Mersey River Images

Our River Mersey

updated 21 Jan 2019

Images on the River Mersey, past and Present
As far as this site is concerned, the river extends Eastham to New Brighton

see also Liverpool - The Mersey Ferry is on its own page

A view from Seacombe

Melita - Footnote on this ship. She became the

SS Liguria

and was sunk in an Allied (yes Allied) air raid on 22 Jan 1941.

Aquitania

Mammoth

Tosca at Tranmere Oil Terminal, this area was formerly Tranmere Ferry

Empress of Canada 1969

Llandudno Ferry at Landing Stage

Lusitania about 1905-06

Sunset on Mersey

5th May 2008

rather 'hazy' shots are extreme zoom at shipping out in the bay

Gopa built 1984 and broken up in Alang, 2010

Tugs off Crosby await an inbound vessel. The Gopa.

Steam Packet Company's Fast Track Viking ship. Shortly after this was taken she rammed the Landing stage and put a hole in herself!
Caught by a gust of wind she hit a concrete pontoon.

The Isle of Man Steam Packet Company Limited (abbreviated to IOMSPCo.) (Manx - Sheshaght Phaggad Bree Ellan Vannin) is the oldest
continuously operating passenger shipping company in the world, celebrating its 180th anniversary in 2010.

Navion Britannia is a Shuttle Tanker. Nearly 73000 tons. Built 1998. Owner: Teekay Shipping. Reg: Nassau.

Stolt Egret is a chemical tanker. Cayman Flag. 1992 built

Svitzer Bidston. Built 2004.

Svitzer Stanlow. Built: 2006

Pembroke Fisher. Built 1997. Oil Products Tanker. Bahamas flag.

Stolt Skua. Built 1999. Oil & Chemical Tanker.

Feb 2012

'Katerina' Bulk Carrier. Leaving Gladstone dock. Limassol Registered. Built in Japan 2004. 76000 ton. Owner: Safe Bulker (Greece).

Lord Hinton. Bulk Carrier built in 1986.

June 6th 2012

rough estuary at New Brighton

October 2012

Oct 2012. I would not go up that ladder for £1m !!!

This vessel is way out on the Bar, emerging from the autumn mists

March 2014

James Jackson Grundy & below, in the Mersey 2014

Franz Shulte (more below) high zoom shot when out by the Bar. Mar 2014

Zoom shot when still a way out

Unknown vessel out at the Bar

Stena Mersey leaving the port March 2014

Thats a big propeller!!

finally, the Franz Schulte arrives at the river!

Where did she suddenly sprout the containers? They are behind the vessel!!

STM Waterloo awaiting the Franz Schulte

Stena Mersey - taken from St Hilarys Brow, Wallasey Village.

May 2015

Seen more life in a cemetery!!

Quite a few of these images and mine and some are from various contributors via local history groups on Facebook

November 2015

Cranes, made in China, arrive on the river for Peel Ports, who own the entire dockland of Liverpool and Birkenhead too.
I am surprised that this company still allow cross dock traffic as they are a very 'bolshy' company. I know, I 'crossed them'.

January 2019 - a misty river

The River Mersey's name is derived from the Anglo-Saxon language and translates as "boundary river". The river may have been the border between the ancient kingdoms of Mercia and Northumbria and for centuries it formed part of the boundary between the historic counties of Lancashire and Cheshire.

The start of the Mersey is at the confluence of the River Tame and River Goyt in Stockport, it flows Westwards towards Warrington where the river widens before it then narrows as it passes between the towns of Runcorn and Widnes. From Runcorn the river widens into a large estuary, which is 3 miles (4.8 km) wide at its widest point near Ellesmere Port. The course of the river then heads north, with Liverpool to the east and the Wirral Peninsula to the west and finishes at Liverpool Bay. In total the river flows 70.33 miles (113 km).

Two road tunnels pass under the estuary from Liverpool, the Queensway Tunnel opened in 1934 connecting the city to Birkenhead, and the Kingsway Tunnel, opened in 1971, connects with Wallasey. The Silver Jubilee Bridge completed in 1961, crosses between Runcorn and Widnes. There is a Railway bridge adjacent to the Silver Jubilee Bridge and between Liverpool and Birkenhead there is a railway tunnel. The Mersey Ferry operates between Pier Head in Liverpool and Woodside in Birkenhead and Seacombe and has become a tourist attraction offering cruises that provide an overview of the river and surrounding areas.

Water quality in the Mersey was severely affected by industrialisation, and in 1985, the Mersey Basin Campaign was established to improve water quality and encourage waterside regeneration. In 2009 it was announced that the river is "cleaner than at any time since the industrial revolution" and is "now considered one of the cleanest in the UK". (copied from wikipedia with alterations).

Nothing at all to do with the river, but a maritime one in a lifetime chance.

The passenger steamer SS Warrimoo was quietly knifing its way through the waters of the mid-Pacific on its way from Vancouver to Australia. The navigator had just finished working out a star fix and brought the master, Captain John Phillips, the result. The Warrimoo's position was LAT 0º 31' N and LON 179 30' W.   The date was 31 December 1899.

"Know what this means?" First Mate Payton broke in, "We're only a few miles from the intersection of the Equator and the International Date Line". Captain Phillips was prankish enough to take full advantage of the opportunity for achieving the navigational freak of a lifetime. He called his navigators to the bridge to check & double check the ships position. He changed course slightly so as to bear directly on his mark. Then he adjusted the engine speed. The calm weather & clear night worked in his favor.

At mid-night the SS Warrimoo lay on the Equator at exactly the point where it crossed the International Date Line! The consequences of this bizarre position were many:

The bow of the ship was in the Southern Hemisphere & in the middle of summer.
The stern was in the Northern Hemisphere & in the middle of winter.
The date in the aft part of the ship was 31 December 1899.
In the bow (forward) part it was 1 January 1900.

This ship was therefore not only in two different days, two different months, two different years, and two different seasons, but it was also in two different centuries - all at the same time.