Second Generation

In The meantime, the second generation of the Wijsmuller family had grown up, altough the family was no longer connected with the business. The five sons of captain Jan Wijsmuller had all obtained their certificates at the Nautical School in Amsterdam and gained experience on the seven seas in the service of some famous shipping lines. History was about to repeat itself. Shortly after the war, following in there fathers footsteps, they founded their own ship delivery company, the Rederij Gebr. Wijsmuller NV at Baarn. The five brothers directed the transports themselfs and in a short time had earned a reputation for reliability and promptness.

The way the rederij Gebr. Wijsmuller NV was managed was so impressive that in 1955 the stockholders of Bureau Wijsmuller NV asked John F. Wijsmuller to take over the leadership of the company his father had started 50 years earlier. At that time the fleet comprized the tugs "Noord-Holland" (2,600 ihp), "Cycloop"(1,200 ihp), three old coastal tugs, each of 600 ihp, and the new "Titan" and "Friesland" (which was still under construction).

The "Stentor"(I) In the background the headoffice of Bureau Wijsmuller NV (in circle)

The Wijsmuller fleet at IJmuiden in 1955, in the background the "Noord-Holland" alongside the
"Stentor"(I) and the "Hector"(II) in front the "Nestor" alongside the "Cycloop"

An offshore drilling platform towed by the "Noord-Holland" from New Orleans to the Persian Gulf.
A voyage of 10.000 miles trough the Atlantic and the Suez Canal. The platform arrived without any
damage at the beginning of 1958 after a voyage of 117 days.

The "Cycloop"leaving IJmuiden onto the North Sea

The "Titan" in her element on the high seas

One of John Wijsmuller's very first acts was the purchase of the tug "Zeeland" in June that same year. With this 2,500 ihp tug he could be shure that any havy job need to be turned away. In December 1957, another son, Arthur Wijsmuller joined the company as a joint managing director. Both brothers worked with great energy and resourcefulness to carry trough a newbuilding programme that would give the company a new image. In 1960 they bought the 2,600 ihp "Joseph Moran", built in 1943, and renamed her "Utrecht".

The "Zeeland"(III), ex "Pan America" 1942, joined the Wijsmuller fleet in 1956

The "Zeeland" left New Orleans on a trip to Italy late in 1958. The tow met heavy weather in the
Atlantic, but the drilling platform, arrived safely at Likata, Sicily, after a voyageof 6000 miles

October 1957, the tugs "Stentor and "Hector" under steam, ready to leave IJmuiden for the
last time, both tugs are sold to the Societa Esercizio Rimorchi e Salvataggi, Ravenna, Italia

The "Utrecht" ex "Joseph H. Moran" 1943 joined the Wijsmuller fleet in 1960