Park ship
Launch of SS Ashby Park at the Pictou Shipyard in 1944
| |
History | |
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General characteristics Park Ship | |
Tonnage | |
Length | 440 ft 0 in (134.11 m) |
Beam | 57 ft 0 in (17.37 m) |
Depth | 22 ft 9 in (6.93 m) |
Installed power | Triple expansion steam engine |
Propulsion | Screw propellor |
Crew | 34, plus 4 DEMS gunners |
Armament |
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Park ships were merchant
[4][5]Park Steamship Company
The Allied merchant fleet suffered significant losses in the early years of the Battle of the Atlantic as a result of U-boat attacks. The Park Steamship Company was created by the Canadian government on April 8, 1942 to oversee construction of a merchant fleet to help replace the lost vessels and to administer the movement of materiel. This was part of a coordinated Allied effort that saw the construction of British, American and Canadian merchant ships using a common class of vessel known as the North Sands class (named after a beach near the J. L Thompson yard on the River Wear).[6][7]
Vessels
Over the next three years, the company ordered approximately 160 bulk
At the same time, Canada produced 90 additional vessels for the American government which were turned over to the
After the war, by 1948, all the Fort ships had been sold to private companies all around the world. The new owners gave the ships new names.
Crew
Park ships were armed. There were
Shipyards
The table shows the name of the shipyard and city, and the number of vessels launched by each yard.[13] Eventually thousands of Canadians and British would serve aboard these Canadian Merchant Navy ships.[18]
Shipyard | City | Vessels Launched |
---|---|---|
Burrard Dry Dock Co. Ltd. | North Vancouver (BC) | 24 |
North Van Ship Repair Ltd. | North Vancouver (BC) | 18 |
Prince Rupert Dry Dock & Shipyard | Prince Rupert (BC) | 6 |
Victoria Machinery Depot Co. Ltd. | Victoria (BC) | 11 |
West Coast Shipbuilders Ltd. | Vancouver (BC) | 24 |
Canadian Vickers Ltd. | Montreal (Quebec) | 1 |
Davie Shipbuilding & Repair Co Ltd. | Lauzon (Quebec) | 16 |
Foundation Maritime Pictou Shipyard | Pictou (NS) | 24[19] |
Marine Industries Limited |
Sorel (Quebec) | 18 |
Morton Engineering & Dry Dock Co. Ltd. | (Quebec) | 4 |
Saint John Dry Dock Co. Ltd. | Saint John (NB) | 8 |
United Shipyards Ltd. | Montreal (Quebec) | 25 |
Collingwood Shipyards Ltd. | Collingwood (ON) | 3 |
Total | 182 |
Ships in class
Park-type cargo ships
- Albert Park
- Alder Park
- Alexandra Park
- Algonquin Park
- Atwater Park
- Banff Park
- Beaton Park
- Belwoods Park
- Bowness Park
- Bridgeland Park
- Buffalo Park
- Champlain Park
- Chippewa Park
- Connaught Park
- Cornish Park
- Coronation Park
- Cromwell Park
- Crystal Park
- Dentonia Park
- Dominion Park
- Dorval Park
- Dundurn Park
- Dunlop Park
- Earlscourt Park
- Eastwood Park
- Elgin Park
- Elk Island Park
- Elm Park
- Fairmount Park
- Frontenac Park
- Garden Park
- Gaspesian Park
- Gatineau Park
- Glacier Park
- Goldstream Park
- Grafton Park
- Green Gables Park
- Green Hill Park
- Hampstead Park
- Hastings Park
- High Park
- Highland Park
- Hillcrest Park
- Jasper Park
- Kawartha Park
- Kildonan Park
- Kitsilano Park
- Kootenay Park (I)
- Kootenay Park (II)
- La Salle Park
- Lafontaine Park
- Lakeside Park
- Lakeview Park
- Laurentide Park
- Leaside Park
- Louisbourg Park
- Mewata Park
- Mission Park
- Mohawk Park (I)
- Mohawk Park (II)
- Montebello Park(I)
- Montebello Park (II)
- Mount Douglas Park
- Mount Orford Park
- Mount Robson Park (I)
- Mount Robson Park (II)
- Mount Revelstoke Park
- Nemiskam Park
- Noranda Park
- Outremont Park
- Parkdale Park
- Point Pleasant Park
- Port Royal Park
- Portland Park
- Prince Albert Park
- Princeton Park
- Queens Park
- Queensborough Park
- Richmond Park
- Rideau Park
- Riding Mountain Park
- Riverdale Park
- Rocky Mountain Park
- Rondeau Park
- Rosedale Park
- Runnymede Park
- Rupert Park
- Salt Lake Park
- Sapperton Park
- Seacliff Park
- Selkirk Park
- Seven Oaks Park
- Sibley Park
- Simcoe Park
- Stanley Park
- Strathcona Park
- Sunalta Park
- Sunnyside Park
- Tecumseh Park
- Temagami Park
- Tipperary Park
- Tobiatic Park
- Tuxedo Park
- Tweedsmuir Park
- Wascana Park
- Waverley Park
- Wellington Park
- Westbank Park
- Westend Park
- Westmount Park
- Weston Park
- Westview Park
- Whiterock Park
- Whiteshell Park
- Windermere Park
- Winnipegosis Park
- Winona Park
- Withrow Park
- Yamaska Park
- Yoho Park (I)
- Yoho Park (II)
- Ainslie Park
- Argyle Park
- Ashby Park
- Avondale Park
- Baldwin Park
- Bell Park
- Beresford Park
- Bloomfield Park
- Cartier Park
- Cataraqui Park
- Chignecto Park
- Confederation Park
- Crescent Park
- Dartmouth Park
- Dufferin Park
- Evangeline Park
- Fawkner Park
- Hamilton Park
- Hector Park
- Kelowna Park
- Kensington Park
- Lansdowne Park
- Liscomb Park
- Lorne Park
- Maisonneuve Park
- Manitou Park
- Mayfair Park
- Montmorency Park
- Mulgrave Park
- Oakmount Park
- Rockcliffe Park
- Rockland Park
- Rockwood Park
- Shakespeare Park
- Sunset Park
- Sutherland Park
- Taber Park
- Taronga Park
- Victoria Park
- Wentworth Park
- Westdale Park
- Willow Park
- Woodland Park
Park-type tankers
- Brentwood Bay Park
- Clearwater Park
- Cypress Hills Park
- Mount Maxwell Park
- Mount Royal Park
- Point Pelee Park
Park-type tankers, Great Lakes Trading
Tankers for World War II, converted to cargo after war:
- Arlington Beach Park
- Eglington Park
- Millican Park
- Moose Mountain Park
- Mount Bruce Park
- Nipiwan Park
- Norwood Park
- Otterburn Park
- Quetico Park
- Springbank Park
- Silver Star Park
- Wildewood Park
- Willowdale Park
Lost in action
- SS Jasper Park was the first Park ship lost to enemy action when torpedoed near Madagascar. Four of the crew were killed. HMAS Quiberon and HMAS Quickmatch rescued 45 crew and 6 DEMS gunners.
- SS Point Pleasant Park was torpedoed near Cape Town, South Africa on February 23, 1945 with nine crew lost.
- SS Taber Park sank in the North Sea on March 13, 1945 after German midget U-boat attack (the two-man Seehund type). Four gunners and 24 crew were killed out of the 32 persons on board, the crew was British. She was southeast of Great Yarmouth in England.
- The SS Avondale Park sank by U-boat on May 7, 1945 while under charter to Ministry of War Transport. Two men were killed and there were 39 survivors. Avondale Park was the last Allied ship lost to German submarines during the war.[20]
Notable incidents
Park Ships sank or damaged:[24]
- Vancouver Harbor.
- Yoho Park (I) sold and renamed Darfield in 1950, ran aground in fog near Los Angeles and scrapped in 1954.
- Lakeside Park sold in 1952 renamed Theodora was wrecked in 1958 in the Gulf of Kutch on a reef.
- Queens Park sold in 1964 renamed Mount Othrys and wrecked in 1968 near Port Okhra, India.
- Oporto, Portugalin 1963.
- Lansdowne Park sold and renamed Caribbean Trader in 1958 and wrecked on Scorpion Reef, Mexico in 1963.
- Cape Breton Nova Scotiain 1951.
- Crescent Park sold in 1967 renamed Manos Lemos and was wrecked in Gulf of Kuşadası, Turkey in 1969.
- Montmorency Park sold in 1948 renamed Docteur Angier and wrecked in 1949 of Yoron, Kagoshima.
- Kensington Park sold in 1948 renamed Docteur Yersin and was wrecked in 1953 on sandbank near Dong, South Korea
- Ainslie Park sold in 1966 renamed Dong San and was wrecked in 1972 near Mukoh, Klaten Regency, Indonesia.
- Wentworth Park sold in 1965 renamed Azar and was wrecked off West Punta Brava, Cuba in 1968.
- Othoni, Greecein 1977
- Silver Star Park sold in 1951 renamed Ilha Grande and was wrecked of Manoel Luiz Reef near Rio de Janeiro in 1962.
- Atwater Park sold 1953 renamed Halcyon broke in two after collision with Japanese Gen-ei Maru in Kanmon Strait, then scrapped.
- Banff Park sold in 1961 renamed Xenophon stranded near Brest, France on 26 Oct 1962 and later sank in March of 1963.
- Beresford Park sold in 1948 renamed Gerda Toft on 23 Dec. 1954 sank in heavy seas in 54.20N 02.32W off Isle of May in Scotland.
- Champlain Park sold in 1959 renamed Vinkon grounded on 1 Sep.1962 in typhoon at Hong Kong then scrapped at Hong Kong.
- Cromwell Park sold in 1948 renamed Amaryllis on 7 Sep. 1965 sank on Riviera Beach, Florida in hurricane.
- Constantza, Romaniaand abandoned.
- Elm Park sold in 1962 renamed Pella on 31 July 1964 was wrecked off Amrum Island of Germany.
- Chalna Port, later scrapped at Chittagong, Bangladesh.
- Vitoria, Brazillater scrapped at Valencia.
- Cape San Lucas, Baja California
- Mount Douglas Park on 19 Aug. 1946 was wrecked on Preparis Shoal in the Bay of Bengal on voyage from Calcutta to Vancouver.
- Nipiwan Park sold in 1952 renamed Irvinglake on Nov. of 1963 ran aground near Bathurst, New Brunswick
- St. Maarten in the Caribbean, was refloated and scuttled.
- Hainan Islandon voyage from Whampoa to Yulin.
- Simcoe Park sold in 1960 renamed Shun Fung on 5 Sep. 1964 was wrecked in Hong Kong after breaking from moorings in typhoon.
- Westbank Park on 7 Oct. 1945 ran aground in Magdalena Bay, Baja California.
- Westmount Park sold in 1950 renamed Nordicstar on 27 Dec. 1956 reported in location as middle of the North Atlantic Ocean, then went missing. Was on voyage from Philadelphia to Le Havre with load of coal.
- Winnepegosis Park sold in 1949 renamed Aghia Aanastasia on 22 June 1950 ran aground off Tobago on voyage from Baltimore to Rio de Janeiro. She was refloated but sank on 25th of June.
See also
- Allied technological cooperation during World War II
- Empire ships
- List of Liberty ships
Notes
References
- ^ merchant ships, Park armament
- ^ Park Ships, A to N
- ^ Park Ships, O to Y
- ^ Park Ships, Tankers
- ^ Canada Parks History and culture
- ^ veterans.gc.ca, The Park Ships
- ^ veterans.gc.ca, Valour at Sea - Canada's Merchant Navy
- ^ "Merchant Ships Built in Canada in World War Two". Shipbuilding History. Retrieved 13 October 2022.
- ^ "U-2336 Type XXIII". ubootwaffe.net. Archived from the original on March 15, 2006. Retrieved 13 March 2010.
- ^ Helgason, Guðmundur. "Patrol info for U-2336". Patrol info for U-162. Uboat.net. Retrieved 13 March 2010.
- ^ "War casualties or just victims of an arrogant Captain". Timegun Travels. Archived from the original on 12 December 2009. Retrieved 13 March 2010.
- ^ warmuseum.ca, The Second World War The Merchant Navy - SS Stanley Park: Merchant Ship
- ^ a b "THE 'PARKS'". Mariners. Retrieved 16 March 2010.
- ISBN 0316583014. p301
- ^ Commonwealth War Graves Commission records
- ^ Royal Canadian Naval Ships Memorial Monument
- ^ Giesler, Patricia. "Valour at Sea: Canada's Merchant Navy" (PDF). Veterans Affairs Canada. Archived from the original (PDF) on 4 July 2011. Retrieved 16 March 2010.
- ^ "The Merchant Navy of Canada". JunoBeach.org. Retrieved 16 March 2010.
- ^ "List of ships built at the Pictou yard". Archived from the original on 2014-03-27. Retrieved 2011-07-27.
- ^ veterans.gc.ca, Park Ship lost
- ^ familyheritage.ca Canadian-Registry Merchant Ships Lost to Enemy Action\
- ^ mariners, Park ship A to M
- ^ mariners, Park ship N to Z
- ^ shipbuildinghistory.com Park Ships
Further reading
- Syd C. Heal, A Great Fleet of Ships: the Canadian forts & parks, Vanwell Publishing, 1999 ISBN 1-55125-023-3
External links
- Launch of the SS Victoria Park, Pictou, Nova Scotia (newsclipping)
- Launch of the SS Asby Park, Pictou, Nova Scotia (newsclipping)