Ships Galleries

RMS Queen Elizabeth 2 - the Last Great Clydebuilt liner : The Cunard liner RMS Queen Elizabeth 2, the most famous ship in the World, was launched from the shipyard of John Brown & Company at Clydebank, Scotland on 20th September 1967. Some of the first group of photographs in this set are from a remarkable collection taken by the late Mr William Davies of Glasgow in September 1967. It was almost 21 years after the new ship departed from the Clyde before she returned to the Clyde (in 1990). She returned on a few other occasions and, in 2007, forty years after her launch, the ship returned to Greenock Ocean Terminal on the Clyde on 20th September 2007 to celebrate the anniversary. After a gala day of events, including a 40th Birthday Fly-past Salute by the Red Arrows, the ship departed from Greenock at 18:00 hours. Many thousands of Clydesiders gathered to watch the last of the classic Clydebuilt liners depart. A set of images were taken from a vantage point aboard the veteran motor ship Balmoral which escorted theliner from Greenock to Innellan. 20th September 2007. Just over a year after her 40th anniversary vist to the Clyde, the liner returned to the river of her creation for the very last time as a few weeks later she made her last ever voyage, to the city of Dubai where she was to be converted to a static luxury hotel. Despite extremely poor weather through the majority of the summer of 2008 on the Clyde, the day of the last great Clydebuilt liner's final visit was a miraculously fine autumn day and tens of thousands of people lined the shores of the Firth of Clyde, aware that another chapter in the long maritime history of the Clyde was about to end. Some of the return visit pictures are by Tom Dunlop.

RMS Queen Elizabeth 2 - the Last Great Clydebuilt liner

The Cunard liner RMS Queen Elizabeth 2, the most famous ship in the Wo ...

Updated: Mar 30, 2009 12:40pm PST

Liner and Cruise Ship Visits to the Clyde : Some pictures scanned from prints. .

Liner and Cruise Ship Visits to the Clyde

Some pictures scanned from prints. .

Updated: Mar 30, 2009 3:11pm PST

Type 45 Destroyer Construction on the Clyde : Six new Type 45 Destroyers under construction at the BAE Systems shipyards at Scotstoun and Govan on the River Clyde in Glasgow, Scotland.

Type 45 Destroyer Construction on the Clyde

Six new Type 45 Destroyers under construction at the BAE Systems shipy ...

Updated: Jul 09, 2008 12:42pm PST

Bay Class RFA Ships - Clyde Shipyard Views : Views of the three of Royal Fleet Auxiliary's new Landing Ship Dock (Auxiliary) vessels at BAE Systems Clyde shipyards

Bay Class RFA Ships - Clyde Shipyard Views

Views of the three of Royal Fleet Auxiliary's new Landing Ship Dock (A ...

Updated: Feb 06, 2007 12:36pm PST

Clyde Shipping in 1982 : Shipping on the River Clyde in 1982

Clyde Shipping in 1982

Shipping on the River Clyde in 1982

Updated: Sep 23, 2006 2:22am PST

Queen of Scots on the Clyde :

Queen of Scots on the Clyde

Updated: Jan 20, 2007 9:45am PST

MV Southsea on the Clyde in 1987 : A Clydebuilt passenger vessel returns to the river after almost 40 years

MV Southsea on the Clyde in 1987

A Clydebuilt passenger vessel returns to the river after almost 40 yea ...

Updated: Oct 13, 2006 1:43pm PST

A Countess on Loch Lomond : Always a Countess, some images of the little motorship's migration from the Clyde to the bonnie, bonnie banks

A Countess on Loch Lomond

Always a Countess, some images of the little motorship's migration fro ...

Updated: Sep 27, 2006 3:44pm PST

Lake Thun and paddle steamer Blumlisalp : A trip to the westernmost of the two lakes of Interlaken in the Bernese Oberland - the Thunersee or Lake Thun

Lake Thun and paddle steamer Blumlisalp

A trip to the westernmost of the two lakes of Interlaken in the Bernes ...

Updated: Sep 20, 2006 4:01pm PST

Lake Brienz and paddle steamer Lotschberg : A trip to the easternmost of the two lakes of Interlaken in the Bernese Oberland - Brienzersee or Lake Brienz

Lake Brienz and paddle steamer Lotschberg

A trip to the easternmost of the two lakes of Interlaken in the Bernes ...

Updated: Sep 18, 2006 11:24pm PST

Lake Zurich and its steamers INCOMPLETE :

Lake Zurich and its steamers INCOMPLETE

Updated: Sep 05, 2006 3:30pm PST

The Swiss Transport Museum : A visit to the national transport museum of Switzerland in Luzern

The Swiss Transport Museum

A visit to the national transport museum of Switzerland in Luzern

Updated: Aug 18, 2006 6:30pm PST

The Pilatus Mountain Railway and the 'folding' paddle steamer : A trip on the world's steepest cogwheel railway on Mount Pilatus and under Acheregg Bridge on paddle steamer Unterwalden in Switzerland

The Pilatus Mountain Railway and the 'folding' paddle steamer

A trip on the world's steepest cogwheel railway on Mount Pilatus and u ...

Updated: Aug 24, 2006 12:47am PST

Luzern - its Lake and Steamers - Part 2 UPDATED 20_09_2006 : Views from the Vierwaldstattersee (the Lake of Lucerne), Switzerland

Luzern - its Lake and Steamers - Part 2 UPDATED 20_09_2006

Views from the Vierwaldstattersee (the Lake of Lucerne), Switzerland

Updated: Sep 20, 2006 9:13am PST

Lake Leman and its steamers : Views from the Lake of Geneva, Switzerland

Lake Leman and its steamers

Views from the Lake of Geneva, Switzerland

Updated: Aug 16, 2006 12:33pm PST

Luzern - its Lake and its Steamers - Part 1 : Views from the Vierwaldstattersee (the Lake of Lucerne), Switzerland

Luzern - its Lake and its Steamers - Part 1

Views from the Vierwaldstattersee (the Lake of Lucerne), Switzerland

Updated: Sep 05, 2006 3:44pm PST

Scottish Coasts and Shipping in 2003 : A year on Scotland's west coast and lochs.

Scottish Coasts and Shipping in 2003

A year on Scotland's west coast and lochs.

Updated: Nov 10, 2006 1:12pm PST

Paddle steamer Waverley Rebuild Phase II - 2003 : Completion Phase of the £7m heritage rebuild of the World's Last Seagoing Paddle Steamer

Paddle steamer Waverley Rebuild Phase II - 2003

Completion Phase of the £7m heritage rebuild of the World's Last Seag ...

Updated: Aug 09, 2006 6:43pm PST

Stockholm Views and Shipping : Views of the Swedish capital, its steamships and other vessels in its archipelago

Stockholm Views and Shipping

Views of the Swedish capital, its steamships and other vessels in its ...

Updated: Oct 14, 2006 4:33pm PST

Visit to St Kilda in May 1979 : A short pictorial record of a special sailing by the Caledonian MacBrayne ferry Columba from Gourock on the Firth of Clyde to the St Kilda archipelago, which lies in the North Atlantic, west of the Scottish mainland and the islands of the Hebrides. The sailing was organised to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the formation of the famous Hebridean shipping company, David MacBrayne Limited.

Visit to St Kilda in May 1979

A short pictorial record of a special sailing by the Caledonian MacBra ...

Updated: May 06, 2008 5:43am PST

Waverley in the Hebrides 2009 : Voyages of the World's Last Seagoing Paddle Steamer in the waters around Scotland's Western Highlands and Islands NOTE: Initially only 2009 pictures of Waverley's most recent visit - in the near future pictures of all of her visits to the Hebrides since the very first one in 1981 will appear here check back!

Waverley in the Hebrides 2009

Voyages of the World's Last Seagoing Paddle Steamer in the waters arou ...

Updated: Jun 04, 2009 5:17pm PST

Polmadie to Lake Malawi : In May 2009, a 111 year old ship, built in Glasgow, Scotland, was drydocked on the shores of Lake Malawi in Central Africa, at the start of an ambitious project to restore the vessel to active service and convert it into a floating medical centre. This gallery briefly relates the story of the SS Chauncy Maples from her creation in one of the most unusual of the many shipyards of Victorian Clydeside to the present day. It is hoped that the ship, converted to run on bio-fuel, will soon be able to bring much needed medical assistance in an area where land travel is difficult and the average life expectancy of the native people is only around 36 years.

Polmadie to Lake Malawi

In May 2009, a 111 year old ship, built in Glasgow, Scotland, was dryd ...

Updated: Jun 25, 2009 1:14pm PST