# Looking for info. West Coast Scotland Puffers



## Rob.Norrie (May 31, 2007)

Looking for info on how much cargo of coal/sand or the likes of could the Clyde Coast Puffers carry. The Starlight comes to mind there were a series all ending in light, Glenlight shipping Co. 
I remember them well at Dunoon coal pier.
The reason I ask:
My brother and his mate got £50 each for the days work to unload. one of them at the coal pier. There was some dispute and they needed them unloaded. This was around 1953-54. £50.00 was a lot of money in these days. £8-£10 was the weekly wage. So they done it. Shovelled into the crane grab and lifted out of the hold.
Question is
What was the average tonnage of coal/sand carried in these wee ships.
I think around 100 to 120 tons.
Thanks for info anyone.
Rob Norrie


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## jimthehat (Aug 5, 2006)

have not got a clue ,but remember the pier well,used to fish off the end with a piece of string and a bent hook way back in the 40s,always a puffer there.
JIM


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## eddyw (Nov 6, 2007)

Glenlight's last 'puffer' Pibroch, (1957,150grt) (a motor vessel!) 87 ft length had a deadweight figure of 160 tons. The 85 ft VICs carried 120 tons and the 66ft VICs 100 tons. Many older puffers were 66ft so they could transit the Crinan Canal.


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## Trevor Clements (May 6, 2007)

An ex shipmate of mine from Donaldson days is, I believe, restoring one in the Dunoon area. I dont think he has a PC, he only retired from Calmac fairly recently.


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## Alistair Macnab (May 13, 2008)

Household Coal:
It wasn't only the puffers. I carried household coal from Troon to Stornoway aboard "Beryl" one of Robertson's Coasters in 1953 and I think it was about 500 tons of cargo. This was a regular run for Robertson's.


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## Don Matheson (Mar 13, 2007)

Rob Dont know if its any help to you but my uncle got his complete house delivered by puffer. He lived in Skye and many years ago he wanted to build a new house. He spoke to a local builder, they decided what they wanted and ordered it from Glasgow. The whole lot, brick, sand, wood and everything else was loaded onto a puffer and sailed to Skye. Puffer came to the slip my uncle used for his fishing boat and unloaded into carts and trailers. The material was then taken to where the house was to be built. 
Wont help you any in your search for tonnage, but it helped me remember my Uncle Murdo, now sadly passed as is his fishing boat.
Don


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## Jim McFaul (Jul 20, 2008)

Len Paterson's book on puffers 'The Light in the Glens' has a lot of information on cargoes in the appendices. These seem to confirm the average cargo of coal a traditional puffer could carry was about 120 tons but it could range from 70 to 140 tons. These little ships also regularly crossed the Irish Sea. I saw them in the 1950's and 60's at Larne and at Magheramorne loading cement. There was a regular trade in limestone from the the small County Antrim ports of Glenarm and Carnlough to the steel works on the Clyde, with several cargoes each week mainly by the Ross & Marshall Lights. Hay's and other's were occasionally seen. One or two never made it back. A number of larger puffers were built at Larne for Scottish owners in the early 1900's. Jim McFaul.


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## Rob.Norrie (May 31, 2007)

29.6.2009
To all above,
Sitting at home looking through S.N. came to where I asked about how much coal could the puffers carry.
I got a rough idea, but the best was reading the stories you all put.
Really enjoyed reading, Yes I also fished off the coal pier in Dunoon early 50,s
The other wee jetty, between the Dunoon pier and the coal pier, was good also. Think it was used by Munro,s wee boat to bring the newspapers over, early around about 4 am.
The coal pier, not used now for the puffers, but local council then made it into a car park. Great extra parking space, Problem? there was no barriers around it. not so long ago, a person I think in older age, coming from the car park on the pier, went too close to the edge, car and person over into the water. I cannot be sure, but think it was fatal. NOW they have barriers all around. bit sad. Councillors should have know better. The coal pier, good car park lets use that space.
Once again, thanks all the notes above
Rob


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## treeve (Nov 15, 2005)

Here is a puffer of old - she saw service from Hayle in Cornwall ...
1896 - ON99880, Maid of Lorn/Snowflake; single mast; 41.96 grt; sold 1897 to Combe Martin.
66 feet; Built Glasgow 1893 (Burrell & Son); engines by Walker Henderson & Co; screw steamer; 20bhp.
[Maid of Lorn was a Clyde Puffer, she had been grounded on The Stirks in April 1896 and safely refloated; 
it was at that point that she was purchased by HTP.
(Hosken, Trevithick and Polkinhorn & Co Ltd. Grain and millers - Large Biscuit business)
Why she was sold off again so quickly is not yet known, her name change to Snowflake was by her owner in Combe Martin. 
Her active life included being water carrier during WWII for troops and camps. 
She eventually was sold c1945 to Bristol and thence to Greece.]


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## duquesa (Aug 31, 2006)

*West Coast scotland puffers*

With reference to the final post Treeve, I am currently searching around to try and establish what became of that Greek bound puffer - Maid of Lorn/Snowflake. There is a strong possibility she may have been seen in Rhodes within the last decade and I would be very grateful if anyone has news of her.


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## JimC (Nov 8, 2007)

Thre is a website devoted to this. It is based at Inverary pier
log on to www.inveraraypier.com/puffer.html - 4k . The webmaster is .. belive it or not 'Para-Handy. They have an enormous amount of info.


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## vitalspark (Jan 15, 2006)

Dan McDonald, in his book _The Clyde Puffer_, defines a puffer as follows:

_"Basically, the Clyde Puffer was a sturdy steam coaster 66ft long, which could carry 100 tons of cargo and deliver it with her own gear wherever there was enough water to float her. Where there was not enough water she could beach herself, unload her cargo and sail away on the next tide." _

Mr McDonald is referring to the old pre-1950's coal-fired traditional puffer. Their diesel-powered replacements, such as Glenshira and Pibroch, could carry more, but I have never been able to think of them as Puffers. Such was their importance to the isolated communities of the West Highlands and Islands that these little ships have acquired, deservedly, a legendary reputation, and it grieves me to report that, when I was a child, I used to think of them as "dirty wee coal boats". All that changed for me when, at the age of around 13, one glorious summer evening, I helped the crew of the puffer _Roman_ discharge its cargo of coal at Lamlash. I have never been so filthy, or had so much fun, in my entire life. I have loved them ever since.

Best wishes,
Dave


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## rothesian (Dec 31, 2005)

VIC 96 in Aberdeen today 85' 120tons on her way to Chatham from Maryport via Crinan & Caledonian canals see website vic96.co.uk
(Thumb)


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## duquesa (Aug 31, 2006)

*West Coast scotland puffers*

Many thanks for that and I have emailed them at Inverary. Hopefully something may come back. As this old girl was built in 1896, I doubt it is the vessel which 'may' still be plying out of Rhodes. There is a converted Danish fishing vessel out there and it just may have been mistakenly identified as a puffer.


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## tom e kelso (May 1, 2005)

*Puffers*

The ROMAN, built for J & J Hay in Kirkintilloch, 1902, and later owned (and "skippered" from about 1930, to the late 1950's by Alastair Kelso of Corrie, Isle of Arran,) I believe, lifted no more than 80 deadweight tons of coal. Mostly she traded between the east coast of Arran, [Corrie, Brodick, Lamlash} and Troon, the mainstay being domestic coal from the latter. The discharge of coal at Corrie, up until about 1943 was checked against a weighbridge.situated at the head of the "Port" harbour; thereafter, coal was delivered to locals on the basis of four buckets to the ton!

[I am told that a retired chief engineer living in the village (presumably conversant with having to check coal bunker deliveries worldwide) when receiving his annual couple of tons (dumped on the road) meticulously weighed the delivered coal with a steelyard and regularly found he was getting 18 cwt to the ton!]

Return trips to the mainland were usually in ballast, but latterly when Forestry Commission timber started to mature, cargoes of pit prop timber 
presented from the King's Quay close by Brodick Castle

One unusual wartime cargo I remember the ROMAN taking from Corrie to the mainland was an apparently slightly damaged Fairey Albacore aircraft which had crash landed (I can't remember where,) but suspect it was connected with HMS ARGUS which at the time was carrying out pilot training operations in the Firth of Cl;yde, based in Lamlash Bay


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## MARINEJOCKY (Nov 25, 2007)

eddyw said:


> Glenlight's last 'puffer' Pibroch, (1957,150grt) (a motor vessel!) 87 ft length had a deadweight figure of 160 tons. The 85 ft VICs carried 120 tons and the 66ft VICs 100 tons. Many older puffers were 66ft so they could transit the Crinan Canal.


Eddyw, 

The early puffers were 66 feet so they could use the Firth & Forth Canal and the Crinan Canal locks were built to take the larger 88' puffers which also went to Ireland as well as the Western Isles. 

The Vic 32 was always good to see and the owner when I lived over there used to give us a tune on the steam whistle. 

I always thought it amazing that the tourists who went on a weeks cruise arrived ***** and span and the very first thing they did was shovel 5 or 6 tons of coal into the bunker from the pier. Within the hour they were as black as the Ace of spades. 

The Vic 32 was a 66' 4" LOA 18' Beam 8'6" draft puffer of 160 ton displacement from the info I could find. The derrick could lift 1 ton. All of them came with flat bottoms so they could sit on a beach and back in the day the horse and cart would come along side and the cargo would be lifted out. 

The canal lock dimensions are length 88 feet beam 20 feet and draft of 9' 6" and it comes with a warning to add 4" to your vessels draft "as the vessel sits 4" lower in the fresh water than the sea water. 

Also there is a high voltage cable near Lochgilphead which has a 95' air draft however I have heard of a yachts mast arcing with the cable in bad weather.


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## vitalspark (Jan 15, 2006)

tom e kelso said:


> The ROMAN, built for J & J Hay in Kirkintilloch, 1902, and later owned (and "skippered" from about 1930, to the late 1950's by Alastair Kelso of Corrie, Isle of Arran,) I believe, lifted no more than 80 deadweight tons of coal. Mostly she traded between the east coast of Arran, [Corrie, Brodick, Lamlash} and Troon, the mainstay being domestic coal from the latter. The discharge of coal at Corrie, up until about 1943 was checked against a weighbridge.situated at the head of the "Port" harbour; thereafter, coal was delivered to locals on the basis of four buckets to the ton!
> 
> [I am told that a retired chief engineer living in the village (presumably conversant with having to check coal bunker deliveries worldwide) when receiving his annual couple of tons (dumped on the road) meticulously weighed the delivered coal with a steelyard and regularly found he was getting 18 cwt to the ton!]
> 
> ...


Tom,
Many thanks for your information about _Roman_. It is much appreciated. And I really enjoyed your little story about 18 cwt to the ton. I can believe every word of that!

Best wishes,
Dave


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## Trevor Clements (May 6, 2007)

Re my message above mentioning Dan Kerr, sad to say he died last year. However I have another question regarding puffers. I am a semi amateur artist and one time sparks in Donaldson Line. I am in the process of painting 'Steam on the Clyde ' 30" x 20", which has a VIC32 ( I have 'Spartan' in mind) in the foreground and Donaldsons former Victory ship 'Lismoria' in bound, with 'Shieldhall' downbound. all circa late 1950's. Can anyone confirm the funnel colours of Hays puffers, (pink and black?), and whether boot topping was red or pink. I have the scene off Gourock but I am not sure if Puffers called at Gourock.


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## Erimus (Feb 20, 2012)

Does this site help you?

http://www.clydemaritime.co.uk/puffers_and_vics

geoff


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## Greenock (Jan 21, 2017)

The website WWW.SHIPSOFTHECLYDE.COM has lots of entries for puffers carrying coal from Queen's Dock, Glasgow to Dunoon, and also has well over 90 years of as yet unpublished material carrying cargoes from Irvine and Glasgow to Clyde and Western Isles piers


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