Thursday 04 July 2019 – Brunel’s SS Great Britain, Bristol

Brunel’s SS Great Britain is one of the most important historic ships in the world. When she was launched in 1843 she was called ‘the greatest experiment since the Creation’.
By combining size, power and innovative technology, Brunel created a ship that changed history. She was built as a luxury liner but ran aground in 1846. She then carried 15,000 emigrants to Australia, after which she was converted to sail as a cargo ship and finally acted as a floating warehouse. In the thirty years between her scuttling and recovery the elements had taken their toll on her iron hull. At the time of her rescue she was in a poor state and a team of seven conservators took three years to complete the restoration.
We’ll have a private guided tour of the ship, with lunch on board, and visit the Brunel Institute to see items from the archive/hear about passenger diaries etc and in the afternoon a guided walk of the historic dockyard.