Four-masted barque Lawhill (prob.) 1930s
The four-masted Finnish (Åland Islands) barque Lawhill photographed in Australian waters by Allan C.Green (prob.) in the 1930s. My colorization of the original image in the State Library Victoria archive.
"Lawhill was a steel-hulled four-masted barque rigged in "jubilee" or "baldheaded" fashion, i.e. without royal sails over the top-gallant sails, active in the early part of the 20th century. Although her career was not especially remarkable, save perhaps for being consistently profitable as a cargo carrier, in the 1930s Richard Cookson went on board and extensively documented Lawhill's internals and construction, which was later published in the Anatomy of the Ship series.
Lawhill was built at the Caledon Shipbuilding & Engineering Company yard of W. B. Thompson in Dundee, Scotland, and launched on 24 August 1892. And it was named after the Law, a hill in the middle of Dundee, Lawhill had been ordered by shipowner Charles Barrie for the jute trade, but only made two voyages carrying jute before the business became unprofitable, and shifted to other cargoes.
During the 1890s, a demand was developing for kerosene in the Far East, which could be more efficiently carried by sail at the time (the Falls of Clyde would take up this unusual trade several years later), and on August 31. 1899 Lawhill was sold to the Lawhill Sailing Ship Co. Ltd. (F. E. Bliss, manager), London, together with her sistership Juteopolis. Captain John C. B. Jarvis of Dundee, inventor of the eponymous brace winch, was given command of the ship (September 1, 1899 - January 21, 1911). In June 1900 the barque was transferred to the Anglo-American Oil Company. She made nine voyages carrying oil and other cargoes, then the development of storage tank capacity reduced demand, and Lawhill went, again together with her sistership [[Garthpool (Barque)|Juteopolis, to Geo. Windram & Co. of Liverpool in 1911. Captain J. A. Sanders became her new master.
In the year 1914, she was sold to Finnish owner August Troberg under the command of Captain Edward August Jansson, and Lawhill became Finland's largest sailing ship. Despite the hazards of World War I, Lawhill continued to sail, managing to elude U-boats and arrive unescorted into Brest in May 1917, carrying wheat from Australia. However, French authorities refused to let Lawhill leave, citing the risks, and used her as a store ship." (Wikipedia)
While Lawhill was in port at Brest, she was bought by another Finnish (Ålands islands) shipowner, Gustaf Erikson, who hoped to have her back to work without any considerable delay. However, his optimism suffered a blow, when the French government requisitioned Lawhill in June 1918. Finally, on January 8, 1919, the French government informed Erikson about the release. She then resumed carrying wheat, timber and other cargoes under the command of Captain Karl Reuben de Cloux. The Author Alan Villiers was a crew member, until injured in a fall from the yardarm in 1922.
Lawhill was according to Georg Kåhre remarkably fast on some outward passages in ballast: 78 days from Bordeaux to Port Lincoln for orders in 1924, 88 days from London to Port Victoria in 1934.
After being condemned by the prize court in 1942, Lawhill continued to sail between Australia and South Africa under the command of her former skipper, Captain Arthur Söderlund.
"The ship was used by the South African Railways & Harbour Administration for cargo during the war, then sold to private citizens of South Africa (in 1946 to Lawhill (Pty) Ltd., East London and in 1947 to Thomas Worker and Herman Olthaver, Johannesburg, for the sum of £9,000), who used Lawhill on several voyages to Argentina with coal and returning with a cargo of wheat. In November 1947 she sailed from Lourenço Marques under the command of Captain Madry A. Lindholm to Port Victoria in ballast and returned to Beira, Mozambique, with a cargo of wheat. This was in fact her last long voyage at sea. Showing signs of deterioration, she was sold to Marcio da Silva Jr of Lourenço Marques and arrived there, after a short voyage of 500 nautical miles (930 km) from Beira, with great ceremony in September 1948. However, the necessary repairs were beyond the means of her new owners, and she was laid up in the Tembe River where she rotted at anchor for many years. After a last transfer to Joaquim Fernandes Coelho, the old ship was finally broken up for scrap sometime in the late 1950s." (Wikipedia)
Four-masted barque Lawhill (prob.) 1930s
The four-masted Finnish (Åland Islands) barque Lawhill photographed in Australian waters by Allan C.Green (prob.) in the 1930s. My colorization of the original image in the State Library Victoria archive.
"Lawhill was a steel-hulled four-masted barque rigged in "jubilee" or "baldheaded" fashion, i.e. without royal sails over the top-gallant sails, active in the early part of the 20th century. Although her career was not especially remarkable, save perhaps for being consistently profitable as a cargo carrier, in the 1930s Richard Cookson went on board and extensively documented Lawhill's internals and construction, which was later published in the Anatomy of the Ship series.
Lawhill was built at the Caledon Shipbuilding & Engineering Company yard of W. B. Thompson in Dundee, Scotland, and launched on 24 August 1892. And it was named after the Law, a hill in the middle of Dundee, Lawhill had been ordered by shipowner Charles Barrie for the jute trade, but only made two voyages carrying jute before the business became unprofitable, and shifted to other cargoes.
During the 1890s, a demand was developing for kerosene in the Far East, which could be more efficiently carried by sail at the time (the Falls of Clyde would take up this unusual trade several years later), and on August 31. 1899 Lawhill was sold to the Lawhill Sailing Ship Co. Ltd. (F. E. Bliss, manager), London, together with her sistership Juteopolis. Captain John C. B. Jarvis of Dundee, inventor of the eponymous brace winch, was given command of the ship (September 1, 1899 - January 21, 1911). In June 1900 the barque was transferred to the Anglo-American Oil Company. She made nine voyages carrying oil and other cargoes, then the development of storage tank capacity reduced demand, and Lawhill went, again together with her sistership [[Garthpool (Barque)|Juteopolis, to Geo. Windram & Co. of Liverpool in 1911. Captain J. A. Sanders became her new master.
In the year 1914, she was sold to Finnish owner August Troberg under the command of Captain Edward August Jansson, and Lawhill became Finland's largest sailing ship. Despite the hazards of World War I, Lawhill continued to sail, managing to elude U-boats and arrive unescorted into Brest in May 1917, carrying wheat from Australia. However, French authorities refused to let Lawhill leave, citing the risks, and used her as a store ship." (Wikipedia)
While Lawhill was in port at Brest, she was bought by another Finnish (Ålands islands) shipowner, Gustaf Erikson, who hoped to have her back to work without any considerable delay. However, his optimism suffered a blow, when the French government requisitioned Lawhill in June 1918. Finally, on January 8, 1919, the French government informed Erikson about the release. She then resumed carrying wheat, timber and other cargoes under the command of Captain Karl Reuben de Cloux. The Author Alan Villiers was a crew member, until injured in a fall from the yardarm in 1922.
Lawhill was according to Georg Kåhre remarkably fast on some outward passages in ballast: 78 days from Bordeaux to Port Lincoln for orders in 1924, 88 days from London to Port Victoria in 1934.
After being condemned by the prize court in 1942, Lawhill continued to sail between Australia and South Africa under the command of her former skipper, Captain Arthur Söderlund.
"The ship was used by the South African Railways & Harbour Administration for cargo during the war, then sold to private citizens of South Africa (in 1946 to Lawhill (Pty) Ltd., East London and in 1947 to Thomas Worker and Herman Olthaver, Johannesburg, for the sum of £9,000), who used Lawhill on several voyages to Argentina with coal and returning with a cargo of wheat. In November 1947 she sailed from Lourenço Marques under the command of Captain Madry A. Lindholm to Port Victoria in ballast and returned to Beira, Mozambique, with a cargo of wheat. This was in fact her last long voyage at sea. Showing signs of deterioration, she was sold to Marcio da Silva Jr of Lourenço Marques and arrived there, after a short voyage of 500 nautical miles (930 km) from Beira, with great ceremony in September 1948. However, the necessary repairs were beyond the means of her new owners, and she was laid up in the Tembe River where she rotted at anchor for many years. After a last transfer to Joaquim Fernandes Coelho, the old ship was finally broken up for scrap sometime in the late 1950s." (Wikipedia)