HISTORY OF NEWPORT AND THE PARISH OF FORGAN ; AND RAMBLES ROUND THE DISTRICT, by J. S. Neish, 1890
PART XI. THE 'MARS' TRAINING SHIP - TAY BRIDGES - WATER SUPPLY - RAILWAYS
In 1869 a movement was set on foot in Dundee with the view of establishing an institution for the purpose of rescuing homeless and destitute boys from a probable life of crime, and training them for sailors, or to other useful trades. Institutions of that kind had previously been established in some of the principal seaports of the kingdom, and the success which had attended them induced the originators of the movement in Dundee to endeavour to get a ship for the Tay to serve as a Training Ship for the East of Scotland. The scheme was favourably entertained by gentlemen of influence in the counties of Fife, Perth, and Forfar, and a Committee was formed and subscriptions raised to start the institution. An application was made to the Admiralty for a ship, and their Lordships offered the 'Mars' line-of-battle ship, which was accepted by the Committee, on 27th May, 1869. The 'Mars', which was then lying at Sheerness, was brought to Dundee, and arrived in the Tay in the end of the month of May. The ship was moored on the south side of the river, at a point about a mile west of Newport, and almost opposite the old ferry pier of Woodhaven, where she still lies at anchor. The 'Mars' is an old line-of-battle ship - one of the stately floating castles of the British Navy, the 'wooden walls of old England', which formed our only bulwark from foreign invasion in the days of Nelson and Collingwood. She has three decks, with a lofty and commodious poop, and her stern and broadsides bristle with portholes. She is a splendid specimen of the naval architecture of the last century, but like all the rest of her class she has been superseded by a race of ironclads and ungainly 'turret ships', which the improved destructive power of modern artillery have rendered necessary. Previous to being 'laid on the shelf', the 'Mars' was converted into a screw steamship and fitted with engines of 400 horse power. She then carried 68 guns, and was 2573 tons burden.
After the 'Mars' arrived in the Tay she was fitted up to suit the peaceful and philanthropic purpose which she was henceforth destined to fulfil. On Thursday, October 21, 1869, the institution was formally opened, on which occasion a large party of ladies and gentlemen assembled on board to participate in the ceremony. Among the guests were - Sir D. Baxter, Sir J. Ogilvie, Sir R. Anstruther, Provost Yeaman, Dundee; Lord Provost Pullar, Perth; Provost Milton, St Andrews; Provost Hood, Cupar Fife; Provost Swan, Kirkcaldy; Admiral Maitland-Dougal, and a number of ministers and ladies and gentlemen from Dundee and other towns in the east of Scotland. The party assembled on the main deck in front of the poop, and the proceedings were opened with prayer by the Rev. Dr. Taylor, Dundee. Speeches, appropriate to the occasion, were delivered by Provost Yeaman (who presided), Sir R. Anstruther, Sir J. Ogilvy, and Sheriff Barclay, Perth. The company then spent an hour in inspecting the ship, and after partaking of some refreshment they were conveyed back to Newport and Dundee in the steamers which were engaged to transport them to and from the ship. The 'Mars' Institution is based on the Industrial School system. It provides a temporary home for homeless and destitute boys, unconvicted of crime, who may be sent to the ship by the order of a Justice of the Peace, or a Police Magistrate, in any town or district in the east of Scotland. Boys are not eligible under twelve, nor over fourteen years of age, and they cannot be detained after they reach the age of sixteen years. On board they receive a plain English education. The majority are trained for the sea, but some domestic handicrafts are also taught, such as shoemaking, tailoring, &c. At one time the 'Mars' had a tender attached to her - a smart schooner named the 'Lightning' - which in the summer months made experimental trips along the coast, the craft being manned by crews of 'Mars' boys. This has been replaced by a fine new one, the 'Francis Molison'. Some years ago the hull of a ship wrecked at the mouth of the Tay was purchased by the Directors, and fitted up as a floating swimming bath, in which the boys are taught the art of swimming. A gymnasium has also been established on board, and to afford healthy exercise and relief from the monotony of life on board the ship, a piece of ground, about three acres in extent, was secured near Woodhaven, and laid out as a kitchen garden. The work of cultivation is performed by the boys, and they are not only able to provide an abundant supply of fresh vegetables for the use of the ship, but a large surplus is sent to the market, and sold for the benefit of the funds of the institution. There is a splendid brass band on board, the performers numbering about eighty boys, who are all trained by the 'Mars' bandmaster. The ship is under the superintendence of Captain Scott, R.N., who is assisted by a large staff of officers, whose duty it is to instruct the boys in the various branches of education. The ventilation and sanitary arrangements on board the ship are on the most approved principles, and the health of the boys is remarkably good, the sick list seldom exceeding two per cent. As a proof of the inestimable value of such an institution, it may be mentioned that, since it was established, more than 1000 boys have been trained on board, and sent out to the world. These boys are now earning an honest living for themselves in all parts of the globe, whereas, but for the training they received, a large proportion of the number would have gone to swell the ranks of the vagrant and criminal armies.
Moored at a short distance from the shore, the 'Mars' has a close and intimate connection with the history of Forgan and Newport. The greater part of the officers have their homes in Newport, while the boys, with their smart 'man-of-war' uniforms, are often seen on 'liberty' days strolling about the streets of the village. The brass band, too, is ever ready to lend its services at fetes and concerts in Newport. The boys, as a rule, are well behaved, and on several occasions some of them have distinguished themselves by noble acts of heroism in saving lives from drowning. An old woman who fell over Woodhaven pier was gallantly rescued by a 'Mars' boy, while similar acts of daring by others belonging to the ship could also be enumerated. Considering that the boys spend their lives afloat, and have to pass to and from the north and south shores of the river in small boats, accidents, as a rule, very rarely occur. A melancholy and fatal accident, however, occurred to a 'Mars' boat at Newport Pier on Friday, 30th July, 1875, by which one of the 'Mars' boys, named James Giles Gilbody, was drowned.
On the day in question, a number of the members of the Forfar Town Council, including Provost Fyffe and some of the Bailies, paid a visit to the 'Mars' to inspect the vessel. After spending an hour or so on board, the party took leave of the Captain and officers and embarked in two of the ship's boats, intending to return to Newport to dine at the hotel. The boats were rowed by crews of the boys, and the order given by Captain Scott was to steer for Woodhaven. One of the boats, with Provost Fyffe and Bailie Reid and other two of the party on board, altered the course and steered for Newport shortly after leaving the ship. This change, it is said, was in accordance with the wishes of the passengers, one of whom took the tiller and steered the boat in the direction of Newport, in spite of the remonstrances of one of the ship's officers who was on board. A heavy surf was breaking on the sea end of Newport Pier; round which the boat had to steer to reach the east side to land her passengers. Through the unskilful management of the steersman the boat was brought too close to the pier, and in attempting to get round she got amongst the broken water, and was in danger of being drifted ashore. The gentlemen got alarmed at their situation, but the officer took the helm, and commanding all to sit still, he succeeded, with considerable difficulty, in working the boat clear of the surf. But another danger now threatened them. The ferry steamer was at that moment moving off from the east side of the pier, and the crew of the small boat, unconscious of the fact, rounded the pier, and before they were aware found themselves drifting helplessly towards the steamer. At first the boat was not observed by the people on board the steamer, and she therefore came on with increasing speed towards the little boat The lads, alarmed at the danger, exerted their utmost to get the boat out of the steamer's course, but notwithstanding their efforts the tide drifted them under the steamer's sponson. By this time, however, the boat had been observed by those on board the steamer, and the engines were backed just in time to save the small boat from being run down. Ropes were thrown from the steamer to the party in the boat, and, with the aid of the boys, some of the gentlemen were got on board the steamer ; but while Provost Fyffe was being assisted up the steamer's side, the small boat suddenly heeled over to the other side. The poor lad Gilbody lost his balance and fell overboard, and before his shipmates could lend him any assistance he was drawn by the suction under the keel of the steamer. He rose to the surface, but almost immediately sunk to rise no more. Every effort was made to rescue the unfortunate lad, but all was in vain, as no traces of him could be found. James Giles Gilbody, who lost his life in the melancholy manner above described, was a native of Keith, Banffshire. He was about sixteen years of age, and his time on board the 'Mars' was almost expired when his career was so suddenly cut short.
The history of the first Tay Bridge - one of the greatest engineering enterprises of modern times - is so well known to our readers that it is scarcely necessary to repeat it here. But as the unfortunate structure is so closely associated with Newport, our history would not be complete if it did not include some account, however brief, of the far-famed bridge. Constructed for the North British Railway Company to facilitate their traffic, it has, nevertheless, a national interest, while, from its southern extremity, being situated in the parish of Forgan, and its connection with the Newport water supply, it has a very special local interest attached to it. Its history may be thus briefly sketched. A special Company, of which ex-Provost Cox of Dundee was elected Chairman, was formed to erect the bridge for the use of the North British Railway Company. An Act of Parliament was procured, and the works contracted for by Mr. Charles de Bergue, of London and Manchester, and operations were commenced in May, 1871. The place selected for commencing this great undertaking was on the farm of Wormit, at its western extremity.
About a mile west of the 'Westwater' pier is a rocky headland jutting out from Wormit Bay. This was one of the loneliest spots on the Fife coast. There was beauty in its solitude, the braes above the face of the cliffs were decked with the primrose, and bristled with the black thorn, bearing its white blossoms in spring and its sloes in autumn. A footpath led along the brink of the cliffs, the path of the salmon fishers and a short cut to the Kirkton of Balmerino. There was the highway also, which was constructed for the more convenient access to the Tay Ferries, but it was little frequented except by farmers and carriers on market days passing to and from Dundee.
Such was the out-of-the-way locality which, for a time, was the scene of great engineering operations by land and water, and now the thoroughfare of passengers from all parts of the world, Royalty itself having honoured it with a passing visit. Thence the new line of railway, carried to the south, gave an opening into the world at St. Fort Station to the secluded valley of Kilmany and the western parishes ; while, eastward, the trains coursing through Newport offered in its two stations a new accommodation for the daily intercourse of its inhabitants with the town of Dundee. Workshops, and 'huts' for the workmen, were erected at Wormit Bay, and the first stone was laid on Saturday, 22nd July, 1871. There was but little ceremony, and an absence of any ostentatious display on the occasion. No special invitations were issued, and only a few gentlemen, besides the workmen, were present. Rev. D. Thomson, Forgan, in whose parish this great undertaking was commenced, offered up a brief but fervent prayer for a blessing on the enterprise. The foundation of one of the land piers having been excavated, the first stone was lowered into its place, and a few taps with a hammer given to it by the son of Mr, Patterson, inspector of the works, and the ceremony was completed. From that time till the completion of the bridge in the fall of 1877 the work was prosecuted vigorously. In 1873 the original contractor died, and after some little delay Messrs. Hopkins, Gilkes, & Co., of Manchester, undertook to complete the contract The bridge was constructed according to plans prepared by the late Sir Thomas Bouch, and the erection of the structure was superintended by Mr. A. Grothe, the resident engineer.
The first Tay Bridge was about two miles in length, and had a maximum height of 88 feet above high water. In mid channel the water has an average depth of 45 feet, and the current runs at the rate of about five knots an hour. The bridge consisted of 85 spans, of the following dimensions - namely, eleven of 245 feet each, two of 227 feet, one of 182 feet, one of 166 feet, thirteen of 145 feet, ten of 120 feet 3 inches, eleven of 129 feet, two of 87 feet, twenty-one of 67 feet 6 inches, three of 67 feet, one of 66 feet 6 inches, and six of 28 feet 11 inches. All these spans were constructed on the open lattice girder principle, with the exception of one of 166 feet at the north end on the bowstring principle. There were besides at the north end one span of 100 feet (bowstring), and three of 29 feet (plate girders). The girders were made of iron, and the total weight of one of the 245 feet girders was about 200 tons. The first twelve piers from the south were built with brick. The others were constructed of iron cylinders, filled with brickwork and concrete to the height of several feet above high water ; thence they were composed of tiers of great iron columns, fastened together with iron tie-bars. The longest spans were in the centre of the bridge over the navigable part of the river, and the girders were there placed above instead of underneath the 'permanent way', as was the case in the other spans. The former were known as the 'high girders', and they formed a sort of tunnel in the centre, and were a very conspicuous feature in the structure.
During the erection of the bridge the number of accidents was comparatively few, considering the dangerous nature of the work. Accidents, however, did occur, and several of the workmen lost their lives by drowning. The most melancholy casualty recorded happened on the morning of Tuesday, 26th August, 1873, when six men were drowned by the bursting of a cylinder composing one of the north piers. On the night in question, twelve men were working inside the cylinders sinking them under water. About two o'clock in the morning the iron cylinder burst with a loud report, and the water rushed into the interior of the pier where six of the men were working and drowned them instantaneously. Four men engaged in another division of the cylindrical pier managed to reach the surface in time to save their lives, but their less fortunate companions had no warning, and no chance of escape. An air bell and steam engine which were placed on the top of the pier to supply air to the men below, and the whole apparatus and a man and a lad in charge were thrown into the water by the force of the explosion. The lad, whose name was William White, a discharged 'Mars' boy, swam to one of the boats, and, getting on board, he cut the rope by which it was fastened to the pier, and with the aid of an oar he paddled about in the darkness, and succeeded in rescuing some of his fellow workmen who were struggling for their lives in the water. The cause of this melancholy disaster was never fully understood, but nothing of a similar nature occurred during the six or seven years occupied in building the bridge.
We have had occasion, in previous chapters of this history, to speak of the prevalence of storms of wind on the Firth of Tay. In constructing a viaduct over the river the frequency and destructive power of such storms would of necessity be one of the contingencies to be provided for to secure the permanent stability of the structure ; but, as the sequel proved, this had either been overlooked, or else the power of the wind had been underrated. The winter of 1876-7 was marked by a succession of terrific hurricanes which caused great destruction of life and property along the coasts and all over the country. On the afternoon of Friday, 3rd February, 1877, a fierce gale suddenly sprung up from the west, and as night set in it increased to a perfect hurricane. About 50 men were then employed on the piers and girders in the middle of the Tay Bridge, but so great was the fury of the tempest that the steamer 'Excelsior' was unable to reach the bridge to take them off. For hours the little vessel battled with the storm ; but, though her engines were driven at their utmost speed, she could make no headway against the hurricane. Still Captain White, her gallant commander, was reluctant to give up the attempt to reach the bridge to release the unfortunate men from their perilous position. About eight o'clock in the evening he had managed to steam within a short distance of the bridge, where he found the navigation very dangerous, in consequence of vast quantities of planking and loose timber, which had been blown from the bridge, floating about on the river, and getting entangled with the paddle wheels. The night was pitch dark, and the waves were dashing across the bows of the vessel, and threatening to engulph her. Suddenly all on board were startled by a terrific crashing noise, followed by great flashes of fire, which lighted up the heavens for an instant, and was succeeded by pitchy darkness and a great commotion in the sea, which tossed the little steamer about like a cockle shell.
At first it was supposed that a steamer had blown up, the noise and flashes of fire resembling an explosion, but as no steamer could be in that locality the captain came to the conclusion that part of the bridge had been blown down. His conjectures were but too well founded. The captain found it impossible at that time to reach the bridge, and reluctantly he put about and returned to Dundee and reported what he had seen. At five o'clock the next morning, the storm having somewhat abated, the steamer reached the bridge, when it was seen that two large girders, 245 feet in length each, had been blown into the river, and the piers on which they had been supported were snapped asunder, and the iron fastenings torn and shrivelled like burnt paper. The workmen had been chiefly employed on the girders that fell, but they abandoned them when the storm came on, and took refuge on the low girders. They saved their lives by this precaution ; but they had to spend the whole of that fearful night clinging to the girders for dear life, and exposed to the full fury of the pitiless storm. They were not rescued till five o'clock in the morning, when they were taken off by the 'Excelsior'. The poor fellows were drenched to the skin by the spray, which flew over them incessantly, and when the steamer reached them they were benumbed with cold and fainting from exhaustion and exposure. No lives were lost, but one man, the foreman in charge, got his leg fractured by a piece of iron which fell on him when the girders gave way. Who can conceive the sufferings which that poor man must have endured during the long hours of that terrible night? The girders which fell were the southernmost of the series of high girders which were blown down on 28th December, 1879. It is true that when the first accident occurred the girders had only been raised to their intended height, and, though resting on the piers, they had not been fastened ; yet we may safely infer that the accident in February was a premonitory warning of the fatal disaster on that memorable Sabbath evening when the first Tay Bridge was destroyed.
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