This ship was number 1 of 2 ships named Bangalore and run by P & O. This ship has listed the same tonnage as that on the inscription on the frame of this work. The ship was subsequently sold in 1886 sold to Hajee Cassum Joosub and used for passengers on pilgrimage into Jeddah. Another view of the history of the Bangalore is that to be found at the Maritime Museums of Sydney listing of another painting of the Bangalore which provides a somewhat different history. It is possible that the story of Bangalore 1 and Bangalore 2 have become conflated further research is needed to verify. see Links field. SS BANGALORE was built in 1867 by William Denny of Dumbarton. Owned by P&O, SS BANGALORE operated from Bombay and Galle to Melbourne and Sydney from 1872 to 1886 as a passenger and mail ship. In 1891 BANGALORE was sold to Wilh. Wilhelmsen, Norway and renamed SS CORINGA.Marine art, Maritime artP&O S.S. Bangalore by George Frederick Gregory (1821-1887)Thinly painted image on board featuring centrally a moored, at anchor, 19th C dual masted steamship with black funnel and flying at the stern a red ensign. To either side are conventional rigged clippers or sailing ships. Near the bow of the steamship there seems to be a tug or paddle steamer face on. In the foreground is a small rowing boat with boatman and two passengers, a male and a female. The painting on board is mounted in a large polished or varnished cedarwood frame with edge carving and a decorative pitted slip which holds in place a thin piece of glazing. Backing paper and seal has all been removed except for hanging wire. Central at front lower edge of frame is a small chipped wood plaque with inscription.Painted in black on plaque and coloured black: "P & O S.S. "BANGALORE" / 2342 tons Built 1867"s.s. bangalore, marine painting, sailing ships, 1867, william denny, artwork-paintings, peninsular and oriental steam navigation company, steamship, p&o, sandridge, port melbourne, hobson's bay, charles dickson gregory, centenary maritime exhibition, george frederick gregory (1821-1887), ss bangalore

This is a small pocketbook owned by Master Mariner John Budge Murray. It is 119 pages long and contains a mix of detailed navigational calculations and lessons, diary entries, drill commands for soldiers "On Parade" and personal jottings. The dates in the notebook span the years from 1881 to 1887 and mention trips from Hong Kong to Singapore, Galle, Colombo, the Suez Canal, Aden, Port Said, Malta, Gibraltar and London. Two of the ships mentioned include the S. S. Bangalore and the S. S. Assam - both belonged to the "Peninsula and Oriental Steam Navigation Company" (later known as the P&O Line). John Budge Murray was born in 1847 at Olrig, Caithness in Scotland. During the course of his career, he was a merchant marine employed by the Peninsula and Oriental Steam Navigation Company (better known as P&O) and also became a master mariner and Captain serving in the Chinese Naval Service. When he married in 1888, his marriage certificate listed his occupation as "Captain in the Chinese Naval Service". Family records show his sister describing him as "commanding three frigates in the South China Sea - allegedly chasing pirates!" His obituary in the "John O'Groat Journal" in 1910 said he was "one of the original contingent of Britons who served as officers in the Chinese Fleet ...it was they who cleared the Chinese seas of the pirates who infected them." It went on to say "Captain Murray was brave even to the most reckless exposure of his life and ... the Chinese crews had explicit faith in him." John Murray and his wife Jessie had four children and by 1901 were living on a farm at Aucorn in Caithness. One of his sons (also called John Budge Murray) immigrated to Australia and joined the 8th Battalion, AIF (Australia Imperial Force) in 1915 and was killed in France in August 1918. Captain Murray died at Olrig in 1910. In 1840 the Peninsula Steam Navigation Company won a contract for the mail service between the U.K. and Egypt. They expanded their operations to include mail contracts to Alexandria, from Suez to Ceylon, Madras and Calcutta and in 1845 further expanded their operations to Shanghai. Steam communication with Australia was inaugurated in 1852 and in 1854 the Bombay Mail Service passed from the East India Company to P&O. By 1884 P&O's fleet contained fifty ships including the S.S. Assam and S.S. Bangalore - both are mentioned in Captain Murray's pocketbook. In 1882 the S.S. Bangalore was operating in the Bombay / Far East mail service and had made several trips in 1876 between Bombay and Melbourne. In 1875, the Qing Dynasty began to establish a modern Imperial Navy. They ordered a series of warships from Britain and Germany. Two of these ships (the Chaoyong and the Yangwoi) were built at the Tyne shipyards and sailed to China in 1881. They also needed to improve the skills of their naval personnel, and some skilled officers were recruited from Britain. This pocketbook is a significant example of a Master Mariner's everyday working pocketbook. It is also an important object as it belonged to a Scottish Master Mariner who held the unusual position as an officer in the Chinese Naval Fleet.A Master Mariner's small pocket-sized notebook. It has a black cover, 119 pages and contains a mix of navigational records, personal addresses, diary type entries and personal jottings in ink and pencil.First page - "John Budge Murray/Aucorn /Bower/ J. B. Murray/John B/ John B Murray/ Aucorn"flagstaff hill maritime museum and village, great ocean road, captain john budge murray, captain murray, master mariner, navigational calculations, ships log, pocketbook, peninsula and oriental steam navigation company, p&o, s.s. bangalore, s.s. assam, drill commands, chinese naval service, qing dynasty, south china sea