Stromness Whaling Station
Stromness Whaling Station
Stromness is an abandoned whaling station located on the north coast of South Georgia. The shore station was built in 1912 to augment the floating factory facilities, which were established 5 years earlier in 1907. Sandefjord Whaling Co, the Southern Whaling and Sealing Company and the Vestfold Whaling Company operated the station until 1931, when it was converted for use as a major ship repair yard, operated by the South Georgia Company of Leith. Operations ceased at Stromness in 1961 and the station buildings fell into disuse.
Stromness is connected to the story of Sir Ernest Shackleton and the Endurance Expedition through the events of 1916. When the crew of Endurance found themselves stranded on Elephant Island after their ship was crushed in ice and had to make for the nearest land, they realised that their only chance of survival was to try to reach South Georgia and its whaling stations. After a perilous 17-day voyage, the James Caird reached the shores of South Georgia’s southern coast, landing at King Haakon Bay. However, this was on the opposite side of the island to the whaling stations. Shackleton, Worsley and Crean decided to attempt to cross the island on foot, leaving McCarthy, McNish and Vincent sheltering under the up-turned lifeboat.
It took the three 36 hours non-stop to traverse South Georgia’s uncharted interior of mountains, glaciers and crevasses. Hearing the welcome sound of the whistle of Stromness Whaling Station, they descended and made their way to Manager’s Villa, conscious of their tattered clothes and bearded faces black from blubber smoke, which sent youngsters running at the sight of them. Thoralf Sørlle, the station manager, did not recognise them as they stood on the doorstep of the Villa. “Who the hell are you” he asked. “My name is Shackleton and we have lost our ship and come over the island” replied Shackleton. Sørlle then offered them boundless hospitality and assistance, including a hot bath, which Worsley described as ‘worth all that we had been through to get’. With the help of the whalers, McCarthy, McNish and Vincent were rescued the following morning, and after numerous attempts, the remaining men on Elephant Island in August 1916. The entire crew of the Endurance had survived their ordeal.
Today the station complex itself is not safe to enter due to the advanced state of structural collapse and risk of exposure to airborne asbestos fibres. Public access to the site and station buildings is prohibited by law by the Prohibited Areas Order 2010 in order to prevent accidental injury or exposure to asbestos.
Stromness Bay itself remains a popular visitor site and visitors are able to undertake the last section of the Shackleton walk and cross into the Stromness valley from Fortuna Bay. From a vantage point above the station, or from the water’s edge, it’s possible to view the station complex and get a sense of what life may have been like for the whalers, as well as to and imagine the relief felt by Shackleton as he arrived at the Managers Villa.
In November 2022 the UK charity the South Georgia Heritage Trust (SGHT) sent a team, which included volunteer craftsmen from Norway, to survey the whaling station at Stromness, including the Managers’ Villa. The charity hopes to undertake work in the near future to prevent further degradation of the building, in consultation with the Government of South Georgia & the South Sandwich Islands.
SGHT, in partnership with the US charity Friends of South Georgia Island (FOSGI), has commenced a fundraising campaign to conserve the Villa for future generations. By purchasing this special set of stamps or first day cover, you are contributing to efforts to preserve the Villa and Shackleton's heritage on South Georgia.