The R.H.Carr was the ship that provided essential transport of people and goods to MacKenzie from Georgetown upon the Demerara River. In those days travel was only by river, no roads, consequently the R.H. Carr provided an essential link to the outside world and was a big part of everyone’s life. The leisurely eight hour journey seemed to hold a quiet romance with the R.H. Carr slipping through the virgin jungles close by on either side of the meandering Demerara River. There were the occasional scheduled stops, along with slow downs to allow vendors of local produce in small boats to come alongside and sell to the passengers of the R.H. Carr.
The R.H. Carr was built in 1927 in Saltney, a small town in Wales on the river Dee just south of Liverpool in the UK. Under steam power she somehow made her way across the Atlantic ocean to British Guiana and was operated as a real live steamship before being converted to diesel in the 1950′s by the then owner Messrs. Sprostons Ltd.
R.H. Carr, on the Demerara River, British Guiana circa 1960 (photo P Llyn-Jones). It looks to me that the photo was taken from MacKenzie with Wismar in the background.
The completion of the Soesdyke-Linden Highway in 1968 connecting Georgetown to Mackenzie saw the removal of the R.H. Carr from the Demerara River service. At some point she was acquired by A. Mazaharally & Sons intending to put her to work in the Timber industry. She ended her days grounded at Skull Point. Or maybe not, checkout the two links near the end of this page.
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Featured Comments below: Have been used to update the text on this page.
Evan Wong says…. The R. H. Carr was built as a steamship. When Sproston’s acquired her sometime in the early 1950’s, they overhauled her and put in a Blackstone diesel.
Armorel Clinton says… My Grandfather was R.H. Carr. He was the Chairman of Messrs. Sprostons Ltd, Managing Director of the Demerara Bauxite Co and Vice President of the Northern Aluminum Company of Canada.
He died of heart failure due to Malaria and accentuated by Ptomaine poisoning. I believe the date was 1924. After he died they named the boat after him. The family lived at 71 Main Street
Georgetown, and after his death, they returned to England.
Roger Ally says… The R.H. Carr was purchased by A. Mazaharally & Sons, Ltd., a timber concern. The boat lies in ruins in the Mazaruni River at a place called Skull Point.
Evan Wong says… Sproston’s and DEMBA both reported independently to Alcan in Montreal. Sproston’s was also the Catterpillar agent in BG, and DEMBA was the biggest user of Catterpillar equipment, so Alcan made the commissions on selling to itself. All the fishing trawlers used Catterpillar engines, so they had many other customers as well.
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John and Pauline Grimshaw from the UK have done a remarkable set of research and investigation into the birth and history of the R.H. Carr.
Using Roger Ally’s comment (above) they somehow managed to confirm the ships last resting place and then with the assistance of A. Mazaharally & Sons they visited the wreck at Skull Point on Oct 21, 2009. That was a pretty simple sentence to write, but think about it. You’re going to venture into Deepest Guyana and trek over to Skull Point, well I suspect getting the logistics in place takes some doing. Try looking that address up on the internet.
“Skull Point” is more than just an intriguing name. Yacoob Ally related to the Grimshaws that the name derives from the number of skulls that washed ashore there, in the dark days of the “Porkknocker’’. It is hard describe the exact location of Skull Point but John’s best guess is that it appears to be on the west bank of the Mazaruni River very near it’s confluence with the Cuyuni River. It is so close to the confluence that one might be tempted to say that it was on the Cuyuni River. Another description is to say that Skull Point is just upstream of the prison on the Mazaruni River.
The video is in HD, so click the full screen button to view.
Music by Dave Odegaard, Titled – Remember
Pauline has posted several photos of the R.H. Carr wreck on her flickr site, the photo below links to one of them, just click on it and browse to get the rest.
The last remains of the R.H. Carr at Skull Point on the Cuyuni River, Guyana, 2009-10-21 (photo Pauline)
John Grimshaw has done some internet sleuthing and sent in this link to a video showing the launch of the R.H. Carr in 1927 at Saltney, Cheshire, U.K. Video from British Pathe.
Launching of the R.H. Carr (1927) at Saltney, Cheshire, U.K.
Not content with simply rummaging around in Guyana the Grimshaws then paid a visit to the place of her construction, Saltney, UK and followed the trail to the Flintshire Record Office where they received permission to post a collection of photos and newspaper clippings from the launching of the ship.
Do not copy the following photos without the permission of the Flintshire Record Office at:
County Records Office
The Old Rectory, Hawarden, CH5 3NR
United Kingdom
Tel: 01244532364
Email: archives@flintshire.gov.uk
The Steam Ship R.H. Carr on the River Dee, 1927 (photo Flintshire Record Office Collection D-DM-338-1 Photo No 132 RH Carr 1927)
Do not copy the following photo without the permission of the Flintshire Record Office.
The Launching of the R.H. Carr, Saltney, Flintshire, UK, 1927 (photo Flintshire Record Office Collection, D-DM-338-1 Photo No 129, RH Carr, 1927)
Do not copy the following photo without the permission of the Flintshire Record Office.
The Launching of the R.H. Carr, Saltney, Flintshire, UK, 1927 (photo Flintshire Record Office Collection, D-DM-338-1 Photo No 126, RH Carr, 1927)
Do not copy the following photo without the permission of the Flintshire Record Office.
The Launching of the R.H. Carr, Saltney, Flintshire, UK, 1927 (photo Flintshire Record Office Collection, D-DM-338-5 Photo No 125, RH Carr, 1927)
Do not copy the following photo without the permission of the Flintshire Record Office.
The Launching of the R.H. Carr, Saltney, Flintshire, UK, 1927 (photo Flintshire Record Office Collection, D-DM-338-5 Photo No 80, RH Carr, 1927)
Do not copy the following photo without the permission of the Flintshire Record Office.
Newspaper clippings of the Launching of the R.H. Carr (photo Flintshire Record Office Collection, D-DM-338-6 Newscuttings Page 96, RH Carr, 1927)
Do not copy the following photo without the permission of the Flintshire Record Office.
Newspaper clippings of the Launching of the R.H. Carr (photo Flintshire Record Office Collection, D-DM-338-6 Newscuttings Page 32, RH Carr, 1927)
A summary of the historical data collected by John Grimshaw on the R.H. Carr as of 28/12/2009
RH Carr – The Ship – Notes
The Steamship “RH Carr” was built at Saltney, Flintshire in the Shipyard of Messrs. J. Crichton and Co. Ltd. Established in 1913 by James Crichton (1885-1932) on the banks of the River Dee on the outskirts of the city of Chester it operated initially as a subsidiary of C. & H. Crichton the ship repair business owned by Charles Crichton, the father of James Crichton. From 1915, J. Crichton & Company Limited was registered as an independent company and in 1918 acquired another shipyard, at Connah’s Quay, further down the river from Saltney, which increased its shipbuilding capacity. The company built many kinds of vessel, including tugs, barges, ferries, lightships and launches. The Saltney Yard closed in 1935 due to economic problems and overcapacity in shipyards
Launched on the Saturday 30th April 1927 the 308 ton RH Carr should have been in service the previous September but had, according to a contemporary report in the Cheshire Observer been delayed “owing to the disastrous strikes of last year, which completely held up British steel supplies and the vessel had to be built of all-British material” The strike referred to being The General Strike of 1926 which whilst only lasting from the 4th to the 11th May,(though the miners struggled on until November of that year) caused the delays in the supply of steel mentioned in the report.
With triple expansion engines developing collectively 440hp driving twin screws her dimensions are given as 152 ft overall, 145ft between perpendiculars; breadth 24ft 6in. (moulded line dimension); depth 9ft. (moulded line dimension) and she was built, according to one report, “for passenger and cargo services between Wismar and Georgetown on the Demerara River, British Guiana” and from another for. “passenger and cargo services on rivers and coastal work in British Guiana.”
Originally laid down as the SS Potaro , the name was changed prior to its launch to SS RH Carr to commemorate Ralph Hamilton Carr, Chairman of Messrs. Sprostons Ltd, Managing Director of the Demerara Bauxite Co and Vice President of the Northern Aluminium Company of Canada who died in Georgetown in November 1926.
The launching ceremony was performed by Mrs Esperson, wife of Mr. W.V. Esperson, Managing Director of the Northern Aluminium Company who acted in England at that time for Messrs. Sprostons Ltd of Georgetown. and this would suggest that it was Sprostons who ordered the vessel. All the directors of Crichton’s were present supported by a number of friends and a lunch followed the launching.
On June 9th 1927 sea trials were carried out in Liverpool Bay with Mr Townsend Managing Director of the Northern Aluminium Co. representing the owners. As was reported following the trials “the vessel fulfilled all that was expected for at the designed power and designed deadweight the contract speed was obtained and a reserve of power was proved to be available for a speed in excess of the contract.” “thereafter she will make the voyage to British Guiana under her own power, Crichton and Co. having received the contract inclusive of delivery.”
In 1951 steam power was replaced by Blackstone 6EPV Oil Engines at Sproston’s Yard on the Demerara.
Lloyds Registers showing when ownership changed.
1927 to 1928 First time on the Register shows Sprostons as owner
1928 to 1929 Owner now Northern Aluminium Company
1968 to 1969 Last entry showing Sprostons as owners
1969 to 1970 Owners now Government of Guyana
1987 to 1988 Owners Government of the Republic of Guyana. This is the last year for which there is an entry in the Register.
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Here are a couple of other interesting internet links to articles about the R.H. Carr.
Excerpt from: TheLindenerNewsLetter Scroll down to see the RH CARR
Excerpt from: TheLindenerNewsLetter
R.H. Carr, on the Demerara River, Excerpt from: TheLindenerNewsLetter)
Another ferry service on the Demerara was the small launch. (Clevland Sargent says a couple of these launches were named “Lalta Paul” and “Saigon”
Launch, on the Demerara River, British Guiana (Photo Evan Wong)
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There has been some interest in bringing the R.H. Carr back to the UK.
Campaign to Save the Historic RH Carr Aug 11, 2007 by Carl Butler, Daily Post
Call for historic steam ship to be brought home from The Flinshire Standard Dec 24, 2009, includes reference to some of Pauline’s photos.
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(Note BobW: Saltney is a small town in Wales on the river Dee just south of Liverpool in the UK.)
Saltney, located at the pin on the map
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October 30, 2010
John and Pauline Grimshaw have passed a recent document authored by Alan Barnes and published in the October issue of a vintage steam magazine called Old Glory. They have even managed to obtain permission from the author to circulate copies of the article. And so, I’ve pasted in below Alan Barnes’s article as three separate images.
RH Carr by Alan Barnes published in OldGlory 1
RH Carr by Alan Barnes published in OldGlory 2
RH Carr by Alan Barnes published in OldGlory 3
I too have fond memories of the vessel. What happened to her in the end?
Comment by Pat Cusack nee Hunte — October 14, 2008 @ 4:54 pm |
I still don’t know where the R.H.Carr is today. But we have learned from my father that back in the DEMBA days, ALCAN via Sproston’s owned and operated the R.H.Carr.
Comment by rvewong — October 14, 2008 @ 10:20 pm |
I remember when my mother, sister Virginia, and I joined my father in Mackenzie in 1957, the only practical river transport at the time was via the R.H. Carr. Due to the numerous stops made along the 65 mile trip up the river to Mackenzie from Georgetown to embark or disembark passengers, I remember distinctly my mother saying to me “the R.H. Carr has only two speeds, dead slow and stop!” It was a gruelling journey, especially for us young children, and I’m certain we drove our parents half crazy asking them “are we nearly there yet?” Later on, we relished at the thought of avoiding the R.H Carr for the comparative luxury of the Polaris, or the rare true luxury of the Dorabice! On a few occasions to head to G’town for quick shopping trips to Bookers and Fogarty’s, we jumped in a speedboat and raced happily by the R.H Carr as it trundled along. Cutting short the trip by hours, despite being blasted by the wind, was well worth it. And then eventually, along came Tom Wilson and his trusted DeHavilland Otter, and we were forever grateful! It seems a shame though that having been so much a central player in the Demerara River transport “scene” for so many years, that some entity in Guyana today can’t come together to preserve this old workhorse, rather than sending it back to the U.K.
Comment by Julian Langham — October 15, 2008 @ 7:07 pm |
Well, well, well it is truly amazing what one can find on the internet. What a fantastic site, so many evocative memories and so many names to recall – and I still haven’t looked at every photo or read every blog. So, Julian, if you are still watching this space, email me and I will send you an old b/w photo of us + your sister and Susan Roberts on the Dorabice as we wended our way back to school circa 1961. We lived on Arrowcane Crescent ie up the slope and around the bend from you. Didn’t your father have a marmajuke – phoenetically spelt! We lived in Mackenzie from 1954 to 1968; my father (Ken) worked at Demba and my mother (Barbara) taught kindergarten from approx 1960 to 1966.
Having never responded to a blog before, I have no idea as to whether anyone else will pick this up. If you do, hello. And for those of us from the same era, we have some fantastic memories to share and a wonderful journey in front of us – so keep on posting and let’s get in touch.
Comment by Robert James — October 13, 2010 @ 10:09 pm |
Robert – welcome on board. I would love to see that photo you mention. I have a couple of b&w photos of the Ituni pool with Susan’s menagerie. My e-mail is bcusack@talkwireless.ca
Best regards,
Pat
Comment by Pat Hunte-Cusack — October 15, 2010 @ 1:40 pm
Does anyone remember James Adolphus Chapman who worked on the R H Carr prior to 1950?
Comment by Winston Chapman — December 4, 2008 @ 4:03 pm |
I am a Guyanese and I remember RH Carr, my dad worked with John Fernands Ltd, who operated a coal burning complex on the Demerara River (Horida). We always visit my dad on school vacation. Our travel day would start at around 7.30 am from Sprostons Warf in Georgetown on the RH Carr. We would travel all day on that great old ship until we reached our destination (Horida). Very fond memories about that great old ship. I do hope the Government of Guyana can preserve this old workhorse, rather than sending it back to the U.K. and could be used for river tourist cruises.
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BobW (Anthony, good of you to drop by. I never knew the name of the “Sproston’s Warf”, I wonder if it might have been called a Stelling. At MacKenzie the warf was called a Stelling. I’ve never heard of Horida, I wonder where it was exactly.)
Comment by Anthony Stokes — December 24, 2008 @ 8:52 pm |
Hi Bob;
The name is Sproston’s Wharf and was located at Lombard St and Broad Street in Georgetown, also The Horodia Coal and Timber Grant which was located on the Demerara River is now owned by Skip Roberts and it is a Cattle Ranch.
Anthony Stokes
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BobW (Thanks Anthony, I really need to get a decent map of Guyana, any ideas?)
Comment by Anthony Stokes — December 26, 2008 @ 2:13 pm |
I traveled up the Demerara on the R H Carr in late 1963 or early 1964 while stationed at Atkinson Field. Got to visit all parts of the ship. It had a large diesel engine; it was not a steam boat.
Comment by George Stewart — January 13, 2009 @ 11:12 pm |
The R. H. Carr was built as a steamship. When Sproston’s acquired her sometime in the early 1950′s, they overhauled her and put in a Blackstone diesel.
Comment by Evan & Katy — January 14, 2009 @ 3:25 pm |
Dear Folk:
Some information you have on the R.H. Carr is definitely erroneous.
The vessel was refitted with 2(two) Blackstone diesel engines for
total Horse power of 500 h.p.
I think my take on this subject is correct, I had sailed on this
vessel as 2nd.and Chief engineer in the fifties.
Comment by John Dash — August 17, 2010 @ 2:59 am |
I am a Guyanese living in St. Vincent and the Grenadines. I lived in Mackenzie for a number of years. I remember travelling of R.H. Carr many, many, times.
It used to be fun travelling on it.
Comment by Inez Cuffy (Kellawan) — February 1, 2009 @ 4:18 pm |
As children we travelled on the R.H.Carr numerous times during the mid 50′s going to school in Georgetown or to visit the dentist for some gold fillings which I still in place to this day. I was at St. Gabriels Convent school so it must have been around 1958. While in ‘town’ we stayed at the Tower Hotel where Demba had a number of rooms reserved for staff and their families. I remember having Chicken in the basket or better known as Chicken in the rough(ruff). The purser of the R.H.Carr was Mr Rose during that period and his wife was a nurse at the hospital in Mackenzie.. I only knew her as ‘nursie’ as she was know to our family and perhaps to many others. The journey was slow but as small kids it was an adventure seeing all the numerous stops the boat made on it way to Georgetown. I remember mum buying fruit at the Atkinson stop and the money and fruit had to be thrown over the side of the boat.
Comment by Nigel Ho — May 9, 2009 @ 4:10 pm |
What year was RH Carr handed over to the government, does anyone know?
Thank you
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BobW (John Grimshaw reports… Lloyds Registers showing when ownership changed. Hope this helps.
1927 to 1928 First time on the Register shows Sprostons as owner
1928 to 1929 Owner now Northern Aluminium Company
1968 to 1969 Last entry showing Sprostons as owners
1969 to 1970 Owners now Government of Guyana
1987 to 1988 Owners Government of the Republic of Guyana. This is the last year for which there is an entry in the Register.)
Comment by Clifford Nehaul — February 12, 2010 @ 9:20 pm |
I lived in Linden most of my life and traveled many times on the R.H Carr. That 65 mile trip took 8 hours to complete and that depended on the tide too. I also had a cousin who was an engineer on the vessel who told me that the Lister-Blacstone diesels (2)replaced the steam engine. If I remember correctly, the service was run by Sprostons and not by Demba. After the Linden-Soesdyke highway was opened, Sprostons gave the vessel to the Government and that was that. Fond memories indeed. “Boyhood days”…The Tradewinds
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BobW ( Jasper, Yup those good old memories. I have a vague recollection of my father telling me that Alcan owned both Demba and Sproston’s, making them into sister companies. You have provided the first piece of the puzzle of what happened to the R.H. Carr, “The government had it”.)
Comment by Markenburg — August 9, 2009 @ 11:10 pm |
The RH Carr was purchased by A. Mazaharally & Sons, Ltd., a timber concern. The ship lies in ruins in the Mazaruni River at a place called Skull Point.
Comment by Roger Ally — September 1, 2009 @ 11:09 pm |
Yes good memories travelling down and up the demerara on the R.H.Carr. In retrospect it was indeed a tiring but fun journey travelling on the “Steamer”.
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BobW (John, I had forgotten that the R.H. Carr was often referred to as the “Steamer”, maybe the name came from the days when it truly was a steamer)
Comment by John Cush — September 3, 2009 @ 12:12 am |
Good to see that someone is using the name Markenburg. This was briefly the name of the area after the villages of Mackenzie, Wismar and Christianburg were amalgamated municipally into a town.
A competion was run in the Guymine News (formerly Demba Digest) to name the new town. The name Markenburg won i.e. the residents named it that and the name was implemented. There was even a radio repair business downstairs at the corner of Arvida and Pine called Markenburg.
Anyway political kissuppers in the Central government decided to override the decision and name the town after Linden Forbes Sampson Burnham, the President of the country.
Even though I was a Burnham fan and Markenburg was a Burnham strong hold, I was and still am very angry that the choice of the local residents was thrown out.
Gerry King
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BobW (Gerry, On naming things after yourself. I prefer not to rename something, it destroys the historical record and dismisses the contribution made by the original namesake. If you want to make a name for yourself build something new, as in, make a contribution first.
Case in point the Guyana airport, it was originally named Atkinson field after the guy in charge of it’s construction, probably paid for by the American’s as part of their war effort.
Comment by Gerry King — September 7, 2009 @ 4:04 pm |
[...] R.H. Carr page has been suitably updated with the [...]
Pingback by Finding the Wreck of the R.H. Carr « Watookacoffeeshop's Weblog — November 14, 2009 @ 9:27 pm |
This blog has been a very interesting discovery for me. When I was six, I lived in Mackenzie (1957) and I remember sitting up near the bow of the RH Carr on a trip to Georgetown, chewing sugar cane, watching the jungle as we passed very slowly by! My parents were Dave and Royce Forbes. My father was a doctor at the hospital and my mum the radiographer. Seems an age ago, so imagine my surprise to find info on the RH Carr as well! Thanks for the site – excellent!
Comment by Alistair Forbes — November 17, 2009 @ 11:39 pm |
Hats off to all the “kids” who are keeping this history going. I admire those who go back. I can’t. I cannot bear to see all the skeletons. Fortunately we all have good memories, more or less … Thanks for keeping us up-to-date. It was a perfect place and because of it we are who we are today. After my career with Alcan came to an sudden end because of illness – in the 1990′s – I was given the opportunity by the company to get into early childhood education – very rewarding. Recently, I’ve been going over my journals with the plan to maybe one day when the spirit moves me to write my own story. Over the years, numerous books have been written by those who were born and grew up there, so it is that the place was indeed very special to lots of people. Certainly I am among those. I leave you with a phrase I came across recently.
But before I sign off, Alex – I’m sorry that the photo you posted on your flikr site of the New Year’s dinner with all the writing on it was posted like that. The writing is mine and I had given Robert Castel a number of my old pictures which he posted to the web with my writing on them. I wish now that I had not written on them! Bob – I agree with you that original historical names should be preserved for the sake of continuity. Look what happens when bad politics take over! Such a shame. So much time and effort went into the business, not to mention funds, and to see what has become of it all is distressing to say the least.
“Excellence is achieved only through consistency, innovation and teamwork” – an ad by a trust company published in The Economist in 1982. Take care.
Comment by Pat Cusack nee Hunte — November 19, 2009 @ 10:59 am |
I miss that boat so much, I even have dreams that I am on it. I think my dreams represent the fact that I have not accepted the fact that it is no longer there. I loved the R.H. Carr:))
Comment by Deanna — June 30, 2010 @ 12:36 am |
I personally enjoyed the fact that it took so long to travel to Georgetown on the Steamer.(With 4 of us children and my mother going to visit relatives in Georgetown, it wasn’t that often that we could get a place on the Grumman. Of course things changed once Demba acquired the Otter).
We always took a picnic and I loved just watching the riverbank go slowly by and looking for activity and flowers in the jungle. At some points it was not very wide or is that just my memory playing me up. The Demerara River was so brown that with the creamy wake from the boat it always made me think of Coca Cola. We used to be on the top deck and enjoyed watching all the activity below.
Of course as Nigel said staying at The Tower Hotel and having “chicken in the ruff” was always part of the treat.
Comment by Margot Roza — July 13, 2010 @ 10:26 pm |
It is quite an interesting story of the R.H Carr.I truly hope that all will be done to restore her to her former glory.
Comment by Tamara Gerin — October 5, 2010 @ 1:00 pm |
I have fond boyhood memories travelling on the R.H Carr travelling to Wismar to spend time with my grandfather Charles Lee Ting.I fondly remember him firing his rifle in the air to welcome visitors on the R.H. Carr to the Wismar/McKenzie area on what we used to call an excursions. I truly hope that something will be done to restore and preserve the R.H. Carr which has left so many fond memories for
many Guyanese far and wide.
Comment by Floyd Campbell — October 11, 2010 @ 3:54 pm |
What a great website! As a small boy I traveled on the R.H. Carr with my father, Pastor Arnold Kraner as he visited Seventh-Day Adventist churches up and down the rivers of old Guiana. For an 8 or 9 year old kid, the R.H. Carr was an escape into a world of excitement and romance. But the escape was never more pronounced than when, on one memorable trip, I drifted up to the bridge where a distinguished gentleman offered me an unidentified drink. Whiskey or rum, it matters not. I knew I had had a sip of that dangerous stuff I was always being warned about. When I told my Dad, as a good lad would, he laughed and said I’d be just fine. The banks of the muddy Demerara slipped by as I hazily pondered the exotic possibilities of worldliness. I grieve for the old boat. Thank you photographers and web masters for preserving her.
Comment by Doug Kraner — October 19, 2010 @ 6:18 am |
I travelled on the RH CARR on a few occasions. It was sad to see what had become of this vessel. I only wish that it could have been preserved in a maritime museum.
Comment by C L Barrow — October 31, 2010 @ 3:23 pm |
She deserved a better resting place. I could see her moored at a stelling in Georgetown being used as a restaurant if she couldn’t be anything else any longer. In Geneva, Switzerland, they used to do that; don’t know if they still do. The shipyard that built her must be disappointed too. She was so well-built and served us so well. I know we’re talking about an object here, but the memories; those memories!
Comment by Pat Hunte-Cusack — November 3, 2010 @ 2:03 pm |
Hi!
Found this site and looked at the movie of RH Carr as a wreck, on the movie we could se another wreck on the left of RH Carr. Do any know wich vessels more are situated on the same spot?
Im looking for a old vessel, last known name was Caripride of Georgetown, Kingston and owned by Yacoob Ally. We were the owner back in 1952 and are searching for some news regarding her… Any news is of interest! Please email me per-arne@redknot.se
Comment by Per-Arne Elonsson, Sweden — December 25, 2010 @ 2:48 pm |
Here is a link to a 1918 article, Glimpses of Guiana, that mentions Sprotons, and recommends that a ship would further travel needs in Guiana.
http://stillwoods.blogspot.com/2010/01/glimpses-of-guiana-wilderness-1918.html
Doug Frizzle
Comment by stillwaterwoods — June 25, 2011 @ 4:32 pm |
I remember the RH Carr. As a boy in the 1950.s going from Georgetown to Mc Kenzie. When the tide was against you you would leave GT at 8am and arrive at 8PM. If you got a good tide you would arrive at 5 PM. I still remember the small boats that came out from my uncles( Brash Dias) plantation at Vryheid/Sand Hill with bananas, pineapples etc. Those were great times to be in Guyana.
Comment by Omar Dias — July 15, 2011 @ 5:36 pm |
I think the boat was first named SS RH Carr because it was steam driven and after those diesels were installed it became MV RH Carr. It must have been fired with coal as it crossed the Atlantic to Br. Guiana. I recall the loading of sufficient Wallaba wood at Wismar, enough for one up and down voyage,,undoubtedly the firewood burning to produce steam, caused severe deforestation. No story of the SS or MV RH Carr can be complete without mention of Captain Benjie, he still lives in my memory, as I picture him, dressed immaculately in his white maritime uniform at the helm! We shall forever remember Captain Benjie, he must be furious in his grave to see what happened to his beloved ship.
Comment by Clarence London — July 18, 2011 @ 9:27 pm |
My name is Harold Naidu It was a pleasure reading about the RH Carr ,I was living close to The Demerara River and as a boy i always watched this big ship going by, this story brings back memories, Thanks
Comment by Harold — July 19, 2011 @ 9:58 am |
I did a rough calculated guess and came up with information that Capt Benjie must have transported more than one million souls safely between Georgetown and Wismar, during the many years he was in charge of the RH Carr. There was however, that day when he rear-ended the vessel into the southern section of the Wismar stelling, and the incident immediately became the talk of the town for days on end, with the curious wanting to see and know how it happened. Rumors abounded about the reason for the accident and his subsequent suspension for three months for that singular unfortunate event.My own hindsight suspicion was that there was some misunderstanding and bad calculation among all parties concerned, and for unknown reasons.. For those who do not know, the mooring of the vessel is a skilled endeavor necessitating untold coordination among helm personnel, engine room crew, and dock hands. The helm personnel must also consider the tide and the fact that unlike a land vehicle, there are no brakes and in those days the communication between the captain and the engine room was restricted to a crude telephone instrument that marked and displayed the various options dictated by the Captain on the bridge, to the engine crew..
First the captain directs them to stop engines when the vessel arrives at a certain distance from the wharf; the vessel then drifts at a determined controllable rate with its momentum, combined with either the flow , or against the existing tide. Concurrently a crewman is located on the bow and his tool is a half inch manilla rope with a specific knotted ball at the end to add weight, This guide rope is attached to the 4 inches manilla looped-ended rope, which rope is wound on a steam driven winch (capstan,) located on the deck of the vessel. (smaller nylon ropes were unavilable in those days) The dock crew man must catch the thrown rope at the northern end of the dock and run to the mooring bollard located at the southern end of the dock, and place the then mechanical fed moooring rope on the bollard before the vessel reaches the corresponding parallel point. The winch ( capstan) is then activated to stop further displacement of the vessel. Finally other mooring lines, one at the stern, and another at mid ship called spring line, are then placed on their respective bollards.. The mooring is completed and passengers and cargo can be discharged;.Captain Benjie’s task is completed until the next ship’s activity.
Comment by Clarence London — July 20, 2011 @ 3:43 pm |
If I could make a guess I would suggest the direct reverse engines might have been at fault I remember
Transport trying to use this vessel as a ferry, still get nightmares.
Comment by clifford nehaul — July 20, 2011 @ 6:03 pm |
Clifford you are right, T&HD tried using RH CARR on the Berbice ferry after Government acquired the vessel, I think in the late 60′s, not sure but just before I joined the T&HD pilot service. The vessel gave those old T&HD Captains a hard time to handle, simply because the engines were direct drive ( no gear box ) which they were unaccustomed to. As a result the vessel ran in to the stellings quite a few times, even damaging the gantry at New Amaterdam stelling. The Marine Superintendent then sent me to Berbice to see what was the difficulty with handling this vessel. You see the compressors could only provide five starts after which they became empty and would take along time to build back up the air. So if the manoeuvre took more than five starts (which might very well be the case if the tide was slack)the captain was in serious trouble. So when I arrived at New Amsterdam I informed the Superintendent of Stellings that I would only be working the vessel when the tide is either flooding or ebbing, not at slack water, and certainly not with any schedule which he had set.. Naturally he wanted to know who was this young upstart who went into his kingdom telling him when and how the vessel will run, this was unheard of, but as we were cadets together you know me so you know the result. I worked the vessel without incident as master, trained my mate Joseph Henry (now deceased) who also handled the vessel quite professionally in my absence until it was probably sold to A Mazaharally & Sons. The other guys as mentioned by Mr Barrow were Vibert Swami, Cleo Da Silva, George Walks ( deceased) Maxie Cush. Not sure about Ronald France who was also a Sprostons pilot with George Walks.
Comment by Rouchie Adams — July 26, 2011 @ 12:34 am
Wow Rouchie
cant believe it took took the RH Carr to put me back in touch with you. Before I forget when you get a chance you can drop me a line buckman10@bell.net. I like this site, my cousin Deana brought it to my attention, it shows that some people still have a sense of history, the depth of their investigation is amazing. I never got the passenger’s point of view because I always wanted the trip to be over with before the engines failed (talking about Transport not The RH Carr) Finally you were an young upstart, very confident, always walking close to the flame, I remember as cadets we were all in awe, but everyone knew you were going to be a big deal someday and you did and still doing, you were the inspiration for many in both the public and private sector. Give my best to the big Z
Comment by clifford nehaul — July 28, 2011 @ 3:53 pm
Hi Clarence,
There was a Clarence London who was a schoolmate in Junior Form at Enterprise High School on Camp Street, next to London Cinema. Are you that person?
Burnett Halder
Comment by Burnett Halder — July 24, 2011 @ 12:06 am |
Yes I am the individual. Cabbie Humphry was principal at the time took over from RBO Hart after we moved from Hadfield Street. You can cony tact me at :cnlondon8@racsa.co.cr. Or on Skype.
Comment by Clarence London — August 1, 2011 @ 1:12 am
If my memory is correct, when Mr Benjie retired as Captain from the RH Carr sometime in the sixties,he was replaced by a man named Swami ( his first name I cannot recall), then it was George Walks, then Maxie Woods. I have no more recollection after that because I left the Country. RH Carr brings back a lot of memories.
Comment by C L Barrow — July 21, 2011 @ 10:59 pm |
Does anyone know what happened to the steam vessel “Sproston Wood” built in 1881? My great grandfather was a pilot for Sprostons and was shown as being the captain of the Sproston Wood in 1889. His name was Edmund Stanley Haynes though he was always referred to as Captain Haynes. My mother,who was born in Georgetown in 1927, has memories of him when she was a very young child. I’ve no idea if Edmund captained any other steamers but my mother seems to think he used to come over to England to sail them back to BG?? Would this be correct and does anyone know how I may be able to find out more information?
Comment by Wendy Loveday — September 16, 2011 @ 8:33 am |
The nostalgic memories of this particular boat are remembered and bring a particular sad feeling to see the ruins. Most of upper Demerara residents used the R.H Carr for transportation. The exceptions were the many speed boats or launches. The speed boats took only one hour but did not complete the entire journey to port Georgetown and stopped at the Atkinson base where taxi or bus completed the trip.
The R.H Carr took a relaxing 8 hours and held a special bond with all passengers. The slow journey through the meandering Demerara River was punctuated with frequent stops in the middle of the river as passengers got off or on into small boats. It was exciting to see the occasional cow transported. Cattle were pushed out into the river and had to complete the trip to pasture by swimming. For many it was their only contact with the riverain areas. The area of Linden is like an oasis surrounding by jungle. Most of the area’s new population who came from Guyana’s coastal communities and the many Caribbean Island had little knowledge of inland Guyana. This was a great opportunity and experience for all to see Guyana’s hinterlands.
This river trip brought many in contact with the soul of Guyana. They were able to see the many settlements, sawmills, sawpits, villages, farms and life alongside the river. They saw the essence and make up of what is Guyana.
I still remember running down the steep steps of third class as a child to buy gynip or drinking a cold coca cola at D’Aguiar while watching the large propeller of the boat churning up the brown water of the river. We would wave as we passed the people on the shores or in boats on the river in a kind of farewell salute to a time of innocence.
Comment by DMITRI ALLICOCK — September 18, 2011 @ 7:21 pm |
Very little information and relics remain of the early history of upper Demerara. This excellent poem was obtained from the book “Run Softly Demerara” by Zahra Freeth. This striking poem is on target and tells volumes of the area’s history.
We have seen the historical periods of the Paterson Sawmill and the Wismar Rockstone Railway almost vanished from the record including the 8 sq.miles of plantation that Robert Frederick Allicock had owned in 1800. That area included the entire area from Arakwa creek to the north to “Three Friends” or Maria Elizabeth to the north Most families with recent connections to river areas are acutely aware of this trend. The relentless jungle takes over rapidly. The chapter of the steamer service in Demerara is almost lost in 2011.
This poem was from 1960. History has since moved downriver and across the oceans of the world as so many migrate from the area. With the declining fortunes of Bauxite, this phenomenon also appears to be at work. This poem continues to very meaningful and echoes across the ages.
“These rivers know that strong and quiet man
Drove back a jungle, gave Guiana root
Against the shock of circumstances, and then
History move down river, leaving free
The forest to creep back, foot by quiet foot
And overhang black water to the sea.”
Comment by DMITRI ALLICOCK — September 18, 2011 @ 7:44 pm |
Hello all. I was thrilled to find this blog. R.H. Carr almost caused my younger brother’s premature birth! I was ten and my sister eight in mid ’66. The trip was long and slow and the Blat! Blat! Blat! of the diesels was fatigueing to my mum. On arrival in McKenzie, we had to immediately catch the Grumman back to Georgetown. That’s another story as the thing was so loud inside, I ended up having to use the barf bag. We used to stay with the Chan’s in Watooka and that was special. I recall they would go to canada on holiday leaving the doors open, food in the fridge, lights burning. No fear of crime at all….until the highway opened. Then it was all downhill from there..Progress has its price. Now I see that two new boats are comming from China. Maybe a whole new generation of memories for those who will sail on them. God Speed.
Comment by Len Corsbie — November 1, 2011 @ 8:44 pm |