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Hiring a steam-boat
Large steam-boats which could hold over a thousand day trippers used to ply the river from Westminster to Woolwich and Southend. They could be hired by the day. Around 1890, the Alexandra, which could take 1048 passengers, would cost £55 per day on Mondays and Saturdays to hire the whole boat on day trips from Westminster to Gravesend. Tuesday to Friday the charge would be £50. Smaller steamers holding around 350 passengers could operate further upstream; hire charges for day trips between Woolwich and Chelsea were £12, and from London Bridge to Hampton Court, £18.
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Victoria Embankment |
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In memory of nearly 700 passengers |
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Pleasure and pain
Pleasure cannot be guaranteed on the Thames. There have been many disasters on the river throughout the centuries, and one of the most infamous was on the 3rd of September, 1878. The pleasure steamer Princess Alice, heading upstream after a day trip, collided with a collier, the Byfield Castle, which was heading downstream on its return journey to Newcastle. The Princess Alice quickly sank with the loss of nearly 700 men, women and children.
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Introduction
Steamers
