The Abraham Fock was the first motor beach lifeboat to be stationed on Ameland. Eighty years later, there is another Abraham Fock and the Maritime Museum on the Oranjeweg in Hollum is even named after this lifeboat: the Abraham Fock Museum. The lifeboat has many rescues to its name and has made exciting voyages across the Wadden Sea and North Sea. The new boat will be used for the horse launch demonstrations.
- Motor beach lifeboat
- Celebration of the rescue company on Ameland
- Eiland
- Katwijk
- Explosion
- Engine
- War
- Issues
- Rescue operations
- Terschelling
- Katwijk
Motor beach lifeboat
In the early twentieth century, rescues at sea were carried out from Ameland with a rowing lifeboat. After Terschelling, Ameland also received a motor beach lifeboat. In 1937 the Abraham Fock came to the island: a new boathouse was built and the boat was brought to the beach with horses.
This continued until 1988, when the horse rescue boat remained, but the active rescue service disappeared.
Source: Ameland Press Agency
Celebration of the rescue company on Ameland
Every year the NZHRM, the rescue company, celebrated its anniversary in a special way. In 1937, the 113th anniversary was celebrated on Ameland with the commissioning of the Abraham Fock. At that time, the boat did not yet have a steering cockpit, so the crew had to sail without shelter against overcoming water.
Eiland
The Abraham Fock is pulled to sea by ten horses and launched with the help of eight horses. The boat is of the Eierland type, named after one of the founders of the then rescue company. The then modern motor beach lifeboat had a Hercules Kromhout petrol engine with a power of 40 hp. In 1958 a 6-cylinder Perkins engine of 65 hp was replaced. The boat served for rescue operations until 1988 and served on Ameland, Terschelling and Schiermonnikoog. The Abraham Fock is no longer operational for rescue operations, but it is a valuable part of the Maritime Museum in Hollum on Ameland. Almost every month the horses come into action for a demonstrative launch.
Katwijk
The Abraham Fock was built in Katwijk. The boat has a length of 10.30 meters and a draft of 0.50 cm. The weight of the lifeboat is 4500 kg. In 1937 the new boat wagon also arrived and in that year the new boathouse was put into use. A facade stone in the wall of the boathouse reminds us of this.
Skipper Botte Neij, the first skipper of this motor beach lifeboat, brought the Abraham Fock from Amsterdam.
Explosion
On the way to Ameland with the new boat, an explosion took place on the IJsselmeer, causing them to return to Amsterdam. The boat was repaired and then brought to Ameland.
On November 4, 1937, the Abraham Fock with skipper Botte Neij came into action for the first time: they retrieved a fisherman from the mudflats. It was the first rescue operation.
Engine
The engine of the Abraham Fock often failed during practice trips, so the boat was sent to Harlingen for repairs. Temporarily replaced the Mr. Adriaan de Bruine de Abraham Fock. In 1938 the repaired Abraham Fock rescued the crews of the tjalks Hoop op Behoud and Johanna. Both ships went down.
On October 8, 1938, the trawler Sparrowhawk was in distress. The 9-man crew was rescued. A series of rescues then followed.
War
During the Second World War, the Ambraham Fock was deployed on the first day of the war to bring 30 Dutch soldiers to the Boschplaat. More trips followed later, including to bring ammunition to Terschelling. Only after the capitulation did the boat return to the boathouse. All the while he stood on the beach. The Germans allowed the rescue company to continue doing its rescue work. Many actions at that time had to do with crashed aircraft.
At the end of the war, the assignments became more dubious, because a number of Germans wanted the lifeboat to take them to a safe area. The skipper escaped these types of assignments by sailing to the already liberated Holwerd. On Sunday, June 3, the German occupiers left the island and on May 17, 1945, the Abraham Fock received another valued assignment to sail a sick person to Holwerd.
Issues
After the war there were regular engine problems with the Abraham Fock. When the boat was under repair, the motor lifeboat Prins Bernhard replaced it. Both the Abraham Fock and the Prins Bernhard occasionally used the mast belonging to the boat. The mast with the sailing gear came into the possession of the lifeboat museum in Hollum in 1991. It was brought from their island to Ameland by Terschellingers.
Rescue operations
After the war, the Abraham Fock carried out many rescue operations.
In 1949, the rescue company became Royal and skipper of the Abraham Fock Botte Neij was present in the Ridderzaal in The Hague during the presentation of the predicate. The rescue company will then have existed for 125 years. From November 11, 1949, the NZHRM continued as KNZHRM.
Terschelling
In 1950 the Abraham Fock went to Terschelling. The Jr. HJ Ortt was stationed on Ameland. Ameland then received the Van Rietschoten and the Mr. Adriaan de Bruine . With the end of the active rescue service of the horse lifeboat, the modern Johannes Frederik came to Ameland. The last horse rescue boat, the Mr. Adriaan de Bruine, was sold and the Nicolaas Marius was acquired from Terschelling. This lifeboat was renamed Abraham Fock and the showpiece of the Maritime Museum. The rescue museum was opened on March 30, 1991 by former skipper Gooi Visser. That rescue museum was converted into a Maritime Museum in 2008 and 2009 and reopened on June 25, 2009. The boathouse containing the Abraham Fock is part of it.
Katwijk
In June 2013, the horse rescue boat from Ameland will travel to Katwijk with horses, drivers and crew. The village then celebrates SAR Katwijk 2013 and the Katwijk Rescue Brigade has existed for 90 years. For Abraham Fock it has been 75 years since he was stationed on Ameland. The Katwijk origins of the lifeboat mean a lifelong bond with that village. The boat was built at the Taat brothers’ shipyard. The then NZHRM gave the order.
SAR Katwijk 2013 was on June 29.
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