Built as four-masted barque by Caravoe, Honfleur, France for Petitdidier & Co., Le Havre, France.
Launched as the CHANDERNAGORE.
Tonnage 707 tons, dim. 154 x 30.2 x 20.5ft.
1863 Completed.
Most probably is she the ship which took part in the Rays Expedition, in 1880 to Port Breton, Papua New Guinea which is most famous for its absolute failure.
Aboard the ships CHANDERNAGORE, GENTIL, NOUVELLE BRETAGNE and INDIA, 570 mostly ill-prepared colonists from France, German and Italy were lured by Marquis Rays to board this vessel to start a new colony.
At that time the CHANDERNAGORE was under command of Capt. Seykens and a crew of 28 men.
The French government had refused the movement of the vessel and her passengers to Port Breton in Le Havre, and the CHANDERNAGORE cleared for Antwerp, also in this port she was refused to embark her colonists and she sailed to Vlissingen (Flushing), Netherlands where her passengers were taken on board.
14 September 1879 with on board 82 colonists under charge of an American named M’Laughlin.
Much money was spend to make the enterprise a success, she was bringing out also machinery for sugar refining or seed crushing, a steam crane and all sorts of equipment needed to start a new colony, even 180.000 bricks were loaded and provision for one year.
The CHANDERNAGOR arrived on 05 January 1880at Langland Island, where some men were landed and provision for 8 months. She sailed from the island on 13 January and proceeded to New Ireland where she arrived on the 16th January dropt anchor in Likiliki Bay on the 19th.
Due to a storm later the CHANDERNAGORE lost her four anchors and had to sail to the open sea, and from there she proceeded to Sydney to get new anchors. Some of the equipment and stores still on board were transferred to the EMILY a smaller vessel of 420 gross ton.
The Marquis de Rays is widely believed to have misled the colonists, he never had set a foot on shore at New Guinea and the site was an extremely poor choice, supplies were difficult to get, and malaria and other tropical diseases took there toll.
Many colonists left the settlement and went to Australia, New Caledonia and the Philippines.
22 June 1882 CHANDERNAGORE arrived at Sydney, Australia from Mauritius under command of Capt. N. Merineir and a crew of 18 men.
26 August1882 she left from Sydney with on board three missionaries of the Sacred Heart, a religious order of the Roman Catholic Church bound for New Guinea, where they arrived on 28 or 29 September 1882 at Matupit, New Britain. They were the first three missionaries to set foot on these islands.
The landing is depict on this stamp of Papua New Guinea with in the background the CHANDERNAGORE.
Thereafter I have not more any info on the vessel.
Papua New Guinea 1982 10t sg457, scott?
Source: Watercraft Philately CD-ROM A-D. Some Australian newspapers on line. Wikipedia