Birnam Technical Specification

Completed February 1896: Official No. 102740: Code Letters LKTB.

Owners: February 1896 Maclean, Doughty & Co, West Hartlepool; 1900 Henry Doughty & Co. West Hartlepool; 1901 Doughty Shipping Co. Ltd. West Hartlepool; 1907 Soc Generale de Houilles & Agglomeres, Nantes, France–renamed Voltaire; 1912 Houilles & Agglomeres merged with Delmas Freres, La Rochelle, France

Masters: 1896-1903 J Boyle; 1906 W Hopkins; 1909 J LaGae.

Bound from Algiers for Nantes Voltaire was torpedoed by an unidentified German submarine & sank 140 miles NE of Cape Ortegal in the Bay of Biscay on 11 January 1918. Ten lives were lost

In 1889/1900 the partnership of Maclean, Doughty & Co., was dissolved with Henry Doughty taking four steamers with him. He formed Doughty & Co,. in 1900 and changed the name to Doughty Shipping Co. Ltd. in 1901. Doughty also managed ships for the British Government during WW1. The company lost four steamers during WW1 and went out of business in 1919.

Family History:

Henry Doughty was born in 1859 at Middlesbrough. In the early 1890’s he volunteered and became captain in the 4^th Battalion of the Durham Light Infantry and reached the rank of major. In 1881 Henry was living at Stranton and was listed as a commercial clerk in a shipping office. By 1891 He was living at Seaton Carew. In April 1908 he was given command of the newly organised Durham Royal Garrison Artillery and retired with the rank of Lieutenant Colonel in May 1909. Henry joined the Board of Directors of Hartlepool Gas and Water Company in 1916.  He moved to Harrogate, probably after 1919.

Henry died on 13 July 1927 at Harrogate and was interred at Harlow Cemetery. In his will, apart from £12,000 in bequests, the majority of £315,855 was given to various charities.

Listed here are the ships of various companies at least partly owned by William Maclean. These include Groves, Maclean & Co., Maclean, Doughty & Co., and Maclean & Co.

In 1868 William set up his own office in Victoria Terrace in partnership with James Groves as coal and timber exporters. James had owned or had shares in six ships between 1848 and 1872. Groves, Maclean & Co., purchased their first steamer James Groves which was launched in 1871 and completed in 1872. The steamer was lost in 1875 and they purchased another steamer of the same name.

James Groves died in 1881 and in 1888 Henry Doughty joined William Maclean and Groves, Maclean & Co. became Maclean, Doughty & Co. The partnership was dissolved in 1889/1900 with Henry taking four steamers with him.  William Maclean carried on trading under Maclean & Co. until their last steamer, Duart, was sunk in 1918.

Family History:

William Maclean was born on 6 September 1832 near Aberfeldy, Perthshire, Scotland to parents James and Ann (nee Anderson). He spent time in Edinburgh, Scarborough and London before arriving in the Hartlepool area.  In 1861 he was living at Seaton Carew and listed as a gentleman. Sometime in the early 1860’s he went to work in the offices of George Lockwood and Son, coal merchants in Stockton-on-Tees.

On 26 March 1866 William married Clara Hogg at Tynemouth and by 1871 the family were living at Scarborough Street with William listed as a coal exporter. In 1881 they were living at Wellington Street, Stranton and William was now listed as a shipowner.  1891 saw the family living at Grantully House which they had built in Westbourne Road. (The house later became a maternity hospital)  In 1909 the family had moved to Lochbuie House in Harrogate where William died on 12 July 1920 at the age of 87 leaving effects of £109,011. On his death he was described as a ‘fine old English Gentleman’.

In 1875, William was a founding member of the Hartlepool Shipowners Society whose other committee members included George Horsley and Thomas English Pyman. He also became a Trustee of Hartlepool Hospital, was involved with Cameron Hospital, founder and secretary of the Hartlepool Chamber of Commerce and one of the original bench members of the local Borough Magistrates.

William Share Maclean was born to William and Clara on 2 July 1873 at Hartlepool. He was married in 1902 at Easington to Georgina Elliot Hall. By 1909, when his father had retired, William had joined the company.

William died on 17 August 1934 leaving assets of £51,086.

James Groves was born on 14 February 1824 at Whitby to parents Robert Hugill and Esther Mary (nee Eskdale). By 1861 he was living at Albion Terrace, Hartlepool with his wife Hannah (nee Doughty) whom he married at York on 1 September 1852. By 1881 he was living at Billingham and was listed as a magistrate and Alderman of the Borough of Hartlepool.

James died on 21 December 1881 at Billingham Hall aged 57 leaving a personal estate of £16,464. James bequeathed £150, the income to be distributed at Christmas among all the fishermen who might at the time be natives of and residents in Hartlepool, and not less than fifty years of age. The charity came into operation on the death of the testator's widow in 1900, but owing to an insufficiency of assets a sum of £127 3s. 9d. only was paid, which was invested in £138 8s. 8d. consols, producing £3 9s. a year.