SS Shieldhall

SS Shieldhall is a preserved steamship that operates from Southampton. She is the largest operational historic steamship in Europe and one of the last reciprocating steam engined ships built, using technology that dated back to the last quarter of the 19th century and which was obsolete at the time of her construction. She spent her working life as one of the "Clyde sludge boats", making regular trips from Shieldhall in Glasgow, Scotland, down the River Clyde and Firth of Clyde past the Isle of Arran, to dump treated sewage sludge at sea. These steamships had a tradition, dating back to the First World War, of taking organised parties of passengers on their trips during the summer. SS Shieldhall has been preserved and offers cruises to the paying public.

History
The 1,972-ton Shieldhall was laid down in October 1954, built by Lobnitz & Co. of Renfrew who also constructed the two triple expansion steam engines which are set vertically in a similar way to the much larger engines on the RMS Titanic. By the 1950s Lobnitz usually built its engines with enclosed crankcases but the Shieldhall was deliberately fitted with traditional open-crank engines. Glasgow Corporation had long allowed day-trippers access to the engine room of its ships while at sea and the older-style engines allowed passengers to see the workings of the engines in operation.

She was built on the classic lines of a 1920s steam tanker with a traditional midships wheelhouse. The hull was of riveted and welded construction with a slightly raked stem and a cruiser stern. Her length is 268 ft and breadth 44 ft. Accommodation was provided for 80 passengers. She entered service in October 1955 and was operated by Glasgow Corporation to transport treated sewage sludge down the Clyde to be dumped at sea. She and her sister ships were jocularly known as Clyde banana boats as the livery resembled that of a well known banana shipping company.

In 1976 after 21 years of service on the Clyde, Shieldhall was laid up, and in the following year was bought by the Southern Water Authority. Once at Southampton, Shieldhall would take sludge from the areas of Marchwood, Totton and Woolston, then dump the sludge in an area south of the Nab Tower.

Due to rising fuel prices she was withdrawn from service on 5 July 1985. Memos from Southern Water show that while the company was trialling a new ship to take over the Shieldhall's duties, Shieldhall was to be laid up. Once the new ships were proved to be viable for Southern Water, Shieldhall was to be broken up for scrap.

As early as 25 July 1985, discussions opened between Southern Water, The City Council, Associated British Ports and Southampton University Industrial Archeolgical Society to preserve the Steamship Shieldhall.

Preservation
From 1985 until 1988, while the preservation society raised the money to buy the ship, Shieldhall remained in the custody of Southern Water. Then on 28 July 1988, Shieldhall was handed over to the preservation society, now named The Solent Steam Packet Limited, which operates as a charity.

Shieldhall originally was berthed in Ocean Village, plans were underway at the time for there to be a maritime heritage centre, in which she would be an active working museum. However, the plans for the heritage centre never came to fruition. Shieldhall now docks at Berth 110 in Southamptons Western Docks.

Shieldhall's first voyage in her now preserved state was conducted on 9 June 1991.

All work associated with the Society and Shieldhall was and still is carried out by unpaid volunteers. The remaining Glasgow sludge boats kept going into the 1990s, when changing environmental standards led to new ways of treating the sludge.

She has been restored to sea-going condition, and is listed in the Core Collection of the National Historic Fleet. Shieldhall is now a frequent sight around the Solent running excursions, crewed by volunteers. She has been to the Netherlands for the Dordrecht Steam Festival and has been at International Festivals of the Sea at Bristol and Portsmouth. Passengers are encouraged to visit the bridge and see the engine room, getting an understanding of the days of steam.

In July 2005, Shieldhall made a return visit to the Clyde, taking part in the River Festival in Glasgow, and berthing at Custom House Quay, Greenock. She made a number of excursions, taking passengers on cruises from Greenock on her old route down the Clyde to Arran.

In 2012, to mark the centenary of the sinking of Titanic and to honour all lives lost at sea over the previous century, Shieldhall was repainted in White Star Line livery of black hull, white upper works, and buff funnel. Since 2012, the ship has continued this look.

A £1.4 million grant from the Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF) was announced, in April 2013, for essential hull works to meet modern regulations, improved passenger facilities and interpretation. Further grants were made in 2019 and 2020.

In September 2023, Shieldhall met with the paddle steamer PS Waverley off Bournemouth as Shieldhall made her way from Poole to Southampton, giving the rare sight of two ClydeBuilt ships sailing together on the South Coast. Also in 2023, Shieldhall was the official Committee vessel for the 2023 Ocean Globe race. As the 'guest starting vessel', her whistle, alongside a cannon at Cowes, sounded to signal the start of the race. Shieldhall sailed with sailing experts, enthusiasts, photographers and some of the competitors' families onboard, alongside the racers down towards The Needles, before returning to Southampton.

In popular culture
Sheildhall has made many television appearances, including in Casualty, Lovejoy, Fred Dibnah's Age of Steam, and Coltrane's Planes and Automobiles. She represented the Titanic in Myths of the Titanic and played a Spanish ship, Begona, in Floella Benjamin's Coming to England. In 1999, the ship was used in Rede Globo's Brazilian telenovela Terra Nostra, playing a fictional Italian ship Andrea I.

Film appearances include Angela's Ashes and Bright Young Things.