Shown departing Wellington Heads into Cook Strait on a lively summer evening, bound for Lyttelton on her regular service. She was built at Vickers Armstrong's Newcastle yard and launched in 1952, the third vessel with the Union Steam Ship Company to be named as such. She could carry up to 969 passengers and made over 6,000 crossings in her career in New Zealand being retired in 1972, but retained for a further two years as a spare before being sold to foreign interests for scrap. An oil painting (15x30") in the USSC series by Wallace Trickett which was sold to a collector in Gisborne in 2010.
For lots more info and pictures of this ship, see the book Strait Crossing: the ferries of Cook Strait through time by Vic Young.
Im the "collector" in Gisborne who bought this painting in 2010. It's a lovely painting and I am reluctantly putting it up for sale.
ReplyDeleteIf there is anyone interested I can be contacted on 021 803 474, or e-mailed at harry.barber@tdh.org.nz
Regards
Harry Barber