Imperial Midland
Who am I?
Imperial Oil Limited of Canada had many tankers of this type sail the Great Lakes during the 1940’s and 1950’s. Initially, The Rock offered the names of Imperial Welland or Imperial Cobourg as the likely identity of this Mystery Ship. Other possible names were the Imperial Midland, Imperial Hamilton, Imperial Sarnia or Imperial Goderich. Recently, Ted Wilush identified the ship as the Imperial Midland. The ship was built for Imperial Oil, Ltd. and launched as the Taralite in 1917. The ship was renamed the Imperial Midland in 1947. The ship was acquired by Reoch Transportation, Ltd. in 1953. At that time the ship's name was changed to the Willowdale and she was converted from a tanker to a bulk carrier. She sailed on the Great Lakes for another 10 years before being scrapped in 1963. Auke Visser of the Netherlands has compiled a superb site dedicated to tankers of this type. Please click here to see additional photos and information about the Imperial Midland.
posted by Ookpik at 8:10 PM
3 Comments:
Based on the cabin structure and location, as well as the number of masts and location, I will stick with the Welland or the Coburg.
I am happy to see a compilation of these classic old Imperial tankers.Well done, Auke!!
One of these tankers, was it the Imperial Hamilton(?) after she had ended her sailing days, had her pilot house removed and it sat on the river bank south of Sarnia on the St. Clair River and became a small but interesting museum for a few years.
This is Imperial Midland (ex Talaralite). The masts, vents forward of the pilot house, the manner in which the bridge wings are supported, and stack arrangement differentiate her from Imperial Cobourg. Note it could not be Imperial Welland, as the vessel in the photograph does not have anchor pockets.Converted to a bulk carrier in 1953 and renamed Willowdale, she was eventually sold for scrap in 1963.
Hi Ted,
Thanks for the identification and information.
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