Viola: The Life and Times of a Hull Steam Trawler

Three abandoned steam ships lie in a desolate corner of Cumberland Bay on the east coast of the sub-Antarctic island of South Georgia. One of these ships is Viola, the sole surviving Hull steam trawler from the Victorian and Edwardian North Sea fishery. Maritime historians Robb Robinson and Ian Hart describe her ancestry, origins, and career, including her service as a U-boat hunter during the Great War and her final abandonment in South Georgia.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 240 pages
Publication date: 01 April 2022
Publisher: Lodestar Books

Deep in the southern latitudes, nestled in a desolate corner of Cumberland Bay on the eastern coast of the sub-Antarctic island of South Georgia, stands a trio of abandoned steam ships, remnants of our industrial past, unique survivors from a vanished age of steam at sea. Among these ships is the Viola, the sole surviving Hull steam trawler from the vast fleet that once supplied fish and chips to Britain's tables over a century ago. In this captivating account, maritime historians Robb Robinson and Ian Hart trace the vessel's lineage and origins in the Victorian and Edwardian North Sea fishery, vividly depicting the lives of her crew in the most perilous industry of its time. They recount her wartime service as a U-boat hunter, one of the many merchant vessels that largely went unnoticed for their contributions and often sacrificed in the conflict. Furthermore, they recount her subsequent career hunting whales off West Africa and later sealing and exploration work in the South Atlantic before her final abandonment in South Georgia. Here, she became a quarry for the infamous Argentine scrap metal expedition of 1982, which marked the initial action of the Falklands War. This unlikely yet true story of a humble working vessel and the individuals associated with her is a highly readable work of social and maritime history.

Weight: 368g
Dimension: 159 x 217 x 19 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781907206276