SS Fatshan underway on the Pearl River
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History | |
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Hong Kong | |
Name | Fatshan[1] |
Namesake | City of Fatshan (now Foshan), Guangdong (Canton) |
Owner |
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Builder | Ramage & Ferguson & Company, Leith[3][1] |
Yard number | Victoria Shipyard 76[1] |
Laid down | 1887 |
Launched | 31 March 1887[1] |
Sponsored by | Hong Kong, Canton & Macao Steamboat Company[1] |
Commissioned | 1887 |
Decommissioned | 1933 |
Fate | Full ownership acquired by the China Navigation Company in 1906.[2] |
Hong Kong | |
Name | Fatshan |
Operator | China Navigation Company |
Builder | Ramage & Ferguson & Company, Leith |
Acquired | 1906 |
Commissioned | 1907 |
Identification | ID / IMO No. 88843[1] / 1088843 |
Fate | Scrapped in Q4, 1933[1] |
General characteristics (as Fatshan) | |
Class and type | Steam powered ferry |
Tonnage | 2,260 GRT[4] 1,425 NRT[5][1] |
Length | 280 ft (85.3 m)[1] |
Beam | 54 ft (16.5 m)[1] |
Depth | 10.2 ft (3.1 m)[1] |
Installed power | 225 nhp |
Propulsion | Triple expansion steam engines[2] |
Speed | 13 knots (24 km/h; 15 mph)[4] |
Capacity | Over 1,000 passengers |
Armament | light arms |
SS Fatshan | |||||||||||
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Traditional Chinese | 佛山輪 | ||||||||||
Simplified Chinese | 佛山轮 | ||||||||||
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SS Fatshan (Chinese: 佛山輪) was a passenger ferry steamer operating on the Hong Kong-Canton Line between 1887 and 1933 when she was scrapped and replaced by her namesake, Fatshan (1933). Shortly before scrapping she was renamed Fatshan I.
Fatshan was commissioned by the HongKong, Canton & Macao Steamboat Company as a passenger steamer to service the Hong Kong to Canton route. She was built in Leith at the Victoria Shipyard by the Ramage & Ferguson & Company and was launched on 21 March 1887.[1] The ship was measured at 2,260 gross register tons[6] and initially was powered by two triple-expansion steam engines capable of producing 173 nhp driving twin screws [1]
After her delivery, Fatshan commenced service with the Hongkong Canton & Macao Steamboat Company, the leading ferry company sailing in the area at the time. At the time of its introduction, Fatshan was well known in the China trade as one of the best passenger steamers sailing the Hong Kong to Canton.[3]
The ship was divided between Chinese and European passengers and owing to the dangers faced by pirates, the ship was armed with small arms and a complement of guards.[7]