The Southern Harvester and Southern Venturer whaling ships built at Haverton Hill shipyard by North Eastern Marine and owned by Chris Salveson & Co.Ltd. (We are aware that these vessels were wrongly named from the outset, thanks to those who brought this to our attention, but to maintain consistency with the comments received on the subject we have kept the original headings) 
Picture Stockton Archive
A Pictorial History of Stockton-on-Tees
Picture Stockton Archive 
Does anyone have news or contact with Ian Dobson? we started our cadetship at the same time, same college, different shipping company. He knew me as ” Danny” . thank you Martin Danielson.
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My dad was dougald conner he worked on this ship for a while in early 1960s
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My uncle , F. John Edgar Silcox (known as John or Ed) worked as a helicopter engineer alongside the Southern Venturer and Southern Harvester (the sister ship). I have 3 letters dated 17.11.1959 – 17.1.1960. In the first one he is sailing to Aruba and listening to the Trinidad radio station. The sister ship “Harvester” is still docked there.
17.1.1960 The mail will be collected from the transport ship “Polar Breeze” that has come alongside and will go to S. Georgia where the mail is transferred to “The Shackleton” heading for Cape Town. Passing icebergs. Eating salt beef, salt pork, mashed potatoes & tinned french beans and cold semolina pudding. “Having loads of trouble with the helicopter this year.Will be later finishing and be lucky to get home in April. This trip we are working to a new system where units are allocated to each ship instead of having a total number of units and all expeditions finishing when they are used up. Fortunately, there is a definite finishing date though, even if we have not caught all our units. The date is April 7th which seems an awful long way off. This year we aren’t so far from South Georgia as we were last year so we’ll save a bit of time that way.Pretty awful weather, snow or fog or wind.”
9.12.1960: Expect to reach S. Georgia by Tuesday and stay there til Thursday. “The albatross have been with us now for a couple of days, about 6-8 of them.” He left his Xmas cards at the Seaman’s Mission in Aruba to be posted on to the UK.
I was down in the Falklands a couple of weeks ago and didn’t think to delve into my uncle’s letters before I left even though I knew he had been down that way. I went into the Falklands museum and came out with the ship names and some contacts and will now get in touch with the S. Georgia trust.
This is such a fascinating thread of conversation on this site.
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Rosaleen – I am researching the helicopters used for whaling in the southern oceans and would like to make contact with you please. If you contact Picture Stockton – pictures@stockton.gov.uk they will forward on my email address – thanks Guy
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Must have been a wonderful sight watching all the old steam ships
S hyatt
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When I was a wee lad in Leith I used to see the whalers in Leith docks just after the war in 1945. Duncan Pitkeathly.
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My granddad John Johnston Mckay ‘Jock Mckay’ was onboard Southern Harvester left Leith 1953, anyone work alongside him or have any stories be good to hear?
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My dad also sailed on her
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I think my grandad Donald Shearer was possibly on the same ship I have a scrap book with pictures
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Before I left Norton and Stockton to work at Leeds Dental School and Hospital, the people of the North East were invited to look around Southern Harvester while she was in Smiths Dock Middlesbrough before entering service with the whaling fleet. My Father and I took advantage of this and did the tour. It was a fantastic idea to have a factory at sea and what brave men they all were that sailed in them.
When the new Dental School was opened in 1978 I was asked to make a suitable Presentation for HRH Duke of Kent who performed the opening ceremony.
My Chief asked me to obtain a section of a sperm whales tooth and inlay the `University of Leeds Crest to be made of Dental Gold in the centre of the section. When completed this made a Paper Weight Presented in an Oak Box with a University Green lining to hold the tooth section.
This all went well, the problem arose because it was the year of Conservation and some people complained probably thinking it was an act of barbarism. It fact it had been in the Dental School museum for many years. The Presentation was reported in the Yorkshire Post. Reading all the accounts about these ships reminded me of there occasion.
J.Norman Kidd (Nortonian) and proud of it.
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This might be already somewhere on the site but a book published in 1955 called “Antarctic Hazard” by W. Ross Cockrill is a great account of British whaling activities in the South Atlantic around that time…
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I have a whales tooth that was given to my granddad by a sailor who was a crew member of the Southern Harvester. It must be 70 years old plus the age of the tooth itself.
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My dad is Billy Scott who sailed on the Southern Venturer. If Robert Dodds or anyone else would like to contact him, you can leave a message on here for me. He would really like to be in touch with people to talk about his whaling days. Thank you.
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I was on the Southern Harvester with a Bill Scott, he was a Mess man in charge of all us mess boys around 1949/50 could that be the same one. He had two brothers that were also mess boys.
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Did he know William Stevenson?
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Bill Scott was a Mess man on the Southern Harvester in 1949 1950, I was a mess boy under him. I have many fond memories of him. They used to call me Tich
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Sorry about previous comment should have read…….. The island of Svalbardh
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I liked the comment about ivory penguins etc. We loved going to my nana and grandpa’s as we loved the penguins. He had a brass hand made model of a harpoon gun, a carved ivory image of the Southern Venture and a large seal skin on the wall. I’ve a book about the island of St Albans about its history etc. My father had all his log books and passage documents etc. But these are sadly gone. But what a wonderful life he lead. He was seconded on the Arctic convoys during WW2.
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My grandfather Mr William Alan Dobbs was electrical engineer on the Venturer. Also he was chief engineer during the building of the whaling station on South Georgia, which was instrumental in the start of the Falklands war.
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There was a large group of Boilermakers who sailed from Middle Docks in South Shields on 1 of the whalers to South Georgia to build the whaling station they were there for 2 years.
Names I remember Fred Smith-Jackie Graham-Joe Coleman-George Ferguson and a lot more all from South Shields (think it was 1951-2).
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Hi Robert,
I’m with my father, Robert Harrison, known as Mick, he knew all of the boiler makers mentioned in your post. He was also a boiler maker and from South Shields. He’s 93 and not in great health, sometimes he can’t remember who I am but his days on the factory ships are as clear as day.
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Please don’t make the mistake I did with my relative’s stories and think I would remember them and therefore did not go to the trouble of writing them down.
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Hi Rosalee, just read your comment regarding not recording your fathers experiences at the whaling if you are still interested in finding out more, can I direct you to my website :-johnburton.weebly.com and John burton whaler where you will find all the information about life as a whaler . Having spent three seasons on the southern Venturer and a spell on the catchers I decided to write my memoirs on this period. All this happened in the period 1949/1952 in my later years I became a Greenpeace activist and visited Iceland on the Rainbow warrior in an attempt to convert the Icelanders to convert to whale conservation. Later, I when on a 5week expedition to spend time with the aboriginal people of lamalera to see if the killed whales for subsistence purposes only. So there you are Rosaleen, all you have to do is to look up my two websites and you will get a fuller picture of what your dad went through all those years ago ! Happy reading, and best wishes, John Burton
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My father Dougald Conner worked on the Harvester.
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My father worked on the Harvester as did my uncle. My father’s name was Arthur McCulloch from Airdrie and Uncle Davy Ramsey from Edinburgh.
I was on the ship when I was 5 years old at Tilbury docks I was signed on as cabin boy to get on board… Gordon McCulloch.
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My Dad, Thomas Cook, from Dundee was on both the Southern Venturer and the Southern Harvester. He shared many of his adventures of the Antarctica with us as children. we grew up with Whales teeth carved into Penguins sitting on the mantel! 🙂
He spoke often of a fellow named “Chunky”…because he worked in the kitchen or stock room and used to eat tins of pineapple chunks. He was great pals with a fellow from Norway, Olav Kirkeburg, he actually went home with him for a holiday and met his family. Olav’s son and I were in touch a few years back and he sent me a disc of all the photos his father had from his whaling days and my father was in a couple..such a treasure.
As a child bedtime stories were not about castles and princesses..they were always about Penguins, Whales, Ships and the Antarctica..Best Stories ever!
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My great uncle was the captain of the vessel, Captain Sinclair Begg. His house in Leith was full of whaling memorabilia, loved it as a child and all his stories.
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Catriona, if you scroll right down this page you will find several old messages about Sinclair Begg and his brother John, posted by relatives and others who sailed under him.
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Hi Catriona, Captain Sinclair Begg was also my great uncle he was the brother of my grandmother Elizabeth Begg both from Scarfskerry. Did he ever tell you the story about the eskimo ancestor?
Reg
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I am writing an biography of Captain Sincalir Begg OBE, and I am trying to get in contact with any members of his family.
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Did your dad know William Stevenson? 1945
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For anyone that is interested in the whaling industry in the South Atlantic there is a new play which will be at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival this year (2015) from the 7th of August. The play is called “A Cinema in South Georgia” and is set in 1959. There is a Facebook page where you can find out more information.
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Anyone remember cadet Rud Shipley on Southern Venturer about 1953 season – also overwintered on tanker Polar Maid at this time.
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Rudyard – Hi Eric deck boy on polar maid we were good mates, best wishes from New Zealand.
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Hi. Does anyone have any information/images/anecdotes of the Salvesen (Polar Whaling Co.Ltd) station at Hawke Harbour, Labrador (1938-1951). If used in a forthcoming book on Newfoundland and Labrador whaling, full credit will be given. NB. I worked at Grytviken/KEP/South Georgia in 1963-64 as Sealing Inspector-Biologist. Thanks..
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my dad was in south Georgia in the early 50s he was an engineer on the southern harvester and was in south Georgia when prince philip visited-he has good photo of him-he was also the drummer in a band called the “pig street stompers” in south georgia -his name was bill bannister-he took and developed a lot of photographs-he loved his camera-anyone remember him?
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Are the bannister family who lived in bromborough?
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Yes we left for Australia in 1961 and have been there since
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Just watched a programme on the BBC about whaling in Britain,and decided to have a look through some of my late fathers papers. I found his Contract starting date 11/07/1941 wage £3:15 shillings a month starting as a deck mess boy aged 16 with the Leith Harbour Expedition. Have also found 2 wage slips 1 from the Southern Harvester dated season 1947/48 and the other headed Leith Harbour from Winter 1947 both give you the number of barrels, and the weight also war risk money totals. Also a lot of photographs and various shore leave passes, my father dad was also on the Saluta. His name was William [Bill] Buchanan and he was originally from East Adam Street in Edinburgh, anyway if anyone is interested please ask Picture Stockton for my E Mail.
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William, I am sure that the South Georgia Heritage Trust would be interested to hear about your father’s papers and phpotographs. In the war years, the Germans captured whalers down at South Georgia as they used whale oil for making explosives. The Trust has a museum on South Georgia, and is also preserving information in the UK. You will find the Trust easily enough via Google.
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My father sailed on the Southern Venturer 16th December 1952 to May 9th 1953. I have a copy of his original Salverson contract but would like to know more. Is there someone who can explain this?
The date of his employment was 22 October 1952, what would he of been doing between then and when he sailed?
I believe the ship would of left Leith and headed for Georgia what would happen once the ship sailed did it stop at other ports for supplies, what did the men do while on the journey and how long did the trip to Georgia take?
Did it sail via the Panama Canal? What was Christmas like for the people onboard? How many people were on these trips?
How many whale Catchers worked for each ship and how many crew on each? My fathers contract states his job as a Deck Gallyboy but his service record states he was a messboy. What would his job of entailed?
Once at Georgia is this where the small whale catchers were based, or where these carried by the ship from Leith?
What were the names of the Whale catchers who were working with the Southern Venturer for this season?
Could someone please comment and let me know what my Father would of experienced.
Im also looking for anyone who was on this ship for the season mentioned or any relatives who may have group photos or any information regarding my late father Ronald Clarke who came from London, England
Can anyone point me to other forums where I can also post this information? Any help would be appreciated.
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Jason, the Southern Venturer was the large whale factory ship. Between signing on and the ship leaving in December 1952, your father would have been helping to stow away supplies on the ship, and help getting it ready for sailing. The best people to explain your father’s Salveson contract would be at the South Georgia Heritage Trust. I am sure they would be able to answer many of your questions. The Trust has an office in Dundee. You will find the Trust easily enough via Google.
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I believe my father, George Ross, was on the ship at that time. I have some photographs of him on South Georgia. I believe he was a Flenser. I’ve been watching the BBC4 programmes. It’s been an education.
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Hello Jason
The journey south took a long time and every man on board was put to work preparing the equipment for the season. Whale lines and cables were spliced, radar reflectors were painted the factory ship was maintained and most importantly, the wooden deck on the factory plan was laid down. This temporary floor protected the upper deck during the season and gave the whalers’ spiked boots somethign to grip on to when the deck was covered in fat and blood (this was like the floor of a rather untidy slaughterhouse).
Southern Venturer had a crew of 108, a factory staff of 160 and room for 134 passengers (for South Georgia).
Whether or not they would go through the Panama Canal was decided by the hunting grounds for the season for most factory ships, but Salvesen’s factory ships usually had to stop at South Georgia because they also carried crew and supplies for the shore station at Leith so they would most likely not have gone through the canal going south. The trip south took several weeks.
Work on the factory ships carried on 24 hours a day, 7 days a week for the duration of the whaling season only interrupted by a 4 hour break Christmas eve.
Each factory ship had a varying number of catchers (over the years) which was decided upon based on the quotas and expected catch for each expedition. A number not too far off is 5-10. Each catcher had a crew of about 16 to 24 depending on the size of the catcher. The older catchers were smaller and slower than the newer ones. The best gunners got the newest fastest ships.
As a mess boy he would have been assigned a (group of) table(s) and be responsible for serving food at each meal as well as cleaning the tables, hallways, rec. areas and anything his supervisor put him to. Those who went on whaling expeditions could be put to do any type of work regardless of the job description in their contracts (within reason of course).
All of Salvesen’s catchers were laid up at Leith Harbour for the Southern winter where they were refitted and repaired by the winter crew at the station (comprised of more or less voluntary crew members from the previous season and some who came down to work the winter shift. You were really obliged to say yes if asked if you wanted any sort of chance of going back out). For some special repairs it might have been necessary to take a catcher back to a yard in Europe.
I have no list of catchers for that particular season but a few of them were “Southern Truce” (featured on the cover of the Alan Ladd movie Hell Below Zero), “Southern Gem”, “Southern Runner”, “Southern Broom”, “Southern Larkspur” (bouy boat), “Southern Angler”, “Southern Archer”, “Southern Rover”, “Southern Lotus” (bouy boat, ex HMS “Lotus”), maybe “Sondra” (she caught for Venturer and Harvester alternately).
You might find some interesting photos on my whaling history website http://www.paafeltet.org of interest. Search for Venturer in the search field at the top right (and switch to English).
Best regards
Geir Rosset
Author of the book “The Whale Oil Factory Ships”
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Hi Jason, my name is John Burton and I served on the southern venturer in seasons 1949-1952 as well as the southern truce a catcher. I have written a book-a memoir on all my experiences over those years, these experiences cover all the questions you want answered. You can find it on eBook: under the following: Johnburton.weebly.com hope you enjoy it. Kind regards John Burton.
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Looking for those who may have known Stuart Sigurd R. Wilhelmsen from Southern Venturer. He was from Tonsberg/ Notteroy. Was responsible to buying in food and supplies for the season’s while on board.
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Is Bob Leighton who started with the Chr. Salvesen as an engineering cadet in 1955 the same Robert Leighton who attended Stockton Grammar School 1950-55?
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Hi, my grandad was on the ship during the royal visits. He was the cheif electrical officer. His name was John Miller. He was on the ship also when it got into a spot of bother and when it got back home lots of news crews and papers were awaiting her unexpected arrival back to safety. Is there anyway to upload pictures to this site?
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Hi Martin
Yes, you can add photos to Picture Stockton, we always welcome contributions of photos to this site. If you follow this link it tells what what you need to do.
https://picturestocktonarchive.wordpress.com/contributions-and-comments-2/
Thanks, from the Picture Stockton Team.
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I am the son in law of John Neil Geggie (known as Neil). He was the chemist on the Southern Harvester for 4 seasons in the fifties I believe. He sadly passed away on 1st Sept 2012. Does anyone have any memories of Neil?
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Hi Steve. My father knew Neil from the Southern Harvester. My Dad’s name is Bob Harrison but was known to everyone as Mick. My Dad claims he taught Neil how to drink! I also think I met Neil when he worked at Associated Octel in Ellesmere Port. My Dad remembers Neil well.
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Was your father ever in Nottingham in the early fifties?
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Yes, I think he was.
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hi looking for any info on the harvester my father was on that ship 56-57 got some pictures of the crew and the royal vist
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Hello, I\’m looking into one of my ancestors; Captain Sinclair Begg,
Master of the whaling transport Coronda, 1933–40;
Master of the Southern Opal, 1945–46;
Manager on the Southern Harvester, 1946–47;
and Manager of the South Georgia Whaling Co. station at Leith Harbor, 1947–51.
Maybe someone remembers him? I would be greatful for any stories, or pictures.
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Hi Jim Sinclair – Begg was my great uncle. His sister Elizabeth was my grandmother, her maiden name Begg from Scarfskerry. If you’d like to get in touch, please ask Picture Stockton for my email.
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Hi Reg,
My great Grandfather was Captain John Begg who was Sinclair’s older brother. Would love to get in touch to swap information. Thanks
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Hi am at Scarfskerry for a week with my sister and our spouses. Saw the croft where John and Sinclair lived. We’re going to lay flowers at family gravesend before we go home 4 June 2016.
If you’d ike to contact me, please email Picture Stockton (pictures@stockton.gov.uk) and they will forward my email on.
Reg Knowles
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I do remember Captain Begg master of SS Southern Harvester 1946/7. I joined SS Southern Venturer in November 1946 as assistant chemist and in early 1947 was asked by Captain Harold Salvesen( who was visiting the whaling fleet) to move over to the Harvester and exchange places with Peter Noble their chemist.
I am not able to tell you much about Captain Begg, I had a few conversations with him and remember him as a good man to talk with. He gave me the ok to go out on a catcher. I went out with gunner Borgen on Southern Wilcox for afew days. On Palm Sunday 30 th March.
the day before my 21st birthday Captain Begg gave me 2 bottles of whisky and two dozen cans of beer! This was a special treat because junior officers were not able to have their own bonded supplies. A number of us had hangovers on the first day of April!
After the end of the whaling season in Southern waters, I rejoined Venturer for a season of sperm whale fishing off the coast of Peru and Chile. Sadly, our master Captain Nilsen, Captain Begg’s opposite number was taken ill with a heart attack,taken ashore at Callao , port of Lima where he died. We were upset because he was a fine man.
We whaled under the sun until the 11th of June and the Venturer then returned to the UK via the Panama Canal. I left the ship in Curaçao and flew to Labrador for a season of whaling from a shore station at Hawke Harbour.
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Peter, have you any photographs from your season at South Georgia?
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Thank you for sharing this story of my Great Uncle, Sinclair Begg it has given me an insight to his humanity,
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My father was in the southern opal in 1945. He wrote a short book of there time in South Georgia. William Stevenson
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To Cliff Thornton. Many thanks for your helpful advice to my son (John). I did contact the South Georgia trust and they were so interested that they offered to interview me. I’m taking the archive to Aberdeen next week.
I’ve now transcribed my father’s journal and have turned it into a book with many of the photographs as a keepsake for my children and their cousins.
My father sailed from Leith to Leith in September 1945, just a month after the end of the war in Asia. He was just 23. The Saluta was a real old tub and continually had to stop for repairs, but he evidently loved her all the same. Southern Ventura, which he went aboard in December still smelled of new paint.
The photographs are just awesome.
I’m amazed that there is still so much interest in all this.
He mentions the fact that the doctor (who loses the plot in it’s entirety) is a scot. He also mentions a “Bosby”.
I wonder what became of them all.
Thanks again.
Stephen.
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My dad went to South Georgia on the Southern harvester, I think 1949 -1952. We listened to many a tale and we too have many penguins and eardrome carvings. Photos of the men dressing up as they crossed the equator, seemingly enjoying the break before the atrocious conditions they had to work in. My dad was Fred Wilby and came from Peterhead, Scotland travelling down to Leith, Edinburgh to join the ship. Would love to hear of anyone who worked with and perhaps knew him.
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Thank you all very much for your comments on the ship PROFIT. I know all has been said about it, what I want is a crew list. My father was lost at sea on that ship 17th April 1941, an englishman in the army he was in the D.E.M.S PERSONNEL UNIT, the QUEENS, ROYAL REGT [West Surrey]. My mother is now dead and I have tried to find this out her for 71 years. I know about the other englishman presumed to be on that ship but not too sure how many englishmen where on PROFIT. My fathers name is on Plymouth memorial. Again I thank you all. I have done everything in my power to find out what happened to my father, not the ship. At 74 years old I havent much time left and will let it rest.
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According to the records in Norway, Halfdan Myrseth, Olaf Olafsen, Ivar Seraldsen a canadian named Waggstaffe and a Stoker named John Dyson survived. According to the records the only british casualty was thought to be a gentleman called Arthur Beeney. The remaining crew who perished were all Scandinavian nationals.
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Kay – Have a look at the website of Siri’s warsailors.com search under the ships name ‘Profit’. There is an account of the sinking by mine
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John Mackereth, I am sure that the South Georgia Heritage Trust would be interested to hear what your grandfather wrote about. There is a museum on South Georgia, and the trust is also active in the UK preserving related information. You will find the Trust easily enough via Google.
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The following details of the D.S.Profit are taken from the website warsailors.com.
Profit left Southend for Hull in ballast on Apr. 17-1941 and struck a mine about 4 hours after departure. The explosion occurred amidships, blowing the upper bridge and port boatdeck as well as the port lifeboat away, breaking the masts where Able Seaman Olaf Olafsen and Ordinary Seaman Ivar Sevaldsen were sitting (painting – both injured, but survived). The 2nd mate and 5 men launched the starboard boat but fell in the water when it got caught. The ship stayed afloat for 2 minutes before capsizing and disappearing, pulling some men with her as she went down. 2 lifeboats and 2 British destroyers, one of them being HMS Wallace, came out and rescued 5 men from the water, as well as Halfdan L. Myrseth who had managed to get on a raft. 3 were taken to hospital. Other survivors were a Canadian ordinary seaman by the last name of Waggstaffe, Donkeyman Aksel Olsen and Stoker John Dyson. The captain, 7 other Norwegians, 3 Swedish and 1 British were either killed in the explosion, or drowned as the ship went down (51 47 27N 01 30 33E).
I’ve received an E-mail from Michael Telford, England, who says he believes the British casualty must have been his wife’s uncle, Arthur Beeney. He knows he died when Profit was lost, and since there was only 1 British casualty, we can assume this is correct. The following are commemorated at the Memorial for Seamen in Stavern, Norway – (I’m not sure if they all died in the above incident): Captain Martin Kolsto, Steward Hans Halldor Andreassen, another Steward is listed as Erling Ludvig Eilertsen, 2nd Mate Conrad August Helgesen, Able Seaman Lars Horntvedt, 2nd Engineer Peder Jakobsen, Chief Engineer Ansteen August Monsen and 1st Mate Johannes Skjold.
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Can anyone help me about a crew list and those lost at sea on Norwegian ship PROFIT, sunk april 1941? PROFIT was loaned to this country in WW2 from Norway, sunk at Southend, loaded at South Shields. Searched all my life for this information of survivors.
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My grandfather, also named John Mackereth (full name John Frederick Haines Mackereth), whom I never met, left behind some sperm whale teeth and a journal he wrote whilst sailing on the Saluta to South Georgia to join the Southern Venturer as a chemist I believe (unsure which year unfortunately). There is also an extensive collection of photographs he took while onboard: crossing the line, rendering the whales on deck, a harpooneer, I think a shot of himself and some unnamed crew members (he wore a sheepskin style jacket, quite distinctive), penguins, elephant seals, the ships… would love to share them with any remaining crew members from that period. I believe he was a fluent norwegian speaker by the time he arrived in South Georgia, so maybe would be remembered by any Norwegian crew? he also speaks about a doctor extensively in his journal, describing what sounds to be a descent into some kind of psychotic cabin fever, whilst on the voyage to South Georgia, wonder if anyone else might remember this? I would be greatly excited to hear any information, as I never got the chance to meet him.
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Hi, my father aged 95, is in long term care now, sailed as 4th engineer on the SS. Saluta, in 1938 to South Georgia returning to Gare Loch. Chief J. Flucker and Mr Wm. J Swanson.
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I think Rebecca is correct that these are the Durham Road houses after comparing them on Google Streetview. All of the Fairfield houses have 4 individual dormer windows, whereas the Durham road ones have the centre windows joined together, just like the houses in the photograph.
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I was employed by Chr. Salvesen as an engineer cadet between 1955 and 1962 and sailed aboard many of their ships, including the Southern Venturer, Southern Garden, Southern Opel, Southern Ranger, Southerm Broom, and several others. The vessels shown in this artical are neither the Southern Venturer or the Southern Harvester, but are corvett class catcher ships with unknown names.
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Did you by any chance know of an engineer Jimmy ‘Seamus’ Printer ? He was an engineer on the Southern Harvester and was also my dad – keen to hear from anyone with memories of him.
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As a child I sailed nearly every year of my childhood summers on both the Harvester and Venturer. My father Sandy Brough was an engineer on the Venturer and after he died when I was six years old, my mother married Geordie Grundison who was an engineer on the Harvester. I had many happy times and I remember Jimmy Printer on the Harvester. I can remember he helped put up swings for us!
In reply to Margaret Payne, I too remember well the galley and the barrels of fruit. I can also remember being allowed to bake cakes there. There always seemed to be a lot of children to play with on the journey to Tonsberg. I cannot remember the electricians name – I played with his daughter Marjorie. We had such great fun, and can only suppose the men on the ship were very long suffering. I can also recall going in the lifeboats and being looked after by the Bosun whose name I am ashamed to say I cannot remember, but who always tried to send me home with one of the kittens, only to be thwarted by my mother. He was from Shetland and a lovely man.
I had until a couple of years ago two blue bunk quilts for the Harvester – and to anybody else who remembers – was your house painted blue!
My father, Geordie went to the Fairtrys when the whaling ended. He died fifteen years ago and left a big hole in our lives.
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Hi Michael. My father, Bob Harrison but known to everyone as Mick, knew your Dad and has some photos of him. My father was also close friends with Sandy Brough.
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My father, Ole Krogli from Tonsberg Norway, was a carpenter on both the Southern Harvester and Southern Venture in the 50’s and 60’s. My sister and I (Diane then 4yr and Margaret 6mth) both travelled on these factory ships to Norway to visit family over there. Diane can remember being onboard in the late fifties and fondly remembers the Galley with it’s stainless steel counters and hot water running underneath. She says the food was lovely and there were two big barrels filled with oranges and apples which were freely available to eat. We have many whales teeth, some carved into penguins, and even a couple of Chris Salveson blankets. Dad will be 84 this year.
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Your Father may of know my Father could you ask him?
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Penguins! 🙂 my father Thomas Cook from Dundee was on the Southern Venturer and Harvester during the late 40’s and early 50’s. We grew up with Whales teeth on the mantel that were Penguins.. loved hearing all his stories of his whaling adventures. He became great friends with a chap from Norway, Olav Kirkeburg. I was in touch with Olav’s son quite a few years ago and he sent me photos from his dad’s collection he had taken while Whaling and my Dad was in two of them!
Penguins always make me think of my Dad
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As a child I was taken on several occasions to see Southern Harvester as it docked at Liverpool to unload its cargo after the whaling season (and still have a sperm whale tooth with the ship’s name on it). My father, David Geddes, was Salvesen’s agent and sold all the oil, bone meal etc for Salvesens. I was treated to lunch by the Captain in his cabin – we had penguin I seem to recall. Rather like chicken, but a bit oily!
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