The story of Sjöbjörn
In the late 1940s, a group of Kökar residents who worked together to buy and sell fish needed a new boat. The fish storage boat, the sump, they used was old and no longer reliable. During their last trip, the rudder shaft, which held the steering wheel, broke in the middle of the open water in the Kihti sea area.
The cooperative needed to purchase a new boat. They conducted a search and found a nearly new sump. The seller, a fish buyer from Uusikaupunki, was looking to sell the boat, which he had ordered from the shipyard in Uusikaupunki a few years ago. The boat was built in 1947.
The newly purchased boat, Sjöbjörn, was bought for a significant amount of money. It featured large fish cabinets, a cabin, and a toilet, making it a modern sump. The loan taken to buy the boat was substantial and needed to be repaid within ten years, so there was no time to be lazy now.
Captain Alf Westerberg drove around the Kökar archipelago, and the fishermen came up alongside Sjöbjörn with their fishing boats. They showed their catch, which included whitefish, pike, and other fish.
The fish were quality assessed and weighed, and then the fishermen were paid over the railing for their catch. The fish were then placed alive in the fish sump, which had holes in the bottom of the boat so that the fish could be transported alive to Turku and delivered fresh to the people in the city.
At most, there were two weekly tours between Kökar and Turku. Residents of Kökar would accompany these trips if they had any errands in town.
On the return trip, goods were transported to Kökar’s store, which allowed the store to maintain a large assortment and offer the goods at a much cheaper price compared to shipping them via the larger boats passing outside Kökar at that time.
The fishing co-op found the loan to be a heavy burden, so they decided to come up with a new plan. In the past, meat buyers would visit the island and purchase beef from the residents, In those days, there was a cow in almost every household. However, the buyers would typically offer low prices for the animals.
To improve their situation, the co-op established a slaughterhouse in Kökar where the animals could be killed. The meat was then transported to Turku and sold directly to meat shops.
This way, the residents of Kökar received higher payment for their meat, and the fishing co-op earned more for transporting the meat to Turku. This new scheme benefited everyone involved.
Continuation
Later on, however, the amount of fish decreased, and the Åland County Administrative Board began to run daily car ferry tours in the 1960s. Sjöbjörn’s function changed and Per Sundberg from Karlby now purchased Sjöbjörn. The boat was then used to transport herring, traveling west to Föglö and the fish farms in that area.
The Sjöbjörn was extensively used as a freighter boat. In 1974, after 27 years of service, Sjöbjörn was due for some rest. It was laid up here on the cliffs of Sandvik and remains here today as an important memory of what life in the archipelago was like in the past.
Facts:
Year of construction: 1947, Sjöbjörn had 6 sister boats
Length: 12 meters
Width: 4 meters
Engine: single cylinder Wikström, 25 Hp
Loadability: all that it held.
Sjöbjörn’s first motor is in Kökar museum’s boat hall. Visit the Museum and learn more about Kökar’s unique history.
Sjöbjörn “1” was split in half and sold. The stern was turned into firewood and the bow was laid up on an islet in the archipelago and used as a fishing hut.
