Author: fovsAdmin

From Norway to Chicago

26 April 2012
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Categories: History

Construction

The ship was built in Sandefjord, Norway, and later christened Viking.

Viking under construction at Sandefjord photo: Vesterheim Museum, Decorah, IA

Captain Magnus Andersen and his crew

280 men applied to make the historic voyage, but only eleven were chosen. Crossing the north Atlantic was a brave experiment proving that Leif Erikson could have made the same crossing in AD1000.
Read about the only authenticated Viking settlement in North America HERE… and HERE…

The Viking ship in the Erie Canal.

“Viking” in Erie Canal photo: Vesterheim Museum, Decorah, IA

The Viking ship arriving in Chicago.

“Viking” Arrives in Chicago, by Hjalmar Johnssen, 1898

From The Book of the Fair

“… as the approaching Columbian Exposition began to be the talk of the world, it was determined to send there her (Gokstad’s) counterpart, manned by Norwegian sailors and unattended by any other craft, in order to prove the feasibility of Leif Erikson’s alleged expedition, more than nine centuries ago, from Norway to the New England coast. Thus from Sandefjord the vessel, built by public subscription in the spring of 1893, set sail for New York, and in the middle of July anchored off Jackson park.”

Paul V. Gavin Library Digital History Collection

The Viking is a replica of the Gokstad ship.

Excavated in 1880, the Gokstad was called the most beautiful ship ever built.

Of the Viking it was written…

“Her lines are remarkably beautiful, resembling those of a yacht, the convex curvature of the keel increasing her strength and steadiness of motion.”

The Book of the Fair

Assessment of the Viking

26 January 2012
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Categories: Stabilization

On November 10, 2007 the Viking ship was professionally examined and evaluated inside and out, from stem to stern.

Howard Wellman, a conservator of archaeological materials who has done shipwreck archaeology, and Robert Fink, a boat builder, examined the ship. Their entire day was spent skillfully measuring, carefully probing, busily photographing and, copiously taking notes. Mr. Wellman’s report provided recommendations for arresting any deterioration and for the repair and preservation of this historic ship.

Roger Machin of Methods and Materials assessed the current situation and made recommendations for improving both the shelter and support of the Viking.

A committee of local and Chicago-area citizens banded together to launch this rescue mission for the ship, to stabilize the structure and to preserve it for future generations. In the short term, a substantial contribution from the Kane County Community Development Block Grant funds was used to complete this professional evaluation of the condition of the ship. Preservation Partners of the Fox Valley and the Norwegian National League also helped to finance this assessment, which resulted in detailed recommendations for the stabilization phase of the rescue project.

Howard Wellman
Bob Fink
Roger Machin

These recommendations were implemented in June 2008.

Read MORE.

Correct Name of the 1893 Viking Ship

3 January 2012
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Categories: History

“VIKING er ditt navn.”
(VIKING is your name.)

There is a widespread misunderstanding that the ship initially was named the Raven, and only later renamed Viking.

When one investigates the sources, there is no doubt that Viking is the correct name of the ship.  Books written by both the Captain and crew refer to the ship as Viking.  Newspaper articles written as the ship arrived in cities from New York to Chicago describe the ship as Viking.  See the christening document HERE…

The bronze plaque from Lincoln Park

photo: Vesterheim Museum, Decorah, IA

The plaque incorrectly numbers the crew at fourteen. There were only eleven crew members in addition to Captain Andersen.

The bronze plaque reads:

“NORWEGIAN VIKING SHIP”

“This ship came direct from Norway to Chicago under its own sails, with a crew of fourteen Norwegian sailors commanded by Captain Magnus Andersen, carrying a message of good will from the people of Norway to the American people at the World’s Columbian Exposition at Chicago in the year 1893.  It is an exact reproduction of the famous ship about 1000 years old and excavated from the “King’s Mound” at Gokstad, County of Jarlsberg, Norway.  In such ships the ancient Norwegian Vikings roamed the seas and founded Norse domains in Normandy, Ireland and Sicily. About the year 1000 A.D. the Norwegian Viking Leif Eriksen, sailing in such a ship and without the aid of compass, discovered the American continent.”

Viking’s Christening Document

3 January 2012
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Categories: Viking Ship Memorabilia

The misnomer Raven likely arose from a red, silk banner that flew over the ship showing the Viking symbol of a black raven with its wings outstretched. But the ship’s original name was indeed Viking, and here we have her Christening document as proof!

Captain Magnus Andersen later admitted that another name had been considered. He wrote that “it was proposed to the committee in charge of the ship that we call it the Leif Erikson, but we finally decided not to, as we did not want Americans to think us demonstrating; the Norwegian is modest.”

Powerhouse High wins project of the year honors from Landmarks Illinois in statewide awards

7 October 2009
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Categories: Awards, In The Media

Excerpts from Chicago Tribune – CityScapes by Blair Kamin, October 7, 2009

There was so much Olympics-related news last week that this one slipped through the cracks: The transformation of the Sears, Roebuck & Co. Power House, featured on this blog last month, won project of the year honors when Landmarks Illinois and the Richard H. Driehaus Foundation presented their annual statewide preservation awards on Saturday.

Also among the winners: the Preservation Partners of the Fox Valley, who have heroically rehabbed the once-threatened Viking ship from the 1893 World’s Columbian Exposition.

… The annual Richard H. Driehaus Foundation Preservation Awards ceremony honors individuals, organizations, projects and programs from across the state of Illinois, whose work demonstrates a commitment to excellence in historic preservation. The event is open to the public.

… A gift from Norway during the 1893 World’s Columbian Exposition, this Viking ship replica sailed across the Atlantic and served as a major attraction during the fair.

For many years, the ship was in dry dock in Chicago’s Lincoln Park Zoo but it was eventually relocated to its current site in Good Templar Park during the mid-1990s. After more than a century of exposure to the elements and numerous relocations, the ship was in need of a more permanent preservation solution.

In the winter of 2006-07, the Viking ship was named to both the Fox Valley and statewide lists of endangered historic resources. Soon afterwards, the ship was selected as one of 25 candidates to compete in the Chicagoland Partners in Preservation Grant challenge. Co-sponsored by American Express and the National Trust for Historic Preservation, the online voting process lasted four weeks and prompted a creative “Get out the Vote” campaign by this local grassroots organization.

Finishing in 2nd place, the Viking Ship stabilization effort was awarded 100% of the requested funds, which have been used to rebuild the structural support system, repair cracks in the wood, and provide a secure shelter and viewing platform for the vessel.

The jury remarked that “without the work of the Preservation Partners of the Fox Valley, the fate of this rare and invaluable historic resource would still be in jeopardy.”

Partners in Preservation Award

7 October 2009
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Categories: Awards

On September 6, 2007 American Express and The National Trust for Historic Preservation announced its Chicago area grant initiative.  Elizabeth Safanda applied for the grant.  You Voted. We came in 2nd.  Thank you for your votes!

Pat Hansen, IOGT, Elizabeth Safanda, Preservation Partners of the Fox Valley, and Lorraine Straw, Norwegian National League at the Partners in Preservation Press Conference Hansen, Safanda & Straw at press conference.

Preservation Partners of the Fox Valley wins Richard Driehaus award!

Preservation Partners of the Fox Valley has received a Driehaus Award for Advocacy from Landmarks Illinois and the Richard H. Driehaus Foundation. Their efforts to stabilize and preserve the Viking ship in Geneva, Illinois were among nine projects recognized for historic preservation excellence… As stated by the Award’s Jury, “without the work of the Preservation Partners of the Fox Valley, the fate of this rare and invaluable historic resource would still be in jeopardy.”   Read how Elizabeth Safanda was awarded the Richard Driehaus award for advocacy. HERE…

 

VIKING Victory!

Your votes carried us to victory!  In November of, 2007 the Viking was awarded $52,000 by Partners in Preservation (American Express and the National Trust for Historic Preservation) for its stabilization and preservation.   Friends of the Viking Ship is grateful to American Express & the National Trust for Historic Preservation for awarding $52,000 to the Viking.

Elizabeth Safanda receives the Driehaus Award on behalf of Preservation Partners of the Fox Valley. Elizabeth Safanda receives her award
Partners in Preservation Awards Campaign poste

Viking ship from 1893 Chicago world’s fair begins much-needed voyage to restoration

26 June 2008
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Categories: In The Media, Stabilization

the June 26, 2008 article by Chicago Tribune reporter Gerry Smith

Built in Norway in 1892, the ship was modeled after a vessel called the Gokstad that had been excavated from a Viking warrior’s grave two years earlier and was estimated to have been built around 890. The replica, made of black oak, left Norway in April 1893 and made stops in Newfoundland and New York before arriving in Chicago in mid-July. Although it attracted much fanfare at the exhibition, the boat moored in Jackson Park Lagoon later fell into disrepair.

In 1920, the Chicago Park District took possession of the ship from a women’s group that raised $20,000 to repair it and move it to Lincoln Park Zoo, where it sat for decades in an open-sided shed, attracting few visitors and becoming layered with pigeon droppings.

This week, under a white tent in Geneva’s Good Templar Park, a crew of craftsmen tried to erase years of neglect to the ship, which last year was named one of the state’s 10 most endangered historic objects by Landmarks Illinois, a non-profit historic preservation group.

“You can see where things have gone south dramatically,” said Bob Fink, a maritime restorer who oversaw the work.

The boat’s wooden planks have started to rot and splinter after rain and snow leaked through holes in the protective tarp. In addition, the hull is sagging, the result of inadequate supports, said Fink, 51, of Queenstown, Md.

While Fink and another carpenter added support frames to strengthen the boat’s interior, a pair of workers from Chicago-based Methods and Materials cut steel beams to brace the ship from underneath.

Finally, Fink began installing a system of cables to pull the ship’s sagging frame back to its original form. “Once the cables are in place, she’ll be good to go for another couple decades,” Fink said.

In 1994, the Park District sold co-ownership rights for $1 to another group, the American-Scandinavian Council, which promised to restore the vessel and find a suitable home but made little progress. The ship was later moved to a warehouse in West Chicago. Then, the International Order of Good Templars, a temperance group that started in Sweden, offered to house the ship in its park in Geneva.