History of the Atlantic Cable & Undersea Communications
from the first submarine cable of 1850 to the worldwide fiber optic network

CS Seine
by Bill Glover

CS SEINE

Built in 1859 Thames Ironworks

Length 338.3 ft  Breadth 44.1 ft  Depth 33.9 ft  Gross tonnage 3553

Built as a twin funnelled paddle steamer for the Royal Mail Lines for use on their West Indian routes. Converted to screw propulsion in 1872 with a single funnel. First chartered by Telcon for cable work in 1873 and then purchased outright in 1876. Fitted with 4 cable tanks; No 1, 25 ft dia by 20 ft deep; No 2, 36 ft by 20 ft deep; No 3, 36 ft 10 ins by 12 ft 10 ins; No 4, 32 ft 5 ins by 12 ft 10 ins; giving a coiling capacity of 52297 cu ft. A standard paying out machine was fitted aft. The forward machine was a new design with overhanging drums, it could be either left or right handed and one of each was mounted either side of a common steam engine. Twin bows and a single stern sheave were fitted. Scrapped in 1905

CABLE WORK

Captain S.R. Welch:

1873

Carcavelos, Portugal - Madeira

 

 

Captain S.H. Dudden:

1874

St Vincent, Cape Verde Islands - Pernambuco (Recife), Brazil

 

 

Captain H. Manning:

1876

Suez - Suakin - Perim - Aden

1877

Aden - Bombay, India

1879

Moçambique - Delagoa Bay, Lorenzo Marques

1880

Banjoewangie, Java - Darwin, Australia

1880

Placentia - St Pierre

1880

Valentia, Ireland - Hearts Content, Newfoundland

1881

Singapore - Batavia

1882

Carcavelos, Portugal - Madeira (2)

1883

Aden - Suez (3)

1883

Nagasaki, Japan - Gutzlaff  Island, Shanghai

1883

Gutzlaff  Island,  - Wusung, Shanghai, China

1884

Hong Kong - Tonkin

1884

Java - Sumatra, DEI.

1885

Zanzibar - Mozambique (2)

1886

Penang - Singapore

 

 

Captain W.R. Cato:

1887

Massawa - Assab, Eritrea

1887

Assab, Eritrea - Perim Island, Ta'izz, Yemen

 

 

Capt J. Seymour:

1888

Bali - Macassar - Java

1889

Banjoewangie, Java - Roebuck Bay, Broome, WA, Australia

1889

Montevideo - Chuy

1890

Newbiggin by the Sea, England - Marstrand, Sweden

1891

Madras - Penang No. 2

1892

Medan - Acheen

1893

Carcevalos, Portugal - Sao Miguel - Fayal - Pico - Sao Jorge: Pico - Terceira: Sao Jorge - Graciosa, Azores

1894

Labuan - Hong Kong

1896

New York - Coney Island

1896

Coney Island, USA - Cap Haitien, Haiti

 

 

1897

Bali - Lombok: Oleleh - Sabang, DEI

 

 

Captain H. Woodcock:

1899

St Helena - Ascension

 

 

1901

Java - Bandjermasin

CABLE REPAIRS

Captain H. Manning:

1877

1865 - 6 Atlantic

1878

1866 Atlantic

1882

Porthcurno - Carcavelos

1882

1873 Carcavelos - Madeira

1883

1871 Nagasaki - Gutzlaff

1884

Saigon - Singapore renewal near Singapore

1884

Banjoewangie - Darwin renewal near Darwin

1884

Penang - Rangoon near Penang

 

 

Captain J. Seymour:

1889

Banjoewangie - Darwin

1890

Madras, India - Penang, Malaya renewal near Penang

1893

Greetsiel - Valentia off Valentia

1893

Greetsiel - Valentia off Isle of Wight

1896

Brest - St Pierre 2 repairs, off Brest, near Flemish Cap

1897

Greetsiel - Valentia off Dover

 

 

Captain Price:

1897

Brest - St. Pierre off Flemish Cap and on the Bank

 

 

1904

Valentia - Hearts Content 1873 cable

 

 

Captain Hoad:

1904

St. Pierre - Sydney 1880 cable

1904

St. Pierre  Duxbury 1869 cable

1904

Valentia - Hearts Content 1874 cable

1904

Valentia - Hearts Content 2 repairs 1873 cable

1905

Valentia - Hearts Content 1880 cable

OTHER DUTIES

Captain H. Manning:
1884

Recovered 389 nm cable between Banjowangie and Darwin. Discharged at Singapore

1887 Spithead Naval Review

Cableships Index Page

Last revised: 29 November, 2015

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