Millom Castle

Official Number 65043

The Millom Castle was built by William and John White at Canal Side, Ulverston. She was launched broadside on Saturday 12th November, 1870, and named by the Duddon harbourmaster, Capt. William Morgan. She entered the fleet of William Postlethwaite, the first of six of the Whites' schooners that were bought by Postlethwaite for his Duddon fleet. Her first master was Capt. John Clark and the newpaper reporting her launch stated that she was intended for the coasting and foreign trade. In 1876 she was commanded by Capt. James Brockbank and operated in the coasting trade. In 1879 Capt.Clarke was washed off the schooner in Morecambe Bay and was drowned (see Source 2).

The Millom Castle was sold by George Postlethwaite in 1912 and William Kingdom of Appledore, north Devon, became her managing owner. In 1919 her registry at Barrow was closed, and by this time the schooner had been fitted with an engine.

The Millom Castle had a long life, lasting until the Second World War. Eventually she was abandoned and left to rot in a creek in Falmouth harbour. Her abandoned hull was surveyed by Basil Greenhill and her history under the ownership of the Slade family of Appledore is much discussed in his book "The Merchant Schooners".
 

Name	Year Built	Net Tons	Length (feet)	Breadth (feet)	Depth (feet)	Masts	Figurehead	Stern	Lloyd's Classn.
Millom Castle	1870	83				2			10A1

Sources :

1. Launch report in Barrow Times, 19th November 1870, page 5.
2. The Manchester Guardian, 2nd July 1879, page 6 - "" The body washed ashore on Friday at Barrow has been ascertained to be that of Captain Clarke, of Ulverston, who was washed off the schooner Millom Castle in Morecambe Bay in the beginning of the year.
3. Research by Trevor Morgan
4. "The Merchant Schooners", 4th ed., by Basil Greenhill, ISBN 0-85177-475-X
5. Lines plans of the Millom Castle are reproduced in the book "The Schooner" by David R.McGregor.