Alf Dyrland, Captain of the MARY A. WHALEN, 1962-1978
Alf Dyrland Collection
Alf Dyrland was Captain of the MARY A. WHALEN from her rechristening in 1962 until 1978 when he retired. He was her first captain; she was his last boat.
Alf loved the MARY deeply. As he lay dying in 1996, what he said out loud revealed to family in the room that, in his mind, he was back on the boat giving instructions.
Alf’s story is typical of many Norwegians of a certain era when men from coastal communities sailed away to work because economic opportunities were limited. Alf left the tiny and very maritime town of Skudeneshavn at the age of 14, working as a cabin boy.
Alf sailed the oceans for several years before being sponsored to come to America by his uncle Karl of Bay Ridge Brooklyn. Alf arrived from the Pacific and first set foot in the States in San Francisco. He then sailed through the Panama canal to NYC. He moved to Sheepshead Bay, Brooklyn and worked his way up and become a captain.
Alf’s career had him participate in events of national historic significance, a major one being the union strike during WWII which the President of the United States ended by Executive Order on February 12, 1946 (see the telegram in this collection).
Another very historical event was when the MARY A. WHALEN went aground during Christmas 1968 – though he was not steering that day, the relief captain was - and the grounding led to a lawsuit that went all the way to the Supreme Court and resulted in an important decision in 1975, US vs Reliable Transfer.
Alf was known as a fair captain and a hardworking one who stepped up to the task. He took the MARY through one major storm where he steered for eight hours straight.
Alf is also representative of an era in New York Harbor, a long era of several decades, when Norwegians were a major presence. They were known as skilled, hard-working mariners and frugal, modest folk. Alf’s engineer Hans Hansen was also Norwegian. “All those old Norwegians” is how many mariners who started working in the 1980’s describe the crew on Bushey boats like the MARY.
Alf’s descendants feel a strong connection to the ship. An early memory of Alf’s daughter Karen Dyrland is her first visit to the wheelhouse and her father placing her hands on the wheel. Karen’s husband, John Weaver, has been a board member of PortSide NewYork for many years. Dyrland reunions have visited the tanker as a group, and many descendants follow the Mary A. Whalen on Facebook.
The collection below was generously donated by Karen Dyrland. She has donated all of her father’s papers to PortSide NewYork as well as many objects associated with the ship and his maritime career.
PortSide will be uploading more items to this collection as we scan them, taping more oral histories from the family, and will be adding additional information about the items over time.
Index of Items
- Telegram, February 12, 1946 to Alf Dyrland declaring the Government takeover of the marine transportation and towing companies in the New York Harbor area and directing strikers to return to work.
https://redhookwaterstories.org/files/show/702
- Alf Dyrland ID photo
https://redhookwaterstories.org/files/show/719 - Captain Alf Dyrland in the Whalen's wheelhouse, 1962
https://redhookwaterstories.org/files/show/705 - Elsie Dyrland, wife of Alf Dyrland, in the wheelhouse on the occasion of the renaming of the tanker from the S. T. Kiddoo to the MARY A. WHALEN. Normally this was strictly forbidden.
https://redhookwaterstories.org/files/show/704 - Alf Dyrland and others in the galley of the MARY A. WHALEN, celebrating her rechristening.
https://redhookwaterstories.org/files/show/711 - Alf's thumbnail print
https://redhookwaterstories.org/files/show/703 - Alf Dyrland's notes on his work history - tankers worked on, 1933 to 1937.
https://redhookwaterstories.org/files/show/706 - Alf Dyrland's notes on his work history - tankers worked on, 1938 to 1961.
https://redhookwaterstories.org/files/show/707 - Alf Dyrland's notes on his work history: description of his license and MARY A WHALEN.
https://redhookwaterstories.org/files/show/708 - Alf Dyrland's notes on his work history: 1942 to 1953
https://redhookwaterstories.org/files/show/709 - Alf Dyrland's notes on his work history: THE MARY A WHALEN, 1962
https://redhookwaterstories.org/files/show/710 - Alf Dyrland's Certificate as Tankerman, 1938
https://redhookwaterstories.org/files/show/712 - Envelope stamped Reliable Fuel Supply Co, Brooklyn, July 26, 1957. (MARY A WHALEN moved fuel for Reliable).
https://redhookwaterstories.org/files/show/713 - Alf Dyrlan, Local 333 Union Card, 1978
https://redhookwaterstories.org/files/show/714 - Alf Dyrland's Sporting Club card, 1949
https://redhookwaterstories.org/files/show/715 - Alf Dyrland's union membership card, Local 333, 1948.
https://redhookwaterstories.org/files/show/716 - Alf Dyrland's Recommendation for Citizenship from Reliable, 1940
https://redhookwaterstories.org/files/show/717 - Alf Dyrland's Sailor's Pocket Almanac. 1937 (in Norwegian)
https://redhookwaterstories.org/files/show/718
Follow this link for a curated compendium of MARY A. WHALEN stories
Images
Telegram, February 12, 1946 to Alf Dyrland declaring the Government takeover of the marine transportation and towing companies in the New York Harbor area and directing strikers to return to work.
At the end of WWII, many workers, including those in the marine industry, demanded better pay. In the winter of 1946 Alf Dyrland, a member of a union of transportation and towing workers (i.e. folks on tugboats and oil tankers such as the MARY A. Whalen) were on strike. Among other effects, this had cut off the supply of coal and fuel for heating in NYC. President Harry S. Truman declared an emergency and issued an Executive Order assuming Government control of the industry.On February 12, 1946, Alf Dyrland received a telegram from the US Government directing him to cease striking and return to work. Until a settlement was made between the Union and the various companies, the Government would pay people directly and assume all profits and losses from running the businesses. View File Details Page
Captain Alf Dyrland in the Whalen's wheelhouse, 1962
Source: Dyrland Collection, PortSide NewYork View File Details Page
Alf and Elsie Dyrland, WHALEN wheelhouse Nov 1962
Elsie Dyrland was on board on the occasion of the renaming of the tanker from the S. T. Kiddoo to the MARY A. WHALEN | Source: Dyrland Collection, PortSide NewYork View File Details Page
Alf Dyrland and others in the galley of the MARY A. WHALEN, celebrating her rechristening
Source: Dyrland Collection, PortSide NewYork View File Details Page
Alf Dyrland's notes on his work history - tankers worked on, 1933 to 1937
Source: Dyrland Collection, PortSide NewYork View File Details Page
Alf Dyrland's notes on his work history - tankers worked on, 1938 to 1961.
A list of oil tankers that Alf Dyrland worked on and when | Source: Dyrland Collection, PortSide NewYork View File Details Page
Alf Dyrland's notes on his work history: description of his license and MARY A WHALEN
Source: Dyrland Collection, PortSide NewYork View File Details Page
Alf Dyrland's notes on his work history: THE MARY A WHALEN, 1962
Source: Dyrland Collection, PortSide NewYork View File Details Page
Alf Dyrland's Certificate as Tankerman, 1938
Source: Dyrland Collection, PortSide NewYork View File Details Page
Envelope stamped Reliable Fuel Supply Co, Brooklyn, July 26, 1957. (MARY A WHALEN moved fuel for Reliable).
The WHALEN moved fuel for the Reliable Fuel Supply Co. | Source: Dyrland Collection, PortSide NewYork View File Details Page
Alf Dyrlan, Local 333 Union Card, 1978
Source: Dyrland Collection, PortSide NewYork View File Details Page
Alf Dyrland's Sporting Club card, 1949
Source: Dyrland Collection, PortSide NewYork View File Details Page
Alf Dyrland's Recommendation for Citizenship from Reliable, 1940
Source: Dyrland Collection, PortSide NewYork View File Details Page
Alf Dyrland's Sailor's Pocket Almanac. 1937
(in Norwegian)
Source: Dyrland Collection, PortSide NewYork View File Details Page
Alf Dyrland's school grades from Norway, cover
Alf Dyrland came to America from Norway with only a seventh grade education. | Source: Dyrland Collection, PortSide NewYork View File Details Page
Alf Dyrland's school grades from Norway, including speaking in Norwegian, history, science, and English.
Alf Dyrland came to America from Norway with only a seventh grade education. | Source: Dyrland Collection, PortSide NewYork View File Details Page
Alf Dyrland's US Department of Commerce, Maritime Administration, Certificate of Training - RADAR. April 19, 1972.
Alf Dyrland's US Department of Commerce, Maritime Administration, Certificate of Training - RADAR. April 19, 1972. "Obey the rules of the road, RADAR is a navigational aid only." View File Details Page
Alf Dyrland's Recommendation for Pilot's Licence, June 12, 1943
Voucher that Alf Dyrland has spent the requisite sea-time observing in the pilot house of MT Walter "C" and recommending him for a pilot's licence. View File Details Page
“The dudes of Brooklyn” Alf Dyrland's son Bill, and Bill's cousins Bobby and Paul Dyrland.
Source: PortSide NewYork, Karen Dyrland collection. View File Details Page
