Battle of the Atlantic/Merchant Marine

[The Lonely Navigator]

The surrender of German submarines in Loch Eriboll in Sutherland was one of the strangest episodes at the end of World War II. Locals were sworn to secrecy and it has often been assumed that only “two or three” crews gave themselves up in the sheltered inlet.

But a new book marking the 65th anniversary of the incident reveals that no fewer than 33 U-boat commanders surrendered in the space of 12 days in the 10-mile long loch.

That's really interesting.

 

[MikeBravo]

I had a very distant cousin back in England who supposedly had 5 ships torpedoed out from under him. Amazing.

My girlfriend's father was in the British Merchant Navy and had three ships sunk under him. Fortunately he survived

Of the nine brothers who went, he was the only one to come home from the war

 

[The Lonely Navigator]

Wow. I've read in my U-Boat books situations like that though - where merchant sailors would go out, and have numerous ships sank under them.

It doesn't surprise me in some way that he was the only one to survive - particularly in the early half of the war (especially 1940) when the U-Boats were making heavy losses on the merchant ships. In one of the documentaries I have in my YouTube playlist - one of the former British merchant sailors said that by the time they got back to Britain they'd have out of - he says about 50 ships, only 20 - 25 would make it back.

 

[Chas]

A must see museum ship for anyone with more than a passing interest in the Battle Of The Atlantic. She sits in Bedford Basin, Halifax, which for many Merchant seamen was their last landfall.

 

[The Lonely Navigator]

I'd like to go there sometime and visit Halifax. My mom was there, but she didn't visit the stuff relating to the Battle of the Atlantic.

One of the books I read: HX 72: The First Convoy to Die by David O'Brien is really good as it talks about Halifax and the convoy his father was in that sailed from there.

 

[Story]

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/new...Nazi-E-boat-saved-by-military-enthusiast.html

The last Nazi E-boat, which took part in an infamous raid during the Second World War, has been saved by a British military enthusiast.
Schnellboot-130, once the fastest vessel in the world, helped attack an Allied convoy off Slapton Sands, in Devon, in a battle in which nearly 1,000 Allied soldiers were killed.

http://www.bmpt.org.uk/boats/S130/index3.htm

 

[The Lonely Navigator]

I had seen this about the Kriegsmarine S Boat posted on the U-Boat Society. I think it's pretty neat that it is being restored.

 

[Story]

NORFOLK, Va. (AP) — World War II shipwrecks off North Carolina and Civil War shipwrecks in Virginia are being analyzed with sonar technology so sophisticated that the public could one day view near photographic images in detail even better than diving at some of the sites could provide.

Federal researchers are using sonars to gather data that will result in vivid, three-dimensional images of the shipwrecks that will likely end up online, in museums and as part of other programs designed to promote American maritime heritage.

On Tuesday, researchers headed to North Carolina's Outer Banks to begin creating images of ships sunk in 1942 during the Battle of Atlantic.

On July 14, 1942, a merchant convoy of 19 ships and five military escorts left the Hampton Roads area of Virginia en route to Key West, Fla., to deliver cargo to aid the war effort. A German submarine attacked Convoy KS-520 the next day off Cape Hatteras, and the U-boat was sunk by depth charges dropped by U.S. Navy aircraft.

http://news.yahoo.com/bid-sonar-map...NhdAN3b3JsZHxldXJvcGUEcHQDc3RvcnlwYWdl;_ylv=3

 

[4spurs]

My dad, born in 1904, joined the Merchant Marines during WWII; and he lived long enough to get a pension, and to him that was like winning the lottery. He had been under fire twice on two different ships; somewhere I have his cards from sailing in various war zones and his discharge papers.

But the most interesting momento from that period of his life that I have is a photocopy of a photo of him in Marseille dated 1943. He's wearing a double breasted suit and a fedora. He told me that most sailors never went further than two blocks from the docks; and they dressed accordingly. So he traveled with suits and made it a point to get a lot further than two blocks from the docks in every port he came to. Said he met a better class of women that way; I guess growing up in the port city of New Orleans he knew was he was talking about.

 

[Atticus Finch]

But the most interesting momento from that period of his life that I have is a photocopy of a photo of him in Marseille dated 1943.

Interesting. I thought that Marseille was still occupied by the other team in 1943.

AF

 

[DNO]

A must see museum ship for anyone with more than a passing interest in the Battle Of The Atlantic. She sits in Bedford Basin, Halifax, which for many Merchant seamen was their last landfall.

There were once over 260 Flower Class Corvettes in British and Canadian service...some in USN service as well. Now there's one....HMCS Sackville is well worth a visit. It's sad how there was little effort made to preserve those WWII vessels. Not just the corvettes but the Bangor class minesweepers, the destroyers, and the frigates as well. Americans have been much better than we Canadians and the British at preserving these vessels.

 

[4spurs]

Interesting. I thought that Marseille was still occupied by the other team in 1943.

AF

You're right about the date. He dated the photo sometime in the mid nineties when he was about ninety, and I never bothered to check the accuracy of the date because it wasn't important to me. But thank you for the correction.

 

[Story]

You're right about the date. He dated the photo sometime in the mid nineties when he was about ninety, and I never bothered to check the accuracy of the date because it wasn't important to me. But thank you for the correction.

If you know what ships he was assigned to, there's Merchant Marine resources online where their voyages can be tracked down.

 

[Stearmen]

The Big E

Americans have been much better than we Canadians and the British at preserving these vessels.

We are far from perfect at preserving ships. Remember in the late 50s, the so called patriotic years, the government tried to find a home for the Big E, USS Enterprise CV-6. They tried all around the costs, from Main to Washington state, even Texas turned her down. She was scrapped, a sad end for one of the most important ships Of WWII!

 

[DNO]

We are far from perfect at preserving ships. Remember in the late 50s, the so called patriotic years, the government tried to find a home for the Big E, USS Enterprise CV-6. They tried all around the costs, from Main to Washington state, even Texas turned her down. She was scrapped, a sad end for one of the most important ships Of WWII!

In our case, HMCS Sackville and the last Tribal class destroyer HMCS Haida were saved only by the involvement of civilian groups. The government had little to do with preserving either vessel despite the fact that both ships, especially Haida, had sterling service records. The fate of Enterprise is unfortunate. I feel lucky to have been able to explore USS Yorktown in Charleston harbour a few years ago. Again, I really think you fellows to the south do a much better job preserving your historical heritage and I congratulate you.

 

[4spurs]

If you know what ships he was assigned to, there's Merchant Marine resources online where their voyages can be tracked down.

I can probably find the paper with the ships names because I remember something about him qualifying for his pension, I may be mistaken on this, but I think he had to prove that he had been under fire to qualify. A trip to the attic is in my future . . . .

 

[Chas]

You should be able to retrieve his service record from somewhere.

 

[Story]

Divers believe they have located WWII submarine 100 kilometres from ocean

An important piece of history from the Second World War may be sitting in a river in Labrador. Searchers believe they've found a German U-boat buried in the sand on the bottom of the Churchill River. The discovery has yet to be authenticated.

http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/newfo...2/07/25/nl-u-boat-labrador-discovery-725.html

 

[DNO]

Divers believe they have located WWII submarine 100 kilometres from ocean

An important piece of history from the Second World War may be sitting in a river in Labrador. Searchers believe they've found a German U-boat buried in the sand on the bottom of the Churchill River. The discovery has yet to be authenticated.

http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/newfo...2/07/25/nl-u-boat-labrador-discovery-725.html

Interesting story. Hope they follow up on it.

 

[Story]

BOSTON -- Divers have discovered a World War II-era German submarine nearly 70 years after it sank under withering U.S. attack in waters off Nantucket. The U-550 was found Monday by a privately funded group organized by New Jersey lawyer Joe Mazraani.

http://usnews.nbcnews.com/_news/201...en-german-u-boat-off-massachusetts-coast?lite

http://www.boston.com/metrodesk/201...f-nantucket/UxrrHaZxBNuzRocV5dxwjN/story.html