# formost prince.



## billyboy

there used to be a twin screw dredger called the foremost Prince working at Newhavens some years ago. she had twin steam recip engines and another engine for driving the bucket chain. Had the pleasure of a tour of the engine room as a child and remember being mesmerised with the recips and thier guvernors spinning away on the top.
Anyone know what became of her after she left Newhaven.
The captain at that time was a Mr Clueston. (went to school with his son)
be nice to thionk she could still be working somewhere... she was a reasonable size for a bucket dredger. (Thumb)


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## gdynia

Billy
Heres some info on her
Vessel Name: FOREMOST PRINCE
Vessel ID: 517010051
Vessel Type: Dredge
Tonnage: 836 gross
Owner: James Contract and ShipbuildingCo. Ltd,London.
Built: 1933
Builder: Blythswood Shipbuilding co.

Bucket dredge, arrived Lyttelton 14 Jun 1966 to undergo a two month survey. 17 Jun floating crane RAPAKI removed the buckets and ladder before she went into dry dock.

ss FOREMOST PRINCE 
________________________________________
built by Blythswood Shipbuilding Company Scotstoun,
Yard No 34 
Engines by Aitchison Blair Ltd Clydebank 
________________________________________
Port of Registry: London
Propulsion: Steam triple exp.6cy 1200ihp 9 knots
Built: 1933
Ship Type: Hopper Dredger
Ship's Role: New Zealand coasting
Tonnage: 836 grt | 650 dwt
Length: 195 feet 0
Breadth: 37 feet 7
Draught: 13 feet 6
Owner History:
James Contracting and Shipping


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## flijm

bucket dredger "Foremost Prince"
1954 taken over by Boskalis Westminster Dredging Co.
1971 sold to Milutinovic, Yugoslavia as "Bag 5 Bor"
1981 broken up, Yugoslavia


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## billyboy

great to know she went on to have another working life for a while Nev. very grateful for all the info mate. thank you very much.
Flijm: good to know she lasted that long. thank you/


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## allantcondie

When I was Pursering on on P. S. Waverley at Newhaven in 1978 there was a small bucket dredger in use in the harbour then - again I think she was owned by the James Dredger Co. Can anybody supply further details?


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## Butters

'FOREMOST PRINCE', spent quite some time away from home waters dredging in New Zealand at the Port of Gisborne in the mid sixties . A new basin was dredged for a deep water port and the river mouth deverted and during this period many months were spent at Lyttelton under Survey and Dry docking .
Although NZ had several bucket dredges she was something 'different'.

Butters
(Lindsay Butterfield)


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## Seafordpete

*Other bucket Dredger*

Does Testside sound right? Left NN for the breakers(?) 4/1985


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## gil mayes

Could have been TESTSIDE (182958)built Sliedrecht, Holland 1948. Owners James Contracting & Shipping Co Ltd, Southampton. She was sold in 1985 to Harry Pounds.
Gil.


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## awateah2

Captain Clueston ended up as Marine Superintendent at James Contracting at Dibles Wharf, Southampton. I remember being interviewed by him for a position on the 'Foremost 102' to do a rock blasting and removal job plus channel deepening in Shell's Torslanda terminal in Gothenburg in 1968. Vessels used were the 'Foremost 101', '102', Foremost Southampton ? bucket dredger and the chartered Trailing dredger 'Yolanda' (Panamanian' flag). A very hard job where we lost 2 men and some serious injuries.


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## billyboy

awateah2. brought back a memory or two there mate. i was once at school with Captain clueston's son Victor.
Seem to recall hearing once that Captain Clueston during a docking caught his head as he went through the wheelhouse door. The mate had to complete the docking manouver.
that sounds like a rough job you were on in Gothenberg awatea. happy you were one to survive it mate.


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## tugtere

what an interesting thread. I was associated with "F-P" while she was in N.Z.She was towed to Gisbourne by the tug "Humber" to break up a rock bar, after that Humber towed her to Whangarei for a similar job in the new port at Kioreroa, thats when I joined her.The bucket chain was designed and built for digging rock.Two 1500 ton bottom dump barges attended her all the time and I drove one of the tugs, generally WDTeal a converted T.I.D. (53) and a new Sydney built WD Arnhem.You got a real roasting if she had to wait for a barge to come in, that chain took some starting up again.The dredging engine was triple exp. with rope drive to the upper tumbler, I think it was 5 ropes and could'nt she bellow when digg'n deep n dirty under the rocks.When she arrived from Gisbourne (or maybe it was after dry docking) the chain was re-assembled and dismantled again before she sailed for Singapore. Teal and Arnhem went to Mt Maunganui with a barge each and I transfered to WD53 a trailer suction also on the Mount job.while WDA Endeavour went to West Australia to Port Hedland.Teal later shipped to Singapore to attend F-P and I think was scrapped there.F-P sure had a long and hard life. regards ray.


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## Billieboy

Interesting thread, there was a single engine, steam, bucket dredger, in Cardiff when I was an apprentice, the ladder was belt driven with one of the widest belts I've ever seen. This was used mostly for mud dredging inside and outside the port. During my time in Holland, we often carried out bucket lip, pad and pin hole repairs, the welding rods used for lip and pad facing were extremely high Brinell hardness.


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## Brian B

tugtere said:


> what an interesting thread. I was associated with "F-P" while she was in N.Z.She was towed to Gisbourne by the tug "Humber" to break up a rock bar, after that Humber towed her to Whangarei for a similar job in the new port at Kioreroa, thats when I joined her.The bucket chain was designed and built for digging rock.Two 1500 ton bottom dump barges attended her all the time and I drove one of the tugs, generally WDTeal a converted T.I.D. (53) and a new Sydney built WD Arnhem.You got a real roasting if she had to wait for a barge to come in, that chain took some starting up again.The dredging engine was triple exp. with rope drive to the upper tumbler, I think it was 5 ropes and could'nt she bellow when digg'n deep n dirty under the rocks.When she arrived from Gisbourne (or maybe it was after dry docking) the chain was re-assembled and dismantled again before she sailed for Singapore. Teal and Arnhem went to Mt Maunganui with a barge each and I transfered to WD53 a trailer suction also on the Mount job.while WDA Endeavour went to West Australia to Port Hedland.Teal later shipped to Singapore to attend F-P and I think was scrapped there.F-P sure had a long and hard life. regards ray.


Hi Ray, I also did the Mt.Maunganui contract as Chief Engineer and stayed on "WD53' for the next 4 years. We took 'Teal' as deck cargo to Singapore, via Sydney and Cairns and as well as attending Foremost Prince, was also our 'work' boat. I was later reunited with Arnhem on the Port Kembla/Woolongong contract with Grab Dredge "Goomai". "F-Prince" I heard was scrapped after Singapore contract but then heard she went to Yugoslavia for several more 'hard years' before being scrapped. Am not sure!! 
They were good years, went back to mercantile after 7 years dredging for another 15 years
Cheers - Brian


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## spongebob

Great thread, the Tauranga Harbour Authority has recently announced that they are going to dredge the Tauranga and Mount Maunganui harbour approaches and berthage again to increase the depths to suit the next wave of bigger box boats and bulkers.
It took quite a while to negotiate with the local Maori group re the disturbance of the sea bed but it appears all go now.

Bob


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## Ericof_t110

*foremost prince*



billyboy said:


> there used to be a twin screw dredger called the foremost Prince working at Newhavens some years ago. she had twin steam recip engines and another engine for driving the bucket chain. Had the pleasure of a tour of the engine room as a child and remember being mesmerised with the recips and thier guvernors spinning away on the top.
> Anyone know what became of her after she left Newhaven.
> The captain at that time was a Mr Clueston. (went to school with his son)
> be nice to thionk she could still be working somewhere... she was a reasonable size for a bucket dredger. (Thumb)


Foremost Prince sailed to New Zealand sometime in 1970`s or early 80`s from Southampton with a run crew after an extensive 're-fit in James yard.Jack Flood and his dredging team emigrated there as operators. Wonder how they are now?


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## namyar

Ericof, you are a bit out with your dates, I was in "Foremost Prince in Whangarei, NZ. in 1967 and she had been down there for some time before that.


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## DURANGO

Did she sail down to Kiwi under her own steam and how long did she take to get there and what route did she take regards Dave .


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## namyar

Durango, she was towed across from Sydney by the dutch tug "Humber". I don't know how long she had been working in Aus. but after the loss of "W.D.Atlas" in a cyclone off Jervis Bay N.S.W. they disallowed bucket dredgers to sail with the bucket chain in place. She was towed all around NZ. by the Humber but I don't remember who towed her up to Singapore.
regards ray


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## Ericof_t110

namyar said:


> Ericof, you are a bit out with your dates, I was in "Foremost Prince in Whangarei, NZ. in 1967 and she had been down there for some time before that.


Thanks Namyar,glad someone keeps a good log,my memory not so good. Ericof


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## DURANGO

namyar said:


> Durango, she was towed across from Sydney by the dutch tug "Humber". I don't know how long she had been working in Aus. but after the loss of "W.D.Atlas" in a cyclone off Jervis Bay N.S.W. they disallowed bucket dredgers to sail with the bucket chain in place. She was towed all around NZ. by the Humber but I don't remember who towed her up to Singapore.
> regards ray


 Many thanks for that Ray do you know if she went out from U.K.under her own steam I spent some time with Union steam out of Melbourne as A.B. back in 68/69 a life time ago now thanks again best regards Dave .


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## Bosun ken

*Dredges .*

Hi Durango,
Was the " Foremost Prince" ever in Whyalla S .A. .??


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