Builders: John Brown & Co Ltd, Clydebank 1907
Propulsion type: Paddle, compound diagonal
Owners: Barry Railway Company, Bristol Channel Passenger Boats Ltd, P & A Campbell Ltd.
Service dates: 1907 - 1941
Tonnage: Gross 471
This picture comes from the Ted Groom collection and is displayed here by kind permission of his Granddaughter, Victoria.
Built as PS Barry for the Barry Railway Co, this fine looking steamer sailed between Barry, Minehead and Weston in the summer and Barry to Burnham on Sea in the winter. In her next few seasons she also sailed to Ilfracombe and Mumbles. My father has a passenger group photograph of my Grandmother on board on a trip from Ilfracombe. Barry was acquired by Bristol Channel Passenger Boats Ltd in 1910 and was absorbed into the Campbell's empire after two seasons service. She saw war service in the Great War and after a period transporting German prisoners she was used as a transport and store carrier in the Gallioplli campaign. She was almost lost there when a mine twice struck her paddle wheels but fortunately did not damage her. After further service in the Mediterranean she was decommissioned and was reconditioned by the Ailsa yard in Troon in 1920. In 1926 she was renamed Waverley by Campbells and was transferred to the South Coast. For a passenger group picture of her taken at Hastings, click here. The above picture clearly has been altered to change the name on the bows to Waverley and thus shows her in her time as Barry. She went back to the Bristol Channel in 1934 and 1935, but returned to the South Coast afterwards. Waverley was sadly lost on 5 July 1941 after being bombed when on minesweeping duties off the North East Coast.