SS Letitia
The ship as Captain Cook
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History | |
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United Kingdom | |
Name |
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Owner |
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Operator |
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Port of registry |
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Builder | Fairfield SB and Eng Co, Govan |
Yard number | 601 |
Launched | 14 October 1924 |
Completed | April 1925 |
Identification |
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Fate | Scrapped in 1960 |
General characteristics | |
Tonnage |
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Length | |
Beam | 66.4 ft (20.2 m) |
Depth | 29.5 ft (9.0 m) |
Installed power | 9,000 SHP |
Propulsion |
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Speed |
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Capacity |
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Armament |
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SS Letitia was an
Badly damaged in 1943, after being repaired the Letitia was used as a
Career
Pre-war service
The
Letitia ran aground twice in 1935. The first time was on 11 April at
Second World War
The
She spent most of her time in the Atlantic; initially between October 1939 and January 1940 deploying with the Halifax Escort Force.
On 10 January 1942 part of Convoy WS 15 sailed from Liverpool, with another part sailing from the Clyde on 11 January. The two parts combined off Orsay on 12 January. Letitia was with the Liverpool part and was destined for Durban.[16] On 29 March 1942 Letitia arrived at Glasgow from Cape Town. On 22 August 1942, Convoy AT 20 sailed from Halifax, Nova Scotia[17] During the evening of 22 August, Letitia failed to react to an order to perform an emergency zig-zag and USS Buck was sent to correct Letitia's actions. This set in motion a chain of events that led to a collision between USS Ingraham and USS Chemung, which sank Ingraham. There was a further collision between HMT Awatea and USS Buck.[18] In November 1942, Convoy MFK 1Y left Gibraltar for the United Kingdom.[19]
On 23 January 1943, Convoy WS 26 sailed from the Clyde, destined for Durban, South Africa via Freetown, Sierra Leone and Cape Town, South Africa. Letitia left the convoy at Freetown.[20] On 27 February, Convoy KMF 10A formed off Orsay in conjunction with Convoy WS 27. On 18 May 1943, Convoy WS 30 left Liverpool, combining with Convoy KMF 15 off Orsay on 21 May. Letitia was a member of both these convoys.[20]
On 4 November 1943, Convoy KMS left the United Kingdom for the Mediterranean. Letitia joined the convoy at Algiers and left at Philippeville.[21] Letitia served in this role until 1943, when she was badly damaged. She was able to sail to the United States for repairs, after which she was used by the Canadian government as a hospital ship, carrying 200 medical personnel and with a capacity for 1,000 patients.[3] She spent the remainder of the war carrying wounded Canadian personnel to the Pier 21 terminal at Halifax, Nova Scotia, and was due to be reassigned to the Pacific Ocean when the war ended.[3] She continued in service in the immediate aftermath of the war, repatriating Canadian service personnel.[3] She was sold in 1946, during this period as a transport, to the Ministry of Transport, which renamed her Empire Brent.[3][4] The Ministry assigned her to be operated on their behalf by her previous owners, now trading as Donaldson Bros & Black Ltd.[22]
Post-war service
While sailing for Halifax from Britain in 1946, Empire Brent collided with
Official numbers and code letters
Notes
- ^ "Register of Ships, Em-Ex". Gilbert Provost. Retrieved 19 April 2011.
- ^ a b "1148847". Miramar Ship Index. Retrieved 4 March 2009.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p "Ship Descriptions – L". TheShipsList. Archived from the original on 25 February 2009. Retrieved 4 March 2009.
- ^ a b c d e Cameron, Stuart; Stewart, Gavin; Biddulph, Bruce; Lucas, Gary. "SS Letitia". Clydebuilt Ships Database. clydesite.co.uk. Archived from the original on 12 November 2004. Retrieved 4 March 2009.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link) - ^ "Cunard Line / The British and North American Royal Mail Steam-Packet Company / Cunard Steamship Company, Limited". The Ships List. Archived from the original on 16 December 2009. Retrieved 8 December 2009.
- ^ "The stranding of the Letitia". The Times. No. 47037. London. 12 April 1935. col G, p. 27.
- ^ "The Letitia refloated". The Times. No. 47039. London. 15 April 1935. col E, p. 24.
- ^ "Liner aground in fog". The Times. No. 47145. London. 16 August 1935. col F, p. 10.
- ^ "Downland for the nation: Lady Buxton's gift". The Times. No. 47146. London. 19 August 1935. col A-G, p. 14.
- ^ "The Letitia refloated". The Times. No. 47148. London. 21 August 1935. col D, p. 7.
- ^ a b Colledge. Ships of the Royal Navy, Vol. 2. p. 209.
- ^ a b c d e f Helgason, Guðmundur (1995–2014). "HMS Letitia (F 16)". Allied Warships. Uboat.net. Retrieved 4 March 2009.
- ^ "Convoy HX 15". Warsailors. Retrieved 8 December 2009.
- ^ "New York Ships Through Foreign Ports 9.1838 thru 9.1945". Janda. Retrieved 8 December 2009.
- ^ "SS Athenia". Plastic Ship Modeler. Archived from the original on 5 September 2008. Retrieved 4 March 2009.
- ^ "WS Convoys – January to June 1942 Sailings, including one DM Convoy, WS 15 to 20B". Naval History. Retrieved 8 December 2009.
- ^ "Collision at Sea, "Close the convoy" Orders Take Heavy Toll in WW II Fog off Halifax". Franklin E Dailey. Retrieved 8 December 2009.
- ^ "No 'Abandon Ship' for Ingraham, USS Philadelphia, Buck, Bristol Logs, and USS Chemung Court of Inquiry, Fill Convoy AT-20 Record Gaps". Franklin E Dailey. Retrieved 8 December 2009.
- ^ "Leatherhead War Memorials: Donald Frederick Kebbell". Leatherhead web. Retrieved 8 December 2009.
- ^ a b "WS Convoys – 1943 Sailings, WS 26 to 33". Naval History. Retrieved 8 December 2009.
- ^ "KMS Convoys – 1942–1945, KMS 1 through KMS 30". Warsailors. Retrieved 8 December 2009.
- ^ Finch, Ted (2001). "Empire – B". The 'Empire' Ships. Mariners. Retrieved 4 March 2009.
- ^ a b c d e Plowman. Australian Migrant Ships. p. 72.
- ^ Lloyd's Register, Steamers & Motorships (PDF). Plimsoll Ship Data. 1933. Retrieved 8 December 2009.
- ^ Lloyd's Register, Steamers & Motorships (PDF). Plimsoll Ship Data. 1934. Retrieved 8 December 2009.
Sources
- Colledge, JJ (1970). Ships of the Royal Navy: An Historical Index. Vol. 2: Navy-built Trawlers, Drifters, Tugs and Requisitioned Ships. Newton Abbot: David & Charles.
- Osborne, Richard; Spong, Harry & Grover, Tom (2007). Armed Merchant Cruisers 1878–1945. Windsor, UK: World Warship Society. ISBN 978-0-9543310-8-5.
- Plowman, Peter (2006). Australian Migrant Ships 1946–1977. Rosenberg Publishing. ISBN 1-877058-40-8.