The Irvine & Company ship yard built a number of ships with specifications similar to Mary Lohden. They were all cargo ships, 70-74 m long and powered by Richardson steam engines. Below I have tried to follow the fate of 13 of these ships. The information is gathered from the web sites "Shipbuilding on the River Tees", "Wreck site", "uboat.net" and "Wikipedia".
The statistics are grim. Acts of war, collisions and other accidents took a heavy toll: Of the 13 ships, 5 were lost by the year 1900 and only 2 survived 1920. These two ships, however, survived a full life of service, until one of them was torpedoed in WW2. At the end, only 1 of the 13 ships lived until scrapped.
Three of the ships were lost by confirmed acts of war during WW1. Mary Lohden may be a fourth victim of WW1. And if she went to the bottom for other reasons it is not surprising - not with these statistics.
"Laura"
Yard nbr 38, built 1882, 1133 GRT.
Sunk 1892 after collision in mist with the Swedish "Piteå" 6 nm off Brämö, Sweden. Was enroute Sundsvall - Westzaan with timber. Read more.
"Dewdrop"
Yard nbr 39, built 1882 , 1144 GRT.
Missing / torpedoed 1918. After 1916 sailing under the name "Mercia" for Swedish shipping company "Svenska Loyd". On 19th Feb 1918 reported missing in the North Sea when sailing from Bergen (or Halmstad?) to Hull with timber. Later listed as torpedoed by UB86. Read more.
"Morning Star"
Yard nbr 40, built 1882, 1121 GRT..
Wrecked 1882 at Vieux Boucau (Bay of Biscay) on a voyage from Bilbao to Rotterdam with iron ore after a huge sea struck the vessel. Was then only 5 months old. Read more.
"Constance"
Yard nbr 41, built 1882, 1124 GRT.
Sunk, hit a mine 1916. After 1911 sailing as "Birgit" for "Bloms rederi" in Norrköping, Sweden. In Feb 1916 hit at mine and sank 4 NM off the Kentish Knock light vessel when enroute Stockholm - London with timber. Read more.
"Stanhope"
Yard nbr 42, built 1882, 1367 GRT..
Sunk after collision 1900. Enroute Bilbao - Middlesbrough with iron ore she collided with schooner "Coal Tar" 6 NM SE off Beachy Head. Read more.
"Mennythorpe"
Yard nbr 43, built 1882, 1463 GRT.
Wrecked 1905 , at Madagascar. Struck a rock after error in navigation. Read more.
"Bellcairn"
Yard nbr 44, built 1883, 1364 GRT.
Wrecked after collision 1894. Collided with steamer Venus of West Hartlepool enroute Sfax - West Hartlepool with barley. Was beached near Dover. The wreck was demolished. Read more.
"Mary Lohden"
Yard nbr 45, built 1883, 1353 GRT.
Missing 1915. Renamed Mary in Sweden. With a load of coal she departed Seaham Harbour for Malmö in February 1915, two days before Germany launched the total sea war. Was never heard of after that. Read more.
"Troqueer"
Yard nbr 46, built 1883, 1381 GRT.
Wrecked 1886. Struck a bank near Gaza after departure from Alexandria bound for Jaffa. The master was blamed for the accident. Read more.
"Agenoria"
Yard nbr 47 , built 1883, 1360 GRT.
Wrecked 1899. On a voyage from Grangemouth to Hovding, with a cargo of coal, the ship struck a reef at Helgoland. Cause of the accident: careless navigation. Read more.
"Craiglands"
Yard nbr 49 , built 1884, 1373 GRT.
Survived 60 years of service in Sweden (under the name Öresund) and in Estonia. Finally scrapped in the USSR in 1945. See picture here and here.
"Lizzie"
Yard nbr 49 , built 1884, 1373 GRT.
Sunk, hit a mine 1917. Sank 4 miles off Owers Light Vessel after striking a mine laid by the German submarine UC-65. The ship was on a voyage from Tyne to Rouen with a cargo of coal. Read more and more.
"Fortunatus"
Yard nbr 49 , built 1884, 1373 GRT.
Survived almost 60 years of service until torpedoed in WW2. Served in Sweden after 1896, later renamed Margaretha. Torpedoed 1942 by Soviet submarine S-7 near Arkösund on Swedish east coast. Was then o voyage from Germany to Köping, Sweden with cargo of coal. Read more and more.