This one for Dave! Gleaned from Facebook this morning.

PENZANCE, W.J.Tillett & Co., Cardiff, 1456gt, completed by Schlesinger Davis, Wallsend, 1879
lost by collision (LAENNEC) Barry Roads 25.10.02 [Barry-Brest, coal]

I think I am reading her name correctly from this old postcard and she is the only vessel of this name I can find in Miramar.
Shown in Middlesbrough Dock, probably around the turn of that century.
See: http://www.tynebuiltships.co.uk/P-Ships ... e1879.html

Ron M

Any thoughts on the TCC Paddle Tug Ron? Certainly has the look of the Davies or the Amos but the dates don't fit, she is either Laid Up or taking Coal Bunkers where she is I would suggest. Ron@?

Ron,

I would have to look up the fleet lists I have in TEES PACKET but TCC would have several paddle tugs around that time, so probably not possible to identify.
Also wondering, as presumably colourisation of the postcard is fairly recent, could it actually be a railway dock tug which I think had white funnels with black top? Might be more likely given her trapped positionin that leg of the dock showing on the card?

Ron M

I Bow to your superior knowledge on these matters Ron and your last thoughts regarding Funnel colour change is the most likely bearing in mind where she is moored, that area was used for coaling the TCC Fleet being near to the Railway lines before moving to the new but unfinished Tees Dock
Also of interest was the Penzance having her Anchor 'a Cock Bill', standard practice on RN vessels but not so much on Merchant Vessels, if the Evergiven had one of her Anchors 'a Cock Bill she may not have ran so deep into the Canal Bank.

Thank you Ron for the photo of PENZANCE.

Does she have to be a TCC paddle tug? Several private operators in this period, prior to Tees Towing.

No, not at all NE with my accepted and somewhat very limited knowledge of Tugs on the Tees of that period I am aware that other Companies had them as Paddlers are a good Stern, Steering, Brake Tug in confined waters when hanging on to the Stern of a vessel being towed. I was going by the Funnel colour which I thought was TCC colour and the resemblance in the style to the Davies and the Amos but as tother Ron has pointed out the Post Card has been coloured at some later date which could mean the Funnel was mainly White which does fit in nicely where she is parked up in the top corner of Middlesbrough Railway Dock it just happened to be the same area which was used for Coaling TCC vessels as the coal filled railway wagons pulled in under a Crane which dumped the Coal on the vessel's Deck which was then shovelled with a No8 Shovel into the Bunkers!
The Engineers job was to ensure that there was plenty of clean hot water (by putting a steam drain in a number of buckets so that there was plenty of it for the Crew to have a wash down with sand and soft soap), all very technical tha knows