The enigmatically named barque F.E. Althausse was built under 'Special Survey' by F.C. Clarke in their Jersey yard at Patriotic Place, West Park, St. Helier, in 1855. Registered at 452 tons, she measured 150½ feet in length with a 28 foot beam and was originally owned by Mellhuish & Co. of Liverpool. Sold when still virtually new to R. Bradford of London, she continued to trade out of Liverpool to Ceylon and remained on this route for about ten years before changing onto the South American run. By 1870, having been sold to J. Robinson of Blythe, she began trading to the Mediterranean out of first Shields and then Hull, and it was at this point in her career that she was placed under the command of Captain Walter Runciman (1847-1937), the future 1st Baron, founder of the Moor Line (in 1889), Chairman of the Anchor Line and destined to become a notable figure in British shipping circles. Runciman, having attained his Master's Certificate in October 1871, was offered the F.E. Althausse as his first independent command by the owner who was acquainted with Runciman's father, a local Wesleyan preacher in the Blythe area. Runciman stayed in the F.E. Althausse for nearly four years after which he was offered the command of the steamer Coanwood before turning to ship owning in 1885. By this time however, F.E. Althausse had disappeared from record, presumably broken up.