Part of the
Acorn Archive
Hearts of Oak
SS Amazon
Destruction of
the Steamship by Fire with Great Loss of Life
For a brief flourishing moment she was
“a mighty castle of the deep – the largest steam driven
vessel ever built in England”.
Built in 1851 by R & H Green, Blackwall for the Royal
Mail Steam Packet Company.
2, 256 grt; 316 ft x 73 ft (over the paddle boxes)
2 x 2 simple cylinder engine; 800 hp by Seaward &
Capel, Millwall.
4 boilers; 26 furnaces; 12 Knots.
Two funnels.
Three masts, rigged for sail.
28th June 1851: Launched by Lady Paget
December 1851: Completed.
2nd January 1852: She left on her maiden voyage from
Southampton 3.30 Friday afternoon.
4th January 1852: Having reached 110 miles WSW of the
Isles of Scilly, at 00.45, a fire broke out.
The horrific and heart rending story that ensued is now
complete.
Initial Reports Initial Statements Letters
Passengers &
Crew Announcements 8th January 1852
Passenger & Crew
Announcements 10th & 17th January 1852
William Vincent’s
Report Tribute to Captain Symons
Letter from the Town
Clerk, Southampton
Compiled Crew Report
from Plymouth A Report from Brest of the rescued
Emotions at
Southampton and The Subscription Fund
9th January 1852
Further Reports from
Plymouth and Southampton
Plymouth Passenger
and Crew Announcement 16th January 1852
Full Statements 16th
January 1852
Letter from the
Master of the Barque Deodata
Lt Charles
Grylls & Captain William Symons
SS Amazon- The terrible consequences of fire at sea in a storm
Her keel was laid 1st
September 1850
When she arrived at
Southampton, on the 16th December 1851, in the tidal dock,
she was declared "the
finest ship that had ever appeared in those waters".
Clearly there were other
intentions than acting as a Mail & Passenger carrier,
as she was considered capable
of carrying fourteen 32 pounder guns,
as well as two ten inch pivot
guns (36cwt each) on her main deck.
Her coal boxes carried 1,000
tons of coal.
She had accommodation for 360
troops (each having 12 square feet of space).
Engines were fitted so as to
be separated form the main structure, which eliminated
vibration when standing near
the engines on deck.
It was intended that she make
the 3,622 miles between Southampton
and St Thomas, across the
Atlantic, in under 14 days.
Since completing these pages, I
have discovered other coverage
http://www.pbenyon.plus.com/Gazette/Accidents/Amazon_Loss.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/RMS_Amazon
And Google Books have digitised books of the
period
Raymond Forward