Lamport and Holt

Lamport and Holt was a shipping line based in Liverpool, England. It was founded in 1845 by William James Lamport and George Holt. Lamport was from Workington in Cumberland, while Holt, whose brother Alfred founded the Blue Funnel Line, was a Liverpool man.

Lamport and Holt (L&H) traded with the Americas, India and South Africa. They used wooden sailing ships at first but in 1861 invested in two 1300-ton tramp steamers. The business expanded with the formation of a company called The Liverpool, Brazil and River Plate Steam Navigation Co., Ltd., which provided cargo, mail and passenger services from Liverpool, London, Glasgow in the UK and also from Antwerp in Belgium. According to National Museums Liverpool, "In 1869 it pioneered the Brazil — New York coffee trade." Despite a relaxation of Brazilian laws, foreign shipping companies were reluctant to work the coast of that country but L&H saw an opportunity from the 1860s and exploited it using their subsidiary company, initially providing a service between Rio de Janeiro and Rio Grande do Sul. By 1869, a triangular trading route had been established that carried British manufactured goods to Brazil, re-loaded there with coffee for New York, and collected wheat and raw materials from that port for the return voyage to Britain.

L&H became a limited company in 1874, by which time 12 new ships had been delivered or were being built. A subsidiary in Belgium was set up in the same year. During the 1880s, frozen meat was being imported from Argentina and the sailing destinations were extended to include Valparaiso.

Lamport died in 1874, while Holt lived on until 1896. Although the Valparasio destination was dropped in the year of Holt's death, L&H ordered five 5555-ton ships two years later. It entered a new market in 1902 when a passenger service using two second-hand ships began to operate between New York and South America. That was successful enough that some luxury liners were commissioned, and in 1910 a further three ships displacing over 10,000 tons were ordered for routes running to and from Liverpool.

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