Royal Mail Steam Packet Co

<body topmargin=0 leftmargin=0 marginheight=0 marginwidth=0> <table cellpadding=0 cellspacing=0 border=0 height="100%"><tr> <td valign="top" width=185 BGCOLOR="#003333" TEXT="#F7F7FF" background="040b9c00dduajq.jpg"> <div> <B> <TABLE BORDER="0" CELLPADDING="2" CELLSPACING="0" WIDTH="70" BORDERCOLORLIGHT="#C0C0C0" BORDERCOLORDARK="#808080" FRAME="BOX" RULES="ALL" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0" > <tR> <tD VALIGN=TOP HEIGHT= 76 WIDTH="66"><IMG BORDER="0" SRC="1x1.gif" HEIGHT="76" ALIGN="bottom" WIDTH="66" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></tD> </tR> </TABLE></B></div> <DIV ALIGN="LEFT"></DIV> <div> <B>Falmouth Packets</B></div> <div> <A HREF="id38.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Edmund Dummers Packet Service"><U><B>Dummer's Packets</B></U></A></div> <div> <B>Post-Office Packets</B></div> <div> <A HREF="id27.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Royal Navy Packets (1823 1850)"><U><B>Admiralty Packets</B></U></A><B> (sail)</B></div> <div> <A HREF="id28.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="H.M.Paddle Steamers "><U><B>Admiralty Steamers</B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="id57.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Branch Packets "><U><B>Branch Packets </B></U></A></div> <div> (to all of the above)</div> <bR> <div> <A HREF="id29.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Packet Routes"><U><B>Falmouth Packet Routes</B></U></A></div> <bR> <div> <B>Steam Contractors</B></div> <div> <A HREF="id81.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Cunard"><U><B>Cunard</B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="id82.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Peninsular Steam Navigation Co"><U><B>P&O</B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="id80.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Royal Mail Steam Packet Co"><U><B>RMSP</B></U></A></div> <bR> <div> <B>Other Routes</B></div> <div> <A HREF="id79.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Other Packet Routes Europe"><U><B>Harwich</B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="id79.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Other Packet Routes Europe"><U><B>Dover</B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="id79.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Other Packet Routes Europe"><U><B>Holyhead</B></U></A></div> <bR> <div> <A HREF="id23.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Packet Commanders"><U><B>Packet Commanders</B></U></A></div> <bR> <div> <A HREF="id25.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Post Office Packet Agents"><U><B>Packet Agents</B></U></A></div> <bR> <div> <A HREF="id70.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="GPO PMGs Secretaries"><U><B>GPO</B></U></A></div> <bR> <div> <A HREF="id73.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="The American Post Office"><U><B>American Post Office</B></U></A></div> <bR> <bR> <bR> </td> <td valign="top" BGCOLOR="#FFFBF0" TEXT="#080000"> <div> <FONT SIZE="5" COLOR="#000000" FACE="Arial" ><B>Falmouth Packet Archives 1688-1850</B></FONT>    |     <A HREF="index.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Falmouth Packet Archives 16881850"><U>home</U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="id23.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Packet Commanders"><U>Packet Commanders</U></A>   |   <A HREF="id38.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Edmund Dummers Packet Service"><U>Edmund Dummer's Packet Service</U></A>   |   <A HREF="id22.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="PostOffice Packets"><U>Post-Office Packets</U></A>   |   <A HREF="id27.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Royal Navy Packets (1823 1850)"><U>Royal Navy Packets (1823 -1850)</U></A>   |   <A HREF="id28.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="H.M.Paddle Steamers "><U>H.M.Paddle Steamers </U></A>   |   <A HREF="id81.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Cunard"><U>Cunard</U></A>   |   <A HREF="id82.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Peninsular Steam Navigation Co"><U>Peninsular Steam Navigation Co</U></A>   |   <B>Royal Mail Steam Packet Co</B>   |   <A HREF="id84.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Passengers (Various)"><U>Passengers (Various)</U></A>   |   <A HREF="id154.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Hotels"><U>Hotels</U></A></div> <div> Royal Mail Steam Packet Co</div> <div> West India Steam Packet Company </div> <div> Royal Mail Steam Company</div> <bR> <div> <B>Background</B></div> <bR> <div>      In January <B>1842</B>, <B>ten sailing packets were taken off the West Indies route</B>, being replaced by contract steamers operated by P & O, (as the <B>Royal Mail Steam Navigation Company</B>), <FONT SIZE="2" COLOR="#BF0000" FACE="Arial" ><B>the only </B><B>sailing</B><B> packets then remaining being on the Falmouth route to the Brazils.</B></FONT>  </div> <bR> <div>      Despite the disastrous start to the steamer service, lost vessels, complaints due to the unreliable schedules etc., Government was determined to support the introduction of the line - to the extent of subsidising the first period with £158,000, over and above the £240,000 contract fee, which was, in itself, <B>five times the cost of running sailing packets</B>.  <B>Cunard had been operating twice a month successfully between Liverpool-Halifax & Boston</B>,  P & O same weekly between Falmouth and the Iberian Peninsula (as Peninsular Steam Navigation Company) and monthly from Falmouth to Malta & Egypt, (as Peninsular & Oriental Steam Navigation Company) with the India mails. </div> <div>      Despite steamers being propelled by paddle, and ill-suited to sailing without power, when they ran out of coals, they provided what seemed a more reliable service, with vastly improved accommodation and could cope with larger numbers of passengers.  Unlike the sailing packets, which were forbidden from carrying cargo other than specie, gold, silver diamonds etc., (<I>Maximum 8 tons</I>), the contract steamers began to carry Serons of Cochineal & Indigo inwards from the West Indies, and cargoes of fruit from the Peninsula - even Spanish cattle! </div> <bR> <div> [FP 30/5/1840 refers to <I>Vulture </I>steamer, London - St. Petersburg, with £150,000 of Cochineal & Indigo, lost near the island of Oesel 8 May,1840 - indicating the trade & value of such commodities.]</div> <bR> <div> FP 8 January,<B>1842</B>: On and from 1January,1842, mails between England & West Indies, Mexico, Cuba etc., hitherto conveyed by Her Majesty's (sailing) packets, will be forwarded twice in every month, by the contract steam vessels of the Royal Steam Packet Company, which will sail from <B>Southampton</B>, calling at<B> Falmouth</B>. These mails will be made up in London on the 1st & 15th and will be forwarded to Falmouth. </div> <div> It is expected that branch packets shall touch with mails at; </div> <div> Pernambuco [Recife  Brazil], </div> <div> St. Juan de Nicaragua [San Juan del Norte, a.k.a.'Greytown'.], </div> <div> Maracaibo [10.42N 71.50W.] Venezuela, </div> <div> Bahia [12.56S. 38.27W., San Salvador, Brazil] and,</div> <div> Honda [05.30N. 75.10W., Colombia].  </div> <bR> <div> Newspapers are liable to a charge of 2 pence  each.  </div> <div> The Steam Packets will also touch at;</div> <div> New Orleans [30.0N  90.0W., Louisiana]</div> <div> Savannah [32.2N. 81.7W., Georgia] </div> <div> Charlestown [32.50N. 79.58W., (sp. Charleston) South Carolina] </div> <div> New York [ 40.20N. 74.0W.,] and, </div> <div> Halifax [44.38N. 63.35W.  Nova Scotia.]  </div> <div> Only letters or papers marked "by W.I.Steam packet" accepted (for the latter destinations, otherwise routed via Liverpool [Cunard] etc.</div> <div> On the return voyage, the packets will touch at Bermuda and at Fayal, and a branch packet will touch twice in every month from Fayal to Madeira [Funchal].</div> <div> [Note: This plan soon went awry and changes were made due to delays, missed connections etc. etc.].</div> <bR> <bR> <div> FP 22 January,<B>1842:</B> "Peninsular & Oriental Steam Navigation Company"</div> <div> The vessels of this company employed 4 years 3 months carrying mails from England to the Peninsula across Biscay, during five winter seasons, made 444 passages and 700,000 miles - only 6 put back; 2 from hull damage and 4 machinery.</div> <div> <B>Founded as the London & Dublin Steam Company</B>, subsequently extended itself into the <B>Peninsular Company</B> in 1837 and since September 1840 has been incorporated as the <B>Peninsular & Oriental Steam Navigation Company.</B></div> <div> The original proprietors are the largest stockholders.  Upwards of 200,000 passengers have been carried without the loss of a single life or personal injury of any kind.</div> <bR> <div> [Note 1: The company omitted to say that on the first voyage of their contract, Falmouth to Gibraltar, their steamer <I>Don Juan</I> ran aground in fog near Gib. on 15/9/1837 and was a total loss.. although no lives were lost and no blame attached to Lt. Ingledue (RN).]</div> <div>  </div> <div> [Note 2: Following this proud announcement, the company won contracts to provide steamers to the West Indies & Mexico, employing 8 vessels... with an almost crippling effect on the company as vessels suffered damage, and three, <I>Medina, Isis</I> & <I>Solway</I> (33 died) were lost in 10 months and the service was considered most unreliable.... without the (following) compensation approved by Government it is unlikely the company could have survived beyond 1843.]</div> <bR> <div> FP  2 July,<B>1842</B>: <B>RMS Packet Company to give up Halifax & New York</B> - <FONT SIZE="2" COLOR="#BF0000" FACE="Arial" >[Due to needing 11 instead of 14 steamers and having their application for a further £60,000 p.a. turned down by the Treasury.]</FONT></div> <bR> <div> FP 30 July, <B>1842</B>: Royal West Indian Mail Steam Packet Company. </div> <div> From information which has reached us, we understand this company will shortly cease to exist.  The speculation has proved a complete failure.  Seeing that one of the objectives was to inflict a serious blow at the interests of the port of Falmouth, we cannot feel any particular regret. <A NAME="no_regrets"><IMG BORDER="0" SRC="1x1.gif" HEIGHT="1" ALIGN="bottom" WIDTH="1" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0" ></A></div> <bR> <div> FP 6 August, 1842: <I><B>We hear that the Government is about to re-commission ten of the 10-gun packet brigs,, as before to West Indies with mails</B></I>.  This much is certain, estimates have been requested as to how short a time may be necessary to refit 10 of these vessels.</div> <div> Quoted from the <I>Globe</I> 2 Aug. 1842. </div> <div> and, from the <I>Plymouth Journal</I> 4 Aug.;</div> <div> 12 packets are to be brought forward for commission viz.: ALERT,   STAR, PANDORA, DELIGHT, HOPE, LAPWING, LYRA, MAGNET, PIGEON, SHELDRAKE, TYRIAN & SEAGULL..</div> <div> We have no direct information respecting the intention of Government with regard to resuming the conveyance of the mails to and from the West Indies, but we have reason to believe such a mode of transit will shortly be adopted.  The Royal Mail Steam Company having altogether failed to accomplish a speedier and better conveyance of the mail & passengers.  It is calculated that this company, on winding up, will be losers of nearly half a Million Sterling.</div> <bR> <bR> <bR> <div> <B>1867</B>: The contract for the West India Mails appears to have been reconsidered.<FONT SIZE="2" COLOR="#0000FF" FACE="Arial" ><A HREF="id121_1867___wi_mail_route_contract.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Falmouth Docks"><U>(Falmouth Docks</U></A></FONT>)</div> <bR> <div> <B>Royal Mail Steam Packets</B> </div> <bR> <div> RMSP  <I>  Avon </I>     (1842)</div> <div> RMSP    <I>Clyde</I>       (1841)</div> <div> RMSP     <I> Dee</I>     (1842)</div> <div> RMSP    <I>Forth</I>     (1842)</div> <div> RMSP  <I>  Isis</I>     (1842)</div> <div> RMSP   <I> Medina</I>      (1842)</div> <div> RMSP    <I>Medway (1982)</I>)      </div> <div> RMSP   <I> Severn</I>     (1842)</div> <div> RMSP    <I>Solway</I>     (1842)</div> <div> RMSP    <I>Tay</I>      (1842)      </div> <div> RMSP  <I> <a href="HTMLobj-458/RMSP_TEVIOT__1842_.doc"><u>Teviot</u> </a>  </I> <A NAME="teviot"><IMG BORDER="0" SRC="1x1.gif" HEIGHT="1" ALIGN="bottom" WIDTH="1" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0" ></A><I> </I>(1842)</div> <div> RMSP   <I>Thames</I>  <A NAME="thames"><IMG BORDER="0" SRC="1x1.gif" HEIGHT="1" ALIGN="bottom" WIDTH="1" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0" ></A> (1842)</div> <div> RMSP    <I>Trent </I>     (1842)</div> <div> RMSP    <I>Tweed</I>     (1842)</div> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> </td> </tr></table></body>