The Wanderer of Liverpool

This barque was immortalized by John Masefield, Poet Laureate, in his The Wanderer of Liverpool, first published by William Heinemann Ltd., London in 1930 as a limited edition of 525 copies. We hold number 204 of this first edition, signed by Joh Masefield, together with further re-editions.

She was built as a four-master; fore, main, mizzen and jigger. Her jigger was rigged with fore-and-aft sails only, not crossing any yards, thus making her a barque. There are many erroneous references to her as a 'ship'. John Masefield himself, in a historically accurate vein, writes that:

"These big sailing ships were sometimes three-masted full-rigged ships so heavily rigged that they were difficult to handle; sometimes four-masted full-rigged ships, beautiful to the eye, but expensive to run and not easy to work; and sometimes they were four masted barques. The tendency of the time was towards the barque rig, for many practical reasons, and by 1890 most sailing vessels of over 2,000 tons were rigged as four masted barques."

John Masefield also noted that:

"Men so made her (the Wanderer) out of ore dug from the ground, that she stood the wind and sea in anger, and set her beauty in men's minds long after her bones are in the quicksand. Many ships so stood and so remain, yet she stands out from among them. Of all the many marvellous ships of that time, she moves me the most, as the strongest, the loveliest, and the one I am gladdest to have seen."

Notes and reports

1. Built 1890-91 speculatively by Messrs W.H. Potter & Co., shipbuilders, established 1860 on the island of Queen’s Dock Liverpool. The Wanderer was the largest and most innovative, the personal pride of Mr W. H. Potter, but did not find an immediate buyer.
2. 17 October 1891 : The Wanderer, had finished preparing for her first voyage from the Birkenhead Alfred Dock with a cargo of coal for San Francisco. Captain George Currie, a 52 year old captain from Nova Scotia, despite some questions about the weather, decided that this date was "his lucky date" (he was previously the first captain of Potter's Wayfarer whose maiden voyage was so dated in 1886.) The Wanderer therefore put to sea, was badly damaged by near "hurricane" force winds, and falling rigging caused the death of Captain Currie. She was towed first to Kingstown, then back to Liverpool.
3. W.H. Potter executed all repairs, with a slight shortening of the rig, and the loss of the skysail on the foremast. There are reports that many sailors suggested that the Wanderer did not need such caution over her sail area.
4. Under Captain John Brander, between 21 November 1891 and 22 September 1896, the Wanderer made four voyages to variously San Francisco, Philadelphia and Calcutta, carrying coal, salt, wheat, jute, steel, oil, and general cargo.
5. Under Captain T.S. Tupman, between 18 November 1896 and 18 March 1901, the Wanderer made two voyages, the first, to Tacoma ending 19 May 1898; the second to Philadelphia, Bombay, Dunkirk, New York (where Captain Tupman, injured, was hosptitalized, replaced by Captain John McMullan "one of the kindest of men"), Tacoma, returning to Bristol. Cargoes included chalk, case oil, linseed and wheat.
6. Under Captain T.S. Bailey, between 13 April 1901 and 17 July 1902, the Wanderer, carrying oil, sailed to New York (where Captain Bailey, injured, was replaced by Captain Thomas Dunning), thence to Woosung (later Wusong), Shanghai, Port Townsend and San Francisco.
7. Under Captain Thomas Dunning, from 25 August 1902 to 1 March 1907, the Wanderer, carrying timber, general cargo, grain, tinned fruits made several voyages between Cardiff, San Francisco, Seattle and Liverpool.
8. The Wanderer was overhauled in Liverpool, with new fore and main topgallant masts fitted. She left Liverpool on 7 April 1907 with slag ballast, to load coke in Hamburg for Santa Rosalia, in tow of the tug Sarah Jolliffe.
9. The Wanderer anchored in the Altenbruch Road in the Elbe River off Hamburg at 4.30 p.m. 13 April 1907. At approximately 2.00 a.m the next morning, 14 April 1907, she was run into and sunk while anchored by the Gertrud Woermann, a twin-screw steamer of the Woermann Line, built Hamburg 1905, 6,331 tons gross, 4,011 net, under Captain Jacob Jensen. No lives were lost.
10. The Seeamt zu Hanmburg (court of enquiry) 22 April 1907, found "that the command of the Gertrud Woermann is to be held completely responsible for the collision."
11. The Landgericht Hamburg (Hamburg Regional court), 3 Deecember 1907, held the owners of the Gertrud Woermann to £18,055 to the Wanderer's owner and £976 15s 0d to the crew. This decision was upheld by the Hanseatisches Oberlandesgericht (high court) on 27 April 1908.