''Storskär'' (literally ''Big Skerry'') is a

steamship 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 1908 in

Gothenburg Gothenburg ( ; ) is the List of urban areas in Sweden by population, second-largest city in Sweden, after the capital Stockholm, and the fifth-largest in the Nordic countries. Situated by the Kattegat on the west coast of Sweden, it is the gub ...

. She was originally named ''Strängnäs Express'' and traded between

Stockholm Stockholm (; ) is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in Sweden by population, most populous city of Sweden, as well as the List of urban areas in the Nordic countries, largest urban area in the Nordic countries. Approximately ...

and

Strängnäs Strängnäs is a Urban areas in Sweden, locality and the seat of Strängnäs Municipality, Södermanland County, Sweden with 15,363 inhabitants in 2020. It is located by Lake Mälaren and is the episcopal see of the Diocese of Strängnäs, one of t ...

Lake Mälaren A lake is often a naturally occurring, relatively large and fixed body of water on or near the Earth's surface. It is localized in a basin or interconnected basins surrounded by dry land. Lakes lie completely on land and are separate from t ...

. She was transferred to service on the

Stockholm archipelago The Stockholm Archipelago () is the largest archipelago in Sweden, and the second-largest archipelago in the Baltic Sea (the largest being the Archipelago Sea across the Baltic in Finland). Part of the archipelago has been designated as a Rams ...

in 1939, and given her current name in the following year. ''Storskär'' has operated for

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 ...

and her predecessors since 1939, and is today one of that company's classic fleet, alongside ''Norrskär'' and ''Västan''. She is a listed historical ship of Sweden.

History

''Strängnäs Express'' was built by the in

and was delivered to Strengnäs Nya Rederi AB in Strängnäs on 10 July 1908. As delivered she had a Lindholm

triple expansion steam engine A compound steam engine unit is a type of steam engine where steam is expanded in two or more stages. A typical arrangement for a compound engine is that the steam is first expanded in a high-pressure (HP) cylinder, then having given up heat ...

of and, during trials, attained a speed of . She was introduced in 1908 on the route from

via

Stallarholmen Stallarholmen is a locality situated in Strängnäs Municipality, Södermanland County, Sweden, with 1,623 inhabitants in 2010. Stallarholmen, located on Lake Mälaren, is situated partly on the mainland and partly on the island of Selaön, Swede ...

. The ship was sold in 1918 to Ångfartygs AB Drottningholm-Fittja, which in 1925 changed its name to Trafikaktiebolaget Mälaren-Hjelmaren. King Gustav V travelled on the ship from Stallarholmen to Strängnäs in 1923 in connection with the celebration of the 400th anniversary of

Gustav Vasa Gustav Eriksson Vasa (12 May 1496 – 29 September 1560), also known as Gustav I, was King of Sweden from 1523 until his death in 1560. He was previously self-recognised Protector of the Realm (''Reichsverweser#Sweden, Riksföreståndare'') fr ...

's election as King of Sweden. After another ownership change, ''Strängnäs Express'' was laid up in Stockholm in April 1939. In December 1939 she was purchased by Waxholms Nya Ångfartygs AB, better known as Waxholmsbolaget, who gave her her current name of ''Storskär'' in May 1940. The vessel was put into service on routes to the northern archipelago. Among other things, she traveled between

Norrtälje Norrtälje is a locality and the seat of Norrtälje Municipality, Stockholm County, Sweden with 17,275 inhabitants in 2010. It is one of the largest towns in Roslagen. History Norrtälje’s early history dates back to the Iron Age. Around 2 ...

and Arholma via . A new oil-fired boiler was installed in 1999 at Oskarshamns Varv.

Operation

''Storskär'' has been in regular traffic in the archipelago since 1940. She is still steam-powered and uses her original engine of 1908. Today, along with Vaxholmsbolaget's other classic ships, she is in regular traffic between May and September, serving the route from Stockholm to

Vaxholm Vaxholm is a city, urban area and the seat of Vaxholm Municipality, Stockholm County, Sweden. It occupies the islands of Vaxön and Kullö in the Stockholm archipelago. The name Vaxholm comes from Vaxholm Fortress, which was constructed in 154 ...

and other central archipelago islands. She has a top speed of , which makes her one of the archipelago's fastest steamers. ''Storskär'' has a length of , a beam of , a draft of , and carries 330 passengers.

References

{{Oldest surviving ships (pre-1919)
Storskär Storskär Storskär