At the time of her launch in 1858 the iron steam ship Great Eastern was the largest ship ever
built. It would take more than forty years until her length of nearly 700 feet and tonnage of
22.550 tons were beaten by another ship. She had been designed by the famous engineer Isambard
Kingdom Brunel and became known all over the world for her modern look. Commercially the Great
Eastern was a disappointment. A series of accidents starting with an explosion during her
maiden voyage ended her short career as passenger liner between Britain and the United States.
In the second half of the 1860s she was transformed into a cable-laying ship and placed
transatlantic telegraph cables for several years. Afterwards the Great Eastern became a
floating music hall and advertising space in Liverpool before she was broken up in 1889. This
little book descriptive of the wonder of the world and of the deep The Great Eastern
contains many things new but is in great part compiled from preceding treatises on the Great
Ship . It is hoped that it may serve as a guide to those who visit her and interest those who
cannot avail themselves of a personal inspection. It is sure to be valuable as a reliable
source of reference for the time to come. Reprint of the original edition from 1861.
