Glasgow ship that helped train homeless boys for life at sea

Following the Industrial Schools Act of 1865, The Clyde Industrial Training Ship Association was formed in November 1868. It aimed to provide a home to educate and train boys who had been left destitute and homeless through poverty, neglect or family loss. As well as receiving a general education, the boys (aged between twelve and fifteen) were trained to become sailors in either Merchant or Royal Navy.

The Association’s first object was to source a ship which would act as both home and training centre, and on application to the Admiralty, it was granted the use of HMS Cumberland.

This ship was brought up to the Gareloch to be fitted up and furnished before its certification as an Industrial School ship under the Act. It was funded via an appeal to the large mercantile and shipping communities along the Clyde. The ship’s officers comprised both general and nautical teaching staff and the first intake of boys was received on board during the summer of 1869.

For the next 20 years, more than 2500 boys, mostly from Glasgow, were educated and trained on board the Cumberland.

Each day required an early start, usually before 6am (except in winter), and each boy was expected to scrub the decks before beginning his schooling. Training included identification and practical use of knots; navigation at sea and a knowledge of naval terms. After discharge, many found employment at sea - some as officers and masters of merchant ships, while others worked on shore as railway porters, miners, carpenters and caulkers.

The conditions on board were undeniably harsh. The days were strictly regimented, and boys could be punished by being whipped or restricted to a diet of bread and water.

This may explain why, on a February night in 1889, a group of young sailors set the Cumberland on fire.

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Accounts held in our collections relate how the group gained access to a store-room, where they heaped together some straw mattresses and set them on fire. Covering the flames with a blanket, they fled. By the time the fire was discovered, it was too late. The captain ordered a full evacuation. While there was no loss of life or injury, all the officers’ possessions and ship stores were destroyed.

The total destruction of the Cumberland forced the Association to apply for another ship. The HMS Revenge was granted by the Admiralty on the condition that its name was changed and so it was - to HMS Empress. It would rest on the Gareloch and continue the Association’s work for more than 30 years before being broken up in 1923.