British shipping companies (H)

Last modified: 2021-05-29 by rob raeside
Keywords: shipping lines |
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• J. Hardie & Co.
• R. Hardy & Co.
• Hargreaves Coal and Shipping Ltd.
• G.B. Harland & Co.
• Harley & Miller, Ltd.
• H.G. Harper & Co.
• Robert Harper
• Harries Bros. & Co.
• Harris & Dixon Ltd.
• J & C Harrison
• John Harrison, Ltd.
• T. & J. Harrison Ltd.
• Harrison & Co.
• Harrison Line
• Harrisons (Clyde) Ltd.
• Harrison Tidswell & Co.
• Robert Harrowing & Co.

• House flags of British shipping companies
• House flags of shipping companies
• United Kingdom

J. Hardie & Co.

image by Ivan Sache, 28 April 2021

Lloyd's Book of House Flags and Funnels (1912) shows the house flag of J. Hardie & Co. (#986, p. 83), a Glasgow-based company, as vertically divided blue-white-blue.
https://research.mysticseaport.org/item/l011061/l011061-c008/48/
Ivan Sache, 28 April 2021

R. Hardy & Co.

image by Ivan Sache, 25 April 2021

Robert Hardy (1853-1934) and Joseph Forster Wilson founded Hardy, Wilson & Co., owning 20 ships from 1879 to 1894. The company was dissolved on 30 June 1894 and Robert Hardy continued trading as R. Hardy & Co., owning 11 ships until the company ceased trading in 1913. Joseph Forster Wilson continued trading as J.F. Wilson (Wilson Shipping Co. Ltd.) owning 15 ships between 1894 and 1919.
R. Hardy & Co., also owned the steamer "Uplands" built by Ropner in 1890. she was sold in 1912 to Stettin owners and renamed "Belgravia". In May 1918 she struck a mine and sank.

http://www.hhtandn.org/venues/4729/hardy-and-co
Hartlepool History Then and Now

Lloyd's Book of House Flags and Funnels (1912) shows the house flag of
R. Hardy & Co (#585, p. 64) as swallow-tailed, red with a white disk, charged in the center with a red "H".
https://research.mysticseaport.org/item/l011061/l011061-c008/29/
Ivan Sache, 25 April 2021

Hargreaves Coal and Shipping Ltd.

image by Jarig Bakker, based on the website of the National Maritime Museum.

From the website of the National Maritime Museum, "the house flag of Hargreaves Coal and Shipping Ltd., London. A rectangular red house flag with a large white diamond bearing the black letter 'H' in the centre. The flag is made of a wool and synthetic fibre bunting. It has a cotton hoist and is machine sewn. A rope and toggle is attached."
Jarig Bakker, 15 August 2004

G.B. Harland & Co.

image by Ivan Sache, 27 April 2021

The company of G.B. Harland & Co. was formed in 1883 by George Blenkhorn Harland (1848-1924) with their first steamer "Duchess". As well as owning eleven ships throughout the time the company traded they also managed ships.

http://www.hhtandn.org/venues/4963/gb-harland-and-co-
Hartlepool History Then and Now

Lloyd's Book of House Flags and Funnels (1912) shows the house flag of G.B. Harland & Co. (#777, p. 73) as red with a white triangle in the center.
https://research.mysticseaport.org/item/l011061/l011061-c008/38/
Ivan Sache, 27 April 2021

Harley & Miller, Ltd.

image by Ivan Sache, 23 April 2021

Lloyd's Book of House Flags and Funnels (1912) shows the house flag of Harley & Miller, Ltd. (#387, p. 55), a Liverpool-based company, as blue with a white bird.
https://research.mysticseaport.org/item/l011061/l011061-c008/#20
Ivan Sache, 23 April 2021

H.G. Harper & Co.

image by Ivan Sache, 26 April 2021

Lloyd's Book of House Flags and Funnels (1912) shows the house flag of
H.G. Harper & Co. (#635, p. 67), a London and Cardiff-based company, as blue with a white "H" framed in two white rectangles.
https://research.mysticseaport.org/item/l011061/l011061-c008/32/
Ivan Sache, 26 April 2021

Robert Harper

image by Ivan Sache, 1 May 2021

Lloyd's Book of House Flags and Funnels (1912) shows the house flag of Robert Harper (#1552, p. 110), a Glasgow-based shipping company, as white, in the center, a white square diamond bordered in blue and charged with a blue "H".
https://research.mysticseaport.org/item/l011061/l011061-c008/#75
Ivan Sache, 1 May 2021

Harries Bros. & Co.

image by Ivan Sache, 30 April 2021

The Harries brothers were natives of Fishguard who established themselves as shipowners at Swansea in 1888. In 1946 their company acquired the 2,066 gross ton steam coaster "Empire Peggotty", built at Grangemouth in 1944 and she was renamed "Glanowen". Sold to Liberian owners in 1965, she foundered in the estuary of the River Weser, northern Germany, on 12 March 1967.

National museum Wales
https://museum.wales/collections/online/object/038fda19-61ef-3e86-b486-fb1238ebb839/SS-GLANOWEN-glass-negative/?field0=string&value0=but&field1=with_images&value1=on&sort=relevance

Lloyd's Book of House Flags and Funnels (1912) shows the house flag of Harries Bros. & Co. (#1428, p. 104), as triangular, red with the white letters "H.B & C°".
https://research.mysticseaport.org/item/l011061/l011061-c008/#69 
Ivan Sache, 30 April 2021

Harris & Dixon Ltd.

Brinkburn Steamship Co., Ltd.
Century Shipping Co., Ltd.
Cornmill Steamship Co., Ltd.
Lunsford Steamship Co., Ltd.

image by Jarig Bakker, 29 January 2006

Harris & Dixon Ltd., London - red flag, in center white burgee with three blue stripes and in the center a red diamond.
Source: Loughran (1995)
Jarig Bakker, 29 January 2006

image by Ivan Sache, 30 April 2021

Francis William Harris and James Dixon began to build up steam colliers from 1863 to operate in the North East Coast coal trade to the Thames both being, active on the Coal Exchange in London. As shipbrokers they could claim to be the oldest in the City with charter parties in their archives dating back to 1797 and 1813. Colliers included "Hastings" of 1864, "Bwllfa" of 1865, "Merthyr" of 1866, "Fulmar" of 1868, "Lloyds" of 1869 and "Mid-Surrey" of 1870. The total of their fleets numbered over a dozen colliers by 1873, the year in which "Bwllfa", named after a South Wales colliery, was the first ship to be registered under the ownership of Harris, Dixon & Company. Later ships such as "Richmond" of 1871 and "Wimbledon" of 1872 were by then expanding their horizons by taking coal from the Tyne to Gibraltar and Mediterranean ports and from Cardiff to Black Sea ports and returning with grain from the Black Sea on the ‘Eternal Triangle’ route.

Larger tramps such as "Joseph Pease" of 1876 and "F. W. Harris" of 1877 completed to the order of Dixon & Harris at Stockton, but the partnership names had been reversed to Harris & Dixon by the time The partners’ first new steel tramp "Shagbrook" of 1884 was completed in October of that year by William Gray at Hartlepool. By this time only a couple of colliers were still engaged on the coal trade into the Thames with only "Mid-Surrey" left in the 1890s and she was exceptional in that she completed 50 years service with the fleet before being sold for scrap in 1920. New larger tramps were then ordered to participate in world-wide trading to the Middle East and Far East, Pacific, and from the U.S. Gulf and U.S. Eastern seaboard to U.K./Continent with timber, grain and cotton. They were completed for the ownership of one-ship limited liability companies taken from the name of the ship, e.g. "Elvaston" of 1887, "Cheniston of Wakefield" of 1888, "Collingham" of 1889, "Courtfield" of 1893 and "Brinkburn" of 1894.

The Century Steamship Co. Ltd. was set-up just before the advent of the new century to own "Brinkburn" of 1899 launched by Helen Turnbull and completed in July that year at the Turnbull yard in Whitby. "Brinkburn" sailed on her maiden voyage to Madagascar on charter to the French Government with a cargo of shallow draft boats to quell a revolt on the island. Harris & Dixon owned shares in all of the Turnbull tramps in their Whitby, Cardiff and London fleets, and also acted as insurance agents and chartering agents for Turnbull.
Three more tramp owning companies were soon set-up as the Cornhill Steamship Co. Ltd. in 1904, the Gracechurch Steamship Co. Ltd. in 1905 and the Alliance Steamship Co. Ltd. in 1906. Twenty new and second-hand tramps were purchased and registered under these four companies between the tum of the century and 1908, and Harris & Dixon was made into a company of limited liability on 28th December 1902. The Gracechurch company, taken from the address of the company in London, was to have the greatest longevity, with Harris & Dixon registering ships under that company for the next fifty years.
Sixteen tramps were owned by the company at the outbreak of World War I, with two lost to torpedoes and shells from U-boats.

https://www.shippingtandy.com/features/harris-dixon-ltd/
Shipping Today and Yesterday, 2 May 2018

Lloyd's Book of House Flags and Funnels (1912) shows the same house flag, without the rectangular red background for different companies operated by Harris & Dixon (#1266, p. 97).
https://research.mysticseaport.org/item/l011061/l011061-c008/#62
Ivan Sache, 30 April 2021

J & C Harrison

image from Talbot-Booth (1936)

White, in the centre an arm emerging from a wreath holding a broken lance. Underneath is a scroll.
James Dignan, 19 October 2003

Lloyd's description: White, blue border; in center, blue arm and hand holding broken spear over "PERSEVERE" in scroll.
Jarig Bakker, 19 October 2003

J & C Harrison. The original flag apparently did not have a border which is described by Talbot-Booth (1936) as being royal blue with the motto being also blue. Brown 1958 notes the addition of the border but as Talbot-Booth had shown it in 1936 they were a bit late.
Neale Rosanoski, 15 June 2004

I found an image in Browns Flags and Funnels, 1926 [Wedge 1926]. Description: white flag, blue sleeve with white blue-contoured hand holding a red broken arrow pointing towards the hoist; at bottom blue contoured ribbon charged with "PERSEVERE" in blue. Between sleeve and ribbon three yellow stars (?). Caption: J & C Harrison (1920) Ld., London
Jarig Bakker, 3 February 2005

The brothers John and Charles Harrison started a business in London in 1888 by buying two old steamers for the coal trade. In 1889 and 1890 another two colliers were purchased. In 1891 the first new built, the "Harlyn" (1), joined the fleet, she was followed by four new colliers between 1893 and 1895.
In 1896 an amalgamation of four collier owning fleets including the fleet of J. & C. Harrison took place and several colliers went to Wm. Cory & Sons Ltd including new ships which had been ordered by J. & C. Harrison during 1896 and 1897, but not yet delivered. Several steamers were ordered for delivery during 1897 and 1898 and they were all sold by the turn of the century and the fleet was then dormant for five years during a bad freight market.
In 1904 the new tramp "Harcald" (2) was delivered to J. & C. Harrison and was followed by nine more steamers during 1905 and 1906.

J. & C. Harrison started a subsidiary Harrisons (London) Ltd. and returned to owning colliers just before the First World War and by 1918 three colliers were owned ("Harden" 1912, "Harlow" 1915 and "Harlech" 1914). The latter was lost in 1924 by which time she was under Harrison’s (London) Colliers Ltd, which had been formed in 1919. The fleet remained small with the prefix "Har" names and were sold of by the early 1940s.

During World War I eight ships were lost due enemy action and two were sold to British Owners, the "Harlow" (3) was sold abroad. When the war was over only two ships were left in the fleet the "Harperley" (2) and "Hartington".
The two tramps were transferred to the ownership of the newly formed Willis Steamship Co. Ltd in 1920 under the management of J. & C. Harrison (1920) Ltd, which was reconstructed by John and Charles Harrison in March 1920. In 1924 the six ships of Dr. T.G. Adams of Liverpool was taken over, of which two were soon sold and the other four were renamed with the prefix "Har" names.

In 1929 J. & C. Harrison took over the management of the National Steamship Co. previously managed by Fisher, Alimonda & Co. at that time the National Steamship Co. consisted of two old tramps. Towards the end of 1929 a large new building program was started for their own account and for their Willis Steamship Co. Ltd and for the National Steamship Co. In 1935 another shipping company under the name of the Gowland Steamship Co. Ltd was set up by J. & C. Harrison.
During the depression all their ships were kept on going.
The company lost nineteen ships during World War II, only six ships survived the onslaught. Urgent replacements were needed after the war and several ships managed for the Ministry of War Transport (MOWT) were purchased and orders were placed for new ships.
The fleet consisted of two Liberty’s and three early post war ships and in 1956 the first of five modern trampships the "Harborough" entered service. The ships were employed in world wide tramping throughout the sixties.
The advent of bulk carriers slowly meant the end for the traditional trampships and these were sold off and replaced by tho bulk carriers the "Harfleet" (2) and "Harfleur" (2). These two bulk carriers made voyages between Australia and Japan with coal and iron ore until sold in 1979 due to the continuing low freight rates.
The Gowland Steamship Co. is still in existence as an investment company.

https://www.theshipslist.com/ships/lines/j_charrison.shtml
Mariners L

Lloyd's Book of House Flags and Funnels (1912) shows the same house flag (#586, p. 64).
https://research.mysticseaport.org/item/l011061/l011061-c008/29/
Ivan Sache, 25 April 2021

John Harrison, Ltd.

image by Ivan Sache, 27 April 2021

Lloyd's Book of House Flags and Funnels (1912) shows the house flag of John Harrison, Ltd. (#845, p. 77), a London-based company, as red with two thin horizontal white stripes on top and bottom, charged in the center with the white letters "JH".
https://research.mysticseaport.org/item/l011061/l011061-c008/42/
Ivan Sache, 27 April 2021

T. & J. Harrison Ltd.

image by Jarig Bakker

From Scott, R.M., The Caltex book of Flags and Funnels, Cape Town, Caltex Africa Ltd. (1959).

Commodore's flag - red swallowtail; at the hoist four white cones in saltire.
Jarig Bakker, 10 January 2005

Company continued from Charente Steamship Co. Ltd. in the 1950's.
Neale Rosanoski, 15 April 2004

The firm of T & J Harrison, also shown as Thos. & Jas. Harrison, was formed in 1853 as a partnership. It is not clear when it became a limited company with the earliest record I have being shown in Lloyds Shipowners 1953-4. By 2000 the company was effectively finished.

The flag appears in many books by many authors and most of them have different versions which makes the NMM actual flag more important. Apart from the variances in how much of the flag the cross paty occupied, the main difference is whether the sides of the cross were straight [as with the NMM flag] or whether they were curved [as is shown by most sources dating back to Reed 1891]. Whilst there may have been changes throughout its life, I cannot find anything to substantiate this.

The commodore's flag shown by Jarig is confirmed by Loughran 1979 but here again there are differences in the depicture. Louis for his version here is like that for the company with curved sides for the cross, but not with the narrow points effect where the arms meet [see image above], but in an article in Marine News 4/1970 he shows the straight sided version of Jarig but this is a result of it coming from the same source i.e. from the R.M Scott publication for Caltex. His showing of curved sides versus the NMM version with the Thos & Jas Harrison Ltd. flags showing in Brown 1982 and 1995 as well as his 1979 book could mean that there was later change or may just mean that the difference has never been noticed or considered important.
Neale Rosanoski, 7 October 2013

Harrison & Co.

image by Ivan Sache, 28 April 2021

Lloyd's Book of House Flags and Funnels (1912) shows the house flag of Harrison & Co. (#890, p. 79), a Cardiff-based company, as white with a red border and a red "H".
https://research.mysticseaport.org/item/l011061/l011061-c008/44/
Ivan Sache, 28 April 2021

This company was known as T & J Harrison in the 1950s.
James Dignan, 8 October 2003

Larousse Commercial Illustré (1930) shows Harrison Line, Liverpool: white, a large red cross formy throughout which fills up almost the entire field. Compare with the illustration here, where the house flag is square and leaves much more white. You can see a square version at http://www.navierasbr.com/ESP/LINERS/HARR_ESP.HTM

The on-line 1912 Lloyds Flags & Funnels gives it in a traditional form under No. 836 for 'Charente Steamship Co., Ltd. (Harrison Line), Liverpool and London' whereas the many other Harrisons have completely different house flags. Here's a link to the flag in question, it's on page 42:
https://research.mysticseaport.org/item/l011061/l011061-c008/41/ which this ties in with: http://www.merseysideviews.com/Merchant%20Vessels/Harrison%20TJ
Jan Mertens, 28 May 2004

Harrisons (Clyde) Ltd.

image by Jarig Bakker, based on the website of the National Maritime Museum.

From the website of the National Maritime Museum, "the house flag of Harrisons (Clyde) Ltd., Glasgow. A white swallow-tailed burgee divided vertically by three wavy lines. A red 'H' is superimposed on the lines in imitation of a bridge across a river. The flag is made of a wool and synthetic fibre bunting. It has a cotton hoist and is machine sewn. A rope and toggle is attached. The wavy lines are said to represent the three partners who formed the company in 1956."
Jarig Bakker, 15 August 2004

Harrison Tidswell & Co.

image by Ivan Sache, 25 April 2021

Harrison Tidswell & Co. (#527, p. 62), a London-based company, as white with two horizontal black stripes on top and bottom, charged in the center with five and two half black diagonal stripes.
https://research.mysticseaport.org/item/l011061/l011061-c008/#27
Ivan Sache, 25 April 2021

Robert Harrowing & Co.

image by Ivan Sache, 4 May 2021

A window in the St. Mary's church in Whitby is dedicated "To the memory of Robert Harrowing 1825-1900: the owner of the first steamship 'Primus' AD 1864 belonging to Whitby".

Photo
http://www.flickr.com/photos/bolckow/4891114376/

Lloyd's Book of House Flags and Funnels (1912) shows the house flag of Robert Harrowing & Co. (#1838, p. 124), a Whitby-based company, as white with a red border, charged in the center a red cross patty superimposed with a white ring, in the respective corners the black letters "R", "H", "&", and "Co.".
https://research.mysticseaport.org/item/l011061/l011061-c008/#89
Ivan Sache, 4 May 2021