Whaling South Africa
I wish all members of this forum all the best for 2023.
In addition to my interest in postal history, I am also interested in the history of whaling in South Africa. I know the whaling stations at Donkergat, and The Bluff near Durban. I'm looking for letters, Postcards, and photos of whalers, whaling stations. As an example I show you a letter from a whaler, that he received from his family in Norway. You can also see a few photos of Donkergat whaling station, and work at The Bluff Durban station. Hope someone on this forum can give me more information, or maybe there are more collectors in South Africa, with the same interest. I know there were other whaling stations in Natal. Well this is all for now, hope one of you can help me further. Sincerely, Albert Ruijne.
Some photo`s
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some Photo`s
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Letter of a whaler
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Hi Albert, Yes, Best Wishes for the New Year. May you enjoy good health enough to carry on enjoying this hobby.
I have some postcards of whaling which I will dig out and post below after I have done some more urgent work on my house. In the meantime here are three that came immediately to hand. The rest I will post later. The top postcard shows a whale being dragged ashore in Durban (GSJ Durban, No. 104). The second is a Durban postcard with little or no details that shows an SA whaler, I assume, at sea.(No. 88. Whaling - Walvisvangs. Arts Publishing, Umbilo Road, Durban). If you have made a study of whalers you may be able to identify it. Let us know here if you can. Many SA whalers served as minesweepers and support craft in the Mediterranean during WW2.
The third image is just a simple philatelic unaddressed First Day Cover from Australia showing they types of whales in, I suspect, the southern seas. (It is from Salisbury, South Australia, not to be confused with SA and Rhodesia, sometning I have done.) This fairly ordinary cover shows the historic international nature of the whaling industry and is useful in a display on whales to show the actual creatures themselves. South Africa and Namibia both have, I believe, issuesd sets of whaling stamps.
I see that you place only one image per post. You can add up to five per post. See my three below.
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These two were all I could find with a quick look. If I find more over time, I will add them as I find them
Top: GSJ, Durban No. 108.
Bottom: A Rittenberg, Durban. No. 399
I do know where the bottom photo was taken. The SADF's Reconnaisance Commandos had a base in Durban on the Bluff at the 'Old Whaling Station'. These postcards show the whaling industry providing the dirtier, ugly work to Black South Africans while comfortably off, smartly dressed White Durbanites doused in eau de cologne awould visit on a weekend to see the curious site of a whale - and, no doubt, to smell the reeking, disgusting beast! I'd love to be a fly on a whale to overhear their conversation.
What whales are these? Can you identify them?
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On the seccond picture you shee whale catcher Uni 4
Whale catcher Uni 4 was one of the whale catcher of whale factory ship Empire Victory’s in the season 1948/1949
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I think a humpback whale
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Yes, I thought it was a humpback but I'm no expert. Below is a photo of what I think are two whalers converted to minesweepers and coastal and or harbour patrol craft in SA during WW2. (Ex-Springbok Record. 1946).
I have taken this from Wikipedia. "The Southern class was a class of whale-catcher ships requisitioned from a commercial whaling company for service during the Second World War. The whalers were converted for anti-submarine and minesweeping duties and were in use in the British Royal Navy and South African Navy. Six ships were built in Germany for the Southern Whaling Company and after the war, one was retained in the South African Navy, one had been sunk by a mine and four were sold back to commercial whaling companies. The six whale catchers were owned by Southern Whaling & Sealing Co. Ltd., London, United Kingdom and were used for whale catching in the Southern Ocean and Antarctic waters. The fleet of six ships was accompanied by the factory ship Southern Princess in their annual whaling season sorties. The fleet spent four seasons in the Antarctic before being requisitioned for naval service on their return to Cape Town after completion of the 1939-40 season. The owners requested that all six ships were to be taken up into the Royal Navy, but only Southern Breeze was taken up for service in the UK, with the other five vessels being assigned to the South African Seaward Defence Force."
The ships were:
HMS Southern Breeze
HMSAS Southern Floe (Sunk by mine off Tobruk 1941)
HMSAS Southern Maid
HMSAS Southern Barrier
HMSAS Steenberg
HMSAS Southern Isles
HMSAS Southern Sea
Whalers.
Just thought I would throw this one in.
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