''Victoria'' was a steam ship built in 1902 by the

Fairfield Shipbuilding & Engineering Company The Fairfield Shipbuilding and Engineering Company, Limited was a Scottish shipbuilding company in the Govan area on the Clyde in Glasgow. Fairfields, as it is often known, was a major warship builder, turning out many vessels for the Royal Navy ...

of Govan. She was employed by the Pacific Steam Navigation Company on their routes along the West coast of South America, from Valparaiso to

Callao Callao () is a Peruvian seaside city and Regions of Peru, region on the Pacific Ocean in the Lima metropolitan area. Callao is Peru's chief seaport and home to its main airport, Jorge Chávez International Airport. Callao municipality consists o ...

Design and construction

''Victoria'' was one of the four sister ships (, and being the other three) ordered by the Pacific Steam Navigation Company in early 1900s to serve their South American routes. The ship was launched on August 2, 1902, and commissioned later the same year. As built, the ship was long ( between perpendiculars) and

abeam This glossary of nautical terms is an alphabetical listing of terms and expressions connected with ships, shipping, seamanship and navigation on water (mostly though not necessarily on the sea). Some remain current, while many date from the 17th t ...

, a mean draft of . ''Victoria'' was assessed at 5,967 GRT and . The vessel had a steel hull, and two 550

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 ...

triple-expansion steam engines, with cylinders of , , and diameter with a

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, that drove twin screw propellers, and moved the ship at up to . The vessel was designed to carry as many passengers as possible given her size. On her main deck, besides quarters for the crew, there were accommodations for about 120 second-class and over 140 third-class passengers. On her spar-deck there were smoking and dining rooms for 30 second-class and about 70 first-class passengers. Her promenade deck boasted a spacious dining saloon for 130 and rooms for 42 first-class passengers.The Advertiser (Adelaide), September 12, 1902, p.6 Overall, the vessel could accommodate 106 first, 104 second and 595 third class passengers.

Operational history

Upon entering the service ''Victoria'' was put on England to South America route and departed for her maiden voyage on March 5, 1903 to Valparaiso.London Standard, March 6, 1903, p.10 Upon arrival at Valparaiso she was immediately put on the Callao route. On July 23, 1908 ''Victoria'' sailed from

Coronel Coronel may refer to: * Archaic and Spanish variant of colonel * Coronel, Chile, a port city in Chile * Battle of Coronel off the Chilean coast during World War I * The World War II German auxiliary cruiser HSK ''Coronel'', see German night fig ...

at around 11:50 for

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. At around 12:20 a dense fog set in the

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forcing the ship to reduce her speed. At 12:35 a whistle was heard on the starboard side, prompting the captain to order engines full stop. At 12:42 a steamer appeared in sight crossing from the starboard to port side. The engines were put in full speed astern but about 90 seconds later the ships collided. The ship, ''Victoria'' collided with, was 2,213 GRT Chilean steamer , on a passage from Tocopilla for

Lota Lota may refer to: Places *Lota (crater), a crater on Mars *Lota, Chile, a city and commune in Chile *Lota, Punjab, village in Pakistan *Lota, Queensland, a suburb of Brisbane, Australia **Lota railway station, a station on the Cleveland line **Lo ...

with a cargo of copper ore. foundered almost immediately after the collision, but her crew was saved in their entirety by ''Victoria'' and landed at

. TBC

Notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Victoria 1902 ships Steamships of the United Kingdom Merchant ships of the United Kingdom