Mark Baber
RIP
26 March 1919: Woermann Line's Alexandra Woermann is ceded to Great Britain as a war reparation and placed under White Star management pending disposition by the British government. Continued 6 May. (Sources: Haws' Merchant Fleets; Anderson's White Star.)
6 May 1919: The war reparation vessel Alexandra Woermann (Capt. Symons) begins her first (and possibly only) trip under White Star management, leaving London for Australia; among those on board are 439 wives and children of Australian soldiers. She will call at Fremantle (23-24 June) and Melbourne (30 June-1 July), but apparently bypass Adelaide, on her way to Sydney. Continued 3 July. (Sources: The Times (London), 7 May 1919; The West Australian (Perth), 24 and 25 June 1919; The Register (Adelaide), 24-30 June 1919; The Argus (Melbourne), 13 May and 1 and 2 July 1919.)
3 July 1919: En route from Melbourne to Sydney, Alexandra Woermann, see 6 May, reports passing a floating mine about 22 miles north of Gabo Island. Continued tomorrow. (Sources: The Argus (Melbourne), 4 July 1919.)
4 July 1919: After Alexandra Woermann, see yesterday, arrives at Wooloomooloo, Charles Richard Michell, a munitions worker returning to his Sydney home, collapses on the gangplank and dies; he will be buried in the Methodist Cemetery in Moorefields on 7 July. Continued 4 August. (Source: The Sydney Morning Herald, 5 and 7 July 1919.)
4 August 1919: Alexandra Woermann, see 4 July, leaves Sydney to begin her return to England; she will reach Newcastle later today. Continued 7 August. (Source: The Sydney Morning Herald, 31 July and 5 August 1919.)
7 August 1919: Seven members of the crew of Alexandra Woermann, see 4 August, who have been having such a "merry time" at Maitland that they missed the last train to Newcastle, commandeer an automobile from in front of Town Hall. During the trip back, the "sky-larking" of the passengers causes the driver to lose control and run into a post, seriously damaging the car; the seven then abandon the vehicle and complete their trip by foot. Just before sailing time, local police come aboard but fail to obtain any definite information and the ship sails for Adelaide as scheduled. Continued 11 August. (Sources: The Sydney Morning Herald, 8 August 1919; The Register (Adelaide), 22 August 1919.)
11 August 1919: Alexandra Woermann arrives at Adelaide and is soon boarded by police officials armed with warrants to arrest five men, whose names are not known, in connection with the joyriding incident described here on 7 August, but they leave after making inquiries "without immediate results." They will return in several days, however, and ask to see five particular members of the crew, for whom warrants have been issued "for damaging a car unlawfully used by them" and "suggest[] the men might think it wise to pay the amount of damage done, £60," which will be raised and paid over within half an hour. Continued 19 August. (Sources: The Advertiser (Adelaide), 22 August 1919; The Register (Adelaide), 12 and 22 August 1919.)
19 August 1919: With the "bed linen of the ... Alexandra Woermann ... rapidly disappearing" at Adelaide, see 11 August, steward Herbert James Burrell is arrested after two of his colleagues see him leaving the ship with a bundle which turns out to contain six bed sheets. Tomorrow, (a) Burrell will plead guilty in the Port Adelaide Police Court, attributing his conduct to "strong drink," and be sentenced to pay a £5 fine or spend a month in jail, (b) at the home of a woman in Birkenhead, police investigating the linen disappearances will find eight sheets, four blankets and a quilt, which they will seize and return to the ship, "the woman coming out of the experience with the loss of 35/" paid to the unknown man she bought them from and (c) Alexandra Woermann will sail for Liverpool, via Bombay, with a cargo of South Australia wheat. Continued 22 August. (Source: The Register (Adelaide), 21 August 1919; The Advertiser (Adelaide), 22 August 1919.)
22 August 1919: Alexandra Woermann, see 19 August, unexpectedly returns to Adelaide due to leaking discovered yesterday when she was "well out into the Bight." The leaking, coming from port lights and port doors which are not watertight, will take several weeks to repair, and it will be 9 September before the ship resumes her voyage to England via Bombay. Continued 16 September. (Source: The Advertiser (Adelaide), 23 and 26 August and 10 September 1919.)
16 September 1919: Alexandra Woermann, see 22 August, arrives at Fremantle, an apparently unscheduled call on her return trip to England. The initial report is that she needs to replenish her fresh water supply due to her tanks' having become salted, but she will wind up spending more than a week in port for machinery repairs before continuing on her way on 25 September. Continued 26 September. (Source: The West Australian (Perth), 17 and 27 September 1919.)
26 September 1919: Alexandra Woermann, see 16 September, unexpectedly returns to Fremantle, having again experienced engine troubles after leaving port yesterday. She will sail again tomorrow and arrive at Liverpool on 24 November. Next year she will be offered for sale by Lord Inchcape and purchased by the Wilson Line. Renamed Calypso, she will remain in service until 1936, when she will be scrapped. (Sources: The West Australian (Perth), 27 and 29 September 1919, The Times (London), 25 November 1919, 9 September 1920.)
6 May 1919: The war reparation vessel Alexandra Woermann (Capt. Symons) begins her first (and possibly only) trip under White Star management, leaving London for Australia; among those on board are 439 wives and children of Australian soldiers. She will call at Fremantle (23-24 June) and Melbourne (30 June-1 July), but apparently bypass Adelaide, on her way to Sydney. Continued 3 July. (Sources: The Times (London), 7 May 1919; The West Australian (Perth), 24 and 25 June 1919; The Register (Adelaide), 24-30 June 1919; The Argus (Melbourne), 13 May and 1 and 2 July 1919.)
3 July 1919: En route from Melbourne to Sydney, Alexandra Woermann, see 6 May, reports passing a floating mine about 22 miles north of Gabo Island. Continued tomorrow. (Sources: The Argus (Melbourne), 4 July 1919.)
4 July 1919: After Alexandra Woermann, see yesterday, arrives at Wooloomooloo, Charles Richard Michell, a munitions worker returning to his Sydney home, collapses on the gangplank and dies; he will be buried in the Methodist Cemetery in Moorefields on 7 July. Continued 4 August. (Source: The Sydney Morning Herald, 5 and 7 July 1919.)
4 August 1919: Alexandra Woermann, see 4 July, leaves Sydney to begin her return to England; she will reach Newcastle later today. Continued 7 August. (Source: The Sydney Morning Herald, 31 July and 5 August 1919.)
7 August 1919: Seven members of the crew of Alexandra Woermann, see 4 August, who have been having such a "merry time" at Maitland that they missed the last train to Newcastle, commandeer an automobile from in front of Town Hall. During the trip back, the "sky-larking" of the passengers causes the driver to lose control and run into a post, seriously damaging the car; the seven then abandon the vehicle and complete their trip by foot. Just before sailing time, local police come aboard but fail to obtain any definite information and the ship sails for Adelaide as scheduled. Continued 11 August. (Sources: The Sydney Morning Herald, 8 August 1919; The Register (Adelaide), 22 August 1919.)
11 August 1919: Alexandra Woermann arrives at Adelaide and is soon boarded by police officials armed with warrants to arrest five men, whose names are not known, in connection with the joyriding incident described here on 7 August, but they leave after making inquiries "without immediate results." They will return in several days, however, and ask to see five particular members of the crew, for whom warrants have been issued "for damaging a car unlawfully used by them" and "suggest[] the men might think it wise to pay the amount of damage done, £60," which will be raised and paid over within half an hour. Continued 19 August. (Sources: The Advertiser (Adelaide), 22 August 1919; The Register (Adelaide), 12 and 22 August 1919.)
19 August 1919: With the "bed linen of the ... Alexandra Woermann ... rapidly disappearing" at Adelaide, see 11 August, steward Herbert James Burrell is arrested after two of his colleagues see him leaving the ship with a bundle which turns out to contain six bed sheets. Tomorrow, (a) Burrell will plead guilty in the Port Adelaide Police Court, attributing his conduct to "strong drink," and be sentenced to pay a £5 fine or spend a month in jail, (b) at the home of a woman in Birkenhead, police investigating the linen disappearances will find eight sheets, four blankets and a quilt, which they will seize and return to the ship, "the woman coming out of the experience with the loss of 35/" paid to the unknown man she bought them from and (c) Alexandra Woermann will sail for Liverpool, via Bombay, with a cargo of South Australia wheat. Continued 22 August. (Source: The Register (Adelaide), 21 August 1919; The Advertiser (Adelaide), 22 August 1919.)
22 August 1919: Alexandra Woermann, see 19 August, unexpectedly returns to Adelaide due to leaking discovered yesterday when she was "well out into the Bight." The leaking, coming from port lights and port doors which are not watertight, will take several weeks to repair, and it will be 9 September before the ship resumes her voyage to England via Bombay. Continued 16 September. (Source: The Advertiser (Adelaide), 23 and 26 August and 10 September 1919.)
16 September 1919: Alexandra Woermann, see 22 August, arrives at Fremantle, an apparently unscheduled call on her return trip to England. The initial report is that she needs to replenish her fresh water supply due to her tanks' having become salted, but she will wind up spending more than a week in port for machinery repairs before continuing on her way on 25 September. Continued 26 September. (Source: The West Australian (Perth), 17 and 27 September 1919.)
26 September 1919: Alexandra Woermann, see 16 September, unexpectedly returns to Fremantle, having again experienced engine troubles after leaving port yesterday. She will sail again tomorrow and arrive at Liverpool on 24 November. Next year she will be offered for sale by Lord Inchcape and purchased by the Wilson Line. Renamed Calypso, she will remain in service until 1936, when she will be scrapped. (Sources: The West Australian (Perth), 27 and 29 September 1919, The Times (London), 25 November 1919, 9 September 1920.)