Cruising The Past Cruise News The sister-ships NEWFOUNDLAND and NOVA SCOTIA were post-war replacements for two very similar ships which had both been lost in the Second World War. The NOVA SCOTIA was completed in 1947, a few months ahead of her almost exact sister, the NEWFOUNDLAND. Both ships had accommodation for 62 first-class and 92 tourist-class passengers on service from Liverpool to St Johns, Newfoundland; Halifax, Nova Scotia, and Boston, Massachusetts, USA. They were fine examples of the combined cargo and passenger liner; smaller examples of Cunard’s MEDIA and PARTHIA.
The NEWFOUNDLAND
The NEWFOUNDLAND and the NOVA SCOTIA suffered from the difficulties experienced by the Cunard ships; namely the problems of maintaining a regular passenger schedule combined with delays in cargo operations; and the necessity of carrying a large and increasingly expensive catering department to look after the passengers. When the passengers had disembarked and the ships were in port working cargo, the stewards remained on ship’s pay.
The NOVA SCOTIA
By 1961 the two ships had become uneconomic to operate on their designed routes and were withdrawn from service in 1962. Both the ships were sold to the Dominion Far East Line which carried out a partial rebuild to provide accommodation for 130 first-class passengers on a service between Australia and the Far East. The NOVA SCOTIA was renamed FRANCIS DRAKE, and the NEWFOUNDLAND became the GEORGE ANSON. In their new roles the two sister-ships remained together until 1971 when they were both sold to Taiwanese ship-breakers.
