History and photos of EX FMC “Admiral”
Gallery 1
Gallery 2
Huge thanks to Richard Thomas and his website for the detailed history of Admiral.
Pictures are from his collection unless stated.
“Admiral” was built by Fellows Morton & Clayton Ltd. at their Saltley dock in Birmingham. The boat was inspected in Birmingham on the 31st of August 1905 and launched on the 9th of September 1905 at a cost of £600. She was constructed of riveted iron sides and a wooden (elm) bottom. The boat was registered on the 29th September 1905 number 1157.
The first captain of the boat was a W. Gould. The boat was a steamer and was fitted with a John Thompson boiler and a Haines engine that had been designed for FMC.
Engine & boiler from “Admiral” Circa 1905
Copyright Richard Thomas collection
The boat was gauged on the Grand Junction Canal in 1911, number 11692. History can be tracked at various places an incidents over the few years. In fact the boat was mentioned in 1912 when by not slowing down it caused the sinking of the coalboat “May”.
“I am pleased to hear that you were able to raise Messrs Sefton’s coal boat MAY without interference to the traffic. Let me have an account of the cost to the Company which will be sent to Messrs Sefton in due course, and I should advise them to try and recover the amount from Messrs Fellows, Morton & Co as the sinking was due to their steamer ADMIRAL not easing down when passing.”
In 1917 with butty “Verbena” (Ex Vienna) the boat was again noted as hitting a set of lock gates causing damage to the gates and 3 weeks later as running into the tunnel tug “Spider”!
“FMC’s steamer ADMIRAL steerer P Littlemore and butty boat VERBENA, George Jones running into the top inside gate of Lock 8 at Buckby at 10.30 pm August 21st 1917 and breaking the gate bumper and otherwise straining the gate. There was no lock filler ahead of the boats and at the time our night lockkeeper was drawing off the water and the lock was ¾ full. The lockkeeper shouted for the steamer to stop. The boats were coming at such a pace that the tow rope broke and the butty crashed into the gate. Had the lock been empty the gate might have been knocked down. The butty boat had no fender on the fore end otherwise the damage might have been less. I would suggest Geo Jones be fined 10/- for the damage.”
The boat was converted to a motorboat in 1924 at the Saltley dock where a 15hp Bolinder Model NE was fitted at a cost of £221 for the engine and £287 for the conversion. The captain at this time was reported to be a John Green. The boat was reregistered in Birmingham number 1539 on the 15th of April 1932. Two new gearings were performed on the boat in 1925 on the BCN (#1065) and on the GJ canal (#12157).
The boat had always been maintained during it’s early years at Saltley dock and the work continued in the 1930’s at the FMC dock in Uxbridge.
Admiral in Regents Canal Dock as a Motorboat
Copyright Richard Thomas Collection
The boat was sold out of the FMC fleet in May of 1942 to Samuel Barlow Coal Co Ltd of Braunston before the FMC fleet was passed to the British Transport Commission in 1948.
Admiral worked for Samuel Barlows for approaching 13 years, often working with the butty “Mosquito” and was a common around the Midlands.
In 1955 the boat was sold to the Warwickshire Coal Company and renamed “Diamond”. 
During this time the boat towed the butty “Sapphire”.
Ownership changed and the boat was bought privately in 1965 and shortened to 57’. It was now converted to a pleasure boat with a full cabin and a new engine (Lister SR3) was put in the boat.
The boat was used extensively as a pleasure boat over the next many years and traveled to numerous rallies and events over the canal system.
Admiral converted for pleasure use
In late 1979 the boat was bought my Mr. Creecraft of Northamptonshire who also traveled extensively with the boat. Around 1990 the cabin was removed and a more traditional cabin was added, the bottoms were still wooden at this time, they were finally replaced in steel in 1993. The boat has been at Debdale wharf for a number of years and for the last while has been on the bank at the marina.
Admiral today