Bremen ship AUGUSTE/bark GAUSS
Michael Palmer
> My ancestors came on the two following ships from Bremen to Baltimore
> and would like information and a picture, if available:
>
> Gauss
> Arriving 21 October 1869
>
> Auguste
> Arriving 11 June 1872
1. Bremen bark GAUSS.
The first of these vessels is the Bremen bark (a three-masted sailing
vessel, square rigged on the fore and main masts, rigged fore-and-aft on
the mizzen) GAUSS, by the shipwright Johann Lange, of Vegesack/Grohn, for
the Bremen firm of N. Gloystein S"ohne, and launched on 11 April 1857.
279 Commerzlasten/641 tons; 44 x 10,2 x 5,4 meters (length x beam x depth
of hold). Under her master, Heinrich Wieting, she was employed for many
years in the freight and passenger service between Bremerhaven and North
America.
On 18 April 1866, the _Wochenschrift f"ur Vegesack und Umgegend_ printed
the following report of a particularly long passage from Bremerhaven to
New York:
Die Bremer Bark GAUSS, Wieting, von Bremen in New York angekommen,
hatte sehr st"urmisches Wetter den gr"ossten Theil der Reise; war
drei Wochen in der Nordsee und 30 Tage vor Fair Island unterwegs.
In April 1866, the GAUSS was purchased by the Bremen firm of Everhard C.
Delius. Wieting, however, remained in command until his death in
Charleston, South Carolina, in 1868. The _Wochenschrift f"ur Vegesack und
Umgegend_ for 9 December 1868 published the following report of Wieting's
passing:
Capitain Wieting vom Schiffe GAUSS ist laut einer in Bremerhaven
eingetroffenen Depesche in Charleston gestorben. Diese Nachricht
wird Manchen schmerzlichen ber"uhren, denn wohl selten gab es einen
Capitain, der im Kreise aller derer, die ihn kannten, hier sowohl wie
jenseits des Oceans sich einer gr"osseren Popularit"at erfreute.
Wieting was succeeded as master by Bernhard Steengrafe, who remained in
command until the vessel was sold Norwegian in 1877 (it is noteworthy that
in twenty years under the Bremen flag the GAUSS had only two captains).
On 29 March 1869, the GAUSS was purchased by the Bremen firm of Joh. Fr.
Arens (5/8) and Johann Jacob Bornemann (3/8). On 16 March 1877, these
sold the vessel to W. Petersen, of Holmestrand, Norway, who renamed
her NEPTUN, and from whom she passed, in the same year, to Pettersen &
Holst, and others. From 1887 onwards, the records give the owner of
the NEPTUN as Br"odr. Bjaertness, Holmestrand, and from 1891, Ole T.
Bjaertness, also of Holmestrand; in 1898, the vessel passed to Andreas
Hannestad, of Fredrikstad First master of the NEPTUN, ex GAUSS, under the
Norwegian flag was Hans Johannesen, who was succeeded in 1891 by Axel
Steen, and in 1898 by C. A. Hansen.
On 6 March 1894, the 46-year-old bark NORA, ex GAUSS, J. Hansen, master,
bound from Dr"obak for Geestemunde with a cargo of ice, was abandoned at
sea in a sinking condition, the crew being rescued by the German steamer
HEPPENS [Peter-Michael Pawlik, _Von der Weser in die Welt; Die Geschichte
der Segelschiffe von Weser und Lesum und ihrer Bauwerften 1770 bis 1893_,
Schriften des Deutschen Schiffahrtsmuseums, Bd. 33 (Hamburg: Kabel,
c1993), pp. 232-233, no. 236]. Pawlik's work contains a color
reproduction of an oil painting of the GAUSS by Oltmann Jaburg, dated
1859, and a photograph of the NEPTUN, ex GAUSS. I am attaching scans, in
JPG format, of both images.
2. Bremen ship AUGUSTE.
The second of these vessels is the Bremen ship AUGUSTE, also built by the
shipwright Johann Lange, of Vegesack/Grohn, and launched on 2 November
1850, for the Bremen firm of E. C. Schramm & Co. 341 Commerzlasten/767
tons; 40,6 x 10,5 x 6,1 meters (length x beam x depth of hold).
International Signal Code: QBLT. Masters of the AUGUSTE were, in
chronological order, Ed. Theodor L"udering and (1856) Heinrich Ehrichs,
both of Bremen, and (1864) Hinrich von Harten, of Vegesack.
The AUGUSTE weather innumerable storms during her almost 45-year career.
The _Wochenschrift f"ur Vegesack und Umgegend_ for 15 June 1864 reports:
Laut telegraphischer Nachricht aus Aberdeen vom 11. d. ist das Bremer
Schiff AUGUSTE, Capt. Erichs, von Bremen mit Passagieren nach
Baltimore bestimmt, unweit Vonaldsday auf Strand gerathen.
Passagiere und Mannschaft gelandet und hofft man auch das Schiff,
wenn das Wetter gut bleibt, abzubringen.
The vessel was indeed got off safely and undamaged a few days later, and
continued her journey to Baltimore.
The _Wochenschrift f"ur Vegesack und Umgegend_ for 12 July 1865 reports:
Dem Capitain H. von Harten, F"uhrer des Bremer Schiffes AUGUSTE, ist
f"ur die von ihm w"ahrend eines Sturmes vollzogene Rettung der
Mannschaft des am 15. Dec. v.J. in der N"ahe von Corunna gesunkenen
Norwegischen Barkschiffes NEPTUN von Sr. Majest"at dem K"onige von
Schweden und Norwegen die silberne Medaille verliehen worden.
On 26 July 1868, the AUGUSTE, bound from Philadelphia to Bremen with a
cargo of petroleum, encountered a severe storm, and, leaking badly, was on
forced into Boston on 3 August 1868, in order to effect repairs.
In about 1885, the AUGUSTE, which had been re-rigged in the 1870's as a
bark and sailed for almost 20 years under Capt. von Harten, was sold
Dutch, to S. van der Hei, of Heveskes. New International Signal Code:
NGBV. Her new master was P. Arkeman. In the first quarter of 1895,
after a career of almost 45 years, the AUGUSTE was broken up at
Nieuwediep [Pawlik, _op. cit._, p. 219, no. 210]. Despite her long
career, I have no record of a picture of the AUGUSTE. I am attaching a
scan of an oil painting by Oltmann Jaburg, 1872, of the ship ADMIRAL,
roughly the same size as the AUGUSTE (320 Commerzlasten/744 tons; 39,8 x
9,8 x 6,0 meters), built by Lange two years previously, in 1848 [Pawlik,
_op. cit._, p. 216].
For further information on pictorial representations of both vessels,
contact the
Deutsches Schiffahrtsmuseum
Hans-Scharoun-Platz 1
D-27568 Bremerhaven
http://www.dsm.de
Michael Palmer
---
Michael Palmer
Claremont, California
mpa...@netcom.com