The Tayleur was a full rigged iron clipper ship built at Bank Quay, Warrington in 1853. She was 1,750 tons, 230 feet in length and 40 feet in breadth, with a cargo hold of 28 feet depth. Reportedly she was the largest merchant vessel that had been built in England at that time. Taking just six months to build, the Tayleur was launched at Warrington on 4 October 1853 before huge crowds. Escorted by three tugs the Tayleur made it to Runcorn to the west and then waited for the tide to continue to Liverpool the following day. Built for the White Star Line, like her famous successor the Titanic she was lost on her maiden voyage with great loss of life.

The Tayleur was named after Charles Tayleur, the founder of the Vulcan Engineering Works at Bank Quay in Warrington. Tayleur had turned his attention to shipbuilding after making cannon for the Royal Navy and sections of the Menai Bridge. After building a number of paddle steamers in the early 1840s and two schooners in 1846 his foundry was extended to allow it to build ocean bound vessels.

References for The Tayleur Bourke, Edward J., Bound for Australia: The Loss of the Emigrant Ship "Tayleur" at Lambay on the Coast of Ireland (2003) ISBN 095230273X Starkey, H. F., Iron Clipper Tayleur - White Star Line's 'First Titanic', Avid Publications, 1999. ISBN 1902964004 History of the wreck Tayleur Wikipedia - The Tayleur Coastguards of yesteryear - the sinking of the Tayleur