The U.S. ship EDGAR P. STRINGER was built at Bath, Maine, by Johnson Rideout, in 1854, and was first registered at New York on 19 December 1860. 1,353 tons; 192 ft 9 in x 38 ft 11 1/2 in x 19 ft 5 3/4 in (length x beam x depth of hold).

Sources: William Armstrong Fairburn, Merchant Sail (Center Lovell, Maine: Fairburn Marine Educational Foundation, [1945]1955]), V. 3205, 3207; Forrest R. Holdcamper, comp., List of American-flag Merchant Vessels that received Certificates of Enrollment or Registry at the Port of New York, 1789-1867 (Record Groups 41 and 36), National Archives Publication 68-10, Special Lists 22 (Washington, DC: National Archives and Records Service, 1968), p. 190.

The British ship EDITH BYRNE (Official No. 16216) was built by the Canada Works, Birkenhead, in 1856 (first registered, Liverpool 9 June 1857). 729.44 tons register; 165.4 x 30.2 x 19.7 ft (length x beam x depth of hold); 2 decks.

In March 1865, the EDITH BYRNE was purchased from Byrne, of Liverpool, for £8,250 by the Hamburg shipowner, Robert Miles Sloman, who renamed her HERSCHEL, after an earlier vessel that he had sold in Indonesia in 1859. Measurements (Hamburg): 333 Commerzlasten / 787 tons; 50,3 x 9,1 x 5,79 meters (length x beam x depth of hold).

Masters:
     1865-1866 - P. Kolln
     1866-1875 - E. A. Friedrichs
     1875-1878 - J. J. Kammann
     1878-1880 - J. G. W. Koch
     1881/82.. - P. T. Wupper
     1886/87   - R. Rambusch
     1889      - W. Kniphoth

Voyages:
     1865/66 - from Liverpool/intermediate ports/Antwerp
     1866    - New York/Baltimore
     1866/67 - New York/Antwerp
     1867    - Bremerhaven
     1867    - New York
     1868    - New York/Altona
     1868    - New York/Philadelphia
     1869    - New York
     1869    - New York/Bremerhaven
     1869/70 - New York
     1870/71 - New York
     1871    - New York (2x)
     1871/73 - Brisbane/intermediate ports/Amsterdam/Cuxhaven
     1873/74 - Queensland/intermediate ports/Cardiff
     1874/75 - Brisbane/intermediate ports/Greenock
     1875/76 - Wellington/Peru
     1876/78 - Adelaide/intermediate ports/Huanillos
     1878/80 - Queensland/intermediate ports/Corinto, Nicaragua
     1881/82 - Valparaiso/Antofagasta
     1882/86 - Middlesborough/Yok/intermediate ports/Iquique
     1886/87 - Callao/Dunkirk
     1887    - Napier (New Zealand)/intermediate ports

On 1 June 1891, the HERSCHEL was sold to Hartvigsen, of Arendal, Norway. I have no information on her later history or ultimate fate.

Source: Liverpool ship registers (ex inf. Debbie Beavis, 27 May 1999); Walter Kresse, ed., Seeschiffs-Verzeichnis der Hamburger Reedereien, 1824-1888, Mitteilungen aus dem Museum für Hamburgische Geschichte, N. F., Bd. 5 (Hamburg: Museum für Hamburgische Geschichte, 1969), vol. 2, pp. 213-214.