Four-masted barques LAWHILL and OLIVEBANK moored alongside a jetty

Date1931-1939

Object number00032085

NamePostcard

MediumSilver gelatin print, paper

DimensionsOverall: 84 x 136 mm

ClassificationsPosters and postcards

Credit LineANMM Collection Gift from Jean Nielsen

Terms

DescriptionThis photograph of the steel barques LAWHILL and OLIVEBANK is mounted as a postcard and depicts the vessels moored alongside a jetty. Written on the reverse is '4Mb Lawhill / & / Olivebank / of / Mariehamn / Aland / Finland.' Throughout the early 20th century, Gustaf Erikson of Mariehamn, Aland in Finland, operated a fleet of sailing vessels in the Australian wheat trade.HistoryOLIVEBANK Built by Mackie & Thomson and Company in Glasgow in 1892, the four-masted steel barque had two shipowners before the Finnish company Gustaf Erikson assumed ownership in October 1924. On 8 September 1939, the vessel sank off Jutland with a loss of 14 lives. LAWHILL Built by W B Thompson & Company in Dundee in 1892, the four-masted steel barque plied the oil and then wheat trade. Sold to the Finnish company Gustaf Erikson in 1917, it continued the Australian wheat trade and earned the nickname 'Lucky LAWHILL' for its speedy and safe voyages. Although 'defiant of storms and enemy action', LAWHILL was confiscated by the South African Government in 1942 as a war prize. It was finally broken up in 1959.SignificanceThis postcard represents the two ships of the Erikson Line - LAWHILL and OLIVEBANK. Gustaf Erikson became famous for operating a fleet of sailing vessels mainly on the wheat trade between Australia and Europe.