The last of the sailing ships owned by the Allans was wrecked in a dense fog near Astoria, at the mouth of the Columbia River, Washington, U. S., on the 19th of March, 1896. The Glenmorag was a fine iron clipper ship of 1,756 tons register, built at Glasgow in 1876, and up to the time of her final disaster had been exceptionally fortunate and successful. Captain Currie, who commanded her, was widely known and has a first-rate reputation as a sailor, but in an evil hour of a dark, dirty night, when making for Portland, Oregon, he was startled by the sudden cry from the man on the lookout, “Breakers on the port bow,” and while in the act of wearing the ship around she went broadside on the rocks. Two of the crew were killed and four injured severely while attempting to get ashore.
It has been announced that the Allans have at present under construction on the Clyde four magnificent steel steamships for the Canadian freight and passenger trade. Three of these are vessels of 10,000 tons, and the fourth of 8,800 tons. All of them are to be fitted with triple expansion engines and twin screws. The three larger ones are each over 500 feet in length, with 60 feet breadth of beam, and are designed to develop an average speed of sixteen knots, which means that they are expected to make the voyage from Liverpool to Montreal in about 7¼ days mean time—actually a quicker service for Canada than obtains at present with 20-knot steamers via New York. With ample accommodation for a large number of passengers, these ships will have room for 8,000 to 9,000 tons of freight and the most approved appliances for the rapid handling of cargo.
Sir Hugh Allan of Ravenscrag, to whom Canada is chiefly indebted for the magnificent Allan Line of steamships, was born at Saltcoats, Ayrshire, Scotland, September 29th, 1810. He came to Canada in 1826 and entered into business as already stated. His whole life was one of incessant activity. He was founder of the Merchants’ Bank of Canada and its president, and the President of the Montreal Telegraph Co., and many other important commercial institutions. Sir Hugh was knighted by Her Majesty the Queen, in person, in July, 1871, in recognition of his valuable services to the commerce of Canada and the Empire. He died in Edinburgh, suddenly, December 9th, 1882, and was buried in Mount Royal cemetery, Montreal. Sir Hugh was a man, very emphatically, sui generis. Quick to arrive at his conclusions, he was slow to abandon them; where he planted his foot there he meant it to stay. A keen and enterprising man of business, he accumulated a princely fortune. To those who knew him only on the street or in the Board-room he might, perhaps, seem curt and brusque. His conscious power of influencing others made him almost necessarily dogmatic and dictatorial, but in private life he was one of the most amiable, kind-hearted and genial of men. He was a staunch Presbyterian, a liberal supporter of the Auld Kirk of Scotland in Canada, and in his younger days devoted much time in promoting its interests.
Sir Hugh Allan.
The brothers Bryce and James died several years before Sir Hugh. Alexander died in Glasgow in 1892. Mr. Andrew Allan, now the senior partner of the Montreal firm, was the youngest of the five brothers, and is the only survivor of them. Mr. Allan was born at Saltcoats, December 1st, 1822, and came out to Canada in 1839. He married a daughter of the late John Smith, of Montreal (a sister of Lady Hugh Allan). Mrs. Allan died in 1881, leaving a large family. Two of the sons, Messrs. Hugh H. and Andrew H., are associated with their father and with Messrs. Hugh Montagu and Bryce J. Allan, sons of the late Sir Hugh, in managing the extensive business of the Canadian branch of the Allan Line. Mr. Allan has filled many of the posts of honour and responsibility formerly occupied by Sir Hugh, and earned for himself the golden opinions of his fellow citizens.
The first four captains of the Allan Line were Andrew McMaster, of the Anglo-Saxon, Thomas Jones, of the Indian, William Ballantine, of the Canadian, and William Grange, of the North American. Captain McMaster was born at Stranraer, Wigtonshire, in 1808. After serving a five years’ apprenticeship on board the East Indiaman, Duke of Lancaster, at the modest rate of £2 for the first year, and £20 for the full term of his indentures, he got command of the brig Sir Watkin, sailing from Islay with 240 of the clan Campbell as passengers. One-half of these were landed at Sydney, Cape Breton, and the other half at Quebec. The hardships of the emigrants in those days were excessive, as they had to provide their own food and bedding, and were allotted places on the stone ballast to do the best they could for themselves. In 1845 Captain McMaster was placed in command of the clipper barque, Rory O’More, for which Edmonstone & Allan were the agents. Leaving Montreal in the summer of 1846, owing to the lowness of water the yards and topmasts were sent down and floated alongside, while cables, chains and other rigging were put into lighters to enable the vessel to traverse Lake St. Peter, drawing nine feet of water! His next command was the ship Montreal of 464 tons, at that time the largest of the Montreal traders. In 1856 he was placed in command of the first SS. Canadian, and successively of each new ship as she was launched. In 1864 he retired from the sea, and entered the shipwright business in Liverpool. He died in the Isle of Man in 1884.
