Houlder Line

The first of four Houlder ships to have be called Oswestry Grange. This one was a refrigerated cargo ship built in 1902 and sold in 1912

Houlder Line was a number of related British Shipping companies originally established by the Houlder brothers.^[1]

Houlder Brothers & Co. was formed in London 1856 and operated in the market for chartered tonnage. In 1861 the company acquired the Golden Horn, which they used on the North Atlantic routes to the United States. The company later expanded to service routes to New Zealand, Australia and the Pacific Islands.^[1] From 1875 to 1880 the company worked with John T. Arundel & Co. in a guano mining business on Flint Island in the Pacific Ocean. In 1881 the company entered the passenger and cargo trade to the River Plate.^[1]

Many Houlder ships were recognisable by having names ending in Grange. The group re-used some of these names three or more times on successive ships: Beacon Grange, Elstree Grange, Langton Grange, Oswestry Grange, Ovingdean Grange and Royston Grange.^[1]

The Furness-Houlder Argentine Line was a joint venture between Houlder Brothers Ltd and the Furness Withy shipping company, established in 1914.^[2]

In 1987 Houlder Line ceased operations. The company continues as the independent engineering consultancy Houlder Ltd.

Ships Operated by Houlder Line

• Canonesa was operated by the Houlder Line and was torpedoed in the North Atlantic in 1940.^[3]
• El Argentino was operated by the Houlder Line. She was bombed and sunk west of Lisbon in 1943 with the loss of four crew.
• STV Royston Grange was destroyed by fire after a collision in the Rio de la Plata on 11 May 1972. She was the first British ship to be lost with all hands since 1951.
• Oswestry Grange (1964) was the last of four ships of this name and the last ship of the Houlder line. She was a collier and was sold in 1985.

References