The Halvorsen Story-Centenary Celebrations
By Philip Brown - Originally publshed in the SASC Newsletter
Lars Halvorsen and his family came to Sydney in 1924–25 from Arendal in Norway following a stay of two years in South Africa. Lars, at the age of 35, travelled alone to Capetown to investigate establishing a boat building business.
Due to the uninsured total loss of a trading sailing vessel he had built, and of which he was a part owner, Lars had lost all his money and his reputation in Norway had been damaged. He was thus seeking a new life for his family away from Norway. His skills were in boat building and his aim was to establish a new business building boats.
Lars set up in Capetown as a boat builder and later entered a boatbuilding business partnership. He designed and built several yachts, based on Norwegian design principles, which were much acclaimed by the local yachting fraternity in the Royal Capetown Yacht Club.
However, despite early success and making enough money to purchase a cottage to accommodate his wife and seven children who had followed him to Capetown, neither Lars nor his wife Bergithe found the life in Capetown really suited them, nor had prospects to develop a big enough boat-building business in which their five sons might participate.
In late 1924, with introductions to contacts in Sydney, Lars sold his share of the boat-building partnership and their house, leaving his wife and children in Capetown to live in a shed and a tent at a seaside village over summer. He travelled by ship to Sydney to investigate opportunities to establish a boat building business, arriving in early December 1924. His eldest son Harald, aged only 14, also arrived in December having travelled as crew on a sailing ship which landed him in Adelaide, followed by a train trip to meet his father in Sydney on Christmas Day.
Lars quickly obtained a contract to build his first Australian yacht, Sirius, and rented a boatshed in Drummoyne. Lars designed the yacht on which he and his young son Harald immediately started work. Having established a source of income, Lars sent for Bergithe and the remaining six children who arrived by ship in Sydney on 16 February 1925.
The rest of the Halvorsen family story has become an Australian legend of boat-building success. The business survived the Depression and by the mid-1930s four sons, Harald, Carl, Bjarne and Magnus, were working in the family boat-building business with their father. The youngest son Trygve, born in 1920, was still at school. All was going well post-Depression and the business had an increasing order book to construct work boats and cruisers of varying sizes.
"Iolanthe" 36' Bridge Deck Motor Cruiser designed and built by L. Halvorsen for Mr. A.G Wilson and completed in June 1933. Photo taken in Macquarie Street on her way to the Sydney Royal Easter Show.
A major setback for the family occurred when Lars contracted osteomyelitis and died at the young age of only 49 in 1936. By this time all his sons were working in the boat building business. The five sons carried on the business in what became the famous brand name of “Lars Halvorsen Sons”.
During the second World War the Halvorsen boatyard, then operating five slipways at Ryde on the Parramatta River, built over 250 vessels for the American and Australian military forces, including tenders and barges plus the fast 38 foot air-sea rescue boats, the 62 foot supply boats and the famous 112 foot Fairmile rescue boats.
ML 819 was one of eleven Fairmile motor launches built by Halvorsens
With the end of the War in 1945 the government orders abruptly stopped and there was little money around for pleasure boats to be built to order. To maintain their business and keep their workforce of shipwrights intact the brothers decided on a new business model to build pleasure cruisers to operate in a hire fleet, and in late 1945 acquired the boatshed at Bobbin Head to be the hire-fleet base. This became the centre for the renowned Halvorsen hire fleet which at its largest included more than 60 cruisers for hire. The first cruiser built specifically for the hire fleet was a 25 footer launched in early 1946 and quickly followed by several others.
Holidays on Halvorsen cruisers on Broken Bay and the Hawksbury River became very popular in the 1950s through to the 1980s. Many more boats, and of larger size, were added as the business and so the fleet grew. The Ryde yard also continued to custom build cruisers to order for local owners, and several boats were exported to USA.
Lars Halvorsen Sons Pty Ltd Ryde 1954
In the late 1940s and through to the 1960s, the Halvorsen yard built numerous sailing yachts, although mainly for the two youngest Halvorsen brothers Magnus and Trygve. These yachts included Enterprise 1945, Peer Gynt 1947, Solveig 1950, Anitra V 1956, Norla 1960, and Freya 1962. Also in 1962 the Halvorsen yard built Gretel, the 12 metre class yacht designed by Alan Payne which was Australia’s first challenger for the America Cup.
Also in 1962 the Halvorsen yard built Gretel, the 12 metre class yacht designed by Alan Payne which was Australia’s first challenger for the America Cup.
GRETEL in Newport
The Halvorsen brothers Magnus and Trygve competed in most of the Sydney Hobart Races from 1946 to 1965 in their own designed and built boats, and won the event on handicap five times with Solveig, Anitra V and Freya. They also competed in three TransPac races from Los Angeles to Hawaii with Solveig and Anitra V. Trygve and Magnus were part of Australia’s first America Cup Challenge team with Gretel in Newport Rhode Island, USA and in Australia’s first Admirals Cup challenge in 1965 with Freya as part of the Australian Team at Cowes, Isle of Wight, UK.
Halvorsen cruisers have become collectors’ items and are much sought after pleasure cruisers today. Most have been restored, some magnificently, and are much admired timber boats. Some of the sailing yachts are also still in good condition and actively sailed. These include Solveig and Anitra V in Sydney and Norla in Hobart.
To commemorate the Halvorsen Family’s arrival in Australia 100 years ago, and to celebrate the legendary Halvorsen boat building story, there are numerous special events arranged for this summer.
The first occurred on 9 November with the addition of the Halvorsen Family to the Monument Wall at the ANMM in Darling Harbour to record and commemorate migrants to Australia. Kari Svensen, a granddaughter of Lars and Bergithe and crew member of Anitra V, gave the principal address at the ceremony to tell the Halvorsen Family immigration story in the presence of Her Excellency the Norwegian Ambassador.
The next event will be a display of yachts and cruisers in the Pond at CYCA Ruschcutters Bay as part of the Hobart Classic Regatta from 12 December. Public access is available to the Pond.
Following on in January there will be a Halvorsen Flotilla Display at the ANMM in Darling Harbour, for 12 days from 10 to 22 January 2025. This event will be open to the public.
In Hobart, during the AWBF, there will be a special gathering and boat display at RYCT for Halvorsen family members and friends on Saturday 8 February.
Then, on Friday and Saturday 14 and 15 February, there will be a collection of Halvorsen cruisers assembled at Bobbin Head, followed by a procession of boats on Saturday back to Cottage Point for a BBQ lunch at KMYC in aid of Marine Rescue.
On Sunday 16 February there will be a luncheon for family and friends at the RSYS Kirribilli, again with Halvorsen boats on display in the Squadron Pond.
Finally, over the following weekend, 22 and 23 February, there will be another flotilla display of Halvorsen boats at the RMYC Marina in Newport. This too will be open to the public.
These multiple events demonstrate the widespread interest in Halvorsen boats and the Halvorsen Family history. Boating enthusiasts who wish to see these various and different examples of the diverse Halvorsen boat building legacy will have the opportunity to view a range of different vessels in these displays.
For further information please contact Philip Brown on 0418 214 897.