Edmund Gardner in Dry Dock, Liverpool

Описание: A look on board the Edmund Gardner whilst in Dry Dock, liverpool. The Edmund Gardner was built in Dartmouth by Philip and Sons Ltd, who also built ferries and lightships for the Mersey. The Mersey Docks and Harbour Board, who were responsible as the Liverpool Pilotage Authority, had her built as the second of a new generation of large diesel-electric powered cutters to replace the pre-war steam cutters.

The Edmund Gardner and her two sister ships were all designed by naval architects Graham and Woolnough of Liverpool. Following tradition, all three were named after chairmen of the Board, the other two were the Sir Thomas Brocklebank (Number 1) and Arnet Robinson (Number 3). The Edmund Gardner was launched in July 1953 and was in service as a pilot vessel from December that year until April 1981, when she was one of the last two remaining large cutters on duty.

The Merseyside Maritime Museum purchased her in 1982 and she is now conserved in dry dock as a very good example of a British ship built in traditional style. Many of her features, for example the control and navigation equipment on the bridge, parallel typical equipment on larger 20th century merchant ships.

Having been bought straight from service, Edmund Gardner is entirely in original condition and is one of the only two large pilot boat preserved worldwide (the other one is in Australia). Only the lifeboats and boarding punts have been replaced on display with replicas in order to protect the original boats from the harsh effects of the weather.