The September Open Days at Hermitage are scheduled to coincide with Open House weekend in London. Gates open 11am to 4pm on both Saturday and Sunday
We have two historic vessels visiting for the weekend, fireboat Massey Shaw and steam tug Portwey, shown here at Hermitage, both twin-scew configurations, one diesel powered the other coal & steam powered:
Steam tug Portwey is a twin-screw coal-fired vessel built in 1927 and of dimensions 24.4m x 5.94m x 2.74m draft. She was built for the coal bunkering trade on the south coast and was also on call for ships requiring assistance or salvage. Her working life came to a close 40 years later in 1967, after which she was saved from the scrap yard and restored to her former glory.
The fireboat Massey Shaw is named after the first chief fire officer of the Metropolitan Fire Brigade (from 1861 t0 1891). Built 1935 and dimensions 24m x 4.19m x 1.14m draft and , like Portwey, is a twin screw vessel, in this case powered by two 165hp diesel engines. She served in the 2nd World War bringing troops back from Dunkirk, and as a fireboat in the Thames, dowsing waterfront fires during the blitz.
