This ship which was built in 1868 as the Kalmarsund Nr 3 was sold in 1887 and moved from the Baltic to Lake Fryken in western Sweden and was renamed Freja. On July 23, 1896, the Freja capsized and sank when hit by a squall. The wreck was located in 1976 at a depth of 52 meters and 98 years after the foundering, in 1994, the Freja was salvaged.
After two years of repairs the Freja was ready to be launched again when she was almost destroyed by fire. In spite of this set-back she was once more repaired and was launched on July 15 this year. Due to new regulations she had to be renamed and now got the name Freja af Fryken.
Today she was put back on her old trade on Lake Fryken and as the competition she had in 1896 is out of business today, there is a good chance that she will be able to continue to serve for many years to come.
When repairing the ship the original has been followed as closely as possible. Many of the orginal parts have been repaired and put into use again, e.g. the brass voice pipe and the water closet. Both the 15 hp steam engine from 1867 and the boiler from 1868 are original and are said to be the oldest still in service on a screw ship. This small steam engine is able to propel the 40 ton and 20 meter long ship at a speed of 8 knots. See http://www.webgate.se/angbatfreja/ [In Swedish]
Updated 1997-07-23 by Lars Bruzelius
Sjöhistoriska Samfundet | The Maritime History Virtual Archives.
Copyright © 1996 Lars Bruzelius.