The Fleets
The official name of this company was Dampfschiffs-Rhederei Hansa (not to be mistaken with Deutsche Dampfschifffahrts-Gesellschaft "Hansa"). This company was registered in Hamburg in 1881 and started its first voyage, Hamburg, Antwerp, Quebec, in August of 1883. The next year they added services to Halifax and Boston. In 1891 a New Orleans service was added.
By 1891 the company was running 20 summer sailings a year to Quebec and Montreal, plus seven winter sailings to Halifax and Boston, one to New York and four to Boston. In March 1892 the Hansa steamers and goodwill were sold to Hamburg America Line and the ships renamed. The Hamburg / Antwerp - Quebec - Montreal service continued and the name 'Hansa Line' was retained, but it was essentially part of Hamburg America Line.
Hansa worked in cooperation with the Canadian Pacific Railway offering passage and rail service to various parts of the United States through Canada.
Many thanks to Ted Finch for his assistance in collecting this data. The following list was extracted from various sources. This is not an all inclusive list but should only be used as a guide.
Ships
| Name | Built | Additional Information | GRT |
|---|---|---|---|
| Baumwall (1) | 1883 | 1889 sold to de Freitas, renamed Lusitania. | 1,629 |
| Baumwall (2) | 1890 | 1892 sold to Hamburg America Line, 1894 renamed Christiania. | 2,811 |
| Cassius | 1881 | 1890, chartered from C. Anderson, Hamburg for 3 round voyages. | 2,449 |
| Cremon | 1871 | ex- Bahia 1887 purchased from Hamburg Sud Amerika Line renamed Cremon, 1892 sold to Hamburg America Line, 1894 renamed Dalmatia. | 1,949 |
| Grasbrook | 1882 | 1892 sold to Hamburg America Line, 1894 renamed Dalecarlia. | 1,922 |
| Grimm | 1890 | 1892 sold to HAL, 1894 renamed Scotia. | 2,558 |
| Kehrwieder | 1871 | ex- Vandalia, 1884 purchased from Hamburg America Line, renamed Kehrweider. 1894 taken over by Hamburg America Line with Hansa fleet, 1895 renamed Polonia, 1897 sold and scrapped. | 2,810 |
| Pickhuben | 1890 | 1892 sold to HAL, 1895 renamed Georgia. | 3,143 |
| Steinhoft | 1889 | 1892 sold to HAL, 1894 renamed Canadia. | 2,404 |
| Stubbenhuk | 1890 | 1892 sold to HAL, 1894 renamed Sicilia. | 2,922 |
| Vorsetzen | 1881 | 1885 went missing in North Atlantic; loss of 40 lives. | 1,715 |
| Wandrahm (1) | 1881 | 1890 sold to de Freitas, renamed Venezia. | 1,666 |
| Wandrahm (2) | 1890 | 1892 sold to HAL, 1894 renamed Hispania. | 2,578 |