Old Photograph Steamer Gitana Loch Rannoch Perthshire Scotland

Old photograph of the steamer Gitana on Loch Rannoch near Kinloch Rannoch, Perthshire, Scotland. This steam yacht was built in 1881 by Thomas B Seath of Rutherglen. The yacht was intended to run on remote Loch Rannoch. She was built to the order of Major General MacDonald of Dunalistair Estate near Kinloch Rannoch for his own use but also as a public service vessel. Unfortunately, the prospect of increased tourism was not appreciated by other inhabitants around the loch and she was refused a berth at the sheltered western end of the loch. Early in 1882 gales on the loch smashed her saloon windows and allowed the considerable swell to enter the tiny hull. After only seven months on the loch she sank in over 100 feet of water. There she lay for the next 96 years until 1978 when strenuous efforts by a number of sub aqua clubs assisted by the Army managed to raise the hulk to the surface of Loch Rannoch for the first time in almost a century. There were high hopes that she would be restored and may even sail again! Sadly, it was not to be as the weakened hull gave way during efforts to stabilise it and the attempt to restore her had to be abandoned. Thomas Bollen Seath was born in 1820 and as a young man followed his father into the coastal shipping trade, there to impress the owners with his honesty and aptitude. It soon became clear to the young Seath that being his own master was the way forward and he started building ships on a small scale at Meadowside in Partick. He soon moved to what became the famous Seath’s boatyard at Rutherglen, cleverly placed on a bend in the Clyde, which allowed longer vessels to be launched along rather than across the river. Seath was known for building passenger vessels of such good design that several were sold to places as diverse as Lake Windermere, Ireland and Russia. The quality of Seath’s vessels, such as steam yachts and launches, was so valued that the company could hardly keep pace with demand and the yard built over 300 boats and ships. After the building of a tidal wear at Glasgow Green in 1901, to stabilise the banks upstream, access was cut off to the sea and Seath’s yard was no longer viable and Thomas became more of a shipbuilding consultant rather than a builder himself.Thomas died in 1903.


All photographs are copyright of Sandy Stevenson, Tour Scotland, and may not be used without permission.

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