Ellerman & Bucknall (Steamships) Co Ltd (shipowners: 1914-1999: London, England)

Ellerman & Bucknall (Steamships) Co Ltd began in 1740 as Henry Bucknall & Sons , shipowners, London, England, who traded in cork from Portugal. During the 1850s, the company decided to purchase a fleet of sailing ships with the primary objective of transporting their own merchandise. In 1868, the firm began to replace their sailing ships with steamers but still restricted their activities to trading between the United Kingdom and Portugal. In 1888 , the firm of Bucknall Brothers , shipbrokers, was established and in 1890 Bucknall Nephews was established to take over the ships of the parent firm, Henry Bucknall & Co.

The development of gold and diamond mining in South Africa led the company, along with a contract with the Netherlands South African Railway , to inaugurate a regular service to South Africa in 1892. To undertake this service, the British & Colonial Steam Navigation Co was formed by Bucknall Nephews in 1891 with a fleet of 9 steamers and a passenger service being added in 1895. Various contracts to transport livestock and goods to South Africa were secured although goods for the return journey were scarce. As a result, the ships would often cross from South Africa to Burma to carry rice or undertake charter services to Australia. Sometimes the ships would call at the Canary Islands to collect ballast of fruit, potatoes and tomatoes. In 1893, a service carrying mules from New York, USA, to Cape Town, South Africa, for the Cape Town Tramway system was started and later extended to India with a full service being inaugurated in 1898, loading for Canada as well on the return journey.

...