History of Engelburg

Sailing freight: 1913-1953

The ship was built in 1912 for Evert Melsen from 's Gravenmoer as Linquenda at the Boot shipyard in Vrijenban (near Delft). The launch took place on 25 January 1913 and the ship received the brand mark: 2956 DORD 1913.

On 8 March 1927 the ship was registered in the name of his son, Jacobus Johannes Melsen, skipper in 's Gravenmoer, who went through life under the nickname Erpelenpap. Ten years later Erpelenpap had the ship measured again, still as a sailing ship with a loading capacity of 159 tons under the name Linquenda.

During the Second World War the ship was registered in the name of Antonie Simon Ramsteijn, skipper in 's Gravenmoer, and was again measured at 160 tons.

Motorized freight shipping: 1953-1979

After sailing with a side propellor for several years, the Linquenda was remeasured in early 1953 because the ship was motorized.

The loading capacity had become 6 tons less, probably related to the placement of the 2-cylinder 1929 Deutz diesel engine, which would provide propulsion for 14 years. During this period, the cabin was modernized: the three windows in the cabin are replaced on both sides by two larger ones. The owner was now Antonie Johannes Ramsteijn (born in 1943, one of the 6 children of Antonie Simon) from 's Gravenmoer. In 1967, the engine is replaced by a heavier Deutz from 1939. The last measurement as a cargo ship takes place in 1972, after which the ship changes owners a few times (1973: Adriaan Meijer, Ouderkerk aan de Amstel; 1979: Gerlof Nieuwenhuis, Leeuwarden).

Charter sailing: 1988-2011

In April 1988, Marion and Cor Kuitert from Enkhuizen bought the ship and named it Condor.

They set the ship under sail again, now with two mastheads, very long gaffs with topsails, two jibs and a flying jib. At first there was even a square sail, but this was removed after a few years. Cor makes new leeboards at Gerard Kroes Shipbuilding in Leeuwarden. They planned to charter the ship on the Baltic Sea, and in 1989 it is deregistered as an inland vessel and given a Sea brand mark: 17915 ZR 1989 (European number: 27 17915). It is likely that the 129 hp Gardner was installed when it became a 'sea vessel'. As far as is known, there have been no charters on the Baltic Sea, but always from Harlingen, also by subsequent owners Bert Leusink and Peter Ravensteijn. In the first decade of the 21st century, the charter business was no longer doing so well, and in 2009 the Swiss Jan Rueger bought the ship from bankruptcy. He renamed the ship Engelburg, the name of his Dutch father. He aimed for the Swiss market, but this also proves disappointing.

Sailing houseboat: 2011-2023

In 2011 he sold the ship to us to live on the Thorbeckegracht in Zwolle. Both masts were shortened and made lowerable because otherwise the mooring in Zwolle, which is behind the fixed bridge of the A28, is not accessible.

Only the mizzen still has a topmast. The rigging has been considerably reduced (smaller mizzen, mainsail, and 2 jibs) and a number of winches have been installed, so that the ship can be sailed by two people.

In 2020, again at Kroes Scheepsbouw in Leeuwarden, the cabin roof was replaced, which had become wafer-thin after almost 110 years. In doing so, a little more sheer was added to the cabin, and the curvature at the front was slightly increased. The cabin windows were also restored to their original state (3 per side) and there are steel shutters for the windows again, originating from the clipper Dageraad from Lemmer.

Accommodation and small-scale charter: 2023 -

Since 2023, the cabin has been available in the winter for a pleasant overnight stay in the heart of Zwolle. There is a living room with kitchenette (fridge, oven, kettle, egg cooker), a bedroom with double bed, a shower and toilet. Everything has central heating. From 2025, the ship will be available from May to September as a floating holiday home in the Weerribben-Wieden National Park. There are three bedrooms (2, 2, and 4 beds), a bathroom with shower, bath and toilet, a comfortable living room with open kitchen (gas stove, oven/microwave, fridge, freezer, dishwasher), and a hall with washing machine and dryer. To enjoy the beautiful surroundings to the fullest, there is also a sailing boat, two canoes and an electric punt available.