SS Arcturus was a passenger ship of the Finland Steamship Company operating primarily on the route between Hanko, Finland and Hull, England via Copenhagen, Denmark. Gourlay Brothers of Dundee, Scotland built Arcturus, launching her on 1 October 1898 and completing her that December.[3]

A scale model by Tomi Isopahkala in Maritime Museum of Finland
History
Finland
NameArcturus
OwnerFinland Steamship Company
Port of registryHelsinki,  Finland
RouteFinland-Copenhagen-Hull, England
BuilderGourlay Brothers, Dundee, Scotland
CostFIM 1,317,000
Yard number183
Launched1 October 1898[1]
CompletedDecember 1898
In service1898–1957
Identification
FateScrapped
General characteristics [2]
TypePassenger ship
Tonnage
  • 2,023 GRT
  • tonnage under deck 1,522[3]
  • 1,157 NRT
  • 1,270 DWT (open)
Length88.95 m (292 ft)
Beam11.57 m (38 ft)
Draught6.35 m (21 ft)
Depth4.2 m (13.7 ft)
Installed power
Propulsion
Speed13.5 knots (25 km/h)
Sensors and
processing systems
wireless direction finding (from 1931)[3]

In its earlier years Arcturus was one of the primary ships that Finnish emigrants sailed on when heading to North America. After disembarking at Hull, emigrants would typically take a train to Liverpool to board a transatlantic liner.[4]

On 12 December 1930 in fog in the Kattegat Arcturus collided with another Finnish Steamship Company ship, Oberon. Oberon sank[5] in only three minutes, with the loss of 41 of her passengers and crew.[6]

Arcturus remained in service until 1956.[7]

References

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  1. ^ "Dundonians who attended the launch of the steamer Arcturus…". Evening Telegraph. Dundee. 3 October 1898. Retrieved 19 November 2015 – via British Newspaper Archive.
  2. ^ "Arcturus (5099)". Finnish Mercantile Marine Database. Maritime Museum of Finland. Retrieved 4 August 2013.
  3. ^ a b c d Lloyd's Register of Shipping (PDF). London: Lloyd's Register. 1931. Retrieved 11 October 2020.
  4. ^ "The Journey from Finland to America". Suomalaisten siirtolaisuus - lyhyt katsaus. Retrieved 5 February 2008.
  5. ^ Lloyd's Register of Shipping (PDF). London: Lloyd's Register. 1931. Retrieved 11 October 2020.
  6. ^ Wilson, RM (1956). The Big Ships. London: Cassell & Co. pp. 220, 221.
  7. ^ "Arcturus". Ostrobothnian Odysseys. Retrieved 5 February 2008.
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