Great Eastern Railway - East Coast Local Services

This page is devoted to postcards and photographs of the local services of the Great Eastern Railway (GER), and its successor the LNER, consisting of excursions on the Rivers Orwell and Stour. A short ferry service was also run between Harwich and Felixstowe. An alphabetical list of ships shown on this page is shown below. Below this is a Fleet List in chronological order.

The Eastern Counties Railway was formed to link London to Ipswich, Norwich and Great Yarmouth in 1836. The new docks at Ipswich were opened in 1842, and passenger services to Harwich started with the River Queen of the Ipswich Steam Navigation. She was followed by the Cardinal Wolsey and Atalanta. All passed to the Eastern Counties Railway in 1854, which was amalgamated into the new Great Eastern Railway (GER) in 1862. The GER built their first steamers Ipswich (1) and Stour (1) in 1864 for the Ipswich-Harwich service. They were replaced by the Orwell and Stour (2) in 1873 and 1878. In 1882 the excursion paddle steamer Norfolk (1) was delivered. She was based in Harwich to run trips in connection with the London boats. She was sold in 1897 for service on the Mersey.

The Great Eastern Railway (GER) built the paddle steamers Suffolk (1895) and Essex (1896) to run excursions from Ipswich on the River Orwell. They were joined by Norfolk (2) in 1900. All were double-ended to assist manoeuvring at Ipswich. Essex was sold in 1916, the others passed to the LNER in 1923 and were withdrawn in 1931.

The Harwich-Felixstowe ferry had been inaugurated in 1912 by the GER, using the small launch Pinmill. Later GER additions were the Hainault and Epping. The Brightlingsea was built for the London & North Eastern Railway (LNER) in 1925, by the Rowhedge Ironworks near Colchester (although her hull was wooden). She was the first new vessel delivered to the LNER, which had been formed in 1923 by the amalgamation of the Great Eastern (GER), Great Central (GCR), Great Northern (GNR), North Eastern (NER) and other railways. Brightlingsea was 51 gross tons, and had saloons for 152 passengers. Hainault, Epping and Brightlingsea passed to British Railways in 1948 and were sold a few months after BR closed the ferry in 1961. Pinmill continued in railway ownership as a workboat, and was still in service in the 1980s.

Brightlingsea passed to British Railways in 1948. From May 1964, the service was assigned to George Goodhew's Orwell & Harwich Navigation Co, for which Brightlingsea operated during the summer.


Ships on This Page:-
Brightlingsea - 1925-1964
Epping - 1914-1962 Essex - 1896-1916
Hainault - 1914-1962
Orwell - 1873-1890
Pinmill - 1912-199?? Suffolk - 1895-1935
Stour (2) - 1878-1900 Norfolk (2) - 1900-1935
Associated Pages:-
Great Eastern Railway - East Coast Continental Services
m.s.Brightlingsea - Page 1 - Harwich Services 2007
m.s.Brightlingsea - Page 2 - History as ferry 1925-1993
m.s.Brightlingsea - Page 3 - Restoration and Service 2002-
British Railways - Header page for all UK railway-owned services
Great Central Railway - East Coast Services
London & North Eastern Railway - Harwich Services
Lancashire & Yorkshire Railway - Page 2 - East Coast Services
Harwich Port
Ferry Postcards
Cruise Ship Postcards
Ocean Liner Postcards
Simplon Postcards Home Page

References:-
Harwich & Dovercourt in the 20th Century by Philip Cone (2004)
Merchant Fleets No.25 - Britain's Railway Steamers by Duncan Haws (1993)
Railway & Other Steamers by Duckworth & Langmuir

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powered by FreeFind Table of Ship Histories Name Owner Other names Built Brightlingsea LNER, BR 1925 Explorer 12 19?? Great Eastern Railway Fleet List Orwell (GER: 1873-1890)
The GER built their first steamers Ipswich (1) and Stour (1) in 1864 for the Ipswich-Harwich service. They were replaced by the sisters Orwell and Stour (2) in 1873 and 1878. They looked like paddle tugs but had no towing facilities. Orwell was sold for scrap in 1890.


Photograph of Orwell (right)
The photo was captioned Stour and Norfolk, but Norfolk (1) had deck saloons - I am assuming it is Orwell
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Stour (2)
(GER: 1878-1900)

The GER built their first steamers Ipswich (1) and Stour (1) in 1864 for the Ipswich-Harwich service. They were replaced by the sisters Orwell and Stour (2) in 1873 and 1878. They looked like paddle tugs but had no towing facilities. Stour (2) was sold for further service on the Thames in 1900.


Photograph of Stour (2) (left)
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Despatch
(GER: 1878-1900)

The GER built their first steamers Ipswich (1) and Stour (1) in 1864 for the Ipswich-Harwich service. They were replaced by the sisters Orwell and Stour (2) in 1873 and 1878. They looked like paddle tugs but had no towing facilities. The smaller vessel Despatch was built for excursions from Lowestoft. She passed to the LNER in 1923 and was not retired until 1930.

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Suffolk
(GER: 1895-1922)
(LNER: 1922-1931)

The Great Eastern Railway (GER) built the paddle steamers Suffolk (1895) and Essex (1896) to run excursions from Ipswich on the River Orwell. They were joined by Norfolk in 1900. All were double-ended to assist manoeuvring at Ipswich. Essex was sold in 1916, the others passed to the LNER in 1923 and were withdrawn in 1931.


Kingsway Series (W.H.Smith) photographic postcard S9769 of Suffolk at Ipswich.




Postcard of Suffolk, posted in August 1926.




IXL Series postcard by B.&Co (Ipswich), of Suffolk at Ipswich.




Raphael Tuck "Silverette" postcard of Suffolk at Ipswich, with Norfolk behind.
Card posted 1905.




A.Duncan photographic postcard of Suffolk.




Photographic postcard of Suffolk.







Essex
(GER: 1896-1916)

The Great Eastern Railway (GER) built the paddle steamers Suffolk (1895) and Essex (1896) to run excursions from Ipswich on the River Orwell. They were joined by Norfolk in 1900. All were double-ended to assist manoeuvring at Ipswich. Essex was sold in 1916, the others passed to the LNER in 1923 and were withdrawn in 1931.


Postcard of Essex at Ipswich.



Valentine's postcard of Essex at Ipswich.




Valentine's postcard of Essex at Ipswich, posted April 1906.
Variation on the card above.




Photographic postcard of Essex.






Norfolk
(GER: 1900-1922)
(LNER: 1922-1931)

The Great Eastern Railway (GER) built the paddle steamers Suffolk (1895) and Essex (1896) to run excursions from Ipswich on the River Orwell. They were joined by Norfolk in 1900. All were double-ended to assist manoeuvring at Ipswich. Essex was sold in 1916, the others passed to the LNER in 1923 and were withdrawn in 1931.


Photographic postcard of Norfolk (at Harwich?).




Sepiatone postcard of Norfolk, with Essex and Suffolk in the background.




Photographic postcard of Norfolk.







Pinmill
(GER: 1912-1922)
(LNER: 1923-1947)
(BR/Sealink: 1948-19??)

The Harwich-Felixstowe ferry had been inaugurated in 1912 by the GER, using the small launch Pinmill. The service was hourly in the summer, reducing to two-hourly in the winter. She was an immediate success, and so a second service was initiated between Harwich and Shotley, and the larger Hainault and Epping were delivered in 1914. The ferry was suspended during the First World War, and Pinmill was used by the Royal Navy. She suffered a fire in 1915, and was re-engined in 1917. Pinmill passed to the LNER in 1923, but was withdrawn from ferry services on the arrival of Brightlingsea in 1925. She remained in railway service at Harwich however, being converted into a work boat. Pinmill passed to British Railways in 1948, and received Sealink colours in 1967. She even deputised for for eight weeks in 1985 whist received her third engine.


Photograph of Pinmill as a workboat with Hainault.
Photo: © Philip Cone, October 1957
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Photograph of Pinmill as a workboat.
Photo: © Philip Cone, June 1960
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Photograph of Pinmill as a workboat.
Photo: © Philip Cone
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Epping
(GER: 1914-1922)
(LNER: 1923-1947)
(BR: 1948-1962)

The Harwich-Felixstowe ferry had been inaugurated in 1912 by the GER, using the small launch Pinmill. She was an immediate success, and so a second service was initiated between Harwich and Shotley, and the larger Hainault and Epping were delivered in 1914. The ferry was suspended during the First World War. Epping passed to the LNER in 1923, and then to British Railways in 1948. She was sold when BR closed the ferry in 1961, but future use is unknown.


Photograph of Epping.
Photo: © Philip Cone, August 1952
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Photograph of Epping.
Photo: © Philip Cone, August 1952
Enlarged copy of the photo above
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Photograph of Epping.
Photo: © Philip Cone, April 1961
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Hainault
(GER: 1914-1922)
(LNER: 1923-1947)
(BR: 1948-1962)

The Harwich-Felixstowe ferry had been inaugurated in 1912 by the GER, using the small launch Pinmill. She was an immediate success, and so a second service was initiated between Harwich and Shotley, and the larger Hainault and Epping were delivered in 1914. The ferry was suspended during the First World War. Hainault passed to the LNER in 1923, and then to British Railways in 1948. She was sold when BR closed the ferry in 1961, and was converted into a houseboat.


Photograph of Hainault with Pinmill.
Photo: © Philip Cone, October 1957
Click to open larger image in new window







Brightlingsea
(LNER: 1925-1947)
(BR: 1948-1962)

The Harwich-Felixstowe ferry had been inaugurated in 1912 by the GER, using the small launch Pinmill. Later GER additions were the Hainault and Epping. The Brightlingsea was built for the London & North Eastern Railway (LNER) in 1925, by the Rowhedge Ironworks near Colchester (although her hull was wooden). She was the first new vessel delivered to the LNER, which had been formed in 1923 by the amalgamation of the Great Eastern (GER), Great Central (GCR), Great Northern (GNR), North Eastern (NER) and other railways. Brightlingsea was 51 gross tons, and had saloons for 152 passengers.

Brightlingsea passed to British Railways in 1948. From May 1964, the service was assigned to George Goodhew's Orwell & Harwich Navigation Co, for which Brightlingsea operated during the summer. The smaller launch Orwell Haven was used in winter. In 1967, Brightlingsea was joined by the Torbay Prince of 91 gross tons, used mainly for excursions. When I first visited Harwich in June 1976, Torbay Prince had moved on.

In 1979, the Goodhew concern was taken over by the Felixstowe Dock & Railway Co, which was owned by European Ferries (who also owned Townsend-Thoresen). In 1983/84, Brightlingsea was re-engined. In 1984, the Orwell Bridge was opened, providing faster road links to Felixstowe, and passenger numbers declined significantly. In 1985, Brightlingsea was sold to Harry Rodger, former superintendent of the Orwell & Harwich Nav.Co. She was withdrawn on August 15th of the same year due to engines problems, but reappeared the following year.

Brightlingsea continued to maintain the route until the mid-1990s when she was denied access to her protected berth in Felixstowe Dock, due to port re-development. Eventually, the service re-opened with the landing-craft style ferry Explorer 12, which could run up on the beach at Felixstowe. However this location is very exposed, and the Harwich, Felixstowe & Shotley Foot Ferry Society continue to campaign for a protected jetty at Felixstowe, and a return to full year operations.

On 12th August 2007 Brightlingsea resumed harbour cruises from Harwich Halfpenny Pier, being featured on Anglia TV. The 90 minute cruise cost £12 and sailed from the ferry pontoon, Halfpenny Pier, at Harwich. The tour sails out towards Languard Point, turning back to pass close along the container terminals at Felixstowe, before turning again in the River Orwell to round Shotley Point and sail towards Harwich International Port (previously Parkeston Quay) and finally back to Halfpenny Pier. Unfortunately the project was under-funded and ceased after two seasons due to the 12 passenger limit - although most of the safety equipment to increase this was in place and ready for certification.


Complete history of Brightlingsea


A.Duncan photographic postcard of Brightlingsea in railway service, arriving at Harwich.




Postcard of Brightlingsea at her berth in Felixstowe Dock, with River Lady II.
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Brightlingsea back in service on a Harbour Tour from Harwich in 2007 - Contact:- www.msbrightlingsea.com
Photo: © Ian Boyle, 25th August 2007
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More images of Brightlingsea at Harwich in 2007






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Free Web Counter Times viewed since 27/08/2007:

Name	Owner	Other names	Built
Brightlingsea	LNER, BR		1925
Explorer 12			19??