The iron screw steamer Devon was built by Scott's of Greenock and launched on 26 June 1872. Registered at 1,856 gross tons, she measured 286 feet in length, with a 38 foot beam, and could steam at 10 knots. Originally ordered for the Commercial Steam Ship Co. of London, she was sold by them to the short-lived Great Western Steamship Line in 1878 and therefore operated on their Bristol - New York service. Passenger traffic from Bristol gradually declined during the 1880's however, to the extent that the company decided to discontinue passenger sailings after 1885. This resulted in the sale of all but two of the company's ships and Devon was sold to Turkish owners who renamed her Kyamil Pasha.