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The Four Motor Paddle Vessels built 1963/4 for the Weisse Flotte, Dresden


Above : JF Bottger (ex Friedrich Engels) in her final season . Photo taken on 22nsd August 1993, shown by kind courtesy of John Day
DEPV Karl Marx - Used as a hotel ship at Dresden-Neustadt with the name "Koje"
DEPV J.F. Bottger (ex - Friedrich Engels) -
Used as a accommodation ship for the YMCA at Dresden-Neustadt
DEPV Grafin Cosel (ex - Wilhelm Pieck)
- Scrapped 1998
DEPV August der Starke (ex-Ernst Thalmann)
- Scrapped 1998
Four identical Rosslau-built diesel-electric paddlers were introduced in 1963 (Karl Marx, Friedrich Engels and Ernst Thalmann) and 1964 (Wilhelm Pieck), Three vessels were re-named in 1991 after the fall of the Communist government, but Karl Marx, already laid up awaiting refit, never sailed under its intended new name of Daniel Poppelmann as cash for the planned work was not available. JF Bottger was withdrawn after the 1993 season. Two new large motor vessels took the names and places in the fleet of Grafin Cosel and August der Starke for the 1994 season onwards. Karl Marx and JF Bottger were refurbished as part of a skills development programme for unemployed people but put into static use at Dresden-Neustadt dock as youth hostel accommodation ships.

Length: 69.91 m - Breadth : 7.8 m / 13.3 m overall
Diesels : 2 x 340 HP units by Schwermaschinenbau Karl Liebknecht at Magdeburg
Electrical Drives : Twin motors by VEB Elbtalwerk at Heidenau


Above : DEPV Ernst Thalmann at Terrassenufer, Dresden in 1978. Photo by kind courtesy of Kevin Hoggett

Preservation
Poppelmann (which never sailed under this name) has now been called "Koje"
JF Bottger retains her last-used name

Both are moored in Dresden and are available for bookings, with particular preference given to school groups in the case of Koje and to young adults in the case of JF Bottger ( https://www.cvjm-schiff.de/ )

JF Bottger has had the enclosed area of her upper deck extended fore and aft

sHPIM2436.JPG
Above :  This photo of a YMCA (CVJM) owned ship JF Bottger was taken by Nigel Clark in 2004

JF Bottger 2012 EC.jpg
Above : JF Bottger in 2012 - photo by kind courtesy of Enrico Crosti
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Statically Preserved Paddle Steamers
River Elbe - Dresden