SS Fenella (1881)

SS (RMS) Fenella (I) No.76303, was an Iron twin-screw steamer operated by the Isle of Man Steam Packet Company, and was the first ship in the Company's history to bear the name.

Construction and dimensions
Fenella was built by the Barrow Shipbuilding Company of Barrow-in-Furness and was launched on Thursday 9th June, 1881. Tonnage 564 GRT; length 200'; beam 26'; depth 13'. The vessel cost £18,750 (£0 as of 2024) and was certificated for a crew of 28 and 504 passengers. She had an indicated horsepower of 1,200 and a speed of 14 knots, with a boiler pressure of 85 psi. She was driven by two sets of vertical compound engines each with cylinder bores of 23 and 42 inches, with a stroke of 24 inches.

Service life
Fenella served with the Steam Packet fleet for 48 years, including serving the Island during the First World War. At least one mercantile authority considers that from a steamship development viewpoint the Fenella was the most interesting vessel built for the Company since the first vessel, Mona's Isle in 1830. Her work demonstrated that high steam pressure with compound engines, having a higher piston speed than would have been practical in a paddle steamer, gave her greater economy in performance.

She was overhauled in 1894 and a full electric light system fitted - 56 lights in all. The installation was carried out by J. W. Holmes of Liverpool, who also installed electric lighting in the SS Peveril (1884) at the same time. The cost of the work for the two vessels was £505 (£0 as of 2024).

Primarily a cargo ship, intended to do passenger runs as a relief service in winter, it could possibly be claimed that she worked harder than any other of the Company's ships in her day. She served on every route the Steam Packet Company then operated, including the Peel-Belfast run which is one of a number no longer operated.

On one occasion she made six round trips between Douglas and Liverpool and then took troops to Kingstown, all in three days.

Fenella was the first Manx ship to lose a life from the deck, when on 4 January 1899, three passengers were carried overboard by a wave in heavy seas, after refusing to go below.

War service
Although not requisitioned for war service, Fenella together with the SS Tynwald (1891) shared the Douglas - Liverpool route throughout the 1914-18 war. Even though she was not directly involved in the war, Fenella had a number of close encounters with floating mines but was never hit; the minesweepers worked day and night to keep the approaches to Liverpool open, and although there were casualties, they were relatively few.

Incidents.
Fenella's long service was not without incident. On 9 September 1884, she went aground at the Menai Bridge.

Disposal
After 48 successful years with the Company, Fenella was sold for £2,290 in 1929 (£0 as of 2024). Fenella was broken up at Newport, Mons.