management founded 1896 headquarters london uk key people nicholas pollard ceo number of employees more than 1 000 1 website cory environmental cory environmental is a large list of waste management companies resource management recycling and energy recovery company in the united kingdom . cory operates in nearly 40 locations throughout england 2 providing services in the collection recycling and disposal of waste . 1 contents 1 operations 2 history 2.1 coal and refuse 2.2 first world war 2.3 second world war 2.4 cory since 1945 3 see also 4 references 5 sources 6 external links operations edit cory environmental is one of the uk s leading resource management recycling and energy recovery companies . it handles more than 3.5 million tonnes of waste and recyclable materials per year 1 at sites across the uk and has contracts for recycling street cleansing and waste collection . 1 it may be best known by whom for operating barges on the river thames from central london to cory s riverside resource recovery energy from waste facility in bexley . using london s green highway to transfer waste by barge removes 100 000 lorry movements per year from london s roads . history edit coal and refuse edit the company was founded in london in 1896 as william cory and son ltd. 2 cory was formed from the merger of eight companies in the coal trade and had a comprehensive business in transporting and supplying five million tonnes of coal per year to trade and domestic customers in london . 2 cory had a fleet of 2 500 railway wagons and also operated lighters on the river thames . 2 rather than operate its lighters unladen on their return journeys from delivering coal cory used them to carry refuse from london to be dumped in the marshlands of essex and kent . 2 after the turn of the 20th century cory started to provide social housing for some of its workforce . 3 ss nellie wise aground at hartlepool in 1908 ss william cory aground at pendeen in 1910 cory ships had brown upper works above hull level . 4 the funnel was black with a broad white band and a large black diamond on the white band . 4 5 the house flag was red with a large white or cream diamond in the middle . 5 in 1900 s.p. austin & co of sunderland built the 1 780 grt coaster ss heston for the company . 6 on 24 may 1902 she was en route from decido to rotterdam laden with iron ore when she was involved in a collision with ss castillo and sank in the bay of biscay southwest of point penmarc h in brittany . 6 in 1902 s.p. austin & co. built the 1 191 grt collier ss caenwood for the company . 7 on 21 november 1905 she ran aground and was wrecked in the north sea off the north landing of flamborough head . 7 in 1896 cory bought the 867 grt coaster ss f.t. barry which backhouse and dixon of middlesbrough had built in 1872 . 8 on 23 june 1906 she was involved in a collision in the north sea with ss tynesider was beached on gunfleet sands off clacton on sea and became a total loss . 8 in 1896 cory bought the 1 053 grt coaster ss nellie wise which denton gray & co of west hartlepool had built in 1873 . 9 on 8 january 1908 while en route from london to the river tyne she ran aground on blackhall rocks 3 nautical miles 5.6 km northwest of hartlepool . 9 she was refloated but sold for scrap . 9 in 1909 s.p. austin & co. built the 2 660 grt coaster ss william cory for the company . 10 she ran aground at pendeen in cornwall and was wrecked in september 1910 . 10 first world war edit during the first world war the war department requisitioned most of cory s tugs for the royal navy . 3 in 1914 cory encouraged its workers to enlist in kitchener s army and they formed an entire company of the 6th battalion the royal east kent regiment the buffs 3 as a pals unit . cory cargo ships sailed usually coastal convoys but sometimes independently . the company lost 15 ships 13 were confirmed sunk by enemy action one disappeared and was presumed sunk by enemy action and one was sunk by a collision . 94 seafarers were killed and numerous others were injured . ss deptford was a 1 208 grt collier built by blyth shipbuilding & drydock co. in 1912 . 11 she was a flatiron meaning that she had a low profile superstructure hinged funnel and hinged or telescopic mast to pass under low bridges on the river thames upriver form the pool of london . 11 on 24 february 1915 she was en route from granton to chatham carrying coal for naval bunkering when she was sunk by a mine in the scarborough minefield that the german cruiser sms kolberg had laid during the raid on scarborough hartlepool and whitby on 15 december 1914 . 11 one crewmember was lost . 11 ss hadley was a 1 777 grt coaster built by s.p. austin & co. in 1901 . 12 on 27 december 1915 she was en route from newcastle upon tyne to london when a mine laid by the german minelaying submarine sm uc 3 sank her in the north sea three miles 5 km from the shipwash lightship which is southwest of orford ness . 12 all her crew were saved . 12 ss denewood was a 1 221 grt coaster built by s.p. austin & co. in 1905 . 13 on 26 may 1916 she was carrying coal from the river tyne to london when she was sunk in the north sea by a mine off sizewell . 13 all her crew were saved . 13 ss brentwood was a 1 192 grt collier built by s.p. austin & co. in 1904 . 14 on 12 january 1917 she was sunk in the north sea by a mine laid by the german minelaying submarine sm uc 63 . 14 she sank off saltwick nab near whitby with the loss of her second mate and a fireman stoker . 14 ss togston rescued the survivors and landed them at sunderland . 14 ss hurstwood was a 1 229 grt collier built by s.p. austin & co. in 1906 . 15 on 5 february 1917 she was steaming from london to newcastle upon tyne in ballast when the german submarine sm ub 34 torpedoed and sank her off whitby . 15 the chief engineer and a fireman stoker were killed in the explosion and two men were seriously injured . 15 11 survivors got away in a boat and were rescued by the armed trawler hms swallow but one of the injured a donkeyman died of his injuries . 15 ss harberton was a 1 443 grt collier built by s.p. austin & co. in 1894 for j. & c. harrison of london . 16 on 29 march 1917 she left blyth for london laden with coal . 16 neither she nor her master and 15 crew were seen again . 16 she is presumed to have been either torpedoed by an enemy submarine or sunk by an enemy mine . 16 her date of loss is recorded as 30 march but this is conjectural and her wreck has not yet been found . 16 ss sir francis was a 1 991 grt collier built by s.p. austin & co. in 1910 . 17 on 7 june 1917 she was steaming northwards to the river tyne when the german submarine sm ub 21 18 sank her with two torpedoes 17 off cloughton . her master and nine crew were lost ss dryade and the cory ship ss vernon see below rescued 12 survivors and the latter landed all the survivors at south shields . 17 ss vernon was a 982 ton coaster built by john blumer & co. of sunderland in 1878 . 19 20 on 7 june 1917 she took part in the rescue of survivors from the cory collier ss sir francis 17 see above . on 31 august 1917 in the north sea off spurn the german submarine sm ub 30 torpedoed and sank vernon and one of her crew was lost . 19 20 ss hockwold was a 1 492 grt collier built by s.p. austin & co. in 1911 . 21 on 8 september 1917 she in the western approaches to the english channel when she was involved in a collision with ss intent southwest of the lizard and sank with the loss of 10 men 21 including her master . 22 intent rescued two survivors and recovered the body of the master . 22 ss harrow was a 1 777 grt coaster built by s.p. austin & co. in 1900 . 23 on the evening of 8 september 1917 she was in the north sea steaming from granton to london with a cargo of coal as part of a convoy . a few miles northwest of north cheek of robin hood s bay the german submarine sm ub 41 torpedoed her killing the first mate and a gunner and sinking her . 23 one of the convoy s armed trawler escorts rescued her remaining crew and transferred them to a motor launch that landed them at whitby . 23 ss ocean was a 1 442 grt collier built by s.p. austin & co. for lambert bros. ltd. of london in 1894 and cory had subsequently bought from her first owners . 24 on 23 november 1917 the german submarine sm ub 21 torpedoed and sank her in the north sea off saltburn by the sea . 24 all her complement of 17 crew and two gunners were saved . 24 ss highgate was a 1 780 grt collier built by s.p. austin & co. in 1899 . 25 on 7 december 1917 she was carrying 2 380 tons of coal from the river tyne to london when the german type ub iii submarine sm ub 75 torpedoed and sank her about 2.5 miles 4 km off the south cheek of robin hood s bay . 25 all 20 crew were rescued by a motor patrol boat and landed at whitby . 25 ss the buffs was a 3 431 grt collier built by s.p. austin & co. in 1917 26 so named to mark cory s connection with the regiment . however in 1920 cory s renamed the ship ss corland . 26 she survived the first world war but was sunk in the second world war see below . ss corsham was a 2 797 grt cargo ship newly built by s.p. austin & co. in 1918 . 27 on 8 march 1918 she was steaming from london to the river tyne when the german submarine sm ub 40 torpedoed and sank her in the north sea off loftus . 27 12 reached her lifeboat and five were saved from the water by motor patrol boats but nine men were lost mostly from hypothermia or drowning . 27 ss crayford was a 1 209 grt collier built by blyth shipbuilding & drydock co. in 1911 . 28 on 13 march 1918 she was crossing the north sea from methil in scotland to christiania now oslo in norway with a cargo of coke when the german submarine sm u 46 torpedoed and sank her about 110 miles 180 km off skudesnes 28 with the loss of the chief engineer . 29 ss lady cory wright was a 2 516 grt collier built by s.p. austin & co. in 1906 . 30 the war department requisitioned her for the royal fleet auxiliary in august 1914 as the mine carrier rfa lady