|
|
Wednesday, 26 January 2011 11:58 |
|
At a recent meeting of the Executive Committee of the Trustees of the Scottish Maritime Museum the Director, Jim Tildesley, reported that North Ayrshire Council had approved Listed Building consent for the plan to remove the vessel to Adelaide, South Australia. The application to the council had been submitted by the Australian group, Clipper Ship City of Adelaide, who were given preferred bidder status by Fiona Hyslop, Minister of Culture. Historic Scotland had responded favourably to the application.
In his report the Director advised that the Clipper Ship City of Adelaide Group can still meet their timetable for the vessel to arrive in Adelaide in time for the 175 Anniversary of the Foundation of the State of South Australia. Detailed discussions about the plans and funding arrangements were taking place in Australia at Federal, State and Local levels. Companies in Australia, Scotland and Holland were actively involved in the detailed preparation of the proposals to transport the vessel. |
|
|
Sunday, 03 October 2010 06:36 |
|
The Museum advertised for tenders for the deconstruction in the autumn of 2009. There are two levels of deconstruction. The first requires the preservation of the bow, stern and a mid-ships frame. The second requires the preservation of examples of the materials used in the construction. Companies were required to make tender submissions based on both levels of deconstruction. Tenders were received in November 2009 and the Museum has since made an application to the Scottish Government for the funding of the deconstruction.
The Museum has always expressed a desire to see the vessel saved but is equally concerned at the potential loss of the national maritime collections it holds. As the contingent liabilities associated with the use of the slipway have grown the Museum will only entertain a fully funded scheme to remove the vessel to another location. The scheme must guarantee a removal date.
In January 2010 the Museum received a proposal from the Clipper Ship 'City of Adelaide' Limited, Adelaide, Australia. The proposal has been accepted as being technically feasible and the organisation has made a planning application to North Ayrshire Council to remove the vessel. Clipper Ship 'City of Adelaide' Limited have not provided evidence that they have the funds to complete the project but after receiving assurances from the Scottish Government the Museum has temporarily halted the deconstruction plan to give the group time to put funding in place. The Museum will not extend the halt in the deconstruction beyond the end of May 2010.
The Museum has not received any other detailed proposals for the preservation of the complete vessel. |
|
Sunday, 03 October 2010 06:04 |
|
The City of Adelaide was built by William Pile, Hay and Company of Sunderland in 1864. From 1864 to 1886, City of Adelaide was managed by Messrs Devitt and Moore and she ran a fast liner service between London, Plymouth and Adelaide, making approximately one round the world voyage every year. The City of Adelaide was purpose built to serve the passenger trade and for nearly a quarter of a century from 1864 played an important role in the development of the colony of South Australia. She carried all classes of passengers from the rich to the poor, from people 'of substance', to government assisted emigrants. Her first class cabins were considered to be the finest of the sailing ship era.
In 1887, all shares in the vessel were sold to a Dover coal merchant, Charles Havelock Mowll and for a short period she worked in the collier trade from the Tyne to the Thames. In the following year she was sold to Belfast based timber merchants, Daniel and Thomas Stewart Dixon. From then until 1893 she worked in the North Atlantic bulk timber trade bringing timber into Belfast and Dublin. In 1893, whilst in Bowling on the Clyde, she was acquired by the Corporation of the City of Southampton. She was dismasted and converted to become a hospital isolation ship with the nurses’ quarters in the first class cabins and the ward on the ‘tween deck. Large “windows” were cut into the ‘tween deck to bring light into the ward.
|
|
|
Sunday, 03 October 2010 06:32 |
|
By the summer of 2003 there was no sign that any of the schemes would reach fruition and there was rising concern that the contingent liability associated with the slipway was reaching unmanageable proportions. The Museum was approached by businessman Mike Edwards who wished to consider a restoration of the vessel to sailing condition. Mr. Edwards made a generous donation to the Museum that alleviated any immediate concern about liabilities and paid for a protective covering for the vessel. After two detailed and thorough surveys of the vessel Mr. Edwards withdrew his interest early in 2006. His decision was based solely on the requirements of the Marine Safety Agency which would have left too little of the original structure of the vessel intact.
In 2007, with no sign that any other alternative proposals would be forthcoming, the Museum applied again for listed building consent to deconstruct the vessel. By this time the Museum had dealt with and assisted eight different proposals to save the vessel none of which had given any indication that they could raise the funds required. The Museum’s application included proposals based on the Advisory Committee for Historic Ships guidelines to set up a panel of experts to devise the deconstruction plan. The Local Authority, after receiving advice from Historic Scotland, gave consent to deconstruct conditional on the approval of a deconstruction plan devised by the panel of experts.
The Panel of experts included the Advisory Committee on National Historic Ships and was facilitated by Historic Scotland. This was the first time that ACNHS had been involved since 2001. An agreed deconstruction plan was produced which received the formal approval of the Local Authority in April 2009. The first part of the plan required the survey of the vessel which was completed in August 2009. The plan recognised that it was not possible to follow the exact ACNHS guidelines but included break points in the plan where the implementation of the next stages required acceptance by North Ayrshire Council and Historic Scotland. |
|
Sunday, 03 October 2010 05:54 |
|
Fiona Hyslop, Minister for Culture and External Affairs , has announced the decision which may finally secure the future of the SV City of Adelaide and establish new cultural links with Australia .
The Minister has named the Australian Group, The Clipper Ship, City of Adelaide , as the preferred bidder to move the internationally important vessel, also known as The Carrick, which has lain on a slipway in Irvine for over a decade.
Ms Hyslop said: “The City of Adelaide has an illustrious past shared by two nations, Scotland and Australia . This bid gives us the opportunity to save the ship build on that link and open up the potential for both countries to recognise partnerships and shared heritage on an international scale.
“We can now have a link between Scotland and Australia which allows both nations to share the vessel’s historical, cultural and social significance through tourism, interpretation and education. If the vessel moves within the timescales suggested, the ship will arrive in Adelaide in time for the celebration of South Australia ’s ‘Jubilee Year’ in 2011 celebrating the 175th anniversary of the State.
“I was impressed and inspired by the enormous commitment shown by the Australian and Sunderland groups for the vessel. I am aware that everyone who worked on the unsuccessful bid will be disappointed. However, because of the need for the vessel to be removed from its current location, a viable alternative to deconstruction had to be identified in order to save the ship.
”I would like to thank everyone who has been involved in the process, the bidders, the Scottish Maritime Museum, National Historic Ships and North Ayrshire Council for the commitment to preserving the vessel in the most appropriate way.” The full text of the Minister’s statement can be found on the Historic Scotland web-site.
The Ministers decision was based on the options appraisal report commissioned earlier this year. The full report will be made available in the near future. |
|
|
|
|
|
