These date from 1850.
See www.grantonhistory.org/transport/train_ferry.htm

Regards,
Roderick B Smith
Rail News Victoria Editor

Thank you for this intersting link!
Unfortunately there seem to be no images of the vessels themselves, but guessing from the little waht is visible on http://www.grantonhistory.org/transport/ferry_highslide_jpegs/trainferry2_fs.jpg, they seem to have been direct predecessors of the characteristic design of the Detroit River carferries such as Great Western, Lansdowne and others. I did not know that this design had European counterparts.
Are there any pictures of these early Firth of Forth ferries around?

Regards, Moritz

Also related are the more-recent two linking Argentina and Paraguay.
See www.paddleducks.co.uk/smf/index.php?topic=2603.0
I checked by photo of the Inglis builders plate: it didn't carry a date.

Australia had something similar for crossing Clarence River, but they were screw, not paddle.

Roderick B Smith
Rail News Victoria Editor

Quote from: Roderick Smith on October 30, 2009, 09:35:48 PM
These date from 1850.
See www.grantonhistory.org/transport/train_ferry.htm

Regards,
Roderick B Smith
Rail News Victoria Editor

Hello Roderick, thanks for sharing that very interesting link, I had a long look through it last night.

cheers

Jim

Related are two Turkish car ferries from 1872.  Were there cars available in 1872 to drive aboard?  Perhaps it started life carrying horse-drawn vehicles?

It has all of the right ingredients: a drive on/off main deck, with a passenger deck above, but was simply cross Bosphorus, not long distance, and with none of the enclosed spaces which I was seeking for the evolution of the ropax type.

See: www.paddleducks.co.uk/smf/index.php?topic=1410.0

Regards,
Roderick B Smith
Rail News Victoria Editor

The Inglis train ferries for Argentina were built in 1911.

I may have photos somewhere of the early Forth ferries, but 1850 was really before photography became popular.

I may be able to look them out sometime, but it will be a couple of weeks or so.

I have always considered the two Turkish ferries SUHULET and SAHILBENT as to-to, trot on - trot off. A Turkish book describes them as being built for cargo and pack animals.

Sorry for the long delay in replying but I only recently found this forum!

I am webmaster for Granton History Group (see link in earlier posts).  We would be delighted to find out more about the train ferries that operated across the Firth of Forth between Granton and Burntisland and to see more photographs - if AlasdairD or anyone else  can help please let me know!

Regards
David King
david@grantonhistory.org