 11 January 1893.  In that time, he completed ten round trips between Britain and South America but each one was unique in its detail.  London was the British terminus in three cases, Liverpool on five occasions and one each started in London and ended in Liverpool and vice versa.  Five voyages included calls in the USA (New York twice, New Orleans twice and New Orleans plus Norfolk, Virginia once), probably to collect a cargo of cotton.  On the “Pascal”’s journey from New Orleans to Liverpool which ended in January 1892, she was carrying 3,300 bales of cotton.  Three voyages called at Antwerp before returning to Britain at the end of a journey.  In South America, four journeys appeared only to call at the River Plate ports, five only at Brazilian ports and one voyage called at both.  This diversity is probably explained by the availability of cargos on the different occasions and partly conditioned by the time of year that agricultural crops were available for export after harvest.  In two instances, there was a unique port of call in Britain, once at Harwich and once at Plymouth.

For some legs of some voyages, a partial or complete knowledge of the “Pascal”’s cargo is available.  When the vessel returned to London from New York in July 1889 she was carrying 215 barrels of lubricating oil.  The vessel also carried mails on at least some occasions.  The most complete manifest is for the journey from New York to London ending in January 1893.  “Pascal” was then carrying flour, oilcake, lubricating oil, mineral colza oil, wax and corn.

“Victoria”

The next vessel on which Robert William Trenaman served as master was the “Victoria”, but only for a single voyage.  Little has been discovered about the “Victoria” other than that she was a steamer and had a displacement of 1046 tons register.  She is not listed in The Ships List compilation of L&H vessels or in the book by Paul Heaton dealing with that line.  The “Victoria” sailed for Santos from Liverpool on 26 January 1893, calling at both Oporto and Lisbon in Portugal and arriving at Santos on 21 February.  She then travelled on to Monte Video and dropped in at Calais on her way back to Britain.  Two ports of call in Portugal suggest that she was carrying emigrants on the outward journey.

“Euclid”

The “Euclid” was built in 1877 by Hall, Russell & Co of Aberdeen for L&H.  She was named after Euclid of Alexandria, the Greek “father of geometry”.  The vessel displaced 959 tons register, 1559 tons burthen.  She operated in L&H colours until 1898, when she was sold to a Brazilian company.  Robert William Trenaman was master of this steamer from 14 October 1893 until about 21 February 1896 but during this time she completed only four round trips to South America, two of them being typical in character to many such journeys by L&H vessels, and the other two being atypical and extended in nature.  A partial explanation for this departure from usual L&H scheduling may lie in events happening in Brazil about this time.

There was a Cholera pandemic between 1881 and 1896, which appeared to start in India and then spread through Asia and Africa.  Sporadic outbreaks occurred in Europe, France, Germany and Russia being affected.  Hamburg, a large seaport, suffered badly in 1892, with 8600 people dying of the condition.  South America was no stranger to infection, particularly by tropical diseases, such as Yellow Fever and Malaria.  Bubonic Plague was recorded in Brazil for the first time in 1899 and those infected suffered a death rate of about 50%.  The risk of a major outbreak of Cholera caused the Brazilian Government to create a quarantine station for incoming ships at Ilha Grande, which lies just offshore between Rio Janeiro and the port of Santos.  This latter city had gained a reputation as a filthy, disease-ridden place.  Vessels were required to go to Ilha Grande for inspection and disinfection when the Government judged there was a risk of importing disease.  But Brazil is a big country with a long coastline and Ilha Grande was for many years its only quarantine station.  Vessels heading for Pernambuco and other destinations in the north could find themselves undertaking journeys extended by more than one thousand miles by travelling via the “Big Island”.  Pressure from foreign governments, including the British, did result in the opening of a second quarantine station at Tamandare in Pernambuco State, but its services were not available until 1897.  The identity of vessels required to submit to quarantine varied with time.  In 1899 vessels from Portugal were covered due to a Cholera outbreak in the country, though vessels coaling in St Vincent in the Cape Verde Island (a Portuguese territory) in quarantine were not affected.  In 1893, an Italian vessel, the “Andrea Doria” from Genoa to Brazil was directed to Ilha Grande.  It had suffered 91 Cholera deaths on the journey from Europe and 32 fresh cases occurred after arrival.  There was thus a personal risk of infection while visiting Brazil but, perhaps more importantly, there was a commercial risk of having a schedule disrupted by unexpected travel to, and detention in, quarantine.  Political instability in the country was also endemic and between 1893 and 1895 there were outbreaks of armed insurrection in Brazil, including a major revolt in the south by elements of the Navy.  Brazil was a chaotic environment in which to trade at this time.

Robert William Trenaman’s first voyage in the “Euclid”, starting in mid-October 1893, calling at Lisbon but, on arrival at Pernambuco in the north of Brazil, his vessel was re-directed to Ilha Grande, some 1500 miles away.  “Euclid” then visited nearby Santos before returning to Pernambuco.  The vessel then shuttled between Pernambuco and Santos on a further two, and possibly three, occasions, by which time it was mid-March 1894.  At present the reason for these repeated journeys along the length of the Brazilian coast is unknown.  On her final journey north in this repeated sequence, “Euclid” called at Bahia before setting out for New York, coaling at St Lucia, West Indies on the way and arriving on 7 May.  Unusually, “Euclid” then returned to Brazil, stopping at Norfolk, Virginia and Baltimore, Maryland en route.  In Brazil calls were made at Rio Janeiro and Santos before a return to New York.  This revisitation to Brazil may have been related to the availability of coffee, the beans being harvested typically between April and October.  Coffee was usually destined for sale on the New York coffee market.  On 29 August 1894, “Euclid” finally arrived back in Liverpool, some 10 ½ months after her departure from the Mersey.

The second and fourth voyages by Robert William Trenaman to Brazil in the “Euclid” can reasonably be described as typical L&H journeys, and both seemed to follow the same route, each taking about three months.  Liverpool – Rio Janeiro – St Lucia (coaling) – New York – Liverpool.  The timing of these journeys, late in the calendar year, would have allowed the vessel to transport new season Brazilian coffee to the USA and new season USA cotton to Liverpool.  The “Euclid” was several times described as a “cotton ship” in the Lancashire press.  The second, third and fourth voyages all by-passed Lisbon on the outward journey, perhaps to avoid detention in quarantine after crossing the Atlantic.  The third round-trip to Brazil, which began on 9 February 1895, had similarities to the first, but without the compulsory journey to Ilha Grande.  After the initial visit to ports in the north and south of Brazil, the “Euclid” journeyed to New York.  This cycle was then repeated two further times after which “Euclid” crossed the Atlantic from New York to Liverpool, arriving back at her home port on 14 November.  This third journey had taken just over nine months to complete.  It is likely that at least on some voyages, the “Euclid” was carrying mail, as the following notice in the Liverpool Mercury of 7 September 1894 reveals.  “Letters specially marked with the name of the ships will be despatched from Liverpool tomorrow as follows … per Euclid to Rio Janeiro and Santos.”

“Lassell”

Robert William Trenaman’s next assignment was as master of the L&H steamer “Lassell”, 1173 tons register, 1955 tons burthen.  This vessel was built by Andrew Leslie & Co at Hebburn on the Tyne in 1879.  She remained in L&H colours until 1900.  The “Lassell” was named after a remarkable amateur astronomer, William Lassell, who was born at Bolton in 1799.  Lassell made a fortune with a brewery that he founded, and this wealth allowed him to indulge his passion for the night sky.  He ground and polished the mirror of his own 24in reflecting telescope and with this instrument he discovered Triton, one of the moons of Neptune.  He was also the first to observe Ariel and Umbriel, two moons of Uranus.  Lassell’s discoveries earned him widespread academic recognition.  Robert William Trenaman was master of the “Lassell” from 29 February 1896 (only eight days after he demitted office on the “Euclid”) to at least 27 January 1898 and possibly to 2 October 1898.  The reason for the uncertainty is that Lloyds Register of Masters and Mates records Robert William Trenaman’s last voyage on the “Lassell” as being that which started on 3 November 1897 but he could have completed two further voyages on this vessel before taking command of the “Romney” (see below).  It is likely that Robert William had a gap in his sea-going activities while the “Romney” was being constructed in Middlesborough, since he may have supervised her construction, for he certainly supervised her sea trials.

The Manchester Ship Canal opened for commercial use on 1 January 1894, allowing ships to pass from the Mersey at Eastham, just up-river from Liverpool, to the heart of Manchester, a distance of 36 miles with a rise of 60 ft.  There was considerable opposition to the project from Liverpool, whose merchants saw the project as a commercial threat.  Indeed, after its opening, the Canal quickly built up the tonnage of goods being transported along its length.  In July 1897, the Manchester Courier reported on the “Lassell” as follows.  “One of the proofs of increased trade is the frequency of the arrivals of L and H steamers from America with full complements.  Vessel partly filled when she left Manchester and will finish at Liverpool.”  The “Lassell” was an early user of the canal, loading and unloading at least part of her cargoes at the docks at Salford, Manchester, instead of at Liverpool.  At the time of the canal’s opening on 1 Jan 1894, the “Lassell”, under Captain Coombes was crossing the Atlantic from New York to Liverpool with a general cargo, including a substantial load of cotton, all of which was destined for Liverpool.  The next voyage of the “Lassell” started on 20 January 1894 and followed the general route of Liverpool – Rio Janeiro – New York – Rio Janeiro – New York – Liverpool.  However, having returned to Liverpool on 30 August, she then passed along the Manchester Ship Canal to Salford Docks, where it is presumed that at least her load of cotton was discharged.  The “Lassell”’s next voyage to South America was then advertised extensively in the Manchester newspapers, the following example being from the Manchester Courier of 3 September 1894.  “Manchester to Brazil steamer.  To Bahia and Rio Janeiro Lassell closing for cargo Noon on Wednesday Sept 26.  Taking goods for Aracaju, Paranagua, Santa Catharina, Rio Grande do Sul, Peletos, Porto Alegre and Victoria on through bills of lading.  Loading Berth, no. 1 Shed, No. 7 Dock, Salford.  Bills of lading can only be obtained from Messrs HY Blacklock & Co, 13 Albert-square.  Shipping notes and all other information from Lamport & Holt 21 York-street.”  It then became routine for “Lassell” to start and end her journeys in Manchester but with calls at Liverpool on both the outward and return legs of each voyage.  In January 1895 the Manchester Evening News remarked as follows.  “The Ship Canal.  Articles of agreement will be signed off at the Mercantile Marine Office on Tuesday 15 between captain and crew of the Lassell.  This vessel is loading for ports on the east coast of South America and is amongst the largest vessels that have yet arrived in the docks.  She is 310 ft in length with a beam of 34 ft and a depth of 24 ft.  Her gross tonnage is nearly 2000 tons.”

The six (certain) or eight (possible) return voyages that Robert William Trenaman undertook as master of the “Lassell” were closely similar to each other and of the general form Manchester – Liverpool – Rio Janeiro – New York – Liverpool – Manchester.  There seems to have been some variation in the Brazilian ports visited, other than Rio Janeiro and one voyage, his fifth, called at Lisbon on the outward journey.  The fundamental strategy being followed was to carry Brazilian coffee to New York, USA cotton to Manchester and general cargo wherever it could be obtained.  Details of the “Lassell”’s cargoes are known in a few instances.  In November 1896 she was unloading Sea Island cotton, oils, grain, preserved meats and general goods at Manchester.  In October of the following year she carried from New York “a full general cargo and Sea Island cotton”.  Sea Island cotton has particularly long fibres and is used to make the highest quality (and price) cotton garments.  During the next cotton season “Lassell” carried 879 bales of cotton.

“Romney”

The “Romney” was a screw steamer of 4501 gross tons (a measure of internal volume) and was about twice the size of vessels such as the “Lassell”.  L&H ships became progressively larger with time, as did merchant vessels in general.  “Romney” was built in the Cleveland Dockyards, Middlesbrough of Sir Raylton Dixon & Co to the specific requirements of L&H.  She was 393 ft long and her maximum beam dimension was just over 50 ft.  The vessel had three steam engines delivering 487 hp.  Although she had two masts and was schooner-rigged, she was never expected to travel under sail.  The Romney was named after George Romney (1734 – 1802), the English society portrait painter. 

This vessel underwent her first trial trips on 13 January 1899 before undertaking her official sea trials, under the watchful eye of Robert William Trenaman a few days later.  The Romney was designed for the carriage of live cattle, principally from South America to the Mersey and her upper deck, where the cattle were to be housed, was fitted with a shade deck over it.  In addition, the vessel had, for the time, luxuriously fitted passenger accommodation and holds for general cargo.  In 1899, the Manchester Courier reported as follows.  “Messrs Lamport and Holt’s new steamer “Raphael” (Cattle Carrier) accomplished her maiden home voyage from the River Plate to Gravesend in 24 ½ days.  A similar boat the “Romney” sailed on her maiden outward voyage on 7^th inst.  A third boat also specially constructed for the increasing trade in Argentine livestock to be named “Rembrandt” is nearing completion and two others will follow.”

On 19 January 1899, while on her maiden voyage from Middlesbrough to Glasgow, the “Romney” encountered heavy seas off Start Point, Devon and her intermediate shaft broke.  According to the Hampshire Advertiser, had she not been handled skilfully by her master, she would have gone ashore close to the Needles.  A passing vessel, the steamer “Lorenzo”, signalled ashore of her plight and the Isle of Wight Company’s tug towed the Romney into Southampton, where her engineers effected a repair.  Four days later she renewed her voyage to Glasgow.  The “Romney” must have been quickly loaded, because she sailed for Liverpool from Tail of the Bank (an anchorage close to Greenock on the Clyde about 20 miles west of Glasgow) on 29 January.

Robert William Trenaman was master of the “Romney” between late January 1899 and 10 January 1906, almost seven years.  The vessel was fitted out to carry cattle, both the export of blood stock and the import of fat cattle for slaughter and, while he was master, the vessel completed 24 return voyages from Britain to Argentina.  As was typical of L&H operations with other steamers, these journeys mostly followed a pattern, but with minor variations from one time to another.  The fundamental characteristic of the service was that it provided return transport for goods, cattle and people from Britain to the River Plate.  At the South American end, the service extended from the coastal ports of Monte Video and Buenos Ayres to include Rosario, which lies 200 miles along the River Parana, within reach of the major agricultural areas of Argentina.  This city developed as a major inland port and export centre in the latter half of the 19^th century. 

Voyages usually began with a short journey from Liverpool, in ballast, to Glasgow before returning to Liverpool for the loading of cargo.  On only one occasion did a voyage end (and the next one start) in London, though on other occasions London was an intermediate call on either or both the outward and return journeys.  Uniquely, in December 1904, “Romney” called at Oporto, Portugal, on the outward journey, presumably to load emigrant passengers.  In 1907, after the death of Robert William Trenaman, Portuguese emigrants became a more significant part of Romney’s business.  The Larne Times reported as follows.  “The “Romney” has just returned to Glasgow from La Plata.  Thousands of immigrants are arriving in Argentina weekly but few of them British.  Many destitute British are living on charity and described as wasters.  On the passage out Romney called at Vigo and Corunna (both Spain) to pick up emigrants, many of whom proved to be unruly.  The third officer injured with a knife.  Captain Fisher took control and calmed things down.”  

On many of the voyages Rosario was given as the destination of the vessel but it was never recorded in the press as leaving this inland port, suggesting that there was no local mechanism there for reporting shipping movements internationally.  On eight occasions Romney called at Brazilian ports (usually Para and/or Bahia) on the return journey but on only one of these voyages did the vessel then travel on to New York, which indicated that on only one occasion was she shipping Brazilian coffee.  On one other journey “Romney” travelled back to Europe via Galveston and Pensacola, both USA cotton ports.  Thus, “Romney” was not a regular cotton ship either.  On eight occasions Antwerp was a port of call on the return leg, as was Dunkirk on three other voyages.  Some confusion has been created in the mapping of the route on a few of “Romney”’s journeys because of the existence of another steamer called “Romney”, which also sailed to South America and carried cattle.  This second vessel belonged to Bailey and Leetham of Hull.

During his almost seven years in charge of the “Romney”, Robert William Trenaman suffered only occasional mishaps, one of which, the breaking of her intermediate shaft in January 1899, has already been mentioned.  On her arrival back in Liverpool from Rosario in November of the same year, it was found that one coal bunker was on fire, but the Bootle Fire Brigade attended the conflagration and the incident was quickly concluded without significant damage being incurred by the vessel.  In March 1901, while in transit from Antwerp to Glasgow, Romney suffered a broken propeller, causing her to put in at Barry in South Wales, which had a dry dock, for repair.  This unscheduled stop engendered a delay of about ten days.  The following year the vessel was found to have a fire in one hold amongst cotton goods, but this was quickly extinguished by battening down the hatch of the affected hold and injecting steam into the void.

Cattle farming in Argentina grew rapidly during the last quarter of the 19^th century, mainly on enormous ranches on the Pampas, such as the Lemco and Oxo cattle farms which covered about 1100 sq miles.  These farms mostly kept Hereford and Aberdeen Angus cattle, both pure-bred and crosses.  Predominantly, the products of the cattle industry were exported to Europe, a substantial proportion going to Britain.  It was against this background that L&H invested heavily in ships to carry cattle, in both directions, and cattle products, such as frozen meat, back to Europe.    However, there was a major disruption in the export of breeding cattle between 1900 and 1903, due to a fear of importing cattle diseases.  Argentine ports reopened on 19 February 1903 for the importation of live cattle and similar restrictions in Uruguay were lifted soon afterwards.  Lamport and Holt was ready for this reopening of business.  The “Raphael”, a sister ship of the “Romney”, sailed on 22 February carrying seven bulls and 245 sheep.  The details of “Romney”’s bovine cargos are mostly not known but when she sailed from Liverpool on 7 March 1903, she was carrying “one of the finest consignments of Hereford bulls and heifers (seven of each) which ever left this country for the River Plate”.  On her return to Liverpool in June 1903, Romney carried 458 cattle.

“Velazquez” and the demise of Robert William Trenaman 

        

At some stage, possibly when he became the master of the “Romney” in 1899, Robert William Trenaman was also appointed commodore of the L&H fleet, a signal honour and a recognition of his status as a skilled, safe and reliable master.  It was thus natural that, in 1906, he should become master of the “Velazquez”, the newest and largest (she displaced 7542 tons gross) L&H steamer, named after the famous Spanish painter, Diego Velazquez (1599 – 1660).  This vessel, like the “Romney” was built at the yard of Sir Raylton Dixon in Middlesbrough and was part of a group of three large passenger vessels (the other two were the “Veronese” and the “Verdi”) ordered for the company’s routes to South America.   The “Velazquez” was 481 ft long and 59 ft in her beam.  There were five cargo holds, serviced by 13 powerful steam winches and the internal hold space was unobstructed by columns, making it possible to carry the largest types of cargo.  A special area was laid aside for transporting up to 500 live cattle and for accommodating their associated cattlemen.  The vessel was also equipped with refrigerated cargo space for the export of frozen meat from Argentina and Uruguay.  Also, a deck saloon was installed to accommodate about 20 first class passengers. The vessel was equipped throughout with electric lighting.  “Velazquez” underwent her sea trials off Middlesbrough on Tuesday 20 February 1906, having on board many representatives of the shipbuilders, engine manufacturers and her owner, L&H, including Captain Robert William Trenaman.  Immediately after the conclusion of the trials, the vessel left Middlesbrough for Antwerp to take on cargo for her first voyage to South America.

On the night of the 25^th / 26^th February 1906 the “Velazquez” was in dock in Antwerp.  At 10am on the 26^th Robert William Trenaman was found dead in his cabin on the vessel.  He was 48 and appeared to have died suddenly during the night.  Robert’s captaincy of the “Velazquez” had only lasted five days.  The Belgian death certificate gave no indication of the cause of Robert William’s demise.  His personal details on the death certificate were attested by two acquaintances living in the Belgian port, Captain Sydney Smith and James Boyce, ship supplier.  One wonders if excess intake of alcohol, that curse of sailors in port everywhere, was involved?  There must have been much celebration in Middlesbrough before the departure of the “Velazquez” from Britain and probably another round of jollies once the vessel reached Belgium for her inaugural voyage.  Robert William Trenaman’s body must quickly have been taken back to Britain, because he was buried on 3 March 1906 at the Burial Ground of Kingston on Thames where, for some years, Robert William’s home had been located.  The only reference to the death of Robert William Trenaman so far discovered in the contemporary press, in Lloyds List, was a remarkably understated report from the Meteorological Committee, “In their report for the year ending March 31 last, the Meteorological Committee state … .  Noted with regret the death of eight marine observers for the office … Captain RW Trenaman of ss Romney in February 1906.”  Probate over the estate of Robert William Trenaman was granted in July 1906 to his widow, Charlotte.  His personal effects were valued at just over £1882 (over £218,000 in 2018 money). 

Just like the untimely demise of her first master, “Velazquez”, did not have a long career.  Two and a half years after her launch, the “Velazquez” was sailing from Santos to New York with a cargo of Brazilian coffee, passengers and mail when she ran onto rocks at Ponta del Salla in thick fog.  The damage was so serious that she could not be salvaged, though her crew and passengers were all saved.

Mrs Charlotte Trenaman

At the 1891 Census Robert William Trenaman’s wife, Charlotte and her surviving daughter, Dorothy, were living at 65 Canbury Park Road, Kingston on Thames, the home of her parents, but in the following census in 1901 Charlotte Trenaman has not been detected.  Her daughter Dorothy was a visitor at 29 Kingston Hill, Kingston on Thames, accompanied by three lads of 7, 9 and 11, who were described as “pupils”, the four children being in the care of a 21-year-old domestic servant.  It is possible that at that time Charlotte was a guest on her husband’s then current command, the “Romney”?  At the census in 1911, Charlotte Trenaman, who since the last Census had become a widow, was living in an unusual location.  She was a patient at the Duxhurst Farm Colony for Inebriates, near Reigate.  Perhaps Charlotte had turned to drink as a result of her husband’s frequent long absences at sea, her limited (one daughter) surviving family and her husband’s early death?

Duxhurst Farm Colony had been established by Lady Isabella Somerset, the president of the British Women’s Temperance Association, in 1895.  Lady Isabella was a remarkable person.  She suffered a difficult marriage to Lord Henry Somerset, a closet homosexual, separating from him rather than covering up his embarrassing and illegal proclivities, as was the usual recourse of the upper classes.  Her concern with alcoholism began when a close friend committed suicide while under the influence of drink.  The colony was established on a 180-acre estate near Reigate, Surrey.  Its aim was to rehabilitate female inebriates.  Duxhurst was open to women of all classes, but the inmates were segregated by social stratum into three distinct accommodation areas.  While undergoing medical treatment for their condition, the women were required to work at agricultural and horticultural jobs on the estate.  A success rate of 45% was claimed for the colony and Charlotte Trenaman may well have been in the recovered group, since she left Duxhurst and lived an apparently normal and long life, dying in 1940 at the age of 90.

The lives of Robert Harris Trenaman, Samuel Robert Trenaman and Robert William Trenaman. 

   

This family combination of father and two sons shared the common career element of an essentially life-long commitment to the sea.  But around that unifying theme, there were many contrasts, generated by evolving marine technology, progressive economic development and personal choices.  Robert Harris Trenaman simply carried on where his father, Samuel and grandfather, Robert, had left off, coasting in schooners from Plymouth.  His two sons, Samuel Robert and Robert William continued the family tradition, serving their apprenticeships on schooners trading around the South West of England but each aspired to see more of the world than the family’s tradition would have allowed, and both graduated to the foreign trade.  It is perhaps not surprising that Samuel Robert chose to serve in wind-powered vessels at a time (1861) when clippers and barques were still being built in significant numbers and wind was still the means of propulsion on many trans-oceanic journeys.  However, by 1876, when Robert William gained the status of ordinary seaman, wind was clearly passé, and the future of sea travel inevitably belonged to the steamer.  Indeed, his brother had already made the transition by serving on the “Lothair”.  Despite this clear message, which must have been imparted by his elder sibling’s then current employment, Robert William continued his service beneath the flapping of canvass and the groaning of timbers on several vessels, but particularly the “Torrens”.  Did the beauty of this vessel and the thrill of experiencing her sailing qualities influence Robert William’s decision to stay with her for five years, as he scaled the ladder from ordinary seaman, to able seaman, to second mate?

After his progression from sail to steam, Samuel Robert Trenaman looked set to achieve career success when he joined L&H, one of the most successful steamer operators in the British merchant fleet, a national asset that dominated the seas internationally.  Comparing the statistics of the two brothers’ progress, initially Samuel Robert appeared to move at a faster pace than his younger brother.  Second mate certificate, SRT 18 years, RWT 20 years.  First mate certificate, SRT 22 years, RWT 23 years.  Master’s certificate, SRT 27 years, RWT 31 years.  At this point, Samuel Robert Trenaman entered his fateful first marriage to Consuelo Roland Adams.  It may have been coincidental, but his career subsequently faltered and then went into decline.  He served for six years with L&H before he gained command, while his younger brother served for seven years before his promotion.  However, Samuel Robert served in eight separate vessels before his elevation compared with only three for Robert William.  Did Samuel Robert fail to impress the masters that he served under as mate?  He certainly experienced two strandings in his L&H career, “Newton” in 1874 and “Hipparchus” in 1877, but it is not known if he was in command of these vessels when they ran ashore.  And what could explain his sudden departure from L&H after three years of command and only a single voyage in his last vessel, the “Ptolemy”?  In complete contrast, Robert William Trenaman never looked back, once he had been put in charge of a vessel.  He rose in about ten years to be appointed Commodore of the very substantial L&H fleet and his last two commands, Romney and Velazquez, were, at the time, the latest and largest L&H vessels, specifically designed for their particular roles on the South American run.

After leaving L&H, Samuel Robert was not continuously employed as a master, often sailing as mate.  The companies he worked for, possibly excepting the Wilson Line, were less prestigious and the vessels on which he served were a curious mixture of types.  He seemed to take on the role of a tug master and clearly carried out several delivery voyages, not amongst the most prestigious marine positions.   His time as mate of the Mathattan probably involved a much higher than usual level of risk of accident.  It is at least plausible to suggest that his unfortunate first marriage and its disruptive and very public outcome sapped his confidence.  But his brother Robert, while enjoying substantial success in a professional sense, did appear to bear an associated personal cost.  Long months away from home and the company of his wife, a family limited to two children, the tragic early death of one of them and the possibility of an unhappy and lonely wife succumbing to the temptation to drown her sorrows, may have been consequential.  Both brothers died at relatively young ages, Samuel Robert at 59 and Robert William at 48.  In comparison their father, Robert Harris Trenaman lived to be 80. 

This essay has attempted to recreate the lives of the seafaring Trenamans, up to 1906, to the limited extent that that is now possible.  Between them, Samuel, Robert Harris, Samuel Robert and Robert William must have accumulated a remarkable set of experiences, though it is likely that only a small proportion of such events has been preserved in the dry pages of Lloyds List and similar journals and reproduced here.  Perhaps this account will at least lead to the revelation of more personal information on these fascinating mariners?

 

Don Fox

20190727 

donaldpfox@gmail.com