Lucy Margaret
Posted: Mon May 25, 2009 7:17 pm
This Poland stamp honours Stefan Scholtz, who was born in 1861 in Kalisz, formerly Russian-Poland. He was the son of a rich industrialist. Scholtz joined the Russian Navy as an officer-cadet. In 1880-1, he sailed aboard the ship General-Amiral, around the world. In 1882 he left the Navy and decided to explore the West Coast of Africa, particularly the Camerouns. He obtained considerable backing for the venture from his friends and others. He took the name of his mother, Rogosinski, because he wanted to be regarded as purely Polish. At Le Havre he bought a 100-ton, 3-masted lugger and named her Lucja Malgorzata. (Lucy Margaret). On December 13, 1882, he left with a French crew, his vessel flying the French, and Warsaw town flags. Many storms were encountered but he safely reached Ambos Bay, in the Camerouns. He built a station and, with his friend Kiemens Tomozack, started to map the little-known coastline of the Camerouns, wrote a dictionary of the native language, and collected local articles of all kinds. About that time the Germans occupied the Camerouns and did not like what he was doing; he had to leave when he was not given a plantation he had been promised by the English representative in the area.
Sea Breezes March 1974.
Poland SG2268
Sea Breezes March 1974.
Poland SG2268