The Paddle Steamer ‘River Queen’ c1870.
In 1861 the firm of Duncans commissioned this ferry from Richardson Duck, a local shipyard. By June it was running a ferry service between Middlesbrough and Stockton with its sister ship ‘River King’ and each were carrying about 225 passengers in an 8 hour day. At this time Duncans were in fierce competition with Dixons another ferry operator.
The River Queen was built by Richardson,Duck & Company at their Middlesbrough yard and launched on 29th April 1861.The first owners were William,Alexander & Charles Chrystal Duncan.She was finally broken up in 1896.
They also had a steam paddle tug named the “Royal Charlie”.This was built by Backhouse,Dixon & Company of Middlesbrough in 1866.In 1899 she was the property of Charles and John Duncan.
I wonder if the person who submitted this photo knows when Duncan`s ceased running there Steamboat business.I know Dixon Brothers were bought out by a company called Imperial Tramways.
Another Quayside pub may feature in this photo. The “Steam Packet Inn” was a beer house ( ie. it could not serve spirits). At the 1875 Stockton brewster sessions the landlord ,Thomas Mossom, applied for a full licence, stating that people were frequently waiting there for there passenger steamers. He was refused and the Steam Packet would remain a beer house throughout its life. The pub disappeared at some time in the early 1900`s.
The area on the left hand side of the picture is the site of the Tees Brewery. This was Stockton`s first brewery, prior to this people had brewed beer in brewhouses attatched to pubs or in their own homes.The address is given variously as Quayside or Black Bull Yard. The earliest brewer I can find attached to this business is a Ottivel Stoney, in the early 1760`s. By beginning of the 19th century it was occupied by a Matthew Davison. A number of different people occupied the brewery up to 1848; Ralph Lodge 1827-34; William and John Tweddle 1837-38; Francis Metcalfe and Co. 1839-41;John Dixon 1842-44. In 1848 William Young took over the business,and remained in charge until his death in 1874. The Tees Brewery carried on until 1879, being run by his son William Young Jnr. Production must have ceased around 1880 as I can`t find any more records of the brewery after 1879.
The Tees Brewery was advertised for sale, in local newspapers, in November 1879. Also included as part of the business was an adjoining public house called “The Shades”, and quay frontage, on part of which was a branch line of the North Eastern Railway. “The shades” could possibly be the white fronted building, with an arched top which is on the extreme left of the photo. If this is the case then, going by maps of the period, the brewery is unfortunately obscured from view by a building which is directly on the river front.
It would seem that no one wanted to purchase the brewery as a business. This could be due to competition from Kirk Brothers Castle Brewery on Bridge Road which was a larger, more modern brewery, built in 1858 and enlarged in 1878. “The Shades” carried on trading till at least 1881 then disappeared from trade directories. It`s probable that both brewery and pub were demolished shortly after this and the “Greyhound” public house erected in their place. Like all the buildings in this photo the Greyhound would also finally face demolition, disappearing in the 1960s.
The elevated sign to the right of centre seems to say Black Lion Hotel, i.e. Black Lion Yard at the back of the hotel, so this is possibly Stockton riverside near to where the Castlegate Centre is today.