SHIPWRECKED


 

ss "Leerdam"

by
G.B.A. Veltman

This research is composed from many resources, including a report of a disaster at sea and the event thereafter, present in the Maritime Museum of Amsterdam and written by Elte Kranenborg. He was 15 years old when his father, despite warnings of family and friends, decided to immigrate to Argentina with wife and seven children. The family departed from Groningen to Amsterdam by emigrant-train. On stations in between more people boarded, so the train was full. In Amsterdam the emigration papers were finalized. Passports were not needed. The emigrants traveled for free, or so it was called. The passage was paid for by the Argentinean Government in order to supply much needed farmers. On December 15, 1889 the sail-steamship "Leerdam" (of approximately 2800 bruto register ton) departed from Amsterdam to Argentina with: 16 first-class passengers, 426 emigrants, who were booked as "steerage" passengers and a crew of 63 on board. In the early morning of December 16 1889 the "Leerdam" collided in heavy fog with the under the English flag sailing ship "Gaw Quan Sia" of 2459 bruto register ton. The bow of the "Leerdam" bore down midship into the "Gaw Quan Sia", creating a 5 meter hole in the hull and the engine room flooded immediately. Two stokers who were working drowned. The damage inflicted to both ships was considerable. Attempts to pull the ships apart proved to be in vain. The Captains Bruinsma of the "Leerdam" and Robert Lord of the "Gaw Quan Sia" immediately lowered the lifeboats. The "Leerdam" had six lifeboats at their disposal and the "Gaw Quan Sia" had five. This last ship had only 45 people on board, 10 English and 35 Bengalese and Chinese, who could be put in two lifeboats. When Captain Bruinsma noticed that the other three lifeboats stayed on board unused the "Gaw Quan Sia", he ordered to lower the extra boats to make more room for the shipwrecked of the "Leerdam". Panic broke out among the emigrants. Captain Bruinsma found it necessary to draw his weapon to keep order among the pushing and screaming mass of people. The ship’s doctor and the ship’s accountant tried to put people at ease. The shipwrecked climbed down rope ladders to the lifeboats. The "Leerdam" was already listing, shortening the distance between the deck and the lifeboats. Toddlers and babies were thrown from the deck rails into the arms of the sailors. In some boats people from both ships were found. The Chinese of the "Gaw Quan Sia" wore long hair braids, scaring the Dutch at first with their appearance. Afterwards that fear seemed unfounded. The life jackets that everybody put on needed to be removed on orders from the officers, because they took up too much space in the lifeboats. Nevertheless the people were packed like sardines. Captain Bruinsma ordered the 11 lifeboats tied together, so none would float away in the heavy fog. As long as it was possible, Captain Bruinsma allowed groceries and blankets to be taken from the ship and distributed among the lifeboats. He ordered one of his officers to inspect the ship one more time. A French passenger emerged from his cabin wanting his breakfast. The man had not noticed the collision and was removed from the ship at once. Many people became seasick in the lifeboats because of the billowy sea and more over they were cold, because many of them left the ship in nightdress. Although the French steamship "Emma" arrived at the spot quickly, it still took till 8 in the morning before the shipwrecked were transferred to the "Emma". All were witnesses on December 16 at 2 in the afternoon when the "Leerdam", 15 miles from West-Kapelle, disappeared in the waves. Horses and cows on board the ship, could not be saved. The ship "Gaw Quan Sia" also sank shortly thereafter. The "Leerdam" was insured by the Rotterdam Insurance Exchange for fl. 300.000. -, with a deductible of fl. 50.000.-. The cargo was mostly covered by the Amsterdam Exchange. The "Emma", of 780 bruto register ton, could not offer shelter to so many people below deck, so only women and children were put in a lounge and several large cabins, while the men had to stay on deck. In the lounge and cabins the desperate mothers and crying children stayed packed together. The bad smell of vomit and dirty diapers was hard to take. The" Emma" set out for Cuxhaven in North Germany. The men and the older boys had to spend – in the month of December – two days and nights on deck.. Elte Kranenborg found himself a spot close to the engine-room to stay a little bit warmer. It would have saved the shipwrecked a lot of trouble if the "Emma" would have sailed directly to Rotterdam, but the ship had cargo for Cuxhaven on board and the Captain apparently did not dare to deviate from his original course. In Cuxhaven everything was prepared to receive the shipwrecked. Everybody was transported by extra trains to Hamburg, where they were put into two Emigrant hostels. The sick, amongst them a daughter of the Kranenborg family, were taken to a field hospital. The girl died there. A charitable Institution distributed hastily collected clothing and footwear. Elte Kranenborg received a long ladies overcoat. In Hamburg several passengers were asked by the local Press, among them the "Hamburgische Borsenhalle", for their experiences. All praised the cool and efficient acting of Captain Bruinsma. Unfortunately he lost his ship during his first voyage as the captain of the "Leerdam". The Dutch American Steam Navigation Company, owner of the ship the"Leerdam", offered the grounded emigrants a free train trip from Hamburg to the Netherlands. They did send the ship "Stoomvaart" from Rotterdam to Hamburg, but according to news reports only the crew of the "Leerdam" was picked up. Despite many investigations, the passenger list of the "Leerdam" has unfortunately not been found. From the archive of the former Dutch American Steam Navigation Company, an important part from the "before 1900 archive" was apparently destroyed when the name of the shipping company was changed into the Holland America Line. What’s left of the archive rests with the municipal Archive of Rotterdam. Most of the emigrants returned to the Netherlands. They were so taken aback by the disaster at sea, that they gave up on the plan to immigrate to Argentina. Together with three other families, the widow Riemersma and her sons and daughters, from the Frisian Kollum, arrived again in Leeuwarden on December 23, 1889 by the way of Groningen, from where they had departed on December 14 to emigrate to Argentina. Their luggage was lost. The clothes on their back were their sole possessions. The families reported to the Police with the request to be taken back to their place of origin. First they were well fed in the public soup kitchen in Leeuwarden. At their return they entered their names again in the Population Register. In Hamburg 140 Dutch emigrants stayed behind however. They did not give up and stuck to their intention to immigrate to Argentina. Some well to do ladies and gentlemen organized a Christmas party for these emigrants. As useful Christmas presents, underwear and outerwear were handed out. The children received toys, cookies and knick- knacks from the firm Louis Fries & Co. On December 28 1889 all boarded the nearly 2000 ton measuring German ship "Uruguay". The passenger list of the "Uruguay" was found to be present in the State Archive of Hamburg. An adaptation of the list follows here:   Surname First name Hometown       Hoogland Laurenz Stiens Beintema Peter Blija   Lytske     Jacob     Folkje     Chaltje (Tjaltje?)   Hofstra Johannes Sloten Koelma Fedde Sint Nicolaasga   Zwaantje  (maidenname: van der Molen)     Lietske (Lutske?)   Haan Wilfschud (?) Stiers (probably: Stiens)   Elisabeth     Johannes     Lyke     Simon     Jetse   de Vries Harmen Blijd (probably: Blija)   Jantje     Tekela     Thaltje (Tjaltje?)     Aldert     Namke     Jetje   Jongsma Gerrit Sloten Luxen Pieter Hollum (probably: Hallum)   Tjiske     Eitje (Eeltje?)     Dolke (Doeke?)     Kuntze (Rinse?)     Wietze   The names were obtained from a handwritten passenger list, which was made up by the shipping company in Hamburg. The writing is not quite legible everywhere or the names were recorded wrongly by the German clerk. Amsterdam, January 25, 2004. G.B.A. Veltman