HMS Pelican (1877)

HMS Pelican was an Osprey-class sloop built for the Royal Navy in the mid-1870s. She was launched in 1877 and was sold to the Hudson's Bay Company in 1901. She was scuttled in 1953.

Design and construction
Pelican was an Osprey-class sloop-of-war, with a composite hull design. The ship had a displacement of 1,130 tons, was 170 ft long, had a beam of 36 ft, and a draught of 15 ft. A Humphrys, Tennant and Co. two-cylinder two-cylinder horizontal compound-expansion steam engine fed by three cylindrical boilers provided 1,056 indicated horsepower to the single 13 ft propeller screw. This gave Pelican a top speed of 12.2 kn. She had a maximum range of 1480 nmi at 10 kn. In addition to the steam-driven propeller, the vessel was also barque rigged. The standard ship's company was between 140 and 150.

Armament consisted of two 7-inch (90cwt) muzzle-loading rifled guns, four 64-pound guns, four machine guns, and one light gun. Pelican and her sister-ship HMS Wild Swan (1876) were re-armed later with two 6-inch (81cwt) BL guns and six 5-inch (35cwt) BL guns.

Pelican was built by Devonport Royal Dockyard. The vessel was laid down on 8 March 1875. She was launched on 26 April 1877, and commissioned into the Royal Navy on 29 November 1877. Construction costs included £41,282 for the hull, and £14,939 for machinery and equipment.

Fate
Pelican was sold as a supply ship on 22 January 1901 to the Hudson's Bay Company. She was scuttled in 1953.