Private company

Houlder Line

Logo: TilmannR, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons3

Former British shipping company

Houlder Line was a number of related British shipping companies originally established by the Houlder brothers.2 It is part of Houlder Brothers and Company.1 It ceased to exist in 1987.1 Wikipedia text CC BY-SA 4.0

Last updated Oct 21, 2026.

Overview

1856Founded1
  • Industrywater transport1
  • HeadquartersLondon1

Houlder Line was a number of related British shipping companies originally established by the Houlder brothers.2

The story

Houlder Brothers & Co was formed in London 1856 and operated in the market for chartered tonnage. In 1861 the company acquired the Golden Horn, which they used on the North Atlantic routes to the United States. The company later expanded to service routes to New Zealand, Australia and the Pacific Islands. From 1875 to 1880 the company worked with John T. Arundel & Co. in a guano mining business on Flint Island in the Pacific Ocean. In 1881 the company entered the passenger and cargo trade to the River Plate.

In 1911 Furness, Withy & Co Ltd bought a 50 per cent share in Houlder Brothers. By that date Houlder Brothers controlled a fleet of 19 ships via three subsidiaries: nine ships in Houlder Line Ltd, nine in the Empire Transport Company and one in the Oswestry Grange Steamchip Company. In 1914 Houlder Brothers Ltd and Furness, Withy established a joint venture, the Furness-Houlder Argentine Line.

From Wikipedia’s article on Houlder Line, shared under CC BY-SA 4.0.4

Products and brands

Houlder Line ceased shipping operations in 1987, when Lord Kelvin was sold to Norwegian buyers.

The company continues as the independent engineering consultancy Houlder Ltd.

From Wikipedia’s article on Houlder Line, shared under CC BY-SA 4.0.4

Subsidiaries and ownership

Parent company

  • Houlder Brothers and Company

From Wikidata.1

Timeline

  1. 1987Dissolved Dissolved1
  2. 1856Founded Founded1

Sources

The numbers on this page point here. Each one links to the record it came from.

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