Group of voyagers aboard the San Telmo steamboat on a cruise to Guadalquivir.

The San Telmo was a paddle steamer built in England in 1876. After passing through many British ship owners, it was bought by Marquis Luis de Olazo y Madariaga, an architect in the Sevilla-Sanlúcar-Mar Steamboat Company, in 1921. The San Telmo was the first boat in Marquis de Olazo’s fleet, and was to be part of the Seville-Sanlúcar-Mar steamship line. Inaugurated in 1922, the boat entered into regular service for the transportation of travelers and merchants along the Guadalquivir river.

The fleet, to which the steam boats Triana, Bajo de Guía, and Sanlúcar also belonged, had respective ports in Triana (Seville) and Bajo de Guía (Sanlúcar de Barrameda).

The journey along the river was some 56 miles and took approximately five hours to navigate, depending on the winds and the tides. The journey cost four pesetas for second class and nine for first class.

The company terminated its services in 1932, and the San Telmo was decommissioned in 1935.