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Hearts of Oak
Pre-Anco Parcel Tanker
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IVER BUGGE SHIPS A O ANDERSEN SHIPS
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HALDOR VIRIK
SHIPS
Haldor Virik was born in 1880;
he established his A/S Eskimo Shipping Company in 1910.
A/S Oceana had
owned a series of barques and whalers; JASON, HERTA, CASTOR, POLARSTJERNEN,
CITO, FRANKLIN, PENDA, ARIES, ELIDA, FORTUNA and FREMAD. On the 20th
December 1909 six of these ships were purchased by Haldor Virik; ARIES, CITO,
FRANKLIN, FORTUNA, FREMAD and HERTA complete with the business, stock and yard,
for the sum of 215,000 krone, and so A/S Oceana passed to Haldor Virik. He
opened his new company of sail ships in seal and bottlenose hunting and named
it A/S Fortuna.
This was
renamed in 1910 as A/S Eskimo, with the same ships.
In 1912 he
formed A/S Hvalfangerselskapet Odd, with steamships ODD, SOBRAON and three
smaller boats. Later incorporating A/S Hvalfangerselskapet Normanna, with a
steamer NORMANNA and sail ships. NORMANNA was sunk by a Uboat. Then he added
the steamer GUVERNØREN to A/S Odd.
In 1921,
GUVERNØREN was wrecked in fog off the Falkland Islands.
Business was
falling and, in 1926,
he disposed of
all stock of the company.
Knowing the nature of modern business markets,
Haldor Virik turned to tankers, and purchased
NORMANNA (2), which was lost in a fire,
and FRANGO, which was sold.
He then purchased SANDAR (torpedoed in 1942)
and HERBJØRN (which he renamed SANDEFJORD),
which was captured by the ADMIRAL SCHEER.
After WWII, his first ship purchase was KATTEGAT, renamed SANDAR
and another, for carrying lubricating oil, was delivered, the
SANDEFJORD.
ODD 2
Built 1910
Nylands mek.Verksted, Oslo, Norway
Yard Nr 220
For A/S Odd
(Haldor Virik), Sandefjord
177 brt; 63 nrt
111ft x 20ft x 11ft 10ins
Triple expansion; 84 bhp; by shipbuilder.
Whaling catcher
1916 Sold ; Thor Dahl, Sandefjord
1917 Transferred ; Bryde & Dahls Hvalfangerselskab
A/S (Thor Dahl), Sandefjord
1922 Renamed THOR SENIOR.
1924 Renamed ANADYR ; Hvalfangerselskapet A/S Vega
(H. A.
Christensen A/S), Sandefjord.
1927 Renamed
DELFIN ; Cia Argentina de Pesca, Buenos Aires, Argentina.
1928 21st
February : Sunk outside Bahia Langara.
SOBRAON
Built 1889 Sunderland
2,404 grt.
Norwegian whale factory ship
1912 Purchased by Haldor Virik
1914 Renamed
ORION (A. Andersen, Chile).
MIMOSA
Steel
barque built as QUILPUÉ
Built
1890 Russell & Co., Port Glasgow
Yard
Nr 249
For
F.H. Vaughan, Liverpool.
1910
ROALD AMUNDSEN ; A/S Laboremus (T. Dannevig & Co.), Sandefjord.
1912
Renamed MIMOSA.
1913
Sold ; Haldor Virik, Sandefjord.
1915
Sold ; Cia de Pesca N. do Brasil (T. Rynning, Sandefjord), Pernambuco.
1916
Sold ; Fritz S. Klem, Sandefjord.
1916
May : Sold ; A/S Dansk Svovlsyre og Superfosfatfabrik, Copenhagen.
1916
30th May : Sold ; Rederi AB Mimosa (Harald Schüssler), Stockholm
Swedish Reg. No. 5810 ; Call Sign
JVQH.
Remeasured :225ft x 36ft x 21ft 6ins
1,408 grt; 1,286 nrt; 2,200 dwt.
1924
5th December : Sold ; Rud. Neugebauer & Co., Hamburg. For
scrapping.
NORMANNA
Built 1885 Sir W.G. Armstrong, Mitchell, Newcastle as HAJEEN
For Bedouin Steam Navigation Co. of Liverpool (
Manager W & R Thomson ).
A/S
Normanna v/Haldor Virik A/S, Sandefjord
2,831grt
310ft 6ins x 39ft
9.5 knots
1900 Renamed BERRIZ ; Aznar y Cia , Bilbao.
1907 Renamed BELGIAN PRINCE ; Wallsend Slipway & Engine Co.,
Engines repaired ( Management James Knott ).
1910 Renamed NORMANNA ; Haldor Virik,
Hvalfangerakties Normanna, Sandfjord.
1911 Rebuilt as a whaling factory ( Framnæs Mek.Verksted, Sandefjord )
1917 22nd February : Torpedoed by Uboat U-21, off the Isles of
Scilly.
Some survivors were picked up by a Scillonian sloop.
On 22 February 1917 a small convoy of
seven Dutch merchant ships, EEMLAND, JACATRA, NOORDERDIJK, ZAANDIJK, MENADO,
BANDOENG and GAASTERLAND, left Falmouth Harbour, bound for the Netherlands.
They had been sheltering in Falmouth; the German Government had guaranteed
their safety. International Law required a warning and examination of papers
before any action was taken.
At 15.30 hours the convoy spotted two
boats, with survivors of the NORMANNA; they approached to pick up the
survivors. U-21 surfaced and demanded that all the ships of the convoy had to
be abandoned. One of the captains rowed towards the submarine, to show his
papers; before he had reached the submarine, three merchant ships had been
torpedoed.
After the crews had left, the other
ships were set with time bombs.
The survivors headed towards Isles of
Scilly in their boats and were seen by the Bishop Rock Lighthouse keepers, who
at once signalled for the lifeboat. The St. Agnes lifeboat CHARLES DEERE JAMES
went off and found two boats full of men. A lifeboatman was put in each to
pilot them to safety, and she then searched farther afield, finding one more
boat, bringing the total of men the lifeboat had saved to 47. The St Mary’s
lifeboat found others and piloted them into St Mary’s harbour.
More men were assisted by trawlers. All
300 returned safely.
The MENADO was towed back to Falmouth by
a trawler.
The full story
of this drama of treachery against
a Neutral
European Country can be read HERE.
Normanna
GUVERNØREN
ON
93837
Built
1889 as RUNIC, a livestock carrier, by Harland & Wolff, Belfast
Launched
New Year's Day 1889.
1889 21st February : Maiden voyage
Liverpool to New York.
Call
Sign : MJGB
5043
grt
430ft
8ins x 45ft 3ins x 30ft 4ins
For
the White Star Line.
Designed
to carry 1,000 head of live cattle or general cargo.
Accommodation
for 48 passengers.
1895 Renamed TAMPICAN ; West India & Pacific
Steamship Company.
1899 Transferred to Leyland Line.
1912 Sold to H. E. Moss & Co, Liverpool.
1912 Renamed IMO ; South Pacific Whaling Company,
Oslo, Norway.
Converted to a Whaling Factory ship.
1917 6th December : Incident in
Halifax Harbour, where IMO collided
with MONT BLANC ( French Line ),
causing a massive explosion.
IMO
was leaving Halifax in ballast, chartered to the Belgian Relief Committee. She
collided with the inbound MONT BLANC in the Narrows of Halifax Harbour. Sparks
from the collision ignited MONT BLANC's cargo, leading to the massive explosion
which devastated the North End of Halifax. MONT BLANC, was carrying 2,800 tons
of munitions, which exploded. The blast ripped through the Richmond district of
the city. It was felt 270 miles away. Around 1,600 people were killed, 2,000
more were missing and never found, 9,000 injured and 25,000 were made
temporarily homeless. Over 1,600 buildings in a 16 mile radius were destroyed
and 12,000 more were damaged. The total property loss was estimated at $35m.
The explosion also caused a 13 foot tidal wave that destroyed buildings and
damaged warships. All of the crew of the MONT BLANC had survived; fearing that
the vessel would blow up straight away after the collision, they had taken to
their lifeboats. MONT BLANC was obliterated, not a scrap was found. IMO had
been driven across the harbour, by the blast, beached on the Dartmouth shore.
The blast wrecked her upper works, killing most of those on the bridge (her
captain the pilot and five of her crew members), sparing those below decks, as
her hull had sustained relatively light damage.
1918 Bought and Repaired by Haldor Virik. Renamed
GUVERNØREN.
Remained as a Whaling Factory ship
for A/S Odd.
1921 30th November : Went aground on a
reef, in fog, twenty miles from
Port Stanley, Falkland Islands.
Total loss.
The wreck still sits with her
rusting bows above water.
Guvernøren as Runic
NORMANNA
(2) Built as WALKURE
Built
1908 William Doxford & Co.,
Sunderland.
Yard
Nr 395
3,836
grt.
349ft
2ins x 49ft x 24ft
Triple
expansion Dixford steam engine.
10
knots
For Rederi A.G. Oceana (Manager H.H. Schmidt),
Hamburg
1914 12th August : Captured by French
gunboat LA ZELEE
Port Lenao, Makatea.
1914 22nd September : Sunk by SMS
SCHARNHORST
at Papeete. Sold to John A. Hooper,
USA.
1914 15th December : Refloated and
repaired.
1916 Renamed REPUBLIC ; John A. Hooper, San
Francisco.
1917 Chile S.S. Co., Inc., New York.
1924 Renamed NORMANNA ; Haldor Virik, Stavanger.
1925 21st February : On fire, with a
cargo of paper pulp, en route
Gothenburg to Rio de Janiero. Grounded at Teneriefe.
1925 19th June : Sold to shipbreakers.
1925 17th August ; Arrived at
Rotterdam under tow, for scrapping.
FRANGO
Built as Turbine Steamer GOLAA (cylindrical tanks)
Built 1917 Chester
Shipbuilding Co., Chester, Philadelphia, U.S.A
Yard Nr 339
Delivered 17th May 1917 to US Shipping Board.
Then to Fr. Siegwarth, Tønsberg.
Chester records show 5,500grt; 8,750dwt.
5,672 grt; 4,547 nrt; 8,220 dwt
401ft 10ins x 54ft 4ins x 30ft 3ins
1920
Handed over to D/S A/S Golaa (C. Wildhagen & Co.), Sandefjord
1927 C. Wildhagen, Sandefjord
1927
Renamed FRANGO ; A/S Frango (Haldor Virik & Co.), Sandefjord
Converted to a whaling factory
ship, of 6,400grt
1930 Sold to Bryde og Dahl - The
American Whaling Co., Inc.
(A/S Thor Dahl, Sandefjord), Wilmington, Delaware, USA
Engines replaced by a triple expansion steam engine,
built by Lilleshall Engineering Co., Oakengates, Staffs
1940
December : Renamed CLIFFORD ; Frango Corporation, Panama
(A/S Thor Dahl, Sandefjord).
1941 Captured by Japanese Navy.
Renamed HAKKO MARU ; Teikoku
Senpaku KK, Japan
1944 4th January : Torpedoed
and sunk by USS BLUEFISH.
Position 07.10N : 108.25E, about 200
miles N of Great Natuna Island
~~~~o~~o~~~~
SANDAR 1928
SANDAR 1946
SANDEFJORD 1937
SANDEFJORD 1950
Included are details of the
JAN WELLEM and ELSA ESSBERGER.
Though they are not Virik
Ships, they have a relevant history.
SANDEFJORD 1937 was captured by
the ADMIRAL SCHEER
following the attack on Convoy HX84.
SANDAR
Built 1928 for Haldor Virik
12,000
dwt; 7624grt
2nd
May 1942 : At 2253, the unescorted Sandar ( voyaging from Trinidad to Gibraltar
) was hit amidships by two torpedoes from U-66 but still continued at slow
speed although the midships section caught fire. She was hit in the aft part by
a coup de grâce at 2310 and sank by the stern after 10 minutes. Position 11.42N
: 61.10W. The survivors abandoned ship
in the port lifeboat and the motorboat because the starboard boat had been
destroyed. The first mate and the boatswain were lost. The U-boat surfaced and
questioned the survivors in the boats and provided them food, first-aid material
and the course and distance for land before leaving the area. The survivors
were picked up the next day after being spotted by an aircraft by the American
merchantman ALCOA PILOT about 25 miles north of Port of Spain. The master, who
had been terribly burned was immediately admitted to a hospital in Port of
Spain but died shortly afterwards.
SANDAR ex KATTEGAT
Built
1928 by F. Schichau, Danzig, Germany
Tanker
6031 grt
For
Ol -Transport GmbH (John T. Essberger) Germany
1939 German Navy requisitioned as OLSCHIFF 2
1940 Accompanied by JAN WELLEM, en route to
Narvik with oil supplies for the invasion fleet on 9th April, she
took refuge in the Glåmfjord south of Bodø, fearing mines in Vestfjord. She was
discovered, Norwegian warship NORDKAPP opened fire. KATTEGAT was scuttled by
her own crew. Position 58.26N : 17.25E.
10th April 1940 : The JAN WELLEM had arrived at Narvik on the afternoon
of the 8th April;
wondering why the KATTEGAT had not arrived, a search was sent out at 1045 hours, by
Marine Command and they discovered that, on the 9th April, 34 of the crew had
been captured, and five had escaped into the surrounding hills. NORDKAPP had
found her laying at anchor, at Sandågbukta Neverda. The crew refused to abandon ship and so scuttled
her. The
captain explained why KATTEGAT was laying at anchor, he had been given
intelligence as to the British minefield in Vestfjorden.
1940
Raised 14th June : Repaired in July; Renamed BODØ; Norwegian flag.
Under way to Tromsø she was attacked and damaged by German aircraft.
1940
September : Salvaged and repaired, she again sailed for Germany;
Renamed KATTEGAT; John T Essberger.
1944 She was damaged in an RAF raid, and ran
aground and was
stranded near Sandefjord 10th
November.
1945 2nd April : Whilst in dock for
repairs at Framnæs Mek.Verksted,
Sandefjord, KATTEGAT was bombed and
further damaged by
RAF aircraft fire. Docks and ships
were severely damaged.
1945 May : Sandefjord Docks and KATTEGAT
repaired.
1945 6th September : KATTEGAT Awarded
to Norway.
1946 17th July : Purchased as
KATTEGAT; Renamed SANDAR;
Viriks Rederi A/S, Norway; Haldor Virik.
1959 Arrived at
Antwerp, Belgium, 13th November for demolition.
Sandar ex Kattegat
JAN
WELLEM
8894 grt
Built
1921 Bremer Vulkan, Vegesack
As Passenger/Cargo steamer WURTTEMBERG
For Hamburg America Line, Hamburg.
Deutsche
Walfang Gesellschaft, Hamburg
1936 Renamed JAN
WELLEM ; Henkel & Co. GmbH, Wesermunde.
Converted
to Whale Factory Ship, remeasured 11,776 grt.
1939 November:
Requisitioned by the Kreigsmarine as a base ship and
converted into a tanker.
1940 Arrived at
Narvik, 8th April, having left KATTEGAT behind.
Scuttled 28th
April at Narvik to avoid capture by British forces.
1940 Refloated
August ; badly burned-out forward and amidships,
1943
Repaired and recommissioned April, as a base ship, at Libau.
1946 Wrecked,
beached 6th June ;
At
Heikendorfer Bucht, position 54.22N : 10.11E.
1947 Broken up at
Blyth by Hughes Bolckow
There has been a suggestion that KATTEGAT had been renamed
as EMPIRE TEGEBYA – I believe this confusion has arisen out
of the
name of another J T Essberger ship, the ELSA ESSBERGER as
she became renamed EMPIRE TEGENYA. Also, Haldor Virik records show that
KATTEGAT was purchased in the name KATTEGAT.
ELSA ESSBERGER
Built 1930 Deutsche Werft,
Hamburg
For J.T.Essberger.
1172 tons; 235ft x 37ft
1938
LISA ESSBERGER ; J.T.Essberger,
Hamburg.
1940 Requisitioned by the German Navy.
1945 Seized by Allies at Copenhagen.
1945 EMPIRE TEGENYA ; MOWT.
1947 LISA ESSBERGER ; J.T.Essberger, Hamburg
1960 OLSTAUER ; R.C.Eckelmann, Hamburg.
1964 ATTIKI ; C.Diamantis, Greece.
1968 PELOPONNISIS ; Greek Tanker Shipping Co.
1979 Scrapped at Kynossoura, Greece.
SANDEFJORD
[ Sister
ship of Yard Nr 425 STORAAS ]
Built 1929 A/B Gotaverken, Gøteborg, Sweden
Yard
Nr 415
ON 187370
12,000
dwt; 8,038 grt; 4,549 nrt
559ft
6ins x 59ft x 35ft
Call
Sign : LDIF
Engines Gøtaverken diesel
1929 HERBJØRN ;
Sigurd Herlofson & Co, Norway
1937
Sold to Haldor Virik A/S, Sandefjord.; Renamed SANDEFJORD.
ADMIRAL
SCHEER attacked Convoy HX84 on 5th November 1940,
off
Newfoundland, position 52.45N : 32.13W, and then sailed south.
1941 18th
January : On voyage from Cape Town to Freetown with a
cargo of 11,000 tons of crude oil, SANDEFJORD was captured
by
ADMIRAL SCHEER. Position 6.29S : 4.25W.
A
prize crew was placed on board and she was sent south to
position 11S : 02W ; later, sent south again to rendezvous.
1941 26th January : At Point, Codename
"Andalusien" 15S : 18W,
ADMIRAL SCHEER and captured
Norwegian tanker SANDEFJORD
met German ships THOR, PINGUIN, EUROFELD and NORDMARK;
and another captured ship, the
DUQUESA.
More than 200 prisoners were
transferred to SANDEFJORD,
which was taken to France by the
prize crew.
1941 27th February : Arrived Bordeaux
in occupied France.
1941 17th March ; Renamed MONSUN ( German
flag ).
1943 Set fire in an RAF bombing raid at Nantes, 25th
September.
1944 Scuttled at Nantes on 10th August,
used as a blockship.
1945 Raised in March, and repaired.
1946 Renamed BRIÉRE ; Societe Anonyme Courtage et
Transports, Le Havre.
1954 Renamed CAPE MOUNT ; Transoceanic Transport.
Co., Liberia
1955 Renamed CEDAR TRADER ; Trader Line Ltd,
Hamilton, Bermuda.
1964 Laid up
at Hong Kong, 4th May. Driven aground at Hong Kong,
5th
September, by Typhoon "Ruby". Re-floated,
20th October and
subsequently sold to Hong Kong
Breakers in a damaged condition.
SANDEFJORD became ANCO SAILOR
5675
tons
Built
1950 AB Gotaverken, Gothenburg.
415ft x 55ft 2ins x 31ft 9ins
6cyl
2s. csa diesel by shipbuilders.
Call
Sign : LHRH.
For
Haldor Virik, Viriks Rederi A/S,
Sandefjord.
1964 ANCO SAILOR ;
Virik`s Rederi A/S, Norway
1966 TAIPIENG ; Ocean
Tramping Co. Ltd, London; Hong Kong
1970 TAIPIENG ; Nan Yang
Shipping Co., Somali Republic
1977 TAIPIENG ; Fortune Sea Transport, Panama.
1978 TA CHING Nr 410; China Ocean Shipping Co,
China
1980 DA QING Nr 410 ;
China Ocean Shipping Co, China
Deleted from Lloyds Register 1992
Sandefjord
1950
Raymond Forward