Falls of Clyde sunk
The Hawaii Department of Transportation confirmed in a statement that the famous sailing freighter Falls of Clyde sank on Wednesday 15 October around noon, some distance from Honolulu harbour.
The state had been seeking a solution to remove the ship from Honolulu harbour since it was impounded in 2016 and repeated attempts had been made to sell it.
The 146-year-old ship was docked in Honolulu harbour, but had been closed to the public since 2008.
It was first brought to Hawaii for restoration in 1963 and spent its final years docked at Pier 7, where it once served as a museum ship as part of the Hawaii Maritime Centre. The centre closed in 2009 and after the owner defaulted by not moving the ship, it was seized in 2016 when its licence was revoked.
Iron hull
The Falls of Clyde was the only surviving ship in the world with an iron hull, four masts and full rigging. It was built in Glasgow in 1878. The Falls of Clyde was the first in a series of nine iron-hulled ships, all named after Scottish waterfalls, built in the late 19th century by the shipbuilder Russell & Co, during a shipbuilding boom prompted by increased trade with the US. The ship made several voyages to US ports under the British flag. In 1898, it was bought by Captain William Matson of the Matson Navigation Company and re-registered in Hawaii.
From 1899 to 1907, the ship was converted into a barque to operate with less crew, and made more than sixty voyages between Hawaii and San Francisco, carrying passengers, sugar and general cargo. It was sold to the San Francisco-based Associated Oil Company, which installed large steel tanks in the hull, allowing it to carry 750,000 gallons of liquid bulk. For decades, the ship carried paraffin to Hawaii and molasses from Hawaii back to California.
Rescue attempts
At one point, a deal was announced to bring the ship back to Scotland for preservation, but they failed to fund it and arrange transport for the ship, which was in poor condition. The state tried to auction the ship in 2019 and posted several requests for proposals. A group of preservationists calling themselves Friends of Falls of Clyde tried diligently to save the ship. Eventually, the state concluded that the ship was a safety hazard and, in the absence of buyers, decided to sink it. Contractor Shipwright LLC was awarded the contract and began removing debris and waterproofing the ship’s bulkheads in July. They also reported that the hull needed to be reinforced to safely tow the ship out of the harbour.
Farewell ceremony
Sensitive to the ship’s loyal supporters, the Hawaii Department Of Transport (HDOT) reported that the Friends of Falls of Clyde group held a final farewell ceremony with bagpipers in front of the ship after the group heard that the ship would be sunk the next day. The work was completed earlier than expected, while the sinking was originally scheduled for late November. Around dawn on Wednesday morning, two tugs pulled the ship away from Pier 7 for her final voyage. She was taken to an agreed position about 25 miles south of Honolulu harbour. The ship was sunk at a depth of about 12,500 feet (3,800 metres).
Artefacts from the Falls of Clyde were removed for preservation before the ship was scrapped. Key elements, including the ship’s nameplate, steering wheel and bell, will be included in a permanent exhibition. Other artefacts have been transferred to the San Francisco Maritime National Historic Park, and some of the rigging tools will be used to maintain a Scottish-built three-masted square-sailed ship, the Balclutha, on display in San Francisco.
Shocked criticism
The destruction of the historic ship has been widely criticised by maritime heritage groups in both the UK and the US. Friends of Falls of Clyde, a group of supporters in Hawaii, described it as “a day that will go down in history as a shameful day”. “It is almost inconceivable that this situation could have happened,” the group wrote on social media.
The Tall Ship Glenlee, the charity that looks after another sailing ship moored next to the Riverside Museum in Glasgow, said it was “deeply saddened”. The Falls of Clyde was one of only six remaining tall sailing ships built on the Clyde, and only two remain in the UK: the Glenlee and the Cutty Sark.
David O’Neill, of the Scotland-based Save Falls of Clyde campaign, said he was “shocked” by the behaviour of the authorities in Hawaii, but had resigned himself to the ship’s fate after years of fruitless negotiations. He first became involved in efforts to save the ship in 2015, when someone in Hawaii informed him of its condition. This prompted him to post an appeal on social media saying, “Old Scottish lady needs a lift home.”
A Norwegian company operating heavy lifting vessels offered to transport the Falls of Clyde back to Scotland for free, but the campaign soon became embroiled in a dispute with the port authority over insurance costs and other conditions.
Earlier this year, O’Neill said an American company had been awarded a contract to remove the ship from the port and also offered to transport it to Scotland for free. “They did not want to sink the ship – they had a conscience and respect for maritime heritage,” he said. But the deal between the company and the port authority fell through and the contract went instead to another company, which then carried out the sinking.
Difficult decision
Ed Sniffen, director of the Hawaii Department of Transportation (DOT), said it had made a “difficult but necessary” decision. “Since 2008, the Hawaii DOT has offered ample opportunities to the Friends of Falls of Clyde and other parties interested in restoring, preserving and/or repatriating the vessel.”
Sources: Clipping News and BBC.
Image: Falls of Clyde international
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