Isambard Kingdom Brunel a white elephant, but it has been argued by David P. Billington that in this case Brunel's failure was principally one of economics—his ships were simply years ahead of their time. His vision and engineering innovations made the building of large-scale, propeller-driven, all-metal steamships a practical reality, but the prevailing economic and industrial conditions meant that it would be several decades before transoceanic steamship travel emerged as a viable industry. "Great Eastern" was built at John Scott Russell's Napier Yard in London, and after two trial trips in 1859, set forth on her maiden voyage from Southampton to New York
SS Malabar (1858) abandon ship. There was no loss of life. The passengers included James Bruce, 8th Earl of Elgin and Jean-Baptiste Louis Gros, the British and French plenipotentiaries to China, and "The Times" journalist Thomas William Bowlby, who later published an account of the wreck. It was reported that "Malabar"s cargo included 1,080 boxes of bullion, worth nearly £300,000 and 725 chests of opium. SS Malabar (1858) SS "Malabar" was a P & O mail steamship of 917 tons launched in 1858 that was wrecked in Point de Galle harbor on 22 May 1860. The passengers had embarked on "Malabar" when a