GEORGE ADGELL FD368

 

Les Jones Archive

Official No:  141953    Port Number and Year:   Fleetwood, 1922 (FD417)

Description: Castle Class side trawler, steel; steam screw, coal burning.  Ketch rigged

Crew:

Built: 1919 by Cook, Welton & Gemmell, Beverely. (Yard no. 418)

Tonnage: 290 grt  127 net

Length / breadth / depth (feet): 125.5  / 23.5 / 12.7

Engine: T 3-Cyl. 86 nhp.10 kts.  Engine and boiler: 1919, by Amos & Smith, Hull.

Owners:   1920: Blackburn Trawlers, 216 Dock St., Fleetwood Manager: Harry Blackburn,   1935: Parkholme Trawlers, Fleetwood Manager: Basil A. Parkes, Cleveleys   14 Mar 1939: Saint Andrew's Steam Fishing Co., Hull Manager: Basil A. Parkes, Cleveleys   1945:  Yolland & Llewellin, Docks,  Milford Manager: J. Yolland   1 Jan 1946: Yolland Bros., Docks, Milford Manager: J. Yolland   8 Jul 1948:  J. Marr & Son,  Fleetwood

Landed at Milford: 27 Jan 1946 - 27 Jun 1948

Skippers: J. Phillips (post-War).

Notes: 13 Jun 1940: Requisitioned by the Admiralty and converted to an auxiliary patrol vessel (P.No.FY1926). 1941:  Converted to minesweeper (P.No. FY.1926). Jan 1946: Returned to owners. Jul 1953: Broken up at Preston.

 Accidents and Incidents:

From the West Wales Guardian of Friday 4th January 1946:

 

    Messrs. Yolland & Llewellin, joint owners of the biggest trawling fleet sailing out of Milford, have dissolved the partnership after ten years of highly successful working, during which time the fleet has increased from one to twenty-two trawlers.  The dissolution took effect from January 1st, and in future Messrs. Yolland will trade under the name Messrs. Yolland Brothers, while Mr. J. C. Llewellin takes a number of trawlers under his own name.

 

    Yolland Bros.:

Castle Class:  Tenedos, Mikasa, Lorraine, William Mannell, Montano and George Adgell.

Strath Class: Craigmillar and Anne Melville.

Drifters: Allochy, Overfall, Poseidon, Invercairn, Primevere, Mint, Furze, Lichen, Calliopsis and Cassiopeia.

    The Montano left Milford on Thursday (yesterday) for Fleetwood, while the George Adgell arrives in Milford within the next fortnight from Aberdeen.  Both Strath boats are at Milford, but the drifters will fish from Lowestoft during the North Sea season, and will come round to Milford for the summer season.

 

John Charles Llewellin:

Castle trawlers: Cotsmuir, Lady Stanley, T.R. Ferens and Harry Melling.

    All the trawlers are away at the moment, the Lady Stanley at Hull and the others at Fleetwood, but they are expected to sail out of Milford in the near future.

 

    The fish merchants' business belonging to the firm in Fleetwood, Swansea and Milford will now be carried on by Yolland Brothers, while the merchants' business at Aberdeen has been taken over by Mr. Llewellin.

    Naturally interested to ascertain why such a profitable partnership should be dissolved, the "Guardian" made enquiries on Thursday.  We learned that Mr. Llewellin has suffered ill health for a number of years and wishes to cut down on his responsibilities.

    The sensational rise of Messrs. Yolland & Llewellin has provided one of the romances of the fishing Industry of Milford, starting as fish exporters in 1935, with Mr. J. C. Llewellin as their representative in Paris.  The firm had to turn their attention in 1937 to building up their fish merchants business in England because of the devaluation of the franc. 

    In 1936 Messrs. Yolland & Llewellin purchased their first trawler and not long afterwards embarked on an experiment which at the time was considered more than daring - "foolhardy", said the old hands.  They fitted out two trawlers to fish as a pair - the pareja - a Spanish method of fishing.  The earliest voyages, doubtless due to the inexperience of the crews in this type of netting, brought thin returns, but by-and-by these pairs began to make news, big news, for they started to smash fishing records.  What was then the youngest firm of owners had scored a big success, and confounded their critics.  Before the war started, the company had five pairs operating on the Irish grounds.  During the war the company worked with two old ships, the Gozo and Cairo, but disposed of these when their fleet of twenty-two trawlers were de-requisitioned in their turn after Government service.

    The partners in the firm of Yolland Brothers are Messrs. John J. Leslie and T. Stuart Yolland.

 

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From the West Wales Guardian of Friday 2nd July 1948:

 

    Milford's biggest trawler owners, Messrs. Yolland Brothers, have this week sold three of their Castle type trawlers, the Concertator, Tenedos and George Adgell, to Messrs. J. Marr & Co., Fleetwood.  All three vessels will leave the port in a few days, and the Milford crews will go with them to do one fishing trip out of Fleetwood.

    Great speculation has been aroused by the sale, but the Secretary of the firm, Cllr. V. T. Cleaver, told the Guardian, "It is purely a matter of policy.  With a fleet as large as ours, policy has to be continually revised, and this is just that."

    Mr. Cleaver was asked if this might be the beginning of further sales, and replies that he did not think this was so, as far as the immediate future was concerned.

    Asked about the position of the three crews when they completed the Fleetwood trip and returned to their home port, Mr. Cleaver said that their re-engagement was, of course, in the hands of the T.O.A. Seaman's Pool.  That Pool had a list of ships waiting to come to the port, which was at present full to saturation point, so he did not think it would be long before three new ships arrived to take the place of the old.

     

 

 

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