City of Adelaide rots while authorities dither

I was going to entitle this post City of Adelaide rots while authorities fiddle, as a parallel to Nero fiddling while Rome burnt, but I thought the chances of being sued by the officials of the actual city of Adelaide for suggesting of corruption was just to high if they spotted the title, and didn’t read further.

I am, of course, referring to the ongoing and increasingly sad case of the clipper, City of Adelaide (better known as The Carrick to the good people of Glasgow whenever it was afloat), whose hull lies abandoned, derelict, and rotting on a slipway at the Scottish Maritime Museum in Irvine.

Remains of the City of Adelaide pictured on the slipway at the Scottish Maritime Museum Irvine in 2005 © Chris Allen

If ever there was a story that refused to lie down quietly, it must surely be that of the planned destruction (deconstruction), or not, of this once proud shipping relic.

Scottish Maritime Museum

Jim Tildesley, acting director of the Scottish Maritime Museum, said the decision to break up the ship was down to resources. He said:

We are taking the vessel apart so that you actually learn from doing it – it’s a bit like a piece of archaeology. But initially we’re attempting to save the bow and stern and have them preserved in our main museum. What we don’t know yet is the cost of actually doing that and whether we can afford to fund that bit of preservation.

It seems that every news story that suggests the end of the remains of this clipper has arrived is followed almost immediately by another which says not so, and suggesting that some sort of rescue is still possible, if only someone would either come up with the cash, or allow the remains to be removed from Irvine and restored.

The stories are beginning to lack consistency and credibility to some degree however, and if the most recent is to be believed, then the remains should be in no danger of being lost, since it refers to not only a bid from Sunderland, in the north east of England, but also a rival bid from Australia, which was the vessel’s destination for 28 round trips.

With rival bids being tabled, surely the question should no longer be one of the recovery of the vessel, but who is going to win ownership of the remains.

Or, does the real problem actually lie with the Scottish Maritime Museum and/or Historic Scotland?

Is someone somewhere playing silly buggers, something along the lines of “This is my ball and you’re not playing with it – I’ll burst it before that happens.“

Sunderland City of Adelaide Recovery Foundation (SCARF)

Campaigner Peter Maddison (a Sunderland councillor) has been quoted as saying: “I wish it could be straightforward, but it won’t be. Every inch of the way we have to contend with awkwardness and obstruction.” Maddison occupied the hull back in October 2009, as a protest, but ran out water after four days.

He has said that he has an engineering firm willing to help, with a naval architect and engineers ready to plan the recovery. two hotels in Irvine ready to take 30 volunteers, former shipyard workers from Sunderland, and that half the bars and clubs in Sunderland are on stand-by, ready to hold fundraising events to support the volunteers in Irvine. Further details of this effort can be found on the SCARF (Sunderland City of Adelaide Recovery Foundation) web site.

City of Adelaide Australia

City of Adelaide, The Splendid Clipper Ship is an Australian web site hosting an appeal to Save the Clipper, and which sent an open letter to the Prime Minister and People of the United Kingdom back in November 2009, pleading for the demolition of the ship to be prevented. This letter notes that the reason for this destruction is merely to clear the site to make way for a housing development.

The museum appears to have just left the vessel to rot over the years, and I don’t say that as mere criticism, as its masters may not have been able or willing to provide sufficient finance for it to do anything else once it had the remains on site. Then again, what of the housing development’s part?

Historic Scotland

However, Historic Scotland has now been quoted as follows:

Following recent discussions, Historic Scotland said: “Sadly, and despite the recent widespread publicity about her future, no viable option for her restoration has yet been presented. Deconstruction is “the most appropriate conclusion”, a spokeswoman added.”

While I don’t necessarily endorse the view, I have noted that Historic Scotland does receive adverse publicity in the media occasionally, for being obstructive and unhelpful, and if there are rival bidders looking to take over the remains of the City of Adelaide, and they are not asking Historic Scotland for money, then surely Historic Scotland should accept any bid for what has become little more than an embarrassing pile of scrap, and get if off their hands?

One might be tempted to think someone is exerting their authority merely because they can, and damn the consequences.

Surely it matters not if the remains go to Sunderland or Australia, so long as they are preserved in some way?

BBC News – Ship protester hails breakthrough

Sunderland Maritime Heritage

Sunderland Maritime Heritage has written a background summary regarding the deconstriction.

Advertisement