Dimension: 345ft x 37.3ft
Burden: 2,554 gross
Construction: 1873 by Gourlay & Co.
Accommodation for thirty saloon and 650 steerage passengers.

1873 March 29, launched
1873 May 10, maiden voyage Liverpool - Philadelphia as charter for the Red Star Line
1874 March 11, first voyage Liverpool - Philadelphia for American Line
1874 November 24, the Abbotsford collided with the SS Indus on the way to New York from Antwerp. Repairs were made in London, England. That same year, small pox broke out on the ship forcing the hospitalization of 8 passengers with the other passengers sent to Liverpool.
1875 January 7: A machinery failure disabled the Abbotsford while easterly bound and she was taken in tow by the SS Pennsylvania. A slight collision occurred in towing.
1875 July 21: the Abbotsford hit the shoreline on the way from Queenstown, Ireland to Liverpool in Cummons Bay, Anglesey off Wales. Passengers were landed within 30 minutes and lodged at Amlwch.
1875 Jan. 20: The S/S Manhattan of the Guion Line departed Liverpool as a replacement for the Abbotsford (for one voyage)
1875 July 23: The Abbotsford struck a rock, penetrating the hull. She eventually sank and was replaced in service by the SS City of Limerick.


Testimonies

"We know that about 400 Mennonites were on the Abbotsford (Herald of Truth, Dec., 1874, reprinted in Brothers in Deed to Brothers in Need, p. 197), but at this point I am not exactly sure who they were. It is quite possible that the Mennonites on the Abbotsford disembarked in Liverpool and came later on the Kenilworth and Illinois which came from Liverpool as those two ships carried a total of about 400 Mennonite s. If this was the case then the Abbotsford wouldn't have actually brought any Mennonites to the U. S. I have located many Volhynian Mennonites in the Grandma database for whom I can not find corresponding list information. I would be interested in hearing from anyone who knows of a list for the Abbotsford or for any other ship which carried Volhynian Mennonites of Low German ancestry to the U. S.

I can't locate your ancestor Elise Koehn in any of the above lists or in the Grandma database. There are quite a few men named Benjamin Koehn in the Grandma database and it is difficult to know which one of them might have been the father of your ancestor Elise Koehn. Do you have any genealogical data on her uncle and aunt Christian and Marie (Krehbiel) Koehn? If so, that might help in identifying exactly who her father was. Sincerely,


Tim Janzen
12367 SE Ridgecrest Rd.
Portland, OR 97236
E-mail: Janzen@pacinter.net
Mennonite genealogy resources web site: http://www.pacinter.net/users/janzen/ "