Furness Withy era una importante empresa de transporte británica . Cotizó en la Bolsa de Valores de Londres .
La empresa fue fundada por Christopher Furness y Henry Withy (1852-1922) en 1891 en Hartlepool . [1] Esto se logró mediante la fusión de la línea Furness de vapores con el negocio de Edward Withy and Co. , constructores y reparadores de barcos de hierro y acero , de West Hartlepool , que fue fundado por Edward Withy (1844-1927), el fundador de Henry Withy. hermano. [2] Una de las primeras adquisiciones en 1900 fue una participación mayoritaria en Richardsons Westgarth & Company , una empresa de ingeniería marina . [2]
Furness, Withy comenzó con 18 buques y durante los años siguientes poseyó más de mil barcos. [3] Compró la línea Prince en 1916. [1] En 1917 se estableció Furness Shipbuilding Co Ltd , en Haverton Hill , River Tees , inicialmente para la producción de guerra. [4] La familia Furness vendió sus participaciones en la empresa a un consorcio liderado por Frederick Lewis , director de la empresa, en 1919. [1]
También en 1919, Furness, Withy compró a Canada Steamship Lines la Quebec Steam Ship Company, que operaba servicios regulares entre Nueva York y Bermuda . Furness, Withy cambió el nombre de su adquisición a Furness Bermuda Line . [5] En 1928 Furness, Withy adquirió la Línea de la Cruz Roja. [6]
En 1965, Furness, Withy adquirió Royal Mail Lines (anteriormente Royal Mail Steam Packet Company ) en 1965. [7]
En 1965, British and Commonwealth Shipping , Furness Withy, P&O y The Ocean Steamship Company fundaron Overseas Containers Limited para explotar la contenerización . [8]
En 1966 Furness, Withy puso fin a su operación Furness Bermuda Line. [5] [9]
In 1968 Furness, Withy bought the Houlder Group, a company with offshore oil interests.[10] Furness Withy bought Manchester Liners in 1970.[11]
The company was acquired by the Orient Overseas Container Line of Hong Kong in 1980.[3] In 1990 it was resold to the Oetker Group, who at the time of purchase were the owners of Hamburg Süd.[3]
Furness Withy operated both tramp and liner services. The latter included transatlantic Royal Mail and passenger routes, initially from West Hartlepool to Boston and New York, and later from Liverpool to St John's, Newfoundland, Halifax, Nova Scotia and Boston. The Liverpool — Boston route was worked by a pair of sister ships, RMS Newfoundland and RMS Nova Scotia. The first Newfoundland and Nova Scotia were built in 1925 and 1926 but were requisitioned in 1940 and 1941. Both were lost to enemy action: Nova Scotia as a troop ship in 1942; Newfoundland as a hospital ship in 1943. S.S. Fort Amherst[12] and her sister ship S.S. Fort Townshend[13] were built by Blythswood Shipbuilding[14] in 1936. They sailed between Newfoundland, Nova Scotia, New York and the British West Indies. In 1952 S.S. Fort Amherst she was taken over by the Royal Fleet Auxiliary after the explosion of the RFA Bedenham and renamed RFA Amherst.[15] A second Newfoundland and Nova Scotia were built as replacements in 1947 and served until 1962, when Furness, Withy sold them to Dominion Navigation Co. A third Newfoundland and Nova Scotia were built in 1964 and 1965, and were chartered to Shaw, Savill & Albion Line in 1973.[16]
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