TSSEarnslaw

History
New Zealand
Name	Earnslaw
Owner	RealNZ
Builder	McGregor and Company,Dunedin
Cost	£20,850 ($41,700)
Laid down	4 July 1911
Launched	24 February 1912
Maiden voyage	18 October 1912
Refit	1954 - Steam engines dismantled and reconditioned
Identification	IMO number:8138190
Status	In service
General characteristics
Type	Twin-screw steamer
Tonnage	330GRT
Length	51.2 m (168 ft 0 in)
Beam	7.3 m (23 ft 11 in)
Draught	2.1 m (6 ft 11 in)
Installed power	Twin locomotive-type coal fired boilers, working pressure 180 psi (1,200 kPa)
Propulsion	Twin triple expansion, jet condensing vertical marine steam engines producing 500 hp (370 kW) at 145 rpm; cylinder diameters, 13 in (330 mm) (high pressure), 22 in (560 mm) (intermediate), 34 in (860 mm) (low pressure); cylinder stroke, 18 in (460 mm)
Speed	13 knots (24 km/h; 15 mph)
Complement	11 crew, 389 passengers
Notes	Coal capacity 14 tons

TSSEarnslawis a 1912Edwardiantwin screw steamerbased atLake Wakatipuin New Zealand. She is one of the oldest tourist attractions inCentral Otago,and the only remaining commercial passenger-carrying coal-fired steamship in the southern hemisphere.

History

TSSEarnslaw,shortly after launch in 1912

At the beginning of the twentieth century,New Zealand Railways(NZR) awarded a £20,850 contract toJohn McGregor and Companyshipbuilders ofDunedinto build a steamship forLake Wakatipuat their Otago foundry and engineering works.TheEarnslawwas designed by naval architect Hugh McRae and was based on aSiemens-Martinsteel hull design and usingKaurifor the decking. Propulsion was provided by twin coal-fired triple-expansion, jet-condensing, vertically inclined engines. Thekeelwaslaidon 4 July 1911.The ship was named afterMount Earnslaw,a 2,889-metre (9,478 ft) peak at the head of Lake Wakatipu. She was to be 51.2 metres (168 ft 0 in) long, the biggest boat on the lake, and the largest steamship built in New Zealand.Transporting theEarnslawwas no easy task. When construction was finally completed, she was dismantled. All the one-quarter-inch (6.4 mm)steelhull plates were numbered for reconstruction much like a jig-saw puzzle. Then the parts were loaded on to a goods train and transported across the South Island from Dunedin toKingstonat the southern end of Lake Wakatipu.

Kingston Quayside with theKingston Flyer

After the hull was re-assembled,Earnslawwaslaunchedon 24 February 1912. On 3 August, after the construction of the ship was fully completed,trialswere commenced. On 18 August 1912, theEarnslawwas fired up for her maiden voyage toQueenstown,withMinister of MarineJohn A. Millaras captain.

She then became a valuable vessel for NZR and was known as the "Lady of the Lake". TheEarnslawworked with her sister ships, the paddle steamersAntrimandMountaineerand the screw steamerBen Lomond,transporting sheep, cattle and passengers to the surrounding high country stations.

In 1968, theEarnslawwas very nearly scrapped. She was leased by Fiordland Travel (subsequently Real Journeys, and thenRealNZ) in 1969, and later purchased by the same company in 1982. She was taken out of service for a major refit in 1984. Her 12-metre (39 ft)-highfunnelwas painted bright red, with the hull a snow-white, and her kauri timber decks glassed in.

In 1984, the composerRon Goodwincreated a New Zealand Suite of six pieces recording his impressions of places he had visited. One of these is the "Earnslaw Steam Theme" based on the rhythm of the ship's engines, which he wrote after a trip to Lake Wakatipu.

In March 1990, QueenElizabeth IIandPrince Philiptravelled on theEarnslaw.Other royalty who have been on board include thePrince of Thailandand theKing and Queen of Belgium.

In June 2021, a report intogreenhouse gas emissionsinOtagocalculated that in the 12-month period July 2018 to June 2019,Earnslawemitted 4,076 tonnes of'carbon dioxide-equivalent'.This represented 1 percent of all transport-related greenhouse gas emissions in theQueenstown-Lakes District.In October 2021, RealNZ announced that it was investigating carbon-neutral or carbon-zero means of powering the vessel.At a celebration in 2022 ofEarnslawcompleting 110 years of service on the lake, RealNZ said that it was exploring biofuel, wood pellets and hydrogen as alternative sources of boiler fuel, but that a decision was a few years away.

Captains

The ship's captains include the following:

• George Herbert (Captain 1935)
• Tom Luckie (NZR Captain 19?? - 1952)
• Alexander Munro (NZR Captain 1952 - 1955)
• Richard John (Pat) Bennetts (NZR Captain 1955 - 1964 - he was on the crew for 30 years)
• Patrick R. McSoriley (NZR Captain 1964 - 1968 - he first joined the crew in 1941)
• Sandy McLean (Captain 1968 - 1969)
• Maru Bradshaw (Captain 1969 - 1991)

Heritage status

Plaque

A detailed history of theEarnslawincluding archival photographs has been published in the NZ Maritime Record maintained by the NZ National Maritime Museum.

In 1990,Earnslawwas recognised as a significant part of New Zealand's engineering heritage by theInstitution of Professional Engineers New Zealand.The recognition was part of the “Engineering to 1990” project celebrating the country’s sesquicentenary in 1990. A plaque was fixed to the vessel to that reads: "IPENZ recognises this engineering work as an important part of NZ's engineering heritage. The largest steamship built in NZ it is now one of the world’s last coal-fired passenger steamers".

In July 2013, the Southern Heritage Trust unveiled a plaque on theDunedin Railway Stationoverbridge commemorating the location of the McGregor & Co factory whereEarnslawwas built.

Earnslawon slipway

In December 2017, the New ZealandMinistry for Culture and HeritagerecognisedEarnslawas one of twelve significant sites in Otago to be included in its Landmarks Whenua Tohunga programme.

TheEarnslawis winched out of the lake on a cradle when major surveys are required. There is an historic slipway for this purpose at the south west corner of the Frankton arm of Lake Wakatipu. The slipway is equipped with a steam engine driven winch. The boiler and steam engine used to power the winch were originally in service on Lake Wakatipu in the paddle steamerAntrim,originally launched in 1869. TheAntrimwas dismantled from 1920, but the boiler and engine were recovered for use on the slipway. TheAntrimengine is recognised as a significant part of New Zealand's engineering heritage.

Current status

Earnslawin 2015

Engine well

TheEarnslawcelebrated her centenary in October 2012and continues in routine operation carrying tourist passengers across Lake Wakatipu from Queenstown to Walter Peak High Country Farm, a tourism operation with farm tours, horse treks, heritage tours, barbecue lunches and evening dining at the historic Colonel's Homestead.

The ship works fourteen-hour days in the summer months and cruises for eleven months of the year, despite being over 100 years old. Visitors to the region can undertake a 1.5-hour cruise on boardEarnslawand view the workings of thesteam engineandstokers.

Each year,Earnslawundergoes an annual survey – typically from late May to early June – with every second year being taken out of the lake.

Passengers have access to a walkway in theengine room,where they can observe the operation of the engines during the cruise.

Gallery

• TSS Earnslaw
• 
  The TSS Earnslaw
• 
  Stairway between decks, portside
• 
  Engine order telegraph
• 
  Foredeck view
• 
  Shipbuilders plate
• 
  Pianist entertaining passengers
• 
  Approaching Queenstown in November 1962
• 
  Earnslawat the Wakatipu District Centenary, 1962
• 
  Earnslaw,10 April 1965
• 
  Steaming to Kingston
• 
  TSSEarnslaw,2024
• 
  Closeup, 2024

References

Bibliography

• Malcolm Mackay,Lady of the Lake: The TSS Earnslaw Story,Malcolm Mackay, Queenstown, 1999.
• Jenny McLeod,TSS Earnslaw: celebrating 100 years, 1912-2012,Te Anau, N.Z.: Real Journeys, 2012.ISBN9780473211295.

External links

• NZ National Maritime Museum record
• 15 facts you didn't know about the TSS Earnslaw