The article by Ben Johnson discusses the greatest invention of all time in the industry of shipping, the SS Great Britain steamship, and the man behind the invention Isambard Kingdom Brunel ( Johnson) . Isambard Kingdom Brunel was placed as the second Greatest Briton after Winston Churchill. Brunel was with no doubt Britain’s best engineer, who left many legacies. SS Great Britain was one of such legacies. He supervised the building of the wrought iron steamship, the SS Great Britain in 1843 in Bristol ( Johnson) . This steamship set the pace and standards of the modern shipping in Britain today. Brunel presented the industry with the inventiveness during the Victorian era. Brunel is prided with having revolutionized the mass passenger travel and international communications.
The SS Great Britain was 100 meters and was the first screw propelled wrought iron and ocean-going ship. She weighed a whopping 1930 tons, designed as a trans-Atlantic luxury passenger trade. However, the ship failed in attracting enough passengers as expected and thus was not a great financial success. The SS Great Britain’s trade was short-lived after she was damaged in 1846 in Dundrum Bay Northern Ireland ( Johnson) .. The SS Great Britain was later to be sold to the Gibbs Bright and Co. Where she prospered due to the emigration caused by the Australian Gold rush. Within 24 years, the SS Great Britain was able to go for 32 voyaged and carry 16000 emigrants to Australia ( Johnson) .. The SS Great Britain would take 120 days to Australia during the mid-19th century, which extremely competitive at the time. Not sail rivals would match the SS Great Britain. During the Crimean war, the government chartered the SS Great Britain to carry troops back and forth. In 1870, she was sold as a coal and wool storage. The SS Great Britain only recorded 25 accidents in her lifetime.
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References
Johnson, B. SS Great Britain, Isambard Kingdom Brunel's steamship . Historic UK . Retrieved 20 July 2017, from http://www.historic-uk.com/HistoryUK/HistoryofBritain/SS-Great-Britain/
Johnson, B. The SS Great Eastern's Launch Ramp, Millwall . Historic UK . Retrieved 20 July 2017, from http://www.historic-uk.com/HistoryMagazine/DestinationsUK/SS-Great-Easterns-Launch-Ramp/
