House Flags of German Shipping Companies (h) - part 2

Deutsche Reedereiflaggen (h) Teil 2

Last modified: 2015-05-18 by klaus-michael schneider
Keywords: heidmann | heins(john) | helgoline | helmsing grimm | hempel | hemsoth | hennig | henning | hernsheim | hertz soehne | heyne hessenmueller | hiddensee reederei | hintze | hirdes | hirschberg | hiss | hoesch | hoeveling | hoffmann(wulf) |
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• Philipp Hebel
• H.W. Heidmann
• Petra Heinrich
• John Heins
• Helgoline
• Reederei Peter Helle
• Helmsing & Grimm
• F.W. Hempel
• Wilhelm Hemsoth
• Jorg Hennig
• Hedwig Henning
• Hernsheim & Co
• A.J. Hertz Söhne
• C.W. Herwig
• Reederei Klaus Hesse
• Heyne & Hessenmüller
• Reederei Hiddensee
• Jean Hintze
• Heinrich Hirdes
• Carl Hirschberg
• Peter Hiss
• Hoesch Reederei
• E. v. Höveling & Meyer
• Wulf Hoffmann
• Willi Holm
• Holm & Molzen
• Fr. Holst & Co
• H. Holst
• Holsten Reederei Lehnt
• Eduard Holtzapfel
• Philipp Holzmann
• Alfred Homuth
• Bernhard Howaldt

• House Flags of German Shipping Companies
• House Flags of Shipping Companies
• Germany

Philipp Hebel

'Philipp Hebel GmbH & Co. KG' at Boppard is one of many (German) tourist shipping companies on the Rhine. Situated on the left bank of that river, between Koblenz (Coblentz) and Bingen, Boppard is quite near the famous rock where the river nymph Loreley sat and sang - as we know, to the great detriment of inland navigation. Take a look to company website, German only.
Not much history on the site except that the firm has been active "for more than 111 years" and that the current owners, the Noll family, descend from the founder which I take to have been Philipp Hebel.
Three ships ply the Rhine, offering simple or combined trips on that river or on its tributary, Mosel. As usual, theme outings and special trips are on the menu as well. The page dedicated to vessel RHEINKRONE (i.e. Rhinecrown) has a number of clickable photos the last but one of which shows the house flag here.
We see a white flag with large green horizontal edges (1:2:1), in the centre a picture of a tourist ship sailing towards us - apparently done in green outline - plus initials P. and H. (in black?) left and right of what seems the vessel's funnel.
Jan Mertens, 20 Aug 2007

H.W. Heidmann

The flag is simple and clear: a white cloth with two black "H" that share a common leg. But the caption is a nightmare. Speculating a lot, I could say it's something like "H. W. Hremans". Let's hope it pops up in some other source.
Jorge Candeias, 3 Dec 2004

It's No. 588 in the on-line 1912 Lloyds Flags & Funnels: 'H.W. Heidmann, Hamburg'.
Jan Mertens, 4 Dec 2004

Petra Heinrich KG

The company is located in Jork (Stade county). The flag is divided per saltire into blue (top), green(bottom) and white (hoist and fly). The white quarters are bearing a black initial "H" each. A red lighthouse coming from the bottom edge is in the centre of the flag.
For further information click: www.reederei-heinrich.de
Source: Verband Deutscher Reeder homepage
Klaus-Michael Schneider, 12 Jul 2012

John Heins

John Heins - The company used a red over yellow pennant superimposed by a black serifed capital "H" shifted to the hoist.
Source: Jürgen Meyer: "Hamburger Segelschiffe von 1795-1945"; ISBN 3-89225-400-1; Hamburg 1999; inside cover.
Klaus-Michael Schneider, 2 Apr 2007

Helgoline

According to Josef Nüsse the company is/was located in Flensburg. According to the company website the line belongs to FRS group. Helgoline runs a line from Hamburg to Helgoland with stops in Wedel and Cuxhaven. The company has two vessels: 1) classic MS "ATLANTIS" and 2) speed catamaran HSC "HALUNDER JET". (Halunder is the local version of the Frisian language spoken on the island of Helgoland.)
Description of flag:
It is a green over white over red over white flag. The red part is narrow at the hoist and opens like a funnel to the hoist side. In the white part at the bottom is an inscription in italic: "Helgo(geen, bold)line"(red). In the green part at the fly is a white flying bird with a y-shaped tail, perhaps an albatros. For further information click:company's webpage
Source: I spotted this flag in the harbour area of Hamburg on 10 January 2012.
Klaus-Michael Schneider, 6 Apr 2012

Reederei Peter Helle

It is a tourist ship company. The white flag has a light blue wave in the centre partially superimposing a red inscription "ERLEBNIS" above, and superimposing a blue inscription "FAHRTEN" below. Beneath the ensemble is a light blue inscription showing the company's name.
Source: I spotted this flag at Lauenburg ferry terminal on 12 July 2007
Klaus-Michael Schneider, 18 Jul 2012

Helmsing & Grimm

Helmsing & Grimm G.m.b.H. & Co., Hamburg; white burgee, blue disk.
Image after Brown's Flags and Funnels Shipping Companies of the World, compiled by J.L. Loughran, Glasgow, 1995 [lgr95]
Jarig Bakker, 30 Sep 2005

F.W. Hempel

F.W. Hempel  Schiffahrtsges. mbH
The company was located in Bremen. It is a white flag divided by a red centred cross. In its centre is a white diamond with red edges, which are fimbriated blue. The diamond contains a black capital ?H?.
Source: "Flaggen, Schornsteine, Reedereien- Flaggen und Schornsteine der deutschen Reedereien und ihre Schiffe über 300 BRT"; Hamburg 1957; p.F13.
Klaus-Michael Schneider, 11 Apr 2009

Wilhelm Hemsoth

Wilhelm Hemsoth, Hamburg - white flag, tapered blue saltire, in center yellow disk with two black hammers in saltire; in white top and bottom black "WH".
Image after Brown's Flags and Funnels of British and Foreign Steamship Companies, compiled by F.J.N. Wedge, Glasgow, 1926 [wed26]
Jarig Bakker, 7 Feb 2005

Jorg Hennig

Jorg Hennig Bereederungs und Schiffahrts K.G., Duisburg - green flag, white "H".
Image after Brown's Flags and Funnels Shipping Companies of the World, compiled by J.L. Loughran, Glasgow, 1995 [lgr95]
Jarig Bakker, 17 Dec 2005

Hedwig Henning

Hedwig Henning
The company was located in Hamburg. It is a green over red over white horizontal tricolour. In its centre is a black upright lozenge containing a white capital ?H?, which is superimposed by a red capital ?J? of double height.
Source: "Flaggen, Schornsteine, Reedereien- Flaggen und Schornsteine der deutschen Reedereien und ihre Schiffe über 300 BRT"; Hamburg 1957; p.F13.
Klaus-Michael Schneider, 11 Apr 2009

Hernsheim & Co

It was a red flag with a white inscription "H & C".
Source: Flaggenkarte, Hrsg.: H. Carly, Hamburg, c.1898
Klaus-Michael Schneider, 22 Jun 2012

A.J. Hertz Söhne

A.J.Hertz Söhne - The flag shows a white Hamburg-gate in a red heart ("Hertz" = heart) in a blue heart in a white flag.
Source: Jürgen Meyer: "Hamburger Segelschiffe von 1795-1945"; ISBN 3-89225-400-1; Hamburg 1999; inside cover.
Klaus-Michael Schneider, 23 Mar 2007

C.W. Herwig

According to source Hamburg shipowners register provides evidence of the company's existence at least from 1859 until 1874. It is a white flag divided by a white lozenge containing a white initial "H". All elements are separated by thin black lines. (maybe in this case the application of Petra Sancta code has been forgotten).
Source: Otto Mathies: "Hamburgs Reederei 1814 - 1914", Hamburg 1924, p.33
Klaus-Michael Schneider, 9 Jul 2012

Reederei Klaus Hesse

Heyne & Hessenmüller

Jorge Candeias wrote: "The flag is relatively clear if we except the central element: consists ofa yellow saltire on blue, with a large disc in the center, containing what seems to be blue letters: the large one is clearly an H, but there seems to be another, smaller, H above it and what looks like an inverted question mark below it."

A difficult one this, even if we saw enough of the flag to realize it must have been rather a striking one.  In the event Jörg?s source identifies it as belonging to Heyne & Hessenmüller: Yellow saltire and yellow disk on a blue field (would at least the disk have had a black outline?), the disk bearing a large black initial ?H? between a smaller one above and an ampersand below, all black.  The letters are serifed.

There are slight traces on the web, for instance, H&H sold a ship to the Yeoward Line in 1904 (The Ships List), another one was bought in 1900 (Warsailors).  Not very much to go on, as yet.
Jan Mertens, 19 Dec 2006

Reederei Hiddensee

Blue flag with a wide red stripe, fimbriated white, from bottom hoist to top fly, bearing a white anchor. On the top hoist a white letter 'R', on the bottom fly a white letter 'H'.
Santiago Dotor, 17 May 2005

Jean Hintze

Jean Hintze - This company used a black flag with a white rhomb with red serifed capital letters "JH".
Source: Jürgen Meyer: "Hamburger Segelschiffe von 1795-1945"; ISBN 3-89225-400-1; Hamburg 1999; inside cover.
Klaus-Michael Schneider, 22 Mar 2007

Heinrich Hirdes

Sara Townsley asked: This flag is located on a main road in a rural area in Baden-Wurttemburg, Germany. It has three horizontal stripes: white on the top, white on the bottom, and black across the middle. In the black field, "HH" is in large white letters. It's flying from a pole at the entrance to an agricultural business, whose name does not contain any Hs.
Sara Townsley, 27 Mar 2006

This flag is the houseflag of the Heinrich Hirdes GmbH founded 1912 in Duisburg. This company still exists (now in Hamburg), see this website.
Jörg M. Karaschewski, 30 Mar 2006

Variant with evenly spaced initials

A life-sized item may be seen (clickable photo): here. With all due respect - the initials should be somewhat fatter and evenly spaced rather than put closely together.
Source: table flag offered on German eBay: this was no. 350097526989 (end 21 Sep 2008) put up by "sibo2002"
Jan Mertens, 5 May 2011

Carl Hirschberg

It is an 11-stripes flag divided vertically by alternating blue and white stripes. In the centre is a red lozenge containing white capitals "CH". The company was located in Hamburg.
Sources: Gratis Beilage zu Deicken und Behrmann's Neuen Monatsheften Neue Ausgabe Sommer 1897, information cofirmed by Lloyds 1912 , flag no.935
Klaus-Michael Schneider, 24 Apr 2012

Peter Hiss

Peter Hiss
The company was located in Burgstaaken / Isle of Fehmarn. It is awhite flag with a dark blue capital "H" in its centre.
Source: "Flaggen, Schornsteine, Reedereien- Flaggen und Schornsteine der deutschen Reedereien und ihre Schiffe über 300 BRT"; Hamburg 1957; p.F13
Klaus-Michael Schneider, 11 Apr 2009

Hoesch Reederei

I have found only one trace of this elusive firm, ?Hoesch Reederei GmbH? established at Dortmund or Ruhrort according to the Dutch 'Binnenvaart' site. (photo showing (part of) the house flag on 'Mosel', built for Hoesch in 1944). Once a motor tug, the erstwhile "HOESCH 1" was built in 1940, sold in 1952, and re-acquired under the same name by Hoesch in 1956.  Sold definitively in 1969 to be rebuilt as the passenger ship "PATRIA" shown on the photo.

So an inland towage firm by the name of Hoesch was active at least between 1940 and 1969 ? not much information to go by but this is all I could find and so am wholly indebted to Binnenvaart.
(There is of course the well-known steel company Hoesch, now a part of ThyssenKrupp, but whether there is a connection is another question.)

The house flag: horizontally divided white-orange etc., five stripes in all, and a small white canton, thinly bordered in black where it touches the stripes, containing a ?Fraktur? initial ?h? within a black ring.
Jan Mertens, 30 Aug 2006

Yes, there is a connection with the steel-concern - see this page presenting 73-year old Marlies Berndsen, a volunteer working for the Hoesch Museum in Dortmund, more especially the title "Wahres Symbol" (true symbol) and the accompanying photo showing the ringed initial.
That 'h' however is no longer the company symbol...  Quoting Ms Berndsen (translated): "To the old Hoeschians the gothic 'H' will always be the only true symbol of Hoesch - and to me in any case".
Incidentally, it is not an upper case 'H' as evidenced by the Fraktur ("Gothic" script) table available in dictionaries and the like.
Concerning the shipping company, I now realize that it was already mentioned in the 6 June 2006 message concerning WTAG, as being one of the founding firms in 1899.
Logically, Hoesch must have broken away (if that is not too strong a term) sometime between 1899 and 1940, first trace I found of a vessel in operation.
Jan Mertens, 31 Aug 2006

E. v. Höveling & Meyer

In the centre of the red flag is a white 5-point star containing a blue capital "H".
Source: Gratis Beilage zu Deicken und Behrmann's Neuen Monatsheften Neue Ausgabe Sommer 1897
Klaus-Michael Schneider and Jörg M. Karaschewski, 29 May 2012

Wulf Hoffmann

Wulf Hoffmann, Hamburg - blue flag with 4 white horizontal stripes a varying height; in center sort of white "WH".
Image after Brown's Flags and Funnels Shipping Companies of the World, compiled by J.L. Loughran, Glasgow, 1995 [lgr95]
Jarig Bakker, 17 Dec 2005

Willi Holm

Willi Holm
The company was located in Moorrege (Pinneberg county). It is a blue flag with a red lozenge, containing a white capital "H" in its centre. The lozenge is touching the edges.
Source: "Flaggen, Schornsteine, Reedereien- Flaggen und Schornsteine der deutschen Reedereien und ihre Schiffe über 300 BRT"; Hamburg 1957; p.F13
Klaus-Michael Schneider, 11 Apr 2009

Holm & Molzen

Holm & Molzen, Flensburg - blue flag, white 7-pointed star
Image after Brown's Flags and Funnels of British and Foreign Steamship Companies, compiled by F.J.N. Wedge, Glasgow, 1926 [wed26]
Jarig Bakker, 7 Feb 2005

Fr. Holst & Co

It was red over black over red horizontal triband, shaped as a swallow tail pennant. In the black stripe was a white inscription "Fr.H.&Co.".
Source: Gratis Beilage zu Deicken und Behrmann's Neuen Monatsheften Neue Ausgabe Sommer 1897
Klaus-Michael Schneider, 13 May 2012

H. Holst

The company was located in Bützfleth. It is a blue flag with two white capital "H"s.
Source: "Flaggen, Schornsteine, Reedereien- Flaggen und Schornsteine der deutschen Reedereien und ihre Schiffe über 300 BRT"; Hamburg 1957; p.F13
Klaus-Michael Schneider, 11 Apr 2009

Holsten Reederei Lehnt

Holsten Reederei Lehnt & Co
The company was located in Kiel. The flag is derived from that one of Schleswig-Holstein, a blue over white over red horizontal tricolour, but superimposed by a big, black, capital, serifed "H" fimbriated yellow.
Source: "Deutsche Reedereien und ihre Erkennungszeichen"; 2nd ed.; Hamburg; 1956; p.23
Klaus-Michael Schneider, 4 Apr 2009

Eduard Holtzapfel

Eduard Holtzapfel - The company existed from 1889 til 1912, when Holtzapfel gave up. The company used a white flag with red stripes on either edge. The white field had a small blue canton with a white shield showing a branch with three wild apples (germ.: Holzäpfel). The red inscription "E.H." is shifted to the fly.
Source: Jürgen Meyer: "Hamburger Segelschiffe von 1795-1945"; ISBN 3-89225-400-1; Hamburg 1999; p.153-154.
Klaus-Michael Schneider, 5 Apr 2007

Philipp Holzmann

The last flag in the brochure "Ausbau des Rheins" I can "with any degree of certainty" determine is that of Philipp Holzmann AG, established at Koblenz (Coblentz) and Frankfurt.  On the inside cover is shown the company logo.
A rectangular red flag bearing this white logo a stylized initial "H" with curved, tunnel-like, underside flies on the dredger "Ajax", busy scooping up rock and loading it into a barge floating nearby: picture p. 21.
Philipp Holzmann is listed as a constructor of breakwaters and dredging company (rock removal and filling up holes in the riverbed) at various points along the Rhine during the years 1965-78.
As I remember, this important and prestigious firm ran into difficulties not even Chanchellor Schröding could solve.   There is a good Wikipedia article in German: but the English ?translation? by Google made my day, describing the adventures of the "wood man".  Seriously, see this BBC News article dated 25 Nov. 1999, ?Schroeder saves Holzmann?: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/535716.stm
It was not to be, the company went broke in the spring of 2002.  I recall seeing above flag on the news, admiring the design.   For a time at least, it had its place among the (inland) house flags of the world...
Jan Mertens, 22 Apr 2007

Alfred Homuth

Alfred Homuth G.m.b.H. - The company was founded by Captain Alfred Homuth in 1919 and existed at least until 1927. The company used a green flag with a white diamond with red serifed dotted capital letters "A.H."
Source: Jürgen Meyer: "Hamburger Segelschiffe von 1795-1945" ;ISBN 3-89225-400-1; Hamburg 1999; p.218f-219.
Klaus-Michael Schneider, 22 Mar 2007

Bernhard Howaldt

Bernhard Howaldt
The company was located in Hamburg. It is a light blue flag with a white lozenge and a red "H" upon the lozenge.
Source: "Deutsche Reedereien und ihre Erkennungszeichen"; 2nd ed.; Hamburg 1956; p.23
Klaus-Michael Schneider, 29 Mar 2009

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