Built as a 3-masted steel mother-ship by N.V. Scheepswerf De Haan & Oerlemans, Heusden, Netherlands for Parceria Geral de Pescaries, Lisbon. Managed by the Bensaude Line.
Launched under the name ARGUS.
Tonnage 696 gross, 414 net, 608 dwt., dim. 209 x 32.6 x 17.0ft., length bpp. 189.2ft.
Powered by a 4-cyl Sulzer diesel engine, 475 hp.
Bunker capacity 130 tons oil, and 70 tons fresh water. Could carry 11.093 quintals salted fish.
Crew 72, and carried 53 dories.
Schooner rigged.
Ice strengthened.
March 1938 delivered, and sailed under command of Anibal da Graça Ramalheira and a Portuguese crew to Lisbon, her homeport.
She was designed by the Brit Alexander Slate, and completed in time to take part in the 1939 fishing season.
Fitted out with electric light, radio installation and a refrigerated bait-room, which could hold 40 tons bait.
Her first voyage was when she sailed on 27 May 1939 from Lisbon and via Ponte Delgado, arrived at the Grand Banks on 8 June. The fishing was not so good and on 22 June she sailed for Greenland, where she fished in the Davis Strait mainly on the Store Hellefiske Bank from 29 June till 28 August then sailed back to the Grand Banks where she fished from 04 September till 11 October before she sailed fully loaded for Portugal via Ponta Delgado, arriving Lisbon 23 October.
Then she left every spring from Portugal for the Grand Banks even during World War II when she sailed in convoy till the end of 1945. During World War II in the off season used as a freighter between Portugal and the Portuguese Islands.
On voyage 12 in 1950 Alan Villiers sailed with her and wrote the book “The Quest of the Schooner Argus.” She was then sailing under command of Capt. Adolfo Simões Paião.
In 1969 she made her last voyage to the Grand Banks under command of Capt José Luis Nunes Oliveira, thereafter laid up.
1974 She was sold to the Canadian company White Fleet Cruise Ships for 7.000 Euros’, the same year al sold to Commander Mike Burke of the Windjammer Barefoot charter company based in Miami.
She was now refitted in cruise vessel, fitted out with air-condition and 52 double cabins, two Admiral suites and 3 cabins with berths for six people, each with its own bathroom. A new deck was added. New masts were placed with new sails.
She wax renamed in POLYNESIA II and registered in Honduras. Owner given as Bimba Ltd.
Tonnage then given as 696 gross, 413 net, with a displacement of 820 tons. Dim. 75.40 x 10.90 x 5.40m. (draught), length bpp. 51.60m.
Rigged as a 4-masted staysail schooner.
She is based at St Martin and sails from this port every week for a six day cruise in the Caribbean.
In the summer and autumn season she visit St Lucia, Grenada, Tobago and St Vincent, while in the winter and spring she calls at the Leewards Islands.
She was later registered in Equatorial Guinea till 2003.
After 2003 registered in Saint George’s, Grenada, and owned by Polynesia.
2008 as given by http://www.equasis.org IMO No 5023564, owned by same owner.
2007 The Barefoot Windjammer cruise company got in financial difficulties and in 2008 is given that she are out of business.
A web-site gives that the crew has abandoned the POLYNESIA in Aruba, and she still is there berthed in July 2008.
( The Portugal stamp showed only her steering-wheel with one of the men of the crew, Old Jacinto Martins, the photo is depict in the book by Alan Villiers “The Quest of the schooner Argus” on page 148. The vessel in the background of the stamp is the GAZELA PRIMEIRO see index.)
Nevis 1980 $3 sg 54 and 1981 $3 sg 471 as POLYNESIA
St Kitts 1985 $3 sg 172 as POLYNESIA
Portugal 2000 85$ sg?,
Source: Great Sailing Ships of the World by Otmar Schäuffelen.
http://www.marinha.pt/extra/revista/ra_ ... ag_15.html Lloyds Register.