History of the Atlantic Cable & Submarine Telegraphy

	History of the Atlantic Cable & Undersea Communications from the first submarine cable of 1850 to the worldwide fiber optic network
CS Britannia (2) by Bill Glover

CS BRITANNIA (2)

CS Britannia (2) Dressed Overall

Built in 1885 by Laird Brothers, Birkenhead

Length 247.2 ft. Breadth 34.3 ft. Depth 17.4 ft. Gross tonnage 1525

CS Britannia (2)

The first vessel that Telcon had designed and built as a cable ship, previous vessels being conversions. Fitted with three cable tanks, two forward and one aft, with a total coiling capacity of 18,700 cubic feet. Two separate paying out-picking up machines were fitted on the main deck and a paying out machine was fitted aft on the port side. Twin bow and single stern sheaves were fitted.

CS Britannia (2) at Gibraltar, 1894
Image courtesy of Stefan Buczacki, who notes that
“This was in the photograph album of an aristocratic
family recording their Mediterranean travels”

CS Britannia (2) was used to assist the larger cable layers such as Colonia and Anglia. Sold to the Eastern Telegraph Company in 1904 and used for 20 years on cable repairs throughout the Eastern network. Relegated to a storage hulk at Zanzibar in 1924.

CS Britannia (2) at Capetown, South Africa, c. 1910
Image courtesy of Tony Davies

CABLE WORK

Capt. J. Seymour:
1886	Bathurst, Gambia - Freetown, Sierra Leone - Accra, Gold Coast
1886	Accra, Gold Coast - Lagos - Brass - Bonny, Nigeria
1890	Madras, India - Penang, Malaya
1891	Madras - Penang No. 2

Capt. J. Kennedy:
1893	Bonny - Calabar - Duala
1893	Zanzibar - Seychelles: Seychelles - Mauritius
1894	Valentia, Ireland - Hearts Content, Newfoundland

Capt. H. Woodcock:
1896	Greetsiel - Borkum - Vigo

Capt. J.E. Leach:
1900	Cuckmere - Le Havre
1900	Greetsiel - Borkum, Germany - Fayal, Azores
1901	Porthcurno, England - Madeira
1902	Cottesloe, Perth, W. Australia - Adelaide, S. Australia

CABLE REPAIRS

Capt. J. Seymour:
1886	Freetown, Sierra Leone - Accra, Gold Coast
1886	Hoyer - Arendal
1887	Valentia - Newfoundland 1873, 1874, 1880 cables, new shore ends at Valentia
1887	Lowestoft - Greetsiel
1887	Valentia - Greetsiel, near Beachy Head
1887	Ballinskelligs - Halifax, deviation from Torbay
1887	Halifax - Rye Beach, deviation off Brown's Bank
1888	Carcavelos, Portugal - Madeira (2), near Funchal
1888	Madeira - St. Vincent cable (1), near Funchal
1888	Lowestoft - Greetsiel
1888	Cuxhaven - Heligoland

Capt. J. Kennedy:
1888	Lowestoft - Greetsiel cable
1888	Carcavelos, Portugal - Madeira (1), near Funchal
1889	Lowestoft - Greetsiel
1889	Ballinskelligs - Halifax (1), on Great Bank
1889	Ballinskelligs - Halifax (2), on Great Bank
1889	Brest, France - St. Pierre 1869 cable
1890	Valentia - Greetsiel, 2 repairs carried out, 1 off Valentia, 1 off St. Catherines
1891	Ballinskelligs - Halifax

Capt. H. Woodcock:
1891	Carcavelos - Madeira 1873 cable:

Capt. J. Kennedy:
1892	Greetsiel - Valentia, 5 repairs, off Valentia, Portland, St. Albans, St Catherines, West Hinder
1892	Halifax - Rye Beach, 2 repairs, Rye Beach, off Browns Bank
1892	Halifax - Rye Beach, 2 repairs on Green Bank
1892	Brest - St. Pierre, off Brest
1892	Ballinskelligs - Halifax, mid Ocean
1894	Greetsiel - Valentia, 2 repairs off Dover and Isle of Wight
1894	Hoyer - Arenda,l off Jutland
1894	Salcombe - Brignogan, off Brignogan
1895	Greetsiel - Valentia, off Valentia
1895	Salcombe - Brignogan, 3 repairs, 2 Mid Channel, 1 off Brignogan
1895	Hoyer - Arendal cable, 2 repairs off Arendal and Sylt
1896	Greetsiel - Valentia cable, 4 repairs, off Isle of Wight, Owers, the Start, near Ruytingen Lightship

Capt. H. Woodcock:
1896	Brest - Penzance, off Penzance
1896	Brest - Penzance, 3 repairs Mid Channel
1896	Greetsiel - Valentia, off the Start
1897	Greetsiel - Valentia, off Valentia
1897	Salcombe - Brignogan, off Brignogan
1898	Greetsiel - Valentia, in St. George's Channel
1898	Hoyer - Arendal, off Jutland
1898	Salcombe - Brignogan, off Salcombe
1899	Greetsiel - Valentia, 3 repairs
1899	Hoyer - Arendal:

Capt. J.E. Leach:
1900	Penzance - Brignogan, off Penzance
1900	Brest - St. Pierre
1900	Borkum - Fayal, 3 repairs, 2 near Haaks, 1 off the Start:
1901	Valentia - Hearts Content

Capt. F.H. Price:
1902	Penzance - Brignogan
1902	Borkum - Vigo, 2 repairs
1902	Valentia - Hearts Content,1894 cable
1903	Borkum - Vigo
1903	Le Havre - Waterville, 2 repairs
1903	Valentia - Hearts Content, 1873, 1874 cables
1903	Borkum - Vigo
1903	Borkum - Lowestoft, 1871 cable
1903	Borkum - Fayal, 1903 cable
1903	Borkum - Vigo, 1896 cable
1904	Brest - Cape Cod, 1898 cable:

OTHER DUTIES

Capt. H. Woodcock:
1897	Route survey Bermuda - Turks Island - Jamaica 1898 cable
1897	Route survey German Atlantic 1900 cable

Capt. J.E. Leach:
1901	Route survey for Pacific Cable

Cableships Index Page

Last revised: 17 December, 2023

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