The ''Katarina'' is a restaurant ship, and former

steam ship A steamship, often referred to as a steamer, is a type of steam-powered vessel, typically ocean-faring and seaworthy, that is propelled by one or more steam engines that typically move (turn) propellers or paddlewheels. The first steamships ...

, that was built in 1869 at

Stockholm Stockholm () is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in Sweden by population, largest city of Sweden as well as the List of urban areas in the Nordic countries, largest urban area in Scandinavia. Approximately 980,000 people liv ...

in Sweden. Sailing under her original name of ''Fredriksborg'' on the route through the Stockholm archipelago from Stockholm to

Vaxholm Vaxholm is a locality and the seat of Vaxholm Municipality, Stockholm County, Sweden. It is located on the island of in the Stockholm archipelago. The name Vaxholm comes from Vaxholm Castle, which was constructed in 1549 on an islet with this nam ...

, she was the

Waxholmsbolaget Waxholms Ångfartygs AB, commonly referred to as Waxholmsbolaget, is a shipping company owned by Stockholm county council and is responsible for the seaborne public transport in the Stockholm archipelago and Stockholm harbour. The company, which i ...

's first propeller-driven steam ship. After being sold by the Waxholmsbolaget in 1882, she operated in various roles under the names ''Höganäs'', ''Mariehamn'', ''Stella'', ''Wirumaa'', ''Kullervo'' and ''André'' before acquiring her current name in 1985. Today she is a floating restaurant moored in the Aura river in

Turku Turku ( ; ; sv, Åbo, ) is a city and former capital on the southwest coast of Finland at the mouth of the Aura River, in the region of Finland Proper (''Varsinais-Suomi'') and the former Turku and Pori Province (''Turun ja Porin lääni''; ...

, Finland.

History

The ''Fredriksborg'' was built in 1869 by , on

Södermalm Södermalm, often shortened to just Söder, is a district and island in central Stockholm. Overview The district covers the large island of the same name (formerly called ''Åsön''). Although Södermalm usually is considered an island, wat ...

, for the recently founded Waxholms Ångfartygs AB, better known as the

. She was that company's first propeller-driven steam ship, operating between Stockholm and

. In 1882, she was sold to Ångfartygs AB Skånska Kusten of

Malmö Malmö (, ; da, Malmø ) is the largest city in the Swedish county (län) of Scania (Skåne). It is the third-largest city in Sweden, after Stockholm and Gothenburg, and the sixth-largest city in the Nordic region, with a municipal populat ...

, who renamed her ''Höganäs''. Whilst in Malmö, she operated a route from Skanör to

Mölle Mölle is a locality situated in Höganäs Municipality, Skåne County, Sweden with 715 inhabitants in 2010. It is best known for its scenic harbour and its location adjacent to the Kullaberg Nature Reserve. Its harbour, situated on the Katte ...

via Malmö, Barsebäck,

Landskrona Landskrona (old da, Landskrone) is a town in Scania, Sweden. Located on the shores of the Öresund, it occupies a natural port, which has lent the town at first military and subsequent commercial significance. Ferries operate from Landskrona t ...

Helsingborg Helsingborg (, , , ) is a city and the seat of Helsingborg Municipality, Scania (Skåne), Sweden. It is the second-largest city in Scania (after Malmö) and ninth-largest in Sweden, with a population of 113,816 (2020). Helsingborg is the cent ...

and

Viken Viken may refer to: *Viken, Scandinavia, a historical region *Viken (county), a Norwegian county established in 2020 *Viken, Sweden, a bimunicipal locality in Skåne County, Sweden *Viken (lake), a lake in Sweden, part of the part of the Göta cana ...

. In 1886, the ''Höganäs'' was sold to Leon Gestrin of

in Finland, who renamed her ''Mariehamn'' and used her on services from Turku to

Mariehamn Mariehamn ( , ; fi, Maarianhamina ; la, Portus Mariae) is the capital city, capital of Åland, an autonomous territory under Finland, Finnish sovereignty. Mariehamn is the seat of the Government of Åland, Government and Parliament of Åland, ...

Åland Åland ( fi, Ahvenanmaa: ; ; ) is an Federacy, autonomous and Demilitarized zone, demilitarised region of Finland since 1920 by a decision of the League of Nations. It is the smallest region of Finland by area and population, with a size of 1 ...

. In 1890, she was sold to Carl Georg Rosenberg, also of Turku, who renamed her ''Stella'' but continued to operate her between Turku and Mariehamn. In 1912, she was sold to the Reval Shipping Company of

Tallinn Tallinn () is the most populous and capital city of Estonia. Situated on a bay in north Estonia, on the shore of the Gulf of Finland of the Baltic Sea, Tallinn has a population of 437,811 (as of 2022) and administratively lies in the Harju ' ...

in Estonia, who renamed her ''Wirumaa'' and ran her on services between Tallinn and

Riga Riga (; lv, Rīga , liv, Rīgõ) is the capital and largest city of Latvia and is home to 605,802 inhabitants which is a third of Latvia's population. The city lies on the Gulf of Riga at the mouth of the Daugava river where it meets the Ba ...

in Latvia. In 1916, the ''Wirumaa'' was sold to a group of individual owners in the

Koivisto Islands Beryozovye Islands (russian: Берёзовые острова, Finnish: Koivisto, Swedish: Björkö; literally: "Birch Islands"), alternatively spelled Berezovye Islands, is an island group in Leningrad Oblast, Russia. The islands are situated at ...

, then part of Finland, and renamed ''Kullervo''. Over the following years she had a number of owners, being renamed ''André'' in 1922. In 1926 she was converted to a

barge Barge nowadays generally refers to a flat-bottomed inland waterway vessel which does not have its own means of mechanical propulsion. The first modern barges were pulled by tugs, but nowadays most are pushed by pusher boats, or other vessels ...

, and in 1956 converted again to a motor cargo vessel. In 1972 she was converted to a cruise ship, and in 1985 she was renamed ''Katarina''.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Katarina (1869) Ships built in Stockholm 1869 ships Ships of Finland Floating restaurants