MV Ardingly was a coaster built in 1951 as a collier for Stephenson Clarke Shipping. She carried coal from North East England to ports in Southern England until this trade declined early in the 1960s. Stephenson Clarke then transferred her to carrying bulk cargoes including limestone and grain.Many Stephenson Clarke ships were named after places in South East England. MV Ardingly may have been so named because one Stephenson Clarke director, Mr. P.G.