# Who did you say you worked for? - All is not what it seems



## BillH

I have been researching Metcalf Motor Coasters for some time but only recently became aware that there have actually been two companies of the same name to add to the confusion.

In mid 1970 the existing company restyled as Metcalf Coasting & Investments (Holdings) Ltd. who then created a new company Metcalf Motor Coasters Ltd to whom the Metcalf fleet was sold. Seamlessly to the outsider

1972 the Metcalf group was acquired by Bookers as a subsidiary

1973 S. William Coe & Co.Ltd and Metcalf Motor Coasters Ltd became listed on accounts as 100% subsidiary companies of Metcalf Coasting & Investments (Holdings) Ltd.

In 1977 Metcalf Coasting & Investments (Holdings) Ltd was restyled as Coe Metcalf Shipping Ltd.

In 1980 the two subsidiary companies were wound up the fleets having been sold to Coe Metcalf Shipping Ltd.

1984 Coe, Metcalf Shipping sold to Fishers of Barrow.

1995: Coe, Metcalf Shipping became James Fisher & Sons (Liverpool) Ltd

2000: James Fisher & Sons (Liverpool) Ltd became James Fisher (Shipping Services) Ltd. and still operating today with numerous tankers.


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## Pat Kennedy

I sailed in the Peter M, and I think the owners were styled as Metcalfe Motor Coasters. Probably the worst ship I was ever in, the sailors bathroom was used solely as the paint locker. Hot water only available from the galley.the less said about the grub the better.
I lasted two weeks, and staggered ashore in Birkenhead, unwashed and starved.
Pat


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## ROBERT HENDERSON

Some time in the seventies I relieved the master of a ship off Dover bound for Lexioes. I cannot remember the name of the ship or any more details as I did not enter in my Dis A book, she belonged to a one man band trading Metcalf Motor Ships based in Birkenhead. He had three ships, two of which were under arrest at Birkenhead.
The radar didn't work above six miles range, the standard compass was held down with fencing wire around Kelvins balls, the main engine cooling water pump was knackered and was coupled up to the bilge pump, so couldn't pump bilges, in a nutshell the ship was a bloody mess, and the charts had not been renewed or corrected for decades. And yes she was British flag, registered in the Channel Islands.

Regards Robert


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## BillH

Pat Kennedy said:


> I sailed in the Peter M, and I think the owners were styled as Metcalfe Motor Coasters. Probably the worst ship I was ever in, the sailors bathroom was used solely as the paint locker. Hot water only available from the galley.the less said about the grub the better.
> I lasted two weeks, and staggered ashore in Birkenhead, unwashed and starved.
> Pat


Pat, I presume this is the offending object to which you refer?

PETER M (1947 - 1964) Tanker. 
O.N. 180672. 972g. 478n. 200.4 x 32.3 x 15.3 feet.
6-cyl. 4 S.C.S.A. (400 x 670mm) oil engine made by Fr. Krupp Germania-werft A.G., Kiel, 9 kts.
20.7.1937: Launched as ALGOL by Deutsche Werft A.G., Hamburg (Yard No. 211), for J. Malmros, Trelleborg, Sweden. 
10.1937: Completed. 
1939: Severely damaged by a mine in the Baltic but salved and sold to Olof Wallenius, Sweden. 
1941: Renamed SOYA VII. 
1942: Taken over by Germany and renamed ALGOL. 
5.1945: Taken as a prize by Allied Forces at Arendal and handed over to the Ministry of War Transport, renamed EMPIRE TIGAVEN. 
18.7.1946: Management allocated to Hunting & Son Ltd. 
6.2.1947: Purchased by Metcalf Motor Coasters Ltd., London, and renamed PETER M. 
1964: Sold to the Nicolas E. Vernicos Shipping Co. Ltd, Piraeus, and renamed MOTOL V. 
29.3.1972: Arrived at Perama for demolition.


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## Pat Kennedy

Bill,
That sounds very like her. Distinguishing mark was a bloody great spark guard rammed into the top of the funnel. 
Pat


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## willincity

They had a stout, solid bitumen carrier that resembled an old style Stevie Clarkes’ “flatty” in the mid 70's, if I recall she was built in Indonesia and frequently visited in the Manchester Ship Canal , anyone recall her name (definitely finished with an “M”)


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## vasco

BillH said:


> I have been researching Metcalf Motor Coasters for
> 
> 1984 Coe, Metcalf Shipping sold to Fishers of Barrow.
> 
> 1995: Coe, Metcalf Shipping became James Fisher & Sons (Liverpool) Ltd
> 
> 2000: James Fisher & Sons (Liverpool) Ltd became James Fisher (Shipping Services) Ltd. and still operating today with numerous tankers.


and Fishers also took over P & O Tankships and more recently Everards and are now know as James Fisher Everards (for the moment).

Michael M and Frederick M were two of the oldies, Frederick possibly the bitumen carrier.


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## chadburn

BillH, regarding Metcalf's and it's numerous "holding" companies it may be like the Maritime Group I sailed with inso far as the vessel(s) were owned by the Bank's ( but managed by Metcalf's) until such time as the loans to buy them were paid off, our in our case the Bank's foreclosed before that happened.


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## Ian Brown

willincity said:


> They had a stout, solid bitumen carrier that resembled an old style Stevie Clarkes’ “flatty” in the mid 70's, if I recall she was built in Indonesia and frequently visited in the Manchester Shsounds ip Canal , anyone recall her name (definitely finished with an “M”)


This sounds like the Robert M.
I thought I was joining as Mate but turned out I was 2nd Mate. Traded around Irish Sea. So low freeboard the pilots stepped onto the midships accomodation 1st deck. Lifeboat Davits needed big hammer and steel wedges to move them. No lookout at night, no positions on chart appart from mine. Some good men onboard and some good laughs but I walked off in Milford Haven after 1 month.
4th Mate in a row to do so. Says it all.


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## BillH

Ian Brown said:


> This sounds like the Robert M.
> I thought I was joining as Mate but turned out I was 2nd Mate. Traded around Irish Sea. So low freeboard the pilots stepped onto the midships accomodation 1st deck. Lifeboat Davits needed big hammer and steel wedges to move them. No lookout at night, no positions on chart appart from mine. Some good men onboard and some good laughs but I walked off in Milford Haven after 1 month.
> 4th Mate in a row to do so. Says it all.


. ROBERT M (1977 - 1978) bitumen tanker.
O.N. 338921. 1,593g. 749n. 2,449d. 279’ 0” x 42’ 0” x 14’ 7”oa.
16-cyl 4 S.C.S.A. (220 x 300mm) vee type engine made by Maschinenbau Augsburg-Nurnberg (MAN). 2,200 B.H.P.
1.1970: Completed as CREE by Hong Kong & Whampoa Dockyard Co. Ltd., Hong Kong (Yard No. 1065), for Matheson & Co. Ltd., (Jardine, Matheson & Co. Ltd., managers), Hong Kong.
2.1974: In port damaged.
1977: Sold to Metcalf Motor Coasters Ltd., (S. William Coe & Co. Ltd., managers), Liverpool, and renamed ROBERT M.
1978: Sold to Coe, Metcalf Shipping Ltd., (same managers).
1980: Removed from management.
1984: Company ownership passed from the Booker Group to James Fisher & Sons Ltd., Barrow in Furness.
1995: Owners restyled as James Fisher & Sons (Liverpool) Ltd.
11.1997: Sold to Haswell Co.Ltd., Sharjah, (Cyrus Shipping Services, Sharjah, managers), and renamed NESA I, then NESA R. 
7.2001: To Panama flag.
12.2007: To Sierra Leone flag
11.2009: Still on Equasis.


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## BillH

vasco said:


> and Fishers also took over P & O Tankships and more recently Everards and are now know as James Fisher Everards (for the moment).
> 
> Michael M and Frederick M were two of the oldies, Frederick possibly the bitumen carrier.


James Fisher Tankships (Holdings) Ltd
Inc 29.02.1972 Reg No. 1044203 as Gatx-Oswego (UK) Ltd.
22.06.1983: Restyled as Marine Transport Line (UK) Ltd
22.05.1990: Restyled as Rowbotham Holdings Ltd.
29.01.1993: Restyled as P&O Tankship Holdings Ltd.
20.01.1997: Restyled as James Fisher Tankships (Holdings) Ltd

James Fisher Everard Ltd 
Inc 14.03.1956 Reg. No. 562707 as Christopher Rowbotham & Sons (Management) Ltd )
21.12.1980: Changed to Rowbotham Tankships Ltd.
18.01.1993: Changed to P&O Tankships Ltd
19.10.1997: Changed to James Fisher Tankships Ltd
22.01.2007: Changed to James Fisher Everard Ltd 

James Fisher Tankships (Hong Kong) Ltd
Inc 25.03.1992 Reg No. FC17864 as Rowbotham Tankships (Hong Kong) Ltd.
18.03.1994: Restyled as P&O Tankships (Hong Kong) Ltd.
??.??.1997: Restyled as James Fisher Tankships (Hong Kong) Ltd.
??.??.????: Additionally incorporated as a British Company – Reg No. BR002355.
03.11.2000: Closed.

James Fisher (Hong Kong) Ltd
Inc 30.12.1996 Reg No. FC20435
26.06.1997: Additionally incorporated as a British Company – Reg No. BR004023.

James Fisher Tankships (Gibraltar) Ltd
Inc 17.3.1992 Reg No. FC17850 as Rowbotham Tankships (Gibraltar) Ltd.
18.01.1993: Restyled as P&O Tankships (Gibraltar) Ltd
04.03.1997: Restyled as James Fisher Tankships (Gibraltar) Ltd
01.10.2009: Additionally incorporated as a British Company – Reg No. BR012076.

James Fisher (Logistics) Ltd
Inc. 26.10.1998 Reg No. 3655999 as James Fisher (Shipping Services) Ltd
8.3.2000: Restyled as James Fisher (Logistics) Ltd

James Fisher (Shipping Services) Ltd
Inc 26.03.1941 Reg No. 366100 as T. J. Metcalf (Coasting) Ltd.
28.03.1941: Restyled as Metcalf Motor Coasters Ltd. 
14.07.1970: Restyled as Metcalf Coasting & Investments(Holdings) Ltd 
31.12.1977: Restyled as Coe, Metcalf Shipping Ltd. 
01.12.1995: Restyled as James Fisher & Sons (Liverpool) Ltd.
08.03.2000: Restyled as James Fisher (Shipping Services) Ltd.


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## willincity

BillH said:


> . ROBERT M (1977 - 1978) bitumen tanker.
> O.N. 338921. 1,593g. 749n. 2,449d. 279’ 0” x 42’ 0” x 14’ 7”oa.
> 16-cyl 4 S.C.S.A. (220 x 300mm) vee type engine made by Maschinenbau Augsburg-Nurnberg (MAN). 2,200 B.H.P.
> 1.1970: Completed as CREE by Hong Kong & Whampoa Dockyard Co. Ltd., Hong Kong (Yard No. 1065), for Matheson & Co. Ltd., (Jardine, Matheson & Co. Ltd., managers), Hong Kong.
> 11.2009: Still on Equasis.


That is the one, strange looking ship she was, here the link to her (sorry, don't know how to do thumbnail)

http://www.shipsnostalgia.com/gallery/showphoto.php?photo=153658 

Thanks for the Info BillH, very interesting.
Who were the brave crew who brought her back to the UK from the far east?


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## NoR

I sailed on the Cree as 2nd Mate. We used to take bitumen up to Saigon in the v -early 70s got double pay from leaving Singapore to return. When we weren't doing bitumen we carried fuel oil up and down the Malacca Straits between Port Dixon Telok Anson or Penang. Great fun.


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