Messrs Green's Blackwall Line to Australia

Maker Blackwall Line

Date1878

Object number00006413

NameAdvertisement

MediumInk on paper

DimensionsOverall: 383 x 291 mm
Display Dimensions: 387 x 295 mm

ClassificationsEphemera

Credit LineANMM Collection

Terms

DescriptionPoster 'Messrs Green's Blackwall Line to Australia. The work is typical of 19th century shipping publicity where posters provided basic information on fares, routes and ships rather than extolling the virtues of particular ships or the delights of foreign destinations.HistoryBLACKWALL LINE George Green (1767–1849) founded this important London shipbuilding and shipping family. In 1782 George was apprenticed to John Perry (1743–1810), whose family had managed the Blackwall shipyard on the Thames since 1708. He rose quickly and in 1797, along with Perry and his two sons, became a partner in the firm. George's three sons, Richard, Henry and Frederick eventually took control. Richard, eldest, held overall direction and managed the ships following his father's retirement in 1838. Henry came to supervise the yard in 1822, having served his apprenticeship and in 1836 Frederick took charge of Frederick Green & Co., which handled passengers and cargoes. The Greens set out to continue the high operating standards of the East India Company. Their conditions of service attracted and retained good crews, helping them maintain regular voyage schedules. They commenced Australian voyages in the late 1840s and established a monthly service after the discovery of gold in Port Victoria in 1852. By about 1860 they had a fleet of 30 ships. In 1902, with the decline of Thames shipbuilding, Richard and Henry became part of the well-known ship repairing partnership, R. & H. Green and Silley Weir. The Blackwall yard remained in use, with a major graving dock, but the main site was at the Royal Albert Dry Docks. P&O acquired control of the business in 1918 but Green and Silley Weir still had 8000 employees in the 1960s. It was sold in 1977 to become part of the Government-owned River Thames Shiprepairers and closed in 1980. The ship's listed on the poster as being on the Australian route are: AGAMEMNON, WINDSOR CASTLE, MALABAR, THE LORD WARDEN, SHANNON, CARLISLE CASTLE, SUPERB, NEWCASTLE, HIGHFLYER, RENOWN, MELBOURNE.