The Fleets
Stewart Taylor Williamson, founded the Willamson & Company in Hong Kong in 1922. Following his death in 1950 it passed to his sister Magdalene (Leana) with management in the hands of several trustees, notably James Robertson Mullion of Mullion & Co. The Inch Steamship Company was formed as a subsidiary of Williamson & Co. Ltd of Hong Kong in 1947 and thereafter all Williamson ships bore 'Inch' names, and finally finished in 1966 however some of the ships continued to trade with the same names but owned by the Douglas SS Company the last of them being sold in 1975 shortly before Mullions also ceased shipowning.
Many thanks to Henk Jungerius and Ted Finch for their 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.
Ships
| Name | Built | Additional Information | GRT |
|---|---|---|---|
| Incharran | 1944 | Built by Wm. Gray & Co.Ltd, West Hartlepool | ex- Empire Labrador built for Ministry Of War Transport, 1949 purchased by Williamson & Co., Hong Kong renamed Incharran, 1955 sold to Indo China Steam Nav. Co., London renamed Hosang, 1968 sold to C.T. Chu, Hong Kong renamed Golden River, 1970 scrapped. | 3,539 |
| Inchcastle | 1938 | Built by Short Brothers Ltd., Sunderland | ex- Anglo Indian built for Lawther Latta (Nitrate Producers Steam Ship Co.), ex- Tacoma City 1948, 1954 purchased from Reardon Smith renamed Inchcastle, 1966 sold to Wing On Steamship Co. renamed Lucky, 1969 scrapped at Kaohsiung. | 5,609 |
| Inchcrag | 1923 | Built by J. Readhead & Sons Ltd., South Shields | ex- Steelville built for Balls & Stansfield Ltd, Newcastle, ex- Francis Dawson 1937 for F.L.Dawson & Co., Newcastle, 8th March 1941 Fire damaged at Halifax, repaired as Empire Tyne for MOWT managed by F.L.Dawson & Co., 1947 purchased by Williamson & Co., Hong Kong renamed Inchcrag, 1952 scrapped at Hong Kong. | 3,724 |
| Inchdouglas | 1943 | Built by Wm. Doxford & Sons Ltd, Sunderland | ex- Jersey Hart built for Morel Ltd, Cardiff, ex- Stanpark 1945 for Stanhope SS Co. (J.A. Billmeir & Co.), ex- Queen Eleanor 1951 for T. Dunlop & Sons, Glasgow, 1956 purchased by Williamson & Co., Hong Kong renamed Inchdouglas, 1956 transferred to Douglas Steamship Co., 1970 scrapped at Kaohsiung. | 7,275 |
| Inchearn | 1943 | Built by Armstrong Whitworth & Co. Ltd, Newcastle | ex- Empire Flag built for Ministry Of War Transport, managed by New Zealand Shipping Co., London, ex- Carmia 1946 for Donaldson Line, ex- Victoria Star 1954 for Blue Star Line, 1955 purchased by Williamson & Co., Hong Kong renamed Inchearn, transferred to Douglas Steamship Co., 1966 scrapped at Osaka. | 7,024 |
| Inchislay | 1943 | Built by Walter Butler S.B, Superior, Wisc. | ex- Asa Eldridge, MOWT (Witherington & Everitt), London. 1951 Inchislay, Williamson & Co., Hong Kong, 1959 Ceylon, China Pacific Nav. Co., Hong Kong. 1962 Sang Balim, P. T. Maskapi Pelajaran Sang Sarka, Djakarta. 196? Sang Perkasa. Final fate unknown, deleted from Lloyds Register 1993. | 1,791 |
| Inchjura | 1934 | Built by J. Readhead & Sons Ltd, South Shields | ex- Tynebank, 1955 purchased from A. Weir & Co. (Bank Line) renamed Inchjura, 1959 scrapped at Osaka. | 4,651 |
| Inchkeith | 1923 | Built by J. Priestman & Co.Ltd, Sunderland | ex- Barbara built for Cliffside Shipping Co. Ltd. Newcastle, ex- Barbara Marie 1924, ex- Portsea 1925 for Sea SS Co.Ltd, ex- Cipro 1933 for Nivose Soc. di Nav, Italy, ex- Stella 1937 for Lauro & Montella, Naples, 14th August 1941 captured by British warship, 1941 renamed Empire Planet for MOWT managed by Golden Cross Line, Cardiff, 1947 purchased by Williamson & Co., Hong Kong renamed Inchkeith, 2nd March 1955 ashore Andaman Islands and declared total loss. | 4,290 |
| Inchleana | 1943 | Built by Lithgows Ltd., Port Glasgow | ex- Empire Treasure built for Ministry Of War Transport, ex- Gracia 1946 for Donaldson Line, ex- Oregon Star 1954 for Blue Star Line, 1955 purchased by Williamson & Co., Hong Kong renamed Inchleana, 1966 sold to National Shipping Corp., Pakistan renamed Tetulia, 1968 used as a barge, 1969 scrapped. | 7,040 |
| Inchmark | 1918 | Built by Northwest Steel Co., Portland, Oregon | ex- West Wauna built for United States Shipping Board, ex- Empire Grebe, 1947 purchased by Williamson & Co., Hong Kong renamed Inchmark, 29th May 1949 aground at 07.05S 132.03E and total loss. | 5,736 |
| Inchmay (1) | 1919 | Built by Todd Drydock & Construction Corp., Tacoma, Washington | ex- Higho built for United States Shipping Board, ex- Empire Gazelle for for Ministry Of War Transport, purchased by Williamson & Co., Hong Kong, 1947 transferred to Inch Steamship Co. renamed Inchmay, 1954 scrapped in Japan. | 4,828 |
| Inchmay (2) | 1944 | Built by Short Brothers Ltd., Sunderland | ex- Empire Cromer built for Ministry Of War Transport, ex- Corrientes1946 for Donaldson Line, 1954 to 1954 Blue Star Line, London, 1954 purchased by Williamson & Co., Hong Kong renamed Inchmay, 1966 sold to National Shipping Corp., Pakistan renamed Kaukhali, 1968 scrapped at Karachi. | 7,058 |
| Inchmull (1) | 1918 | Built by Ames SB & DD Co., Seattle, Washington | ex- Westport built for United States Shipping Board, ex- Empire Nightingale for MOWT 1941, 1947 purchased by Williamson & Co., Hong Kong renamed Inchmull, 1948 sold to Scindia Steam Navigation Co., India renamed Jalamatsaya, 1953 sold to USA owner renamed Ricnat, 1953 scrapped at Bo'ness. | 5,665 |
| Inchmull (2) | 1919 | Built by Detroit Shipbuilding Co., Wyandotte, Michigan | ex- Lake Inglenook built for United States Shipping Board, ex- Empire Tern for MOWT 1940, 1946 purchased by Williamson & Co., Hong Kong not renamed, 1949 transferred to Inch Steamship Co. renamed Inchmull, 1953 sold to Cia. Sigma, Panama renamed Sigma Star, 1953 scrapped at Osaka. | 2,606 |
| Inchmull (3) | 1941 | Built by Wm Doxford & Sons, Sunderland | ex- Empire Spray built for Ministry Of War Transport, managed by West Hartlepool S.N. Co., 1942 purchased by Dutch Government renamed Gerard Dou managed by Rotterdamsche Lloyd,1946 purchased by Stoomvaart Mij. Rotterdam, 1947 renamed Marken,1955 sold to Williamson & Co., Hong Kong renamed Inchmull, 1966 transferred to Douglas Steamship Co.,1969 scrapped at Kaohsiung. | 7,308 |
| Inchona (1) | 1914 | Built by Harland & Wolff Ltd, Glasgow | ex- Egori built for Elder Dempster, ex- Egorlock 1939, 1947 purchased from G.E. Marden (Wheelock & Co. mgrs), Shanghai not renamed, 1949 renamed Inchona, 1950 laid up, 1951 scrapped. | 4,995 |
| Inchona (2) | 1927 | Built by Barclay, Curle & Co. Ltd, Glasgow | ex- City of Hereford, 1955 purchased from Ellerman Hall Line renamed Inchona, 1956 sold to World Wide SS Co., London renamed Golden Alpha, 1959 scrapped. | 5,101 |
| Inchona (3) | 1960 | Built by Austin & Pickersgill Ltd., Sunderland | ex- Glanely, 1969 purchased from Atlantic Shipping & Trading Co. Ltd. (W.J. Tatem Ltd. managers) by Williamson & Co., Hong Kong renamed Inchona, transferred to Douglas Steamship Co., 1975 sold to Bardal Shipping Co., Greece and renamed Alekos K. 1978 sold to Alkistis Shipping Co. S.A., Greece and renamed Aries, 1987 broken up. | 8,261 |
| Inchstaffa | 1940 | Built by Barclay Curle & Co, Ltd, Glasgow | ex- Trevaylor, 1955 purchased by Williamson & Co., Hong Kong from Hain Steamship Co., 1966 sold to Rowan Shipping Corporation Ltd., Hong Kong, resold to Mullion and Co. Ltd., Gibraltar, and renamed Ardstaffa.,1967 sold to Southern Shipping and Enterprises Co. Ltd., Hong Kong and renamed Nankwang, 30th November 1967 stranded and sank off Woosung anchorage after breaking her anchor chain in heavy weather, on a voyage from Whampoa to Shanghai with a cargo of ore. | 5,257 |
| Inchstuart | 1942 | Built by Burntisland Shipbuilding Co. Ltd., Burntisland | ex- Highland Prince, 1955 purchased by Williamson & Co., Hong Kong from Prince Line renamed Inchstuart, 1959 transferred to Douglas Steamship Co., 1969 scrapped at Hong Kong. | 7,043 |
| Inchwells | 1920 | Built by Pusey & Jones Co., Gloucester, N.J. | ex- Ethan Allen built for United States Shipping Board, ex- Empire Puma for Ministry Of War Transport, managed by Lyle Shipping Co., 1947 purchased by Williamson & Co., Hong Kong renamed Inchwells, 1951 sold to Bellavista Cia Naviera, Panama renamed Point Clear, 1952 sold to Cia di Nav. Stellamaris Soc.per Azioni, Genoa renamed Giacomo Piaggio, 1954 sold to Angelo Ravano di Enrico, Genoa renamed Enrichetto, 1958 sold to Panamanian Oriental SS Corp, Panama (O. Wheelock, Marden & Co.) renamed Silvana, 1959 scrapped at Hong Kong. | 7,777 |