Scheepvaart & Steenkolen Maats N.V. Shipping and Coal Ltd.

The 2,750grt Queensland at her regular destination of Greenwich in October 1967. She was built in 1958 by Austin & Pickersgill at Wear Dock as the Greathope for Newbigin SS Co. She joined Shipping & Coal in 1964. In 1976 she was sold to Bahia Shipping of Greece and renamed Pambola and in 1981 she joined Astarte Shipping of Greece as Astarte. In 1983 she moved to Maleth Shipping of Malta and was renamed Maya and in 1985 she was renamed Gulf Carrier of Prosperity Shipping. A further sale in 1988 to Asian Lines Overseas Inc. saw her renamed Kalam and in 1989 she became Sea Trans I of United Arab Emirates. On 4th June 1989 she was wrecked off Gees Gwardafuy, Somalia. (Nigel Lawrence)

This Anglo-Dutch company operated a large fleet of sixty colliers over a 85-year period until 1980. Holland was supplied with large quantities of North-East England coal from the end of the 19th century, as well as from the Ruhr collieries across the border in Germany.

It was not uncommon for Dutch coal importers to buy the entire annual output of Newcastle and Durham collieries, therebye negotiating favourable prices for very large quantities. Scheepvaart & Steenkolen Maats N.V. of Rotterdam (Shipping & Coal) was the leading Dutch coal importer, and was founded in the mid- l890s to distribute coal along the canal system.

A new collier was completed in 1896 on the Tees by Raylton Dixon as Zuid Holland, and another Ailsa-built collier Mayflower was purchased soon after completion and renamed Noord Holland Two new larger colliers were then completed as Olanda from William Gray at Hartlepool and Gelderland from Blyth, which were soon transferred to a small Dutch associate company.

A Tyne-built collier Beijerland followed in 1903 from William Dobson & Co. Ltd. as well as the smaller Waterland, which moved up in the world to become Egyptian Prince of Prince Line during 1920/22 and then had a very long life under the Egyptian flag.

The 1,858grt Foreland was built in 1915 by Jan Smit at Alblasserdam as the Dirkland, her name being changed to Foreland in 1930. In 1937 she was sold to Stanhope SS Co. and renamed Stanforth, then on 17th August 1945 she was wrecked at Grundkallegrund, Sweden while on a voyage from Kalix to London with a cargo of wood. (John B. Hill collection)

The 1,091grt Waterland was built in 1915 by Rijkee at Rotterdam as the Gaasterland, her name being chnaged to Waterland in 1931. On 10th March 1941 she hit a mine and sank off Dungeness with the loss of 7 crew. (John B. Hill collection)

When the scale on imports had become significant, orders were placed for ten new colliers with Dutch yards for completion from the turn of the century until 1914. The Van der Vorm family were the major shareholders in the company, and also held large holdings in the passenger-carrying Holland-America Line, founded in 1897 from an existing company, and in the Rotterdam shipyard of Wilton Fijenoord at Schiedam.

A new Austin-built collier was transferred to the British flag in 1914 as Foreland in order to take small steam coal and slack residue, which was unsaleable in Holland, down to the Thames. She was to become one of six war losses sustained by the fleet during the Great War:-

1.4.1915 Schieland – Mined & sunk 24 ESE of Spurn Head on a voyage from Goole to Rotterdam with coal

18.4.1915 Olanda – Mined & sunk 30 miles E of Outer Dowsing LV on a voyage from Seaham to Rotterdam with coal

25.3.1916 Duiveland – Mined & sunk 6 miles S of Kentish Knock LV on a voyage from London to Sunderland in ballast

1.8.1916 Zeeland – Sunk by gunfire from UB-39 5 miles off the Tyne on a voyage from Methil to Rouen with coal

12.2.1917 Foreland – Mined & sunk 6 miles SW of Shipwash LV on a voyage from Blyth to Devonport with coal

25.5.1917 Westland – Mined & sunk 30 miles NW of Yarmouth on a voyage from Methil to Rouen with coal

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