She went in search of Paradise ...and now she’s coming home
Campaigners raise funds to restore iconic ship Falls of Clyde Falls of Clyde’s strong ‘mana’
“She has a strong mana, as we say here in Hawaii,” says Bruce Mcewan, who formed the Friends of Falls of Clyde.
Being of Scottish heritage and the Chieftain of The Caledonian Society of Hawaii, he and the group stepped in 10 years ago to save her – the ship’s then owner was preparing to have her sunk. Bruce and the group know that David O’neill’s plan to repatriate the
Falls of Clyde to Scotland is the best way to ensure her future. He says: “She will be missed as she has been a resident in Honolulu Harbour for more than 50 years. “She has a strong mana; a sense of inner strength and energy you can feel when you are on board.” February, with stops also planned in Fort Lauderdale in Florida and Costa Rica. When she arrives back on the river where she was built – the intention is to convert the 140-year-old vessel into a craft fit for the 21st Century.
“Heritage is important but the message we’re trying to send out is that Scotland can still build ships and be innovative,” David said. “What we want to do is take this Clyde-built ship that was at the peak of design in 1878 and put her back in the water as the peak of design now.
“We had to have a long look at how this ship could be self-sustaining because we’ve not asked governments or councils for money,” explained David, who closed his business to concentrate on the project full-time. “This is still a community initiative as far as I’m concerned. I want to turn it into something that helps communities through jobs, skills, learning and training.”
At present, there are several options for putting the ship to use once it is home.
The search is on for a quayside for the ship to dock at, with room for a pop-up museum about the ship and Clyde shipbuilding, as well as a genealogy centre.
But David is keen to stress the ship’s future lies not just permanently moored on the Clyde, but back out on the seas.
Naval architecture students working on their PHDS in Glasgow have been hard at work redesigning the ship for her new future, and have been consulting with Ferguson Marine. There have been discussions over using the Falls of Clyde as a fairtrade cargo vessel, a sail holiday cruise ship and also for cadet training.
David said: “At the end of the day, if ultimately we don’t succeed, we’ve tried and we’ve come up with some original options to finance her and pay for her without going to the public purse.”