The Fleets
Commenced shipowning in 1840 and traded to India with sailing vessels. By 1852 voyages were being made to Valparaiso and the West Indies, Australia and New Zealand and later between India, New York and the UK. In 1901 the company was sold to J. R. Ellerman and became Ellerman's City Line.
Many thanks to Ted Finch for his assistance in collecting this data. The following list was extracted from various sources. This is not an all inclusive list but should only be used as a guide.
Routes
Sail
- Glasgow - India via the Cape of Good Hope.
- Occasional UK - West Indies and South America.
- UK - Australia and New Zealand
- Calcutta - New York - Glasgow.
Steam
- Glasgow - Liverpool - Port Said - Suez - Bombay - Karachi - Kathiawar ports - East & South Africa - Continent - UK ports - Glasgow.
- Glasgow - Suez - Aden - Vizagapatam - Chalna - Calcutta - Colombo - UK and Continental ports..
Sailing Ships
| Name | Built | Additional Information | GRT |
|---|---|---|---|
| Asia | 1846 | ship, 1862 sank off Cape of Good Hope. | 450 |
| Ballengeich | 1849 | ship, 1855 purchased from J. Tod, Glasgow, 1859 wrecked Madras. | 478 |
| City of Amoy | 1863 | barque, 1882 sold to Bramwell & Gardener, Glasgow renamed Amoy. | 990 |
| City of Athens (1) | 1867 | ship, 1900 sold to J. Johanson, Oslo renamed Athena. | 1,198 |
| City of Benares (1) | 1853 | ship, 1865 destroyed by fire at Calcutta. | 692 |
| City of Benares (2) | 1865 | ship, 1881 sold to G. Traill & Sons, Glasgow renamed Ruthin, rigged as barque. | 1,182 |
| City of Benares (3) | 1882 | ship, 1900 sold to G. Revell, Finland. | 1,574 |
| City of Berlin | 1864 | ship, 1881 sold to T. C. Guthrie, Glasgow renamed Dalswinton, rigged as barque. | 1,011 |
| City of Bombay (1) | 1862 | barque, 1882 sold to Capt. J. Rhind, Glasgow renamed Bombay. | 990 |
| City of Brussels | 1863 | ship, 1881 sold to H. Hogarth, Ardrossan renamed Brussels. | 990 |
| City of Calcutta (1) | 1850 | ship, 1859 wrecked Calcutta. | 541 |
| City of Calcutta (2) | 1860 | barque, 1881 sold to Capt. C. Barrie, Dundee renamed Calcutta. | 984 |
| City of Canton | 1857 | ship, 1877 sold to J. & R. Wilson, Glasgow. | 908 |
| City of Cashmere | 1863 | barque, 1882 wrecked Timaru, New Zealand. | 979 |
| City of Corinth (1) | 1870 | ship, 1889 sunk in collision with barque TRAFALGAR off Isle of Wight. | 1,219 |
| City of Delhi (1) | 1857 | ship, 1867 wrecked Dungeness. | 813 |
| City of Delhi (2) | 1867 | ship, 1900 sold to J. Johanson, Oslo renamed Ailsa. |
1,199 |
| City of Dover | 1868 | ship, 1874 sold. | 1,199 |
| City of Dublin (1) | 1855 | ship, 1878 wrecked Portland, Oregon. | 813 |
| City of Edinburgh (1) | 1852 | ship, 1867 sold to J. McAlister, 1869 wrecked in Bay of Bengal. | 599 |
| City of Edinburgh (2) | 1868 | ship, 1874 sank in collision with FRENCH EMPIRE at Calcutta. |
1,206 |
| City of Florence | 1867 | ship, 1900 wrecked Half Moon Bay, California. | 1,198 |
| City of Foochow | 1864 | ship, 1877 wrecked off Flinder's Island, Bass Strait. | 1,034 |
| City of Glasgow (1) | 1848 | ship, 1866 sold to Connell & Co., Glasgow. | 509 |
| City of Glasgow (2) | 1867 | ship, 1900 sold to J. Johanson, Oslo renamed Albania. |
1,168 |
| City of Hankow | 1869 | ship, 1900 sold to G. J. Robertson, Sydney. | 1,195 |
| City of Lahore | 1864 | ship, 1883 sold to T. C. Guthrie, Glasgow renamed Durisdeer. | 988 |
| City of London (1) | 1851 | ship, 1867 sold to Hendry & Co., Greenock. | 540 |
| City of Lucknow (1) | 1858 | ship, 1861 wrecked Belfast Lough. | 869 |
| City of Lucknow (2) | 1869 | ship, 1889 sold to Knohr & Burchard, Hamburg renamed Reinbek. | 1,195 |
| City of Madras (1) | 1855 | ship, 1856 wrecked near Stranraer. | 800 |
| City of Madras (2) | 1859 | barque, 1881 sold to Montgomerie & Workman renamed Duke of Connaught. | 999 |
| City of Madras (3) | 1882 | ship, 1900 sold to Hatfield, Cameron & Co, Glasgow renamed Wemyss Bay. | 1,577 |
| City of Madrid (1) | 1869 | ship, 1888 sold to S. Goldberg & Sons, Swansea renamed Agnes Lilian. | 1,191 |
| City of Manchester (1) | 1854 | ship, 1871 sold to J. McAlister. | 766 |
| City of Nankin | 1859 | barque, 1881 sold to Guthrie, McDonald & Hood, Glasgow. | 986 |
| City of Ningpo | 1862 | barque, 1881 sold to Capt. J. Rhind, Glasgow renamed Kinloss. | 986 |
| City of Paris (1) | 1862 | ship, 1882 sold to G. Traill & Sons, Glasgow renamed Kiandra. | 990 |
| City of Pekin | 1858 | ship, 1873 sunk in collision off Cape Verde Islands. | 893 |
| City of Perth (1) | 1857 | ship, 1867 sold to McPhail, Connell & Co, Glasgow. | 466 |
| City of Perth (2) | 1866 | ship, 1882 blown ashore at Timaru, 1883 sold to New Zealand Shipping Co. repaired and renamed Turakina. | 1,188 |
| City of Seringapatam | 1866 | ship, 1876 wrecked Cape Verde Islands. | 1,190 |
| City of Shanghai | 1860 | barque, 1881 sold to Capt. Bramwell renamed Nith. | 989 |
| City of Sparta (1) | 1870 | ship, 1889 sold to S. Goldberg & Sons, Swansea renamed Florence Stella. | 1,193 |
| City of Tanjore | 1855 | ship, 1879 sold to T. C. Guthrie, Glasgow. | 799 |
| City of Venice (1) | 1867 | ship, 1871 wrecked Rodriguez Island, Mauritius. | 1,199 |
| City of Vienna (1) | 1866 | ship, 1881 sold to T. C. Guthrie, Glasgow renamed Dunscore. | 990 |
| City of York (1) | 1859 | ship, 1865 lost on voyage Calcutta - Glasgow. | 569 |
| City of York (2) | 1869 | ship, 1899 wrecked Fremantle. | 1,194 |
| Constellation | 1839 | barque, 1848 sold to Capt. P McPhee. | 334 |
| Majestic | 1846 | ship, 1860 sold to R. & J. Craig. | 565 |
| Oriental | 1843 | barque, 1846 sold to Capt. J. Neill. | 346 |
Steam Ships
| Name | Built | Additional Information | GRT |
|---|---|---|---|
| City of Agra | 1879 | 1897 wrecked in gale near Finisterre; loss of 31 lives. | 3,274 |
| City of Ankara | 1968 | ex- Sangro, 1973 transferred from Wilson Line renamed City of Ankara, 1978 sold to Panama renamed Rezeki. | 1,523 |
| City of Athens (2) | 1899 | 1901 taken over by JRE, 1917 mined and sunk off Capetown. | 5,159 |
| City of Athens (3) | 1955 | ex- Beechwood, 1955-57 chartered from Soc de Nav. Magliveras, Panama. | 8,965 |
| City of Athens (4) | 1967 | ex- Salmo, 1973 transferred from Wilson Line renamed City of Athens, 1978 sold to Panama renamed Aldebaran II. | 1,523 |
| City of Bagdad | 1919 | 1940 captured and sunk in Indian Ocean by German raider Atlantis. | 7,506 |
| City of Benares (4) | 1902 | 1914-18 troopship, 1933 scrapped. | 6,984 |
| City of Benares (5) | 1936 | 1940 torpedoed and sunk by U.48 in North Atlantic with the loss of 248 lives including 77 child evacuees. | 11,081 |
| City of Birmingham (1) | 1917 | 1940 mined and sunk off Spurn Head. | 6,182 |
| City of Birmingham (2) | 1949 | 1971 scrapped. | 7,599 |
| City of Bombay (2) | 1885 | 1901 taken over by JRE, 1903, 1906, 1907 chartered to Allan Line, 1908 scrapped. |
4,492 |
| City of Bristol | 1943 | 1961 sold to Far Eastern Nav. Corp., renamed Tung Lee. | 8,459 |
| City of Calcutta (3) | 1881 | 1901 sold to Wee Bin & Co., Singapore renamed Hong Moh. | 3,836 |
| City of Calcutta (4) | 1903 | 1914-18 troopship, 1934 sold and renamed Calcut for voyage to shipbreakers in Japan. | 7,512 |
| City of Calcutta (5) | 1940 | 1961 sold to Grosvenor Shipping Co, Hong Kong renamed Grosvenor Pilot. | 8,063 |
| City of Cambridge (1) | 1870 | 1881 sold to Clan Line renamed Clan Maclean. | 2,329 |
| City of Cambridge (2) | 1882 | 1917 torpedoed and sunk by UC-17 off Algeria. | 3,788 |
| City of Cambridge (3) | 1920 | 1934 wrecked in China Sea. | 7,058 |
| City of Canterbury (1) | 1875 | 1896 wrecked at Calcutta. | 3,212 |
| City of Canterbury (2) | 1922 | 1940-46 troopship, 1953 scrapped. | 8,421 |
| City of Canterbury (3) | 1976 | 1981 sold to Greece renamed Arc Aeolos. | 7,690 |
| City of Carthage | 1873 | 1890 sold to N. McLean, Glasgow renamed Straits of Magellan | 2,651 |
| City of Colombo | 1956 | 1977 sold to Ben Line renamed Benmhor. | 7,739 |
| City of Corinth (2) | 1898 | 1901 taken over by JRE, 1912 sold to Cie.de Nav. Sud-Atlantique, Bordeaux renamed Sequana. | 5,443 |
| City of Corinth (3) | 1965 | ex- Salerno, 1973 transferred from Wilson Line renamed City of Corinth, 1978 sold to Perivale Maritime Inc., renamed Pyrgos Star. | 1,559 |
| City of Delhi (3) | 1901 | 1923 sold to Greece renamed Margarita. | 4,443 |
| City of Delhi (4) | 1925 | 1956 scrapped. | 7,443 |
| City of Dieppe | 1929 | 1941 stationed at Freetown as convoy storeship, 1956 sold to Eastman Shipping Co, Nassau renamed Eastman. | 7,958 |
| City of Dublin (2) | 1888 | 1900 sold to E. Haselhurst, London renamed Clavering. | 3,267 |
| City of Dundee | 1890 | 1901 taken over by JRE, 1908 sunk in collision with Elders & Fyffes MATINA in St. George's Channel. | 3,427 |
| City of Durban | 1978 | container ship, 1983-4 chartered to P & O Line renamed Portland Bay, 1984 reverted to City of Durban, 1986 transferred to Associated Container Lines as ACT 8. | 53,790 |
| City of Durham | 1945 | 1962 sold to Taiwan renamed Yonlee. | 7,253 |
| City of Edinburgh (3) | 1876 | 1900 sold to Wee Bin & Co., Singapore renamed Hong Wan I. | 3,230 |
| City of Edinburgh (4) | 1899 | ex- Maplemore, 1901 purchased from Wm. Johnstone & Co, Liverpool renamed City of Edinburgh, 1914-18 taken over as troopship, 1929 scrapped. | 7,803 |
| City of Edinburgh (5) | 1938 | 1943 converted to Landing Ship Headquarters for Pacific, renamed HMS Lothian, 1946 returned to owners, 1961 sold to Hong Kong renamed Castle Mount. | 8,036 |
| City of Edinburgh (6) | 1973 | container ship, 1989 still in service. | 58,284 |
| City of Exeter (1) | 1914 | 1914-15 troopship, 1950 scrapped. | 9,447 |
| City of Exeter (2) | 1974 | ex- Strathdare, 1976 transferred from P & O Line renamed City of Exeter, 1980 sold to Greece renamed Phoevos. | 9,014 |
| City of Glasgow (3) | 1906 | 1914-18 troopship, 1918 torpedoed and sunk by UB-118 off Tuskar Rock. | 6,547 |
| City of Hartlepool | 1979 | 1984-86 chartered to Iceland SS Co. renamed Laxfoss, 1986 renamed City of Manchester, 1987 transferred to Cunard-Ellerman. | 1,560 |
| City of Hongkong | 1924 | 1939-45 troopship, 1951 sold to Grimaldi, Genoa renamed Centauro. | 9,606 |
| City of Ipswich | 1979 | 1981-86 chartered to Manchester Liners renamed Manchester Fulmar, 1983 reverted to City of Ipswich, 1984 renamed Liverpool Star, 1987 transferred to Cunard-Ellerman. | 1,560 |
| City of Karachi (1) | 1905 | 1934 renamed Karachi for voyage to shipbreakers in Japan. | 5,547 |
| City of Karachi (2) | 1937 | 1941 bombed and sunk off Crete. | 7,139 |
| City of Karachi (3) | 1951 | 1972 sold to Panama renamed Kavo Kolones. | 7,320 |
| City of Khios | 1878 | 1901 taken over by JRE, 1914 seized by Turkey, 1915 sunk as blockship at Smyrna. | 3,241 |
| City of Limassol | 1960 | ex- Rapallo, 1973 transferred from Wilson Line renamed City of Limassol, 1977 sold to Lebanon renamed Beiteddine. | 3,042 |
| City of Lisbon | see City of Perth 1978. | ||
| City of London (2) | 1876 | 1900 sold to Wee Bin & Co, Singapore renamed Hong Bee. | 3,212 |
| City of London (3) | 1907 | 1916 converted to Armed Merchant Cruiser, 1919 returned to owners, 1939 taken over as troopship, 1946 scrapped. | 8,815 |
| City of Lucknow (3) | 1896 | ex- Guyana, 1898 purchased from Caw, Prentice, Clapperton & Co, Glasgow, 1901 taken over by JRE, 1914 requisitioned as troopship, 1916 torpedoed and sunk by U.21 east of Malta. | 3,669 |
| City of Lucknow (4) | 1908 | ex- Heluan, Kosmos Line, Hamburg, 1920 war reparations ship renamed City of Lucknow, 1926 sold to Hamburg America Line renamed Heluan. | 7,248 |
| City of Madrid (2) | 1901 | 1927 sold to Italy renamed Nitro. | 4,901 |
| City of Manchester (2) | 1873 | 1885 lost off Ushant. | 3,126 |
| City of Manchester (3) | 1903 | 1933 scrapped. | 5,551 |
| City of Manchester (4) | 1950 | 1971 sold to Panama renamed Kavo Yerakes. | 7,583 |
| City of Manchester (5) | see City of Hartlepool 1979 |
||
| City of Mandalay | 1925 | 1939 torpedoed and sunk by U.46 off Finisterre. | 7,049 |
| City of Mecca | 1871 | 1881 sold to Clan Line renamed Clan Macleod. | 2,290 |
| City of Milan | 1907 | ex- Plauen, Deutsche-Australische Line, 1921 war reparations, renamed City of Milan, 1930 sold to Cia Colonia de Nav., Portugal renamed Ganda. | 4,222 |
| City of Nagpur | 1922 | 1941 torpedoed and sunk by U.75 while 900 miles west of Fastnet. | 10,146 |
| City of Oran | 1915 | 1943 torpedoed by U.196 off Mozambique, sunk by escorts. | 7,784 |
| City of Oxford (1) | 1870 | 1881 sold to Clan Line renamed Clan Macduff. | 2,319 |
| City of Oxford (2) | 1882 | 1901 taken over by JRE, 1914 taken over by Admiralty and converted to dummy of battleship HMS ST VINCENT, 1919 reverted to JRE (Bucknall Line), 1924 scrapped. | 3,959 |
| City of Oxford (3) | 1948 | 1976 sold to Panama renamed Union Arabia. | 7,593 |
| City of Oxford (4) | 1981 | 1983 chartered to Iceland SS Co. renamed Bakkafoss, 1988 renamed Oxford by Cunard-Ellerman. | 1,560 |
| City of Paris (2) | 1907 | 1915 troopship, 1917 torpedoed and sunk by UC-35 off Cap d'Antibes; loss of 122 lives. | 9,191 |
| City of Paris (3) | 1922 | 1939-46 troopship, 1947 returned to commercial service, 1956 scrapped. | 10,840 |
| City of Patras | 1967 | ex- Silvio, 1973 transferred from Wilson Line renamed City of Patras, 1978 sold to Ghana renamed City of Tema. | 1,523 |
| City of Perth (3) | 1890 | 1901 taken over by JRE, 1917 torpedoed and sunk by U.70 while 200 miles from Fastnet. | 3,427 |
| City of Perth (4) | 1949 | 1967 sold to Greece renamed Elenif. |
7,547 |
| City of Perth (5) | 1978 | 1986 renamed City of Lisbon, 1987 transferred to Cunard-Ellerman. | 1,560 |
| City of Plymouth | 1978 | 1987 transferred to Cunard-Ellerman. | 1,559 |
| City of Poona | 1912 | 1934 scrapped. | 7,467 |
| City of Poonah | 1870 | 1878 sold to Temperley Line renamed Clyde. | 2,283 |
| City of Ripon | 1956 | 1978 sold to Ben Line renamed Benvannoch. | 7,713 |
| City of Simla | 1921 | 1940 torpedoed and sunk by U.138 off Hebrides. | 9,468 |
| City of Sparta (2) | 1896 | 1901 taken over by JRE, 1931 scrapped. | 5,179 |
| City of Sparta (3) | 1967 | ex- Sorrento, 1973 transferred from Wilson Line renamed City of Sparta, 1978 sold to Gracechurch Line, London renamed Gracechurch. | 1,523 |
| City of St. Albans | 1943 | ex- Frederick Banting, 1947 purchased from Ministry of Transport renamed City of St. Albans, 1959 sold to Panama renamed Marineri. | 7,264 |
| City of Valencia | 1908 | ex- Roda, Kosmos Line, Hamburg, 1920 war reparations, renamed City of Valencia, 1934 scrapped. | 7,329 |
| City of Venice (2) | 1875 | 1901 taken over with fleet by JRE., 1912 scrapped. | 3,372 |
| City of Venice (3) | 1924 | 1943 torpedoed and sunk by U.375 off Cape Tenez, Mediterranean while trooping. | 8,762 |
| City of Vienna (2) | 1890 | 1899-1902 Boer War transport, 1901 taken over by JRE, 1906 chartered to Allan Line for three voyages, 1913 sold to National Greek Line renamed Thessalonika. | 4,672 |
| City of Winchester | 1976 | 1981 sold to Greece renamed Arc Odysseus. | 7,691 |
| City of York (3) | 1904 | 1936 sold for scrap and renamed City for voyage to breakers. | 7,844 |
| City of York (4) | 1976 | 1976-1986 chartered from Lloyds Leasings Ltd, 1986 to Cyprus renamed Vicman. | 7,690 |