Shamrock

Built in 1899 by Frederick Hawke of Plymouth for Tom Williams, SHAMROCK is a sailing ketch built for cargo work on the River Tamar and estuary in South West England. Her construction was of pitch pine and oak. From 1899 to 1962 she worked as a barge plying her trade though with several changes of ownership. In the late 1930s she moved from Plymouth to the Truro River where she operated in several Cornish ports. In 1962 she was used  as a test drilling barge for core samples on the sea bed within St Ives Bay, Cornwall and later became a salvage vessel between 1966 and 1970 when she fell into disrepair. The National Trust acquired her in 1974 and she was towed up the River Tamar to Cotehele Quay for restoration. This was a major joint project between the National Trust and the National Maritime Museum. SHAMROCK is the centrepiece of a display at Cotehele from where she makes occasional voyages on the River Tamar. In Winter 2006, several planks on her starboard side needed to be replaced, which delayed her spring launch by a month. However, a team of skilled volunteers assisted with the fitting of the 2 inch thick larch planks.

June 2011 Visited by National Historic Ships on the 27th May. Vessel is in very good condition, well painted and there is no significant evidence of deterioration. Source: Paul Brown on behalf of National Historic Ships.

1. 1974 Mariner's Mirror Note: Coasting Ketch Shamrock
2. 1975 Ships Monthly Saving the Shamrock
3. 1978 Old Ships, Boats and Maritime Museums - Sullivan, Dick
4. 1988 Lost Ships of the West Country - Langley, M and Small, E
5. 1993 International Register of Historic Ships - Brouwer, Norman J