| The Clanranald was built in 1868 by J. & G. Thomson of
Glasgow. An iron ship, she was 217 feet long and had a beam of 35.5 feet.
Her registered tonnage was 1,185 (gross tonnage 1,243). She was owned by
A. G. Kidson & Co. of Glasgow and in her first year was chartered to
Aitken, Liburn & Co., also of Glasgow. They then bought her in 1874 and
renamed her Loch Rannoch. She was converted to a barque some time after
1892 and was sold in 1907 to M. Nielson of Norway. She was ultimately
broken up in Hamburg in 1910.
The ship, as depicted on the lid of this box, was identified as the
Clanranald through the Marryat code flags flying from her stern. It
follows therefore that the picture was painted some time between 1868 and
1874. South Stack lighthouse and the Telegraph Station can be seen on the
left of the picture.
The Telegraph Station would have picked up the name of the vessel and
would have notified the authorities in Liverpool of her imminent arrival.
There were a series of these stations along the coast between Holyhead and
Liverpool which were within sight of each other and it was said that a
message could be passed along the line in less than a minute.
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