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House Flags of German Shipping Companies (o)

Other "O" companies:

See also:

Oeltrans AG

image by Eugene Ipavec, 10 Sep 2006

Another German firm about which little is known, but as they have a flag... To begin with, I am not certain whether this firm is a subsidiary of the Swiss Oeltrans AG (or "oeltrans") at Interlaken, as the logo and company colours are quite different. And the name is a rather general one (?oiltrans?).

In any case there is an ?Oeltrans Befrachtungsgesellschaft (?freighting company?) mbH? in Hamburg maintaining a modest web presence.
With three other firms (Tankfracht, Max S?tje, and QS-Management), Oeltrans operates 64 tanker vessels active in Germany, the Netherlands, and the Amsterdam-Rotterdam-Antwerp harbour area. Various kinds of mineral oil are shipped.

The logo on above website is also found on a flag, offered on German eBay (end date 9 June 2006, item no. 6286196904). On the lower half of a green field is placed the company logo consisting of the name in white lower case letters, the ?e? of which is surrounded by a black ring (name of font unknown to me).
Jan Mertens, 2 Jul 2006

Rudolf August Oetker KG

image by Klaus-Michael Schneider, 18 May 2007

Rudolf August Oetker KG is not a special shipping company but the holding that controls besides others e.g. the Hamburg-Süd-Allianca shipping company. The company is located in Hamburg Pelzerstraße 9-13.
The houseflag is hoisted together with those of Hamburg-Süd and Allianca (version 1993). The Hamburg-Süd-Allianca seems to have no flag of its own.
Oetker, the founder of the company began in 19th century as a chemist in Bielefeld (Westphalia). I believe that he invented baking-powder. Afterwards he made big business with puddings. The company increased one by one to a global player in food section (pudding, instant meals, sparkling wine, breweries) and non food section(e.g. shipping companies, logistics).
Description of flag: The flag is white over red divided per bend sinister and superimposed by black serifed capital letters "RAO".
I spotted this flag on 16 March 2007 in Hamburg on top of companies office.
Klaus-Michael Schneider, 18 May 2007

Oetling Gebrüder

image by Klaus-Michael Schneider, 22 Mar 2007

Oetling Gebrüder - The company used a white flag with black serifed capital letters "OG".
Source: Jürgen Meyer: "Hamburger Segelschiffe von 1795-1945"; ISBN 3-89225-400-1; Hamburg 1999; cover inside.
Klaus-Michael Schneider, 22 Mar 2007

Emil Offen

image by Jarig Bakker, 11 Sep 2004

On the German vexlist Jörg Karaschewski asked whether someone knew a flag offered for sale at the German Ebay - which according to the vendor is a flag probably used between the end of the Reichswehr and the beginning of the Wehrmacht; because the flag has no forbidden emblems on it it is safe to buy it from 200 Euro on. Within an hour Mr. Karaschewski corrected himself: it was just the houseflag of Hanseatischen Reederei Emil Offen & Co. Hamburg. <Nun habe ich mich doch von diesem blödsinnigen Wehrmachtsgesabbel in die Irre führen lassen. - fooled again by 'em idiots talking 'bout Wehrmacht, &c>.
Jarig Bakker, 11 Sep 2004

It may be added that the vendor of the flag alludes to some sort of a Wehrmacht marking which can be discerned slightly on the photo. Jörg Karaschewski supposes that it was added to increase the price, "a finger exercise of a vexillologist" he writes. A hint to be generally suspicious about imprints on historical flags until their
authenticity is clarified. Although the colloquial term "Gesabbel" is used exclusively in Germany, I suppose it refers here more to the imprint on the flag (scribbling, scrawniness) than to the vendor's descriptions?
Martin Karner, 12 Sep 2004

Klaus Peter Offen

image by Jarig Bakker, 27 Sep 2005

Klaus Peter Offen K.G. Reederei, Hamburg - 5 horizontal stripes of blue and white, proportioned c. 2:1:6:1:2 - in center a widened cross formy.
Image after Brown's Flags and Funnels Shipping Companies of the World, compiled by J.L. Loughran, Glasgow, 1995 [lgr95]
Jarig Bakker, 27 Sep 2005

Offshore Supply Association

image by Jarig Bakker, 22 Feb 2006

Offshore Supply Association, Bremen - white flag, blue circle, black "osa" over blue wavy stripe.
Image after Brown's Flags and Funnels Shipping Companies of the World, compiled by J.L. Loughran, Glasgow, 1995 [lgr95]
Jarig Bakker, 22 Feb 2006

Egon Oldendorf

image by Jorge Candeias

Blue flag with large white letters 'EO' in a sans-serif font.
Santiago Dotor, 10 May 2005

D. Oltmann & Co.

image by Jarig Bakker, 27 Nov 2005

D. Oltmann & Co., K.G., Bremen - blue flag, white diamond, red "O".
Image after Brown's Flags and Funnels Shipping Companies of the World, compiled by J.L. Loughran, Glasgow, 1995 [lgr95]
Jarig Bakker, 27 Nov 2005

Gerhard Oltmann

image by Jarig Bakker, 9 Nov 2005

Reederei Ges(chwister?) Gerhard Oltmann K.G., Drochtersen - yellow over white with several concentric diamonds, blue "O".
Image after Brown's Flags and Funnels Shipping Companies of the World, compiled by J.L. Loughran, Glasgow, 1995 [lgr95]
Jarig Bakker, 9 Nov 2005

Orion Bulkers

image by Klaus-Michael Schneider, 19 May 2007

Orion Bulkers GmbH & Co. KG (Shipping Company, Germany), formerly Orion Schiffahrts-Gesellschaft Reith & Co. GmbH - White saltire on dark red a white vertical oval centered, charged with a black 'O'.
Jorge Candeias, 21 Mar 1999

"Orion" Schifffahrts-Gesellschaft - The flag is nearly the same as that one already depicted but the background is simply red.
Source: Announcement of sponsoring on a museum-ticket.
Klaus-Michael Schneider, 19 May 2007

William O'Swald and Co

image by Klaus-Michael Schneider, 13 Apr 2007

William O'Swald and Co. - The company was established in 1824 bei William O'Swald. His son William Henry O'Swald was born on 24 April 1832 in Hamburg. He became member of the board of the company, which was specialized in trade with Eastern Africa, in 1859. Earlier before he led the branches of his fathers company in Zanzibar, Lagos and Palma. In 1859 he signed a treaty between the cities of Hamburg, Lübeck and Bremen and the Sultan of Zanzibar, which had great influence in interior eastern Africa then.
O'Swald was for a certain time also honorary consul in Zanzibar. In this position he established new branches of the company in Madagascar, the Somali Coast and the German protectorate in East Africa, (later Tanganyika). O'Swald was also "Präses" (some kind of minister) of the trade and shipping department of the city of Hamburg. He promoted Hamburgs colonial trade and established in 1886 the Hamburg section of the "Deutsche Kolonial-Gesellschaft" (=German Colonial Society) and was elected as a member of the board of that company in Berlin. He had however no enthusiasm in colonial political affairs and often critized the politics of the half-official "Deutsch Ostafrikanische Gesellschaft" (= German East Africa Company) of C. Peters. O'Swald died on 7 May 1923 in Blankenese, today a part of Hamburg.
Source: Franklin Kopitsch; David Tilgner (ed.): Hamburg Lexikon, Hamburg 1999, ISBN 3-9805687-9-2; p.363.

The company used a blue flag with a coat of arms in its centre. The coat of arms was topped by a golden coronet. At flags bottom was an orange inscription "WOS & Co.". The shield was divided per fess. The base showed on a golden(=yellow) field a red oval with small black wings. The chief was divided per pale. On the right side was a red squirrel in a golden (=yellow) field, facing the hoist. On the left side were three red roses in triangular formation in a silver (=white) field.
Source: Jürgen Meyer: "Hamburger Segelschiffe von 1795-1945"; ISBN 3-89225-400-1; Hamburg 1999; inside cover.
Klaus-Michael Schneider, 13 Apr 2007