bibby six generations

B I B B Y S I X G E N E R AT I O N S
OVER 200 YEARS OF BIBBY LINE GROUP’S SUCCESS & ACHIEVEMENTS
1807
1929
1840
1969
1935
2000
Mary Mellard
1775
John Bibby was the fourth of five sons of James and
Alice Bibby, farmers in Eccleston, near Ormskirk, in
South Lancashire. Without hope of any inheritance
or even a decent living from the farm, in 1800 John
went to Liverpool to find employment and took a
job with a ship’s iron merchant.
He was 25 years old and had previously unsuccessfully tried his luck at farming.
Within a few years John began trading in the iron industry, and metals were to become
a profitable business for the Bibby family throughout the 19th century. John saw an
opportunity to diversify and expand, and in 1801 set up a ship broking business with
William Hall their first venture was a small share in the 60 ton galliot ‘Dove’.
Following his marriage to Mary Mellard, who brought a
dowry of £2,500 into the marriage, John was able to
purchase his first sailing ship and so the Bibby Line dynasty
began. They had five children, four sons and one daughter.
With John’s business acumen in diversifying and investing in
the shipping and metals business as well as property
investments he was able to lay the financial foundations for
the generations to come.
FIRST GENERATION
JOHN BIBBY
FOUNDER 1775 - 1840
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Initially the Bibby Line vessels were second hand vessels
engaged in coastal trade sailing between Parkgate and
Dublin. But John was soon able to have ships built to his
own specifications and the initial tramping trade was shortly
followed by more regular sailings. In 1820 the ‘George IV’,
destined for the Brazil trade, was launched to commemorate
the ascension to the throne of King George IV. It was the
first vessel in the country named after the new monarch.
1807
Duke’s Dock
The ‘Mary Bibby’
1840
1836
Mary sadly died very young whilst the
children were still school age. But in her
memory, John had a sailing ship built,
the ‘Mary Bibby’, with 300 tons the
largest in the fleet.
1813
James Jenkinson Bibby born.
In 1840 John Bibby was
found brutally murdered.
Robbed for only a pocket
watch, knocked
unconscious, dragged 2 ½
miles across muddy fields,
thrown into a pond and left
to drown. He left a small
fortune and a substantial
shipping and metal business
to his four sons and one
daughter.
By 1836 Bibby Line’s fleet
was 18 strong and travelled
all over the world but mainly
to the Mediterranean, South
America and China.
John Bibby had become a
very wealthy businessman;
property owner; and major
shareholder of the Bank of
Liverpool.
In 1827 John Bibby & Co was still
described as ‘iron merchants and ship
owners’, suggesting that the ironworks
was the principle activity.
With the ironworks doing so well
for the business, in 1839 John
Bibby started a copper smelting
works in St Helens, a few miles
east of Liverpool, which produced
copper ingots, tiles and cakes,
and a copper rolling mill in
Seacombe (just across the
River Mersey from the ironworks
at Duke’s Dock) producing fire
box plates, bolts, sheathing
and braziery.
They became major suppliers of copper
sheeting to many of the top British
shipyards for cladding sailing ships.
The most famous was ‘HMS Victory’.
In 1830 Bibby Line took part in the so
called “Waghorn Route”, a train of
camels and horses transporting cargoes
and passengers from Alexandria to
Suez, to save a 4,500 miles journey
around Africa.
1839
1827
HMS Victory
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3
1840
John Bibby’s untimely death at the age of 65 left his sons with a thriving
business. John Bibby & Sons continued as James, the youngest son was
already working in the Liverpool office and John junior returned from
India, where he had been acting as his father’s agent for some time.
Joseph, the eldest son no longer worked in the office as he had left in 1837 and Thomas had gone into the church, taking no
active role in the business; however Thomas’s descendants took over the running of the company from the third generation
onwards.
For 24 years John and James were at the helm of John Bibby & Co, covering both the shipping and the metals business, but in
1864 John backed out of the shipping activities to concentrate on the profitable metal business, leaving James to focus on the
Bibby Line, although the two businesses remained in the same building.
In 1841, as a tribute to their father, a
540 ton sailing vessel the ‘John Bibby’,
was the first vessel launched after his
death. Thus the name of the founder
remained on Lloyd’s List in a wider sense
for many generations.
Arthur Wilson Bibby born.
1846
James Bibby took over the management
of the business in 1841 and, having
recognised the virtues of steamers began
investing in iron steamships.
SECOND GENERATION
JAMES BIBBY
1813 - 1897
Doctor of Laws
High Sheriff for the County of Shropshire
4 B I B B Y
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His foresight, wisdom and courage were
responsible for the progress achieved
and he became the first chairman of the
Liverpool Steamship Owners Association.
1841
The “John Bibby”
The “Venetian”
1859
Edward Harland, a young Nautical
Engineer and founder of the Belfast
shipyard Harland & Wolff (who
eventually built the ‘Titanic’), was a
friend and protégé of James Bibby.
In 1859 Bibby Line’s ‘Venetian’ was
the first vessel built by the Belfast
shipyard Harland & Wolff. Of the
first 21 ships built by the yard 18
were for the Bibby Line. It states in
the official history of this yard …
“this is the history of the Belfast
shipyard Harland & Wolff and the
Liverpool based Bibby Line. Without
the Bibby family there would never
have been a Harland & Wolff”.
Frederick Richards Leyland
The “Jason” Yacht Crew
1880
1870
James’ private yacht
the Jason continued to
sail under the Bibby
Line flag in the Royal
Yacht Squadron and in
1880, James re-entered
the shipping world and
re-launched the Bibby
Line asking his
nephews, Arthur
Wilson Bibby and
Herbert Kirkman Bibby,
the sons of the
founder’s third son
Thomas, to manage
the business for him.
Following his decision in
1870 to retire from
business, James Bibby
gave his employee and
general manager
Frederick Richards
Leyland power of
attorney. However, James
had his trust severely
betrayed when Leyland’s
ambition outstripped his
loyalty and, by abusing
the power of attorney, he
decided to give the
company his own name.
After his father’s death, John Bibby, second son of the
founder, took on the metal business. He lived in Allerton,
South Liverpool and by 1872 was a wealthy man. Allerton
didn’t have a local parish church at the time and so John
committed £20,000 to building one in memory of his wife
Fanny who had died in 1856. Fanny was the daughter of
the architect of the Albert Dock in Liverpool and had been
born on All Hallows Eve in 1812. The foundation stone for
the new church, named ‘All Hallows’ was laid on that day,
31 October.
The iron screw ship
Braganza, built in 1856,
was lost in 1869 bound for
Lisbon due to a collision
with another steamer. She
sank immediately with the
loss of 22 lives. Nearly 125
years later, in 1994, her
wreck was found and her
bell returned to the
company by the divers.
In 1897 James Bibby died
aged 84. In the course of
his long life he was
accorded the Honour of
Doctor of Laws and
became High Sheriff for
the County of Shropshire.
His will safeguarded the
future of the Bibby Line
and he had stipulated in it
that the legacies he
bequeathed to his wife
and daughters were not to
be provided by liquidating
his steamship interests.
The architect for the parish church was G Enoch Gregson,
who designed it in a Gothic style, using local red sandstone
for the exterior and white Storeton stone inside. After
some protest from the local residents, it was agreed that no
bells would be placed in the tower to prevent noise
pollution in the quiet new rural parish. All Hallows church
was completed in 1876 and consecrated by the Bishop of
Chester as the Anglican Liverpool Diocese was not created
until 1880. The founder’s plaque and John Bibby’s family
crypt reside within All Hallows Church.
1869
The “Braganza” Bell
1872
1897
All Hallows Church
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5
Yorkshire 1889
1879
The three sons of the Reverend
Thomas Bibby, Herbert, Arthur and
Ernest did not have automatic entry
into the family shipping business run
by their uncles John and James, so
started their careers elsewhere.
Arthur set up as a produce broker in partnership with Frederick
Ledward while also having his own ship broking business until
his Uncle James agreed to develop the Bibby Line giving him the
manager’s role in Bibby Brothers & Co.
1889
Harold Bibby born.
In 1891 Lancashire recorded the
best time for the run to Burma in
23 days and 20 hours – a record she
held for six years -and Bibby Line
established superiority on the route
gaining the reputation for reliability
by never having a voyage disrupted.
In 1880 Arthur Wilson Bibby, now the
guiding force in the fortunes of Bibby
Line realised the vast potential of the
Burma trade and ordered two new
steamers from Harland & Wolff –
‘Lancashire’ and ‘Yorkshire’, marking
the beginning of the practice of
naming Bibby ships after English ‘shire’
counties. Under his chairmanship
Bibby Line went from strength to
strength with its reputation and
integrity firmly secured.
THIRD GENERATION
Arthur Wilson Bibby also gained
substantial trooping contracts for
Bibby Line. ‘Yorkshire’ was the first
of the Bibby fleet to be engaged
as a troopship in the Boer War and
became known during this phase
as No. 14 Transport.
ARTHUR
WILSON BIBBY 1880
1846 - 1935
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The vessels were for first class
passengers only who were well
entertained. As the ships had no air
conditioning at that time the
passengers travelling to and from
the Far East always booked ‘port
out starboard home’ – a phrase
abbreviated by Bibby Line and other
shipping companies to POSH.
1891
Lancashire 1889
Oxfordshire 1912
FRANK BIBBYCBE
1857 - 1923
James’s son Frank Bibby, CBE was the
major shareholder of the Bibby Line
business while Arthur owned 25% of
the shares and the whole management
company. Frank took on the role of
chairman of the shipping line and also
went on to inherit his father’s large
estate in Shropshire, playing a
prominent part in the activities of that
county. He was master of the north
Shropshire hounds and huntsman and
a keen racing man, with many horses.
Two of Frank’s horses won the Grand
National, Kirkland in 1905 and
Glenside in 1911. At the outbreak of
WW1 he gave all his hunt horses to
the army, turning the extensive stables
of his home into a remount depot.
1912
From 1912 onwards, after the
Titanic disaster, Bibby Line were
amongst the leading ship
owners motorising all their
lifeboats. Another luxury was
added at that time, passengers
were made more comfortable
by having electric fans made
available to them.
In 1902 Bibby Line became
one of the “Four B’s” and
was voted by the trade
unions as ‘the ideal type of
employer’. The other three
were Birchalls, Blue Funnell
and Booth Line – Bibby
Line had the distinction of
being the longest
established of the four.
Now carrying cargoes as
well as passengers various
forms of entertainment
were arranged on board,
but lights were out strictly
at 10pm.
1902
Frank Bibby CBE
At the outbreak of WW1
the Bibby Line ships were
requisitioned to serve as
hospital ships, troop ships
and armed merchant
cruisers. ‘Oxfordshire’
alone carried 53,000
wounded during the war.
By the end of the war
Bibby Line had carried over
200,000 British and
25,000 American troops.
‘Worcestershire’ became a
casualty of this war.
In 1935 Arthur Wilson
Bibby died and his son
Arthur Harold Bibby took
over the reigns.
1914
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7
1930
During the late 1930’s Bibby
Line offered first class cruises
for 10 days from less than £50
which included …”ample
exercise, fresh air ventilation,
with saloons, passages and
staterooms entirely free from
ship’s smells”. Skittles and
bowls were played on the clear
main deck thus providing
passengers with ample exercise
and avoiding the tedium
sometimes experienced on
board a ship. The first voyage
sailed with only 3 passengers
on board as they were
committed to carry cargoes!
1889
Arthur Harold Bibby was born in 1889,
the year ‘Lancashire’ and ‘Yorkshire’
were launched. Joining the firm straight
from Rugby School in 1907, he had a
few years in the business before joining
the army for the Great War in 1914.
Derek Bibby born.
1922
FOURTH GENERATION
HAROLD BIBBY
DSO 1917; DL County of Chester
1937 High Sheriff of the County of Chester; 1934-5
Knight 1956, Baronet 1959
LLD Liverpool University 1959
1889 - 1986
Cruise Advert
8 B I B B Y
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Oxfordshire Torpedoed
1945
The government contracts
were to continue until 1962
and Harold and the Board
were convinced that the Burma
trade would pick up again post
war. But post independence
Burma was politically and
economically chaotic and trade
was slow to recover. Added to
that was the end of trooping
for the government, as air
superseded sea as the
preferred means of transport.
The last and largest purpose
built troopship was the
Oxfordshire.
1970
Harold was a staunch
supporter of the City of
Liverpool and was awarded
the ‘Freedom of the City’.
In honour of his contributions to
industry Harold was invested as a
Knight and became Sir Arthur
Harold Bibby, Bt. His adaptability to
modern demands and conditions
was an essential part of the
company policy.
Harold became chairman of
the Bibby Line after his father’s
death in 1935 and within four
years the business was
suddenly and dramatically
catapulted into the WWII.
1935
1956
Liverpool Town Hall
Troop Ship
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9
1965
1946
Born in 1922 as the depression was
starting Sir Derek left school to join the
army during WWII where he was
awarded the Military Cross.
On returning after the war he went to Oxford University before joining
the Liverpool office in 1946.
With Sir Derek at the helm the
company more than trebled
its overseas earnings and the
total tonnage of the Bibby
Line in the 1970s exceeded
one million tons but in the
late 70’s and early 80’s market
conditions deteriorated and
many UK shipping companies
became bankrupt.
Michael Bibby born.
1963
1970
FIFTH GENERATION
DEREK
JAMES BIBBY
MC 1945, Baronet 1986
DL of Cheshire 1987
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1922 - 2002
1965 marked the withdrawal of the
Bibby Line from the passenger trade
and several new projects
transformed the company almost
out of recognition. Bibby Line
invested in bulk carriers of over
79,000 tons deadweight. The
‘Pacific Bridge’ and the ‘Atlantic
Bridge’, later renamed ‘Dorsetshire’,
were the largest vessels which could
pass through the Panama Canal.
They also operated LPG ships;
‘Wiltshire’ carried liquid propane,
butane and anhydrous ammonia in
three specially insulated tanks; OBOs
(ore, bulk, oil) like the ‘Ocean
Bridge’, as well as general cargo
carriers and container vessels.
Ocean Bridge
Duke Street
1986
Sir Harold Bibby died.
1977
In the late 1970s the world wide
depression also hit the Bibby Line
and ships had to be sold and staff
made redundant. It was touch
and go if the company would
survive. But, with the astute
management ability of Sir Derek,
Bibby Line pulled through.
Manx Ship Management was formed in 1986 in the Isle of Man, to
employ seafarers serving on Bibby Line and third party vessels, changing
its name to Bibby International Services (IOM) in 1991 and then
renamed again to Bibby Ship Management (Western Europe) in 2008.
This arm of the ship management business continues to train cadets.
1982
In 1982 Bibby Line had nine ships
remaining in its fleet and began
to diversify its maritime business
to include interests such as
Coastels and jack up platforms.
Asked by an interviewer why he remained so committed to shipping
Sir Derek’s response was “perhaps my family has an inherited streak of
madness, though I comfort myself that you are only really mad when
you don’t know that you are mad. The ship owning type of madness is
an advantage as it helps understand traders and brokers who are
equally mad, but in different sorts of ways!”
2002
During 1986, after nearly one hundred years, descendants of James
Jenkinson Bibby disposed of their majority shareholding in the business
which was acquired through a number of trusts.
Sir Derek Bibby died.
At the beginning of 1985 Sir Derek became
Chairman, and in 1992 became president of the
company.
In September 1980 came the
tragic loss of the oil bulk ore
carrier ‘MV Derbyshire’ with
all hands. She was
overwhelmed by a typhoon in
the South China Sea. This
remains, to this day, Britain’s
biggest peace time loss.
In 1992 the company moved its
head office to 105 Duke Street, a
building dating from 1800. First
used as a newspaper office it ceased
to operate in 1840 and in 1852 the
building became Liverpool’s first
public library until 1860. Tetley
Brewers then took it over as their
head office until 1991.
Simon Sherrard, equipped with 10 years'
experience with Jardine Matheson in the Far
East took over as Managing Director with a
mandate to broaden the base of the business.
From the mid-1980s Bibby Line Group expanded
to include Bibby Financial Services and Bibby
Distribution. The company also acquired a 50%
share in Botany Bay Shipping, an Australian
based operator of chemical carriers.
1980
In 1992 Michael Bibby, the eldest
son of five children to Sir Derek and
Lady Bibby joined as Finance Director
for Bibby Line, later becoming their
Managing Director. In 2000 Simon
Sherrard became Non-Executive
Chairman of Bibby Line Group and
Michael became the Managing
Director of Bibby Line Group.
The Coastel ‘Bibby Venture’ was chartered for
five years to the New York Department of
Correction as a floating detention facility.
Her sister vessel, ‘Bibby Resolution’, was
chartered on similar terms to the same client.
Derbyshire
1985
Coastel
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1992
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Bibby Offshore
2002
Under Sir Michael’s leadership the
Bibby Line Group business of today
has successfully expanded and grown
beyond all recognition.
Today the Bibby Line Group is a business services group
involved in ship owning and operation, shallow water
accommodation, offshore oil & gas services, contract logistics,
financial services, memorial parks, compliance management
services, retail and specialist plant hire and sales.
Bibby Offshore division established after
the consolidation of all offshore activities
trading from its head office in Aberdeen.
Bibby Financial Services began trading
overseas and today has a network of
operations in UK, Europe, USA, Canada,
Australia, New Zealand, Hong Kong,
India and Singapore.
The LPG carriers were sold at
a high point in the market.
2005
Bibby Line, as a member of a
consortium, won a major order for six
roll-on, roll-off ships for the provision of
a strategic sealift capability to the
Ministry of Defence.
SIXTH GENERATION
MICHAEL
JAMES BIBBY
Baronet 2002
LLD Liverpool University 2012
12 B I B B Y
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1963
2003
2002
Bibby Financial Services
Costcutter
2013
2006
In 2006 Bibby Line Group purchased the
employment law and health & safety
services business mhl support, in 2010
the business changed its name to Bibby
Consulting & Support and continues to
offer a superior service to their clients.
Colney Memorial Parks in Norwich was
acquired at the same time offering a
natural alternative to traditional burials
and cremations. This purchase by the
Group supported the business to grow,
seeing two further parks opened by
2010 in Epping and Beaconsfield. The
business was renamed in 2012 as
GreenAcres Woodland Burial Parks.
Costcutter forms a strategic partnership with
Palmer & Harvey (P&H) to launch the Buyco a joint
venture buying company. P&H's Mace, Your Store
and Supershop also join Costcutter.
In August 2013 the sale of Bibby Consulting and
Support to Citation Limited was announced. Later
in the same month the sale was completed
of the shares held by Bibby Holdings in Foreland
to Hadley Shipping.
2008
Purchase of Garic, a specialist
plant and equipment hire
business which is mostly used
on construction sites and
infrastructure projects.
Today Bibby Line Group operates globally across a
diverse range of industries and stands as a great
example of how strong family values can be
combined successfully with talented and motivated
people to deliver outstanding performance.
In 2005 and 2007 the shipping division sold
all of its tankers, chemical tankers and jack up
platforms with the Group using the funds to
invest in developing the Offshore interests,
building up the Coastel fleet and acquiring a
majority stake in the fascia group Costcutter,
which runs a network of over 1,600 stores
throughout the UK. Most of the Costcutter
branded stores are convenience stores owned
by retailers keen to maintain their
independence. The fascia business became part
of the Bibby Retail Services division and acquired
the off licence chain Rhythm & Booze in 2012.
Bibby Marine acquired the
hydrographic and geophysical
survey firm, Osiris Projects.
2012
During the company’s bicentenary year a
corporate social responsibility programme,
‘Giving Something Back’, was embedded
throughout the global business, encouraging
employees to volunteer and fundraise for
charities.
GreenAcres
2007
Giving Something Back
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At any hour, somewhere in the world,
the Bibby Line Group will be at work.
The business continues to grow year on
year and is truly powered by its people,
here's to the next 200 years...
The dates shown on the front cover reflect the year in which each generation became MD / Chairman of the Bibby Line Group.
105 Duke Street • Liverpool • L1 5JQ • T: +44 (0)151 708 8000 • W: www.bibbylinegroup.co.uk