Bernie F. Schaaf was a carpenter on the 5th, 7th and 8th Teams over 1950 – 1952 at Marion Island. The postcard of the South African Navy frigate Transvaal was signed front and back for him by members of the Petty Officer’s Mess – where he was allocated – on his final return from Marion Island with M8 in April/May 1952. His bearded picture in the featured double photo must have been taken a few days after his return to South Africa as it is dated 09 May 1952.
The Transvaal sailed to Marion Island on the Eighth Relief from Durban on 25 April 1952 and returned to Durban (Salisbury Island) on 04 May 1952; the Commanding Officer was Lieutenant R.C. Cousens. As well as 12 sheep and a flock of chickens (a rooster died heading south), the ship dropped off six cats at Marion.
With grateful thanks to Bernie Schaaf’s daughter who has made her father’s large photograph collection available to the Antarctic Legacy of South Africa project via Nico de Bruyn, Mammal Research Institute University of Pretoria; and to the South African National Defence Force Documentation Centre, Pretoria for a comprehensive set of reports on the Eighth Relief Voyage to Marion Island.
John Cooper, Principal Investigator, Antarctic Legacy of South Africa, Department of Botany and Zoology, Stellenbosch University, 13 February 2015
