In 1870, the line’s managers became Ismay, Imrie & Co., when William Imrie joined Thomas Henry Ismay.

The new line placed an order with Harland & Wolff for four 3,700ton steamers, which were named Oceanic, Atlantic, Baltic and Republic.

The first vessel, the 3707-ton Oceanic, was launched on 27th August 1870, sailed on her maiden voyage in 1871 and made all other Atlantic liners obsolete.

She was 420ft. (128m.) long with a beam of 40.9ft. (12.46m.) and she was among the first liners on the North Atlantic to be fitted with compound engines, giving a speed of 14 knots. There was accommodation for 166 First Class and 1,000 Steerage passengers.

The new line got off to a bad start with their first sailing.

With great ceremony, the Oceanic sailed from Liverpool on March 2nd 1871, at the start of her maiden voyage to New York via Queenstown, but just a few hours later, she was forced to put into Holyhead when bearings overheated. She returned to Liverpool.

Oceanic sailed again on March 16th and after a call at Queenstown, arrived in New York on March 28th.

Her subsequent voyages were were a disappointment in terms of the time taken to cross the Atlantic and so after just a few voyages she was returned to her builders and her machinery was altered to give her greater boiler power and to make her coal capacity greater.

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