The ship was owned by the shipowner Mons (Mogens) Thorsen of Kristiania (Oslo). It was primarily used for transporting salt from Spanish ports in the Mediterranean to Northern Europe, and timber from Northern Europe in the opposite direction. In both 1853 and 1854, the ship had carried salt from Spain to Northern Europe on the voyages preceding its departure with emigrants. After the cargo was unloaded, the ship was fitted with temporary berths for 184 persons arranged longitudinally, which was considered more comfortable than on ships where the berths were arranged transversely.
The ship’s captain was John Mathiesen from 1848 to 1855. From December 1855, the captain was J. A. Hansen. From 1857 onward, the ship was commanded by Captain Andersen and made many voyages between Torrevieja carrying salt and Baltic ports carrying timber, often with stops at English and French ports along the way. On March 23, 1863, the ship was wrecked off the coast of Jutland, Denmark, near Skagen, while en route from Torrevieja to Norrköping, Sweden, with a cargo of salt. The crew of 13 was rescued.
Statement by the passengers in 1853:
We, the passengers aboard the ship Zephyr from Christiania to New York, cannot adequately express our sincere gratitude for the humanity, kindness, and care with which we were treated throughout the voyage, both by the ship’s captain, Mathiesen, and by the mate and crew. Having now arrived safely and in good health at our destination, without any deaths or illness on board, we consider it our duty, both to ourselves and to our fellow countrymen in Norway, to make this known publicly. In every respect, we were fully satisfied with the ship and its accommodations. We therefore recommend the ship Zephyr as an excellent vessel for Norwegian emigrants making the journey to America. May God watch over the ship Zephyr and its esteemed captain. We kindly ask the editors of Morgenbladet to publish this statement in their respected newspaper and to note that it is printed from the original manuscript.
New-York 8th June, 1853.
G. Christophersen, Foreman.
[Morgenbladet, 7th July, 1853]
