SS ''Lydia'' was a
passenger
A passenger (also abbreviated as pax) is a person who travels in a vehicle, but does not bear any responsibility for the tasks required for that vehicle to arrive at its destination or otherwise operate the vehicle, and is not a steward. The ...
ferry
A ferry is a ship, watercraft or amphibious vehicle used to carry passengers, and sometimes vehicles and cargo, across a body of water. A passenger ferry with many stops, such as in Venice, Italy, is sometimes called a water bus or water taxi ...
that was built in Scotland in 1890 for the
London and South Western Railway. From 1920 onward she passed through several owners. In 1923 she was renamed ''Ierax'' and registered in
Greece. She was scrapped in 1933.
Building and registration
In 1890
J & G Thomson
John Brown and Company of Clydebank was a Scottish Naval architecture, marine engineering and shipbuilding firm. It built many notable and world-famous ships including , , , , , and the ''Queen Elizabeth 2 (ship), Queen Elizabeth 2''.
At its ...
Ltd at
Clydebank
Clydebank ( gd, Bruach Chluaidh) is a town in West Dunbartonshire, Scotland. Situated on the north bank of the River Clyde, it borders the village of Old Kilpatrick (with Bowling, West Dunbartonshire, Bowling and Milton, West Dunbartonshire, Mil ...
in Glasgow built a set of three
sister ship
A sister ship is a ship of the same class or of virtually identical design to another ship. Such vessels share a nearly identical hull and superstructure layout, similar size, and roughly comparable features and equipment. They often share a ...
s for the LSWR's fast mail and passenger service between Southampton and the Channel Islands: , ''Lydia'' and . ''Lydia'' was the second of the trio to be built. She was launched on 16 July 1890
and made her
sea trials on the River Clyde on 12 September 1890.
Her registered length was , her beam was and her depth was . Her
tonnages were and .
She was built with accommodation for 170 first class passengers, 70 second class and numerous steerage passengers.
''Lydia'' had twin
screws
A screw and a bolt (see '' Differentiation between bolt and screw'' below) are similar types of fastener typically made of metal and characterized by a helical ridge, called a ''male thread'' (external thread). Screws and bolts are used to fa ...
, each powered by a three-cylinder
triple expansion steam engine. Between them her two engines were rated at 360
NHP
Horsepower (hp) is a unit of measurement of power, or the rate at which work is done, usually in reference to the output of engines or motors. There are many different standards and types of horsepower. Two common definitions used today are the ...
[ and gave her a speed of on her sea trials.
The LSWR registered ''Lydia'' at Southampton. Her United Kingdom ]official number
Official numbers are ship identifier numbers assigned to merchant ships by their flag state, country of registration. Each country developed its own official numbering system, some on a national and some on a port-by-port basis, and the formats hav ...
was 97217 and her code letters
Code letters or ship's call sign (or callsign) Mtide Taurus - IMO 7626853"> SHIPSPOTTING.COM >> Mtide Taurus - IMO 7626853/ref> were a method of identifying ships before the introduction of modern navigation aids and today also. Later, with the i ...
were LNTM.[
]
Career
In 1915 a submarine attacked ''Lydia'', but the torpedo passed 50 yards from the ship.
In 1920 the LSWR sold ''Lydia''. In 1923 Coast Lines bought her and re-registered her in Liverpool.[ Coast Lines planned to operate her between Dublin and Preston, Lancashire, but then sold her that same year to Navigation a Vapeur Ionienne, who renamed her ''Ierax'' and registered her in Argostoli in Greece. Her code letters were changed to JFGT.][
]
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lydia
1890 ships
Steamships of the United Kingdom
Ships built on the River Clyde
Ships of the London and South Western Railway
Steamships of Greece