SS Great Western Transatlantic Steam Service

The Great Western proved that a steamship could cross the Atlantic on a regular schedule, which began the shift from sailing ships to steam liners running fixed timetables. Brunel argued that a ship's carrying capacity grows faster than its water resistance as it gets bigger, so a large ship could carry enough coal for the crossing. During 1838 to 1840 the Great Western averaged about 16 days westbound and about 13 days eastbound, and it served the New York route for eight years. Bigger ships lowering the cost per unit carried is the same logic behind today's very large container ships.

• Twenty-Foot Equivalent UnitTEUContainer capacity unit of one 20-foot box
• Time in TransitBusiness days from first scan to delivery
• Full Container LoadFCLOne shipper's goods in a whole container

• Isambard Kingdom Brunel1806–1859 · Engineer of railways and steamships
• Samuel Cunard1787–1865 · Founder of the Cunard Line

• Clermont Steamboat1807 · Fulton's steamboat runs up the Hudson to Albany
• Transatlantic Telegraph Cable1866 · The first lasting telegraph link across the Atlantic
• MS Selandia1912 · A diesel ship proves motor power for ocean freight

1. Great Western britannica.com
2. SS Great Western en.wikipedia.org