Lewin of Greenwich Naval History & Forum

Museum Ship, Paddlewheel Tugboat Eppleton Hall...The only remaining intact example of a Tyne-built Paddle Tug, and one of only two surviving British-built Paddle Tugs (the other being the former Tees Conservancy Commissioners' vessel, PS John H Amos), she is preserved at the San Francisco Maritime National Historical Park at San Francisco..Eppleton Hall was built in 1914 at Hepple & Company of South Shields, for the Lambton & Hetton Collieries Ltd. She was designed to tow seagoing colliers from sea to wharf side and back, primarily in the River Wear and to and from the River Tyne. For sailing ships this saved time, while for larger steam and motor vessels it saved navigation and pilotage costs. She was also used to tow newly constructed naval and commercial ships out to the North Sea.

While still at school, I got a trip out to sea on Eppleton Hall when she was based on the River Wear at Sunderland. She used to tow dumb barges filled with colliery waste out to the three mile limit. After clearing the harbour entrance, I was lying next to the warm funnel feeling very sea sick. You could see the ram rods of the reciprocating engine plodding up and down, with the engineer squirting the oil onto the rods every now and then.
Sunderland was once the largest shipbuilding town in the world and Eppleton Hall assisted many ship launches on the river in her France Fenwick colours.
This photo of her shows her returning to the river with one of the dumb barges - not sure if I was on it then though .

Jim

I took this photograph of Eppleton Hall and the Poster at San Francisco April 2018, there is quite a good selection of historical ships, all are open to visitors. Well worth a visit if you are in the area.