Historical container handling in the Port of Hamburg

Themed event with its own tradition

The event “Historical Container Handling and General Freight Traffic in the Port of Hamburg” takes place twice a year after it became so popular that a one-year cycle was no longer sufficient. Apparently, organizer Jürgen Danner hit the bull's eye with his idea of a themed event where everything fits together: Vehicles, equipment, cargo and even the participants not only in action, but also in historically appropriate clothing. For truckinfocus.com, our freelancer Matthias Herrfurth photographed the vehicles at the last event in September 2024 and organizer Jürgen Danner contributed some pictures showing the lively activities that really breathe life into the event.

Today, it is impossible to imagine national and international goods traffic without containers; two thirds of all products worldwide reach their customers in containers. This was not always the case. In the mid-1950s, the American freight forwarder Malcom McLean from North Carolina invented standardized containers that were suitable for loading on ships, railroad wagons and semi-trailers. In 1955, he took over a shipping company and had decommissioned US Navy tankers converted into container ships. At the end of April 1956, the “Ideal X” left the port of Newark to take a first load of 58 containers to Houston, where they were loaded onto trucks for onward transportation. In 1960, Mc.Lean named his company Sea-Land Corporation, a name that was retained until 2007, even after the 1999 takeover by the Danish shipping company Maersk.

The port of the Scottish town of Grangemouth was the first in Europe to have two special American-style container cranes. The picture dates from the early 1960s.

The transport industry around the world quickly recognized the ingenuity of the container system. The previously required labour-intensive and time-consuming handling processes soon became obsolete. Containerization led to a huge restructuring of activities in the ports and within a short period of time tens of thousands of port workers worldwide were made redundant. Malcolm Mc Lean lived to see the triumph of his invention. He died in New York in 2001 at the age of 87.

This photo from around 1966 shows container handling in Bremen's overseas port, with a MAN 780 HS tractor unit in the foreground

So much for the history of the container. This report, however, is about a series of events organized by the Historic Freight Transport Interest Group, which has been taking place regularly in the Port of Hamburg since 2011. The initiator was and still is Jürgen Danner, an enthusiast for road transport of bygone times who has been well-known among classic truck enthusiasts for decades. It started 13 years ago with five tractor units and two container chassis, i.e. semi-trailers for the transportation of one or two 20-foot containers or one 40-foot container. In addition, five empty containers, some of which were borrowed, were available as action material. The port museum not only made the site available, but also provided two straddle carriers, also known as van carriers. Under the motto “Historical container handling and general goods traffic in the Port of Hamburg”, the aim was to show what it was like when container transport began its triumphant advance while normal goods traffic continued to take place. So the busy loading and unloading began and the participants were able to show what their veteran trucks were capable of.

With a 20-foot container on the approach to the Hamburg container terminal: semitrailer with Mercedes type 1633 tractor unit of the second NG design (without chrome strips in the grille), manufactured from 1980 to 1985
Scania L 141 tractor unit with elegant two-tone Scandinavian-style paintwork

Because it was so much fun, Jürgen Danner repeated the event the following year and it became an annual event. Of course, it didn't stop at five vehicles. The number of participants quickly grew and even had to be limited. 40 vehicles proved to be the reasonable maximum, as the program also included changes of location. More trucks could not be permitted, if only to avoid traffic chaos in Hamburg.

With rare container tipper body in action: DAF series 2800 (from 1973). The photo was taken in 2020 at an event held in 1985. Unfortunately, it was not possible to find the picture in a higher resolution.
Magnificent appearance: Scania 113 with R-cab (1988 to 1996) in the colors of Hamburg Transportation Company Müller & Co, founded in 1931

In the meantime, 17 stagings of this kind have already taken place, twice a year since 2016. It is now the largest event to be held in cooperation with the Hamburg Port Museum. The specified period for the first event in the year goes up to 1976, for the second it ends in 1986. This means that only vehicles that are suitable in terms of their year of manufacture are admitted. The aim is also to show what has changed over ten years. At the last event in September 2024, which we document with pictures in this report, it was the turn of 1986. Tractor units manufactured later could therefore not be included. In order to ensure period accuracy, it is determined in advance at each event which vehicles are permitted and which are not. To this end, participants must register in good time with photos and the necessary data and will then be invited, provided everything fits and the quota has not already been exceeded.

The Krupp type SF 1080, built in 1968, stands here under the combined filling plant for tank wagons and tankers at the factory of the Federal Monopoly Administration for Spirits, which was responsible for the production of pure alcohol in Germany and supplied the spirits manufacturers. The historic building ensemble of the spirits monopoly in Hamburg is partially threatened with demolition. The photo was taken in 2022.
This type 1632 tractor unit was used during the event to move 20-foot containers
In waiting position: Mercedes NG with large-capacity cab and Volvo F 12 of the generation from 1983 onwards
Container stackers (reach stackers) can effortlessly move a fully loaded 40-foot container on the port site. They also did so during the themed event in the Port of Hamburg, in addition to the van carriers, which performed their tasks just as diligently.
Smaller trucks are also needed in port operations: This MAN-VW with Volkswagen LT cab, which has become very rare today, came to collect general cargo. The MAN-VW was built from 1979 to 1993, after the collaboration between MAN and Saviem ended in 1977. The vehicle shown here is from the first series. In the second series from 1987, the headlights were located in the bumper.
The Scania T 143 was built from 1988. The final number of the type designation indicates that this conventional truck belonged to series 3. In 1996, it was replaced by the 4 series and Scania bid farewell to the angular shapes.
MAN 19.331 with F8 cab from around 1986 - now add a 20-foot container and the wait is over.
These pictures are from earlier events in the port of Hamburg. The van carriers, with which containers can be optimally lifted, safely moved and precisely set down, are spectacular.
The MAN 19.321 cab-over with underfloor engine was available from 1979 to 1985. The example that is obviously just picking up speed here must be a new acquisition, as immaculate as if it had been pulled out of an egg.
The IVECO TurboStar with large-capacity cab was available from 1984 and was replaced by the EuroStar in 1993. The roof spoiler was adjustable and could be adapted to the height of the trailer. The model in the photo had the eight-cylinder engine with 480 hp, which was available from 1989. It was allowed to participate because the basic model was already on the market in 1984.
This well-kept conventional is a Volvo N 12 from the first series from 1973, still without the typical Volvo diagonal chrome strip on the radiator grille, which only appeared in 1981. The custom-made stainless steel bumper suits the 50-year-old Swede very well.
This photo was taken at an earlier event in the Port of Hamburg and shows that not only container handling is the theme, but that general cargo loading still plays an important role.
Still “almost” without the IVECO emblem on the radiator grille: the last Magirus series, here as a 6x4 tractor unit 329 M 19 F from around 1980. The cab was developed by Fiat on the basis of Unic, two brands from which IVECO emerged. 
In 1977, Volvo launched the F 10 and F 12 models as successors to the legendary F 88, which had since become the F 89. The F 10 in the photo belongs to the first generation of this model series, recognizable by the four slits under the radiator grille. From 1983, there were only two wider slots.
Originally created as the F series at Hanomag-Henschel, the Transporter, which evolved from the Tempo-Matador, was given the Mercedes star after Daimler-Benz AG took over all shares in HHF Ltd. (Hanomag-Henschel) at the beginning of 1971. The Transporter was built until 1977 and then replaced by the Type 207 and its variants.
Trio at the loading ramp: Scania T 143, Volvo F 88 and MAN 19.321, all from the 1980s, only the Volvo is a little older
A colorful mix of trucks, as it might have looked around 1985 on the grounds of the Port of Hamburg
OMG, a container fire during the event? Yes, but only acted, the firemen were real, but the smoke came from a smoke generator.
What a perfect appearance: Scania 142 series 2 with R cab and great paintwork. Built between 1981 and 1988.
No less spectacular: The Volvo N 12 from the first series from 1973, as we have already shown from the front above.
The MAN 19.322 FS from the F 90 series was built from 1986 onwards and thus represents the exact year of construction of the themed event. The tractor unit is therefore in mint condition.
The fact that trucks from the 1970s also appeared in the Port of Hamburg in 1985 is normal. The robust Volvo F 88 was built from 1973 to 1977 with this radiator grille.
The SK (heavy class) was the last Mercedes truck before the Actros era, which began in 1996. The picture shows a 19-ton tractor unit with 350 hp.
Things don't always go according to plan. The police ensure that everything remains under control on the premises of the Port of Hamburg. However, the scene in the photo is only staged to add a touch of spice to the event.
General cargo and perishable foodstuffs are loaded at the loading ramp. On the left is the MAN 19.321 shown above, next to it a Büssing BS 16 L with refrigerated box body and its trailer uncoupled for loading.
MAN 16.320 with F8 cab and a 20-foot tanktainer on the semi-trailer
Here you can see the delivery of a ship chandler. In the “supermarket” of maritime shipping, the shipowner receives everything a ship needs, from toilet brushes and spare parts to food. The ordered goods, such as lubricants in barrels and spare parts in crates, are currently being delivered by crane.
This Scania T 143 is also transporting a 20-foot tanktainer. The contents and destination are not known.
This is the last model of the Volvo F 12, which was built with this radiator grille from 1988 to 1993 and then replaced by the FH 12. At the event last September, it had a Mercedes from the light LP series (1965 to 1984) on its low-loader semi-trailer.
We already know this type 1632 Mercedes tractor unit from a photo earlier in this report. During the event, the tractor unit was always well utilized with the transport of 20-foot containers.
Two atmospheric photos provided by the organizer Jürgen Danner conclude the series of pictures for this report. They show a Büssing truck on a bridge in Hamburg's warehouse district and the loading of a cargo ship with barrels delivered by a Mercedes short hood truck.

It should also be noted that “Historic Container Handling and General Freight Traffic in the Port of Hamburg” is not a truck meeting in the usual sense. Rather, it is a themed event that aims to present things in the right setting, in motion and historically correct. This includes not only the vehicles and their lettering, but also the cargo, the equipment for loading and unloading and the buildings in the background. Even the clothing of the participants should match and reflect the period context. If photos were taken in black and white, it would hardly be possible to tell from the pictures that they were taken today. Unfortunately, the modern Euro license plates of the vehicles would be a giveaway.

Further information about the Historic Freight Transport Interest Group, which also organizes other themed events, can be found at this link: https://www.ig-historischer-güterverkehr.de

The photos in this report, which are marked with a link symbol at the bottom right, can be clicked to obtain a larger view with some information about the photo.

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