SS ''Austria'' was a

steamship A steamship, often referred to as a steamer, is a type of steam-powered vessel, typically ocean-faring and seaworthy, that is propelled by one or more steam engines that typically move (turn) propellers or paddlewheels. The first steamships ...

of the

Hamburg America Line The Hamburg-Amerikanische Packetfahrt-Actien-Gesellschaft (HAPAG), known in English as the Hamburg America Line, was a transatlantic shipping enterprise established in Hamburg, in 1847. Among those involved in its development were prominent Germ ...

which sank on 13 September 1858, in one of the worst

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maritime disaster Marine accident, maritime disaster or maritime incident refers to a transport accident involving watercrafts. See also *List of maritime disasters *Maritime safety *Oil spill *Sailing ship accident *Ship collision *Shipwreck A shipwreck ...

s of the nineteenth century, claiming the lives of 449 passengers and crew. The ''Austria'' was built by Caird & Co. of

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, and was launched on 23 June 1857. She was 318 ft and 2,684

BRT BRT may refer to: Businesses and organizations * Bayrak Radio Television, a Turkish Cypriot broadcaster * Belgische Radio- en Televisieomroep (now ''VRT''), a Flemish broadcaster * Business Research and Training Center (BR&T), Ho Chi Minh Cit ...

, with three masts and single screw propeller propulsion. After a cancelled British Government charter, she went into service with the

on 1 May 1858 on the

Hamburg Hamburg (, ; ), officially the Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg,. is the List of cities in Germany by population, second-largest city in Germany after Berlin and List of cities in the European Union by population within city limits, 7th-lar ...

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route.

Tragedy at sea

On 1 September 1858, SS ''Austria'' captained by F. A. Heydtmann sailed from

on her third voyage to

. At approximately 12:00, on 13 September, at coordinates , following a procedure to fumigate

steerage Steerage is a term for the lowest category of passenger accommodation in a ship. In the nineteenth and early twentieth century, considerable numbers of persons travelled from their homeland to seek a new life elsewhere, in many cases North Amer ...

by dipping a red-hot chain into a bucket of tar; the chain became too hot for the

boatswain A boatswain ( , ), bo's'n, bos'n, or bosun, also known as a deck boss, or a qualified member of the deck department, or the third hand on a fishing vessel, is the most senior Naval rating, rate of the deck department and is responsible for the ...

to hold, and it was dropped onto the deck, which immediately burst into flames; although the ship was traveling at only half speed it was impossible to stop the engines as the engine crew had become asphyxiated. When the helmsman abandoned the wheel, the ship swung into the wind, spreading the flames down the length of the ship, racing through the mahogany veneer and varnished bulkheads, as passengers jumped into the sea. The passing

barque A barque, barc, or bark is a type of sailing ship, sailing vessel with three or more mast (sailing), masts of which the fore mast, mainmast, and any additional masts are Square rig, rigged square, and only the aftmost mast (mizzen in three-maste ...

, ''Maurice'' of France, rescued most of the survivors (67), and the ''Catarina'' of Norway picked up more (22) the next morning. As the blackened hulk was left to sink, all but 89 of 542 passengers were lost. Survivors were transported back towards Europe to the Portuguese North Atlantic island at Faial, Azores.

Survivors

Amongst the survivors were: *

Theodore Eisfeld Theodore Eisfeld (April 11, 1816, Wolfenbüttel, Duchy of Brunswick – 16 September 1882, Wiesbaden) was a conductor, most notably of the New York Philharmonic Society, which became the New York Philharmonic. Biography Eisfeld's chief instructor ...

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music director. He wrote a letter of gratitude to the d'Orey family in Faial for their care, published on Dwight's Journal of Music in 1859 on p.25

*

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* Charles Rosene * Frederick William Stabenow (1833-1910) and his brother Ferdinand Stabenow * Dr Hubert Scheck, a teacher at the Friedrich Wilhelm Lyceum in Cologne, was treated for severe burns in Faial, Azores where he and one other passenger remained for a long recovery. While in Faial, he was also cared for by the d'Orey family led by the German gentlema
August Eduard Wilhelm Hector Achilles d'Orey
and his wife
Luísa Henriqueta Isabel Longuinha Mouzinho de Albuquerque
of a prominent Portuguese family.

Drowned

Amongst those who drowned were: * Henriette Wulff, friend and frequent correspondent of

Hans Christian Andersen Hans Christian Andersen ( , ; 2 April 1805 – 4 August 1875) was a Danish author. Although a prolific writer of plays, travelogue (literature), travelogues, novels, and poems, he is best remembered for his literary fairy tales. Andersen's fai ...

* Adolph Starmont, merchant for S.F. White & Bro., Chicago, IL hicago Press and Tribune (1858-1860). Nov. 13, 1858; ProQuest Historical Newspaper Chicago Tribune (1849-1985)/ref>

Paintings of the disaster

The fire and subsequent sinking has featured in multiple paintings, including: *

Josef Püttner Josef may refer to *Josef (given name) *Josef (surname) * ''Josef'' (film), a 2011 Croatian war film *Musik Josef Musik Josef is a Japanese manufacturer of musical instruments. It was founded by Yukio Nakamura and is the only company in Japan spec ...

, "Untergang der Austria",

Deutsches Historisches Museum The German Historical Museum (), known by the acronym DHM, is a museum in Berlin, Germany devoted to German history. It describes itself as a place of "enlightenment and understanding of the shared history of Germans and Europeans". It is often ...

, Berlin, Germany. *

Eugène Isabey Eugène Louis Gabriel Isabey (; 22 July 1803 – 25 April 1886) was a French painter, lithographer and watercolorist in the Romantic style. Biography He was born to Jean-Baptiste Isabey, a well known painter who enjoyed the patronage of ...

, "L'incendie de l'Austria",

Musée national de la Marine The Musée national de la Marine (; "National Navy Museum") is a maritime museum located in the Palais de Chaillot, Trocadéro, in the 16th arrondissement of Paris. It has annexes at Brest, Port-Louis, Rochefort ( Musée National de la Ma ...

, Paris, France; "L'Incendie du steamer Austria", Musée des Beaux-Arts, Bordeaux, France; * Anonymous, "Burning of the Austria",

National Maritime Museum, Greenwich National may refer to: Common uses * Nation or country ** Nationality – a ''national'' is a person who is subject to a nation, regardless of whether the person has full rights as a citizen Places in the United States * National, Maryland, ...

, England. * Le duc Charles, "L'Incendie de l'Austria", Chateau des ducs de Bretagne, Musée d'Histoire de Nantes, Nantes, France.

References

External links

* *
Hulman Dynasty site

{{DEFAULTSORT:Austria 1857 ships Ships built on the River Clyde Steamships of the Hanseatic League Shipwrecks in the Atlantic Ocean Maritime incidents in September 1858 Ship fires Merchant ships of the Hanseatic League Ships of the Hamburg America Line