Disposition of prams on top of the paddle box aboard the Red Funnel paddle steamer Gracie Fields in the late 1930s.
An enhanced version of the Princess Elizabeth of 1927, Gracie Fields entered service in 1936 but had only a short career running from Southampton as she was sunk during the Second World War. It is not clear from this picture if the babies are still in the prams with the seaman as nannies or if they have already been rescued by their mothers.
Kingswear Castle returned to service in 2023 after the first part of a major rebuild which is designed to set her up for the next 25 years running on the River Dart. The Paddle Steamer Kingswear Castle Trust is now fund raising for the second phase of the rebuild. You can read more about the rebuilds and how you can help if you can here.
John Megoran
