Dutch Mariners cruise the Lane
We thought about making a
trip on the LANE VICTORY for a long time. Despite the fact that the ship is
almost 65 years old, we knew she was the only Victory ship still being kept in
seaworthy condition. My friend and I are both Dutchmen and as most of you know
Holland has had an affinity with the sea for centuries.
Furthermore, we both
served on board Victorys while in the Dutch merchant marine so this was a
chance of a life time. We made the trip to San Pedro on September 28 and had
the time of our lives. We would like to thank Capt. Joe Itson, his officers and
crew for a memorable ocean voyage.
Capt. Itson was kind enough to sign our
seaman’s books. My seaman’s book now shows that I served as a radio officer on
the Dutch vessel TJIBODAS (ex Kokomo Victory) in 1959 sailing between the Far
East and East Africa and almost 50 years later on the LANE VICTORY on September
28, 2008 from San Pedro to Catalina Island.
s.s. LANE
VICTORY
The historic role of the
Victory vessel is remarkable and well documented and proves beyond a doubt what
a nation can accomplish when it unites behind a common cause.
Not only did the Victory
hasten the liberation of occupied Europe, the Victory vessels also contributed
to a large extent to the rebirth of Europe’s merchant marine.
Of the 534 Victory ships
having been built at an astonishing rate toward the latter part of WWII, a
large number were eventually sold to other nations. It was in 1949 that the
U.S. Maritime Administration agreed to sell 36 Victory ships to the Dutch
government. This was welcome news.
Not only was the port of
Rotterdam destroyed but our merchant marine had suffered tremendous losses.
My friend Ad Rommen and I
sailed on board ships of Royal Interocean Lines, headquartered in Hong Kong.
The company operated three
Victorys; Berry Victory, Hillsdale Victory and Kokoma Victory which were
renamed after Indonesian rivers – TJIKAMPEK, TJIPONDOK and TJIBODAS
respectively. These ships were eventually scrapped in Hong Kong and Taiwan around
1969/1971.
Of the 36 Victory ships
sold to the Netherlands, three were converted into passenger ships GROOTE BEER
(ex Costa Rica Victory), WATERMAN (ex La Grande Victory) and ZUIDERKRUIS (ex
Cranston Victory). These ships became well known while sailing between the
Dutch East Indies, now known as Indonesia, and the Netherlands.
With many skilled workers
in Holland out of work after WWII, these three vessels were also used to bring
large numbers of Dutch immigrants to Canada and Australia.
We are very proud of the
many volunteers who are keeping the history of the Victory alive and well and
we will do our part to spread the news in the Netherlands in the hope that many
more mariners will make the trip to San Pedro to relive this once in a lifetime
experience.
A Dutch friend of mine
responded to our initial report about LANE VICTORY experience as follows:
“I lived in Rotterdam
during and after WWII and as a teenager I visited the LANE VICTORY of Black
Diamond Line several times when it maintained a regular service between New
York and Rotterdam. My Dad knew the chief engineer of the LANE VICTORY and he
would take me along when he visited the ship. During one of these visits I
ended up in the radioroom where I listened to the magic sound of Morse code. Perhaps
this is the reason I ended up as a radio officer in the Dutch merchant marine”.
If any of your would like
to contact me, I’d be glad to hear from you.
Harm Wijma
31040 Via Norte
92591 Temecula CA
USA
L. Harm Wijma;
R. Ad Rommen