Shipping

Introduction

Ships and their trade routes were vital to the business of the L&Y. As the only major railway to serve both the Irish and North Seas it had the chance to dominate Irish and Continental traffic and it grasped it firmly. Liverpool was a major source of general traffic whereas Fleetwood, purpose built from 1840, was the port for northern Irish passenger traffic and latterly fish. Goole, already a port on the east coast, was reached in 1848 and the L&Y purchased the Goole Steam Shipping Co. in 1904 operating regular passenger and cargo services to Denmark, Germany, Holland, Belgium and France. The 28 Company owned (or jointly owned) ships was the greatest total of any British railway.

The SS Mellifont was a twin screw steamer of 1204 Gross Registered Tons (GRT).