PS Orlando
1885 Built and engined by Armstrong, Mitchell and Co. The ORLANDO and ROSALIND were two sister boats were built at Low Walker on the Tyne and used entirely on pier to pier trips. They were the first boats built to the order of the River Thames Steamboat Co and differed from earlier “pennyboats” in having large well-lighted saloons aft and forward, and the engine controlled from the deck under the bridge. The engine was two-stage expansion with inclined cylinders 15 in. and 30 in. diameter by 24 in. stroke, steam at 100 lb. per square inch pressure was supplied by a cylindrical return tube boiler with two furnaces. When driving the paddle wheels at 44 revs, per minute, the I.H.P. was 100, the speed 10 knots and the coal consumption about 1.2 tons in twelve hours. The wheels were 9 feet in diameter and each had seven curved feathering floats 4.6 ft. by 1.8 ft. deep. The loaded draught was 3.5 ft. The crew consisted of a master, a mate, two deckhands, an engineer and a stoker. They were certified to carry 300 passengers. The ORLANDO continued in service until 1908, but the ROSALIND was withdrawn in 1905.
See Also
Sources of Information
- 'Steamers of the Thames and Medway' by Frank Burtt