Bendixsen Shipbuilding ~ Shipbuilding History

Bendixsen Shipbuilding

Fairhaven CA

Most recent update: January 11, 2017.

Hans-Ditlev Bendixsen was a Danish shipbuilder who came to Humboldt Bay in the 1860s to work for E. & H. Cousins, but started his own yard in Eureka 1869. He closed this yard and started a new one in Fairhaven in 1874, which he sold in 1901, just before he died. The new owners incorporated the yard as Bendixsen Shipbuilding Company but leased it to Vance Redwood Lumber in 1910 and then to Hammond Lumber Co. In 1911. When war approached, Hammond built a new yard in Samoa and 1917 the Fairhaven yard was sold to James Rolph, a former mayor of San Francisco and later Governor of California, who not only renamed the business Rolph Shipbuilding but renamed the community Rolph, California. The yard closed for good in 1921. You can see the site from the air on Google here. Note that there were several other schooner builders in the Humboldt Bay area during this period: all were much smaller than Bendixsen but there may be some overlap between their records.

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	O/N	Name	Customer	Type	GT	LOA	Year	Notes
Built by Bendixsen & McDonald in Eureka
	9871	Fairy Queen		schooner	99		1869
Built by Hans Bendixsen in Eureka
	25182	Undine	Capt. Kustel	schooner	144		1870
		Lillie Jones		steamer	38		1872
	8833	Elventa		schooner	148	98	1872
		Atlanta		schooner
		Lovely		schooner
		Marian		schooner
		Mary E. Russ		schooner
		Stella		schooner
		Venus		schooner
	115546	Silva		propeller	41	73	1873
		Aurora		schooner	193		1873
	75521	John McCullough		schooner	72	75	1873
	85314	Golden Gate		schooner	97	83	1874
	95308	Humboldt		schooner	138	91	1874
	19411	O. S. Fowler		schooner	35	54	1874
Built by Hans Bendixsen in Fairhaven
	France	La Gironde		schooner			1875
	France	Varao		schooner			1875
	France	Vini		schooner			1875
	France	Paloma	Capt. Nissen	brig	224		1875	lost 1878
	75801	John N. Ingalls		schooner	95	850	1875
	75823	J. G. Wall		schooner	98	862	1875
	90856	Mary Swann		schooner	143	96	1875
	140152	Laura Pike		schooner	145	96	1875
		Lottie Collins		schooner	69		1875
		Pauline Collins		schooner	69		1875
	85452	Gussie Klose		schooner	94	85	1876
	90892	Mary Buhne		schooner	147	102	1876
	90924	Martha W. Tuft		schooner	173	102	1876	stranded 1907
	90948	Maxim		schooner	117	92	1876	foundered 1901
	105612	Abbie		schooner	146	98	1876
	115507	San Buenaventura		schooner	180	107	1876	stranded 1910
	125500	Christina Steffens		schooner	70	75	1876
	135245	Excelsior		schooner	348	138	1876	stranded 1906
		Albert & Edward		schooner	96		1876
		David & Ettie		schooner	69		1876
		Lizzie Madison		schooner	131		1876
		Morning Star		schooner	99		1876
	125585	Compeer		schooner	347	140	1877
Built by Bendixsen & Peterson in Fairhaven
		Georgie R. Higgins		schooner	96		1878	wrecked 1888
	19487	Orion		schooner	117	92	1878
Built by Hans Bendixsen in Fairhaven
	105880	Alta		ferry	112	88	1878
	France	Hinaari		schooner	65		1878
	6977	Daisy Rowe		schooner	122	94	1879
	100262	Ida McKay		schooner	187	113	1880	abandoned 1912
	3180	Bertha Dolbeer		schooner	242	125	1881
	25982	Vega		schooner	245	117	1881
	125933	Charles Hanson		schooner	192	107	1881	burned 1909
	91486	Mabel Gray		schooner	205	119	1882
	120533	Falcon		schooner	205	125	1882
	130227	Neptune		schooner	184	106	1882
	76473	Jessie Minor		schooner	261	129	1883	stranded 1911
	126138	City of Papeete		barkentine	389	145	1883	abandoned 1935
	161515	Volant		schooner	172	122	1883	stranded 1905
	3299	Bertie Minor		schooner	273	130	1884
	155095	Occidental		schooner	209	119	1884
	120640	Fortuna		schooner	145	102	1886
	3372	Barbara Hemster		schooner	148	102	1887	stranded 1905
	81137	Wm. F. Witzemann		schooner	473	163	1887	stranded 1907
	135946	Esther Buhne		schooner	287	134	1887
	85986	Glendale		schooner	296	142	1888	later Point Loma
	106521	Allen A		schooner	342	145	1888	later Fox, abandoned 1964
	130417	North Fork	Korbel Bros	freighter	323	157	1888	wrecked 1919
	95991	H. C. Wright		schooner	290	139	1889	stranded 1910
	126579	Charles E. Falk		schooner	298	142	1889	stranded 1909
	86096	G. W. Watson		schooner	452	150	1890	stranded 1912
	106787	Azalea		schooner	344	150	1890	to USCG 1951
	116349	Sequoia		schooner	341	150	1890	to Mexico 1933
	116374	Sadie		schooner	310	142	1890
	141112	Lucy		schooner	309	142	1890
	110919	Roy Somers		schooner	314	140	1891
	110945	R. W. Bartlett		schooner	521	169	1891
	126818	Czarina		schooner	230	116	1891	stranded 1911
	126821	Charles R. Wilson		schooner	345	150	1891
	77070	Jane L. Stanford		barkentine	970	217	1892	collision and sank 1929
	141201	Louise		schooner	346	150	1892	to Costa Rica 1943
	155227	O. M. Kellog		schooner	393	152	1892
	155232	Otillie Fjord		schooner	261	130	1892	later Nanuj, to Mexico 1943
		Hilo		barkentine	644		1892	wrecked 1894
	92684	Maweema		schooner	453	156	1895
	127097	C. A. Thayer	E. K. Wood Co.	schooner	453	156	1895	museum in San Francisco
	92726	Metha Nelson		schooner	460	156	1896	to Mexico 1934, to USN 1942, sold 1946
	96354	Humboldt	Humboldt S.S.Co	passenger	1,076	213	1896	scrapped 1931
	107226	Albert Meyer		schooner	459	156	1896
	157457	Defender		schooner	446	156	1896
	81576	Wawona		schooner	468	156	1897
	92822	Mildred		schooner	464	157	1897	stranded 1908
	96379	Hueneme	W. A. Mitchell	passenger	342	148	1897	later Niihau 1898, scrapped 1926
	107247	Alliance	Gray & Mitchell	freighter	679	164	1897	deleted 1927
100	96393	H. D. Bendixsen	J. H. Bruce	schooner	641	179	1898	later Arctic, lost 1924
	77321	James H. Bruce		schooner	533	162	1898
	107368	A. M. Baxter		schooner	516	163	1898
	121064	Fulton	Gray & Mitchell	freighter	381	153	1898	abandoned 1944
	77361	James Rolph		schooner	586	169	1899	stranded 1910
	81647	William Carson		barkentine	890	194	1899
	116931	S. T. Alexander		schooner	779	179	1899
	157556	Despatch	W. A. Mitchell	steamer	698	175	1899	later Admiral Rodman 1920, scrapped 1936
	77435	John Palmer		barkentine	1,187	223	1900
	100715	Iaqua	Shingle Mfrs Assn	freighter	712	190	1900	burned 1918
	100721	Irene		schooner	772	186	1900
	116947	Stanley		schooner	355	143	1900	stranded 1910
	116964	Santa Paula		schooner	650	183	1900	burned 1933
113	130859	Nome City	W. A. Mitchell	passenger	1,660	230	1900	scrapped 1937
Built by Bendixsen Shipbuilding in Fairhaven
	86597	Georgina		barkentine	998	210	1901
	107620	Alvena		schooner	772	186	1901
	127527	Chehalis	Sudden & Christenson	freighter	663	183	1901	scrapped 1938
	161184	Kohala	Hind, Rolph & Co.	barkentine	891	195	1901
	3951	Borealis		schooner	764	192	1902
	136963	Espada	Sudden & Christenson	schooner	777	192	1902	lost 1919
	200282	Pomo	Swayne & Hoyt	steamer	368	130	1903	wrecked 1913
	200640	F. A. Kilburn	Watsonville Tptn Co	steamer	728	201	1904	burned 1918
	201033	Northland	E. J. Dodge Co	steamer	845	195	1904	collision 1927 and scrapped
	201165	Toledo	A. Fay	steamer	211	97	1904
	201271	Harold Dollar	Harold Dollar S.S.	steamer	915	195	1904	later Graywood 1911, foundered south of Puget Sound entrance 1915
	201425	Cascade	Cascade S.S.	steamer	515	163	1904	later Wailele 1911, in collision and sank Kauai Channel, Hawaii 1919
	200589	Crescent	Charles Nelson	schooner	1,443	240	1905
	201914	Wasp	Wasp S.S.	steamer	563	171	1905	burned 1919
	202221	Daisy Mitchell	North Coast S.S.	steamer	612	171	1905	later La Primera 1916, Coquimbo 1922, wrecked Valparaiso 1923
	202681	Ravalli	Hammond Lumber Co	steamer	998	186	1905	burned at Lowe Inlet, Alaska 1918
	202806	Yosemite	Yosemite S.S.	steamer	827	193	1906	wrecked off Point Reyes 1926
	203192	Svea	H. Wilson	steamer	618	174	1906	deleted 1951
	203508	Hoquiam		steamer	644	174	1906	to Panama 1944
	203747	Daisy Freeman	Daisy Freeman S.S.	steamer	613	174	1906	abandoned 1940
	203808	Flaurence Ward	Commercial Pacific Cable Co	steamer	267	106	1907	later Molokai 1924, Anita 1944, foundered off Piaxtla, Mexico 1949
	204278	Yellowstone	C. R. McCormack & Co	steamer	767	189	1907	wrecked Eureka entrance 1933
	204685	Tahoe	M. Turner Co	steamer	751	179	1908	foundered off Cape Falso, Baja California 1946
	205002	Katherine	Redwood S.S.	steamer	531	160	1908	scrapped 1940
	205083	Shoshone	S. M. Hauptmann	steamer	646	176	1908	later Hamaka 1915, burned off Mani Is, Hawaii 1917
	206801	Klamath	C. R. McCormick & Co	steamer	992	207	1909	wrecked near Del Mar Landing 1921
	207603	Nehalem	Hammond Lumber Co	steamer	632	173	1910	scrapped 1937
Built by Vance Redwood Lumber Co in Fairhaven
	207985	Fort Bragg	Charles R. Higgins	steamer	705	154	1910	stranded 1932
	209117	Willamette	C. R. McCormick & Co	steamer	903	195	1911	later California, Susan Olson, foundered 1942
Built by Hammond Lumber Co in Fairhaven
	210392	Necanicum	Hammond Lumber Co	steamer	667	178	1912
	211843	Mary Olson	Mary Olson Co	steamer	848	200	1913
	214512	Santiam	Hammond Lumber Co	steamer	946	210	1916
	214907	Flavel	Hammond Lumber Co	steamer	967	210	1917	abandoned 1923
	215915	Trinidad	Hammond Lumber Co	steamer	974	210	1917
	215998	Halco	Hammond Lumber Co	steamer	970	212	1917	stranded 1925
Built by Rolph Shipbuilding Co in Fairhaven
	216140	Conqueror	Hind, Rolph & Co.	barkentine	1,395	231	1918	abandoned 1944
	216834	Joan of Arc	Rolph Nav. & Coal Co.	freighter	2,375	245	1918	stranded 1920
	217255	Annette Rolph	Rolph Nav. & Coal Co.	freighter	2,361	245	1918	later Bering, to USG 1944
	217442	Georgina Rolph	Rolph Nav. & Coal Co.	freighter	2,354	245	1918	abandoned 1934
	217229	Hesperian	Rolph Nav. & Coal Co.	barkentine	1,385	231	1918	abandoned 1934
	217610	Annie M. Rolph	Rolph Nav. & Coal Co.	barkentine	1,393	231	1919	foundered 1942
	217326	Edna C	Cousins Launch Co.	ferry	73	70	1918	later Mikiala, foundered 1941
		1215/Burnham	USSB	freighter	2,260	266	1918	converted to barge
	219901	2378/Cremna	USSB	barkentine	2,265	266	1919	completed as Anne Comyn
	219900	2379/Cremona	USSB	barkentine	2,266	266	1920	completed as Phyllis Comyn
	219909	2380/Cresoline	USSB	barkentine	2,263	266	1920	completed as Russell Haviside
	218534	Rolph	Rolph Nav. & Coal Co.	barkentine	1,386	231	1919	abandoned 1934
	219509	George U. Hind	Rolph Nav. & Coal Co.	barkentine	1,389	231	1919
	219061	Storm King	Rolph Nav. & Coal Co.	tugboat	527	140	1919	to Costa Rica 1943
	220752	Thomas Rolph	Rolph Nav. & Coal Co.	freighter	1,269	214	1920	later Viking