Name Teal

TEAL was built in the 1930s for the London, Midland & Scottish Railway as part of a plan to update and improve their Windermere cruise fleet. She was built by Vickers Armstrong at Barrow-in-Furness in 1936. She was transported in sections by rail, reassembled at Lakeside, and launched on 4 July 1936. Her first passenger certificate was for 877 people on three decks in first and third class accommodation. At this time, she had an open top deck and open bridge, and the main deck saloon had open gangeways running down each side of the main structure. There were no funnels - instead the engine exhausts were led through the lower side of the hull, well aft.

TEAL operated a limited service in the early years of the Second World War, until the end of the 1941 season, when she was laid up for the duration of the war. The service resumed on 16 July 1945. In 1948, ownership passed to the British Transport Commission and subsequently Sealink. In August 1956, Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip sailed on her from Ambleside to Bowness. Over the years, she has been modernised several times and became single class.

Source: Paul Brown, Historic Ships The Survivors (Amberley, 2010), updated Mar 2011.

Although this vessel is on the National Historic Fleet, we are currently lacking information on this particular vessel. If you have any information on this vessel past or present, please contact us.