SS Empire Archer

Last updated

History
Name
  • Empire Archer (1942-46)
  • Baron Murray (1946-59)
  • Cathay (1959-63)
Owner
  • Ministry of War Transport (1942-46)
  • H Hogarth & Sons, Glasgow (1946-59)
  • Cathay Shipping Corporation, Panama (1959-63)
Operator
  • Owner operated except:-
  • Rayburn & Verel Ltd (1942-46)
Port of registry
  • Civil Ensign of the United Kingdom.svg Dundee (1942-59)
  • Flag of Panama.svg Panama (1959-63)
Builder Caledon Shipbuilding & Engineering Company, Dundee
Yard number395
Launched29 June 1942
CompletedAugust 1942
Out of service1963
Identification
FateScrapped 1963
General characteristics
Tonnage7,031 GRT
Length431 ft 3 in (131.45 m)
Beam56 ft 3 in (17.15 m)
Depth35 ft 2 in (10.72 m)
Propulsion1 x triple expansion steam engine (North East Marine Engine Co (1938) Ltd) 510 hp (380 kW)

Empire Archer was a 7,031 ton cargo ship which was built in 1942. She was renamed Baron Murray in 1946. In 1959 she was renamed Cathay, serving until 1963 when she was scrapped.

Contents

History

Wartime

Empire Archer was built by Caledon Shipbuilding & Engineering Company, Dundee as yard number 395. She was launched on 29 June 1942 and completed in August 1942. [1] Empire Archer was built for the Ministry of War Transport and managed by Raeburn & Verel Ltd. [2]

Empire Archer served in a number of convoys during the Second World War.

JW51B

Convoy JW 51B sailed from Liverpool on 22 December 1942 and arrived at the Kola Inlet on 4 January 1943. [3] Empire Archer was carrying the convoy's Commodore, Captain R A Melhuish. Her cargo consisted of 21 fighter aircraft, 4,376 tons of general cargo, 18 tanks and 141 vehicles. This convoy was unsuccessfully attacked on 31 December by German heavy warships in the Battle of the Barents Sea [4]

RA 53

Convoy RA 53 sailed from the Kola Inlet on 1 March 1943 and arrived at Loch Ewe on 14 March. [5]

KMS 19

Convoy KMS 19 sailed from the Clyde on 25 June 1943 and passed Gibraltar on 6 July. The convoy was operating in support of Operation Husky. Empire Archer was bound for Malta, from where she sailed on 23 July as part of Convoy KMS 19T, arriving in Tripoli on 24 July. [6]

RA 56

Convoy RA 56 sailed from the Kola Inlet on 3 February 1944 and arrived at Loch Ewe on 11 February. [7]

OS 89

Empire Archer was listed as a member of Convoy OS 89, sailing from Liverpool on 15 September 1944 bound for Freetown, Sierra Leone. Empire Archer was due to sail from Aultbea, but did not sail in this convoy. [8]

The reason that Empire Archer was not in the convoy was that on 13 September she had become stranded on Rathlin Island on her way from Sunderland to join the convoy prior to sailing to the United States. She was refloated and then beached off Bangor. Later she was towed to Belfast and then Glasgow for repairs, arriving on 25 September 1944. [9]

JW 63

Convoy JW 63 sailed from Loch Ewe on 30 December 1944 and arrived at the Kola Inlet on 8 January 1945. [5] Amongst Empire Archer's cargo were Spifire LFIXs MJ188, MJ336, MJ337, MJ400, [10] SM542, SM572, SM588, SM595, SM617, SM619, SM630, SM637 and SM663. [11]

RA 64

Convoy RA 64 sailed from the Kola Inlet on 17 February 1945 and arrived at Loch Ewe on 28 February. [5] Empire Archer was carrying the convoys Vice Commodore. [12]

Postwar

In 1946, Empire Archer was sold to H Hogarth & Sons, Glasgow and renamed Baron Murray. She served with them until 1959 when she was sold to the Cathay Shipping Corporation, Panama and renamed Cathay. [13] In 1963, she was sent to Yokosuka for scrapping, arriving on 24 July. [1]

Official number and code letters

Official Numbers were a forerunner to IMO Numbers.

Empire Archer [2] and Baron Murray [14] had the UK Official Number 166215. Empire Archer used the Code Letters BDZV. [2]

Related Research Articles

HMS <i>Bluebell</i> (K80) Flower-class corvette

HMS Bluebell was a Flower-class corvette that served in the Royal Navy in World War II. Ordered from Fleming & Ferguson of Paisley, Scotland on 27 July 1939, she was launched on 24 April 1940 and commissioned in July 1940. She served in the Atlantic, Mediterranean and Arctic campaigns, escorting several convoys to Russia, and also took part in the invasions of Sicily and France. She was torpedoed and sunk by U-711 in the Kola Inlet on 17 February 1945 while escorting the convoy RA 64 from Murmansk. Only one member of her crew survived.

Empire Elgar was a 2,847 GRT heavy lift ship that was built in 1942 by William Gray & Co Ltd, West Hartlepool, Co Durham, United Kingdom for the Ministry of War Transport (MoWT). During World War II, she served with the Arctic Convoys. In 1947, she was sold into merchant service and renamed Sea Minstrel. A further sale in 1951 saw her renamed Marandellas. In 1956, she was sold to a Norwegian company and renamed Edward Jansen. A further sale in 1960 saw her renamed Slitan. In 1961, she was sold to a Bulgarian company and renamed Pirin. She served until 1965 when she was scrapped at Split, Yugoslavia.

HMS <i>Mahratta</i> (G23) Destroyer of the Royal Navy

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SS <i>Empire Baffin</i> World War II merchant ship of the United Kingdom

Empire Baffin was a 6,978 ton cargo ship which was built by Lithgows Ltd, Port Glasgow in 1941 for the Ministry of War Transport (MoWT). She was commissioned in 1943 as HMS Sancroft, being converted into a cable laying ship for Operation Pluto. She was returned to the MoWT in 1946 and subsequently sold and renamed Clintonia. A final change of ownership in 1960 saw her renamed Aspis and she was scrapped in 1963.

Empire Bairn was an 813-ton coastal tanker built by Blythswood Shipbuilding Co Ltd, Glasgow in 1941 for the Ministry of War Transport (MoWT).

Empire Bard was a 3,114 GRT heavy lift ship which was built in 1941 for the Ministry of War Transport (MoWT). She was sold in 1946 and renamed Angusburn and sold again in 1955 and renamed Brettenham. After a career lasting 29 years she was scrapped in 1971.

Empire Baxter was a 7,024 GRT cargo ship which was built by Vickers Armstrongs Ltd, Barrow in Furness in 1941. Postwar she served as Paris City, Westford, Severn River and Hüseyin Kaptan before she was scrapped at Haliç, Turkey in June 1963.

Wallsend was a 2,905 GRT cargo ship which was built in 1943 as Empire Buttress for the Ministry of War Transport (MoWT). Completed in July 1943, she was sold postwar and renamed Wallsend. In 1959 she was sold to Liberia and renamed Bordagain, a further change of ownership in 1967 saw her renamed Daring. She served until 1976, when she was scrapped.

Empire Carpenter was a 7,025 GRT cargo ship which was built in 1942 for the Ministry of War Transport (MoWT). In 1944 she was leased to the Soviet Union and renamed Dickson. In 1946, she was returned to the United Kingdom and regained her former name of Empire Carpenter. She was sold in 1947 and renamed Petfrano. In 1955, she was sold to Panama owners and renamed Amipa, further sales saw her renamed Apex. In 1968, she was sold to Cypriot owners and renamed Afros, serving until scrapped in 1971.

Empire Clarion was a 7,031 GRT cargo ship which was built in 1942 by William Gray & Co. Ltd., West Hartlepool for the Ministry of War Transport (MoWT). In 1946 she was sold and renamed Cedarpool. She served until 1959, when she was scrapped.

SS <i>Empire Celia</i> World War II merchant ship of the United Kingdom

SS Empire Celia was a 7,025 GRT cargo ship built in 1943 by Charles Connell and Company Ltd of Scotstoun, Glasgow for the Ministry of War Transport (MoWT). In 1948 she was sold into merchant service and renamed Putney Hill. Further name changes were Castle Hill in 1949 and London Statesman in 1950. In 1951 she was sold to Panamanian owners and renamed Morella, being sold later that year to Polskie Linie Oceaniczne and renamed Jedność. She served until 1966, when she was scrapped.

Convoy JW 51B was an Arctic convoy sent from United Kingdom by the Western Allies to aid the Soviet Union during World War II. It sailed in late December 1942, reaching the Soviet northern ports in early January 1943.

Empire Emerald was a 8,032 GRT tanker that was built in 1941 by Furness Shipbuilding Co Ltd, Haverton Hill-on-Tees, Co Durham, United Kingdom for the Ministry of War Transport (MoWT). She was sold into merchant service in 1946 and renamed El Gallo, serving until 1959 when she was scrapped.

MV <i>Empire Faith</i> World War II merchant ship of the United Kingdom

Empire Faith was a 7,061 GRT CAM ship that was built in 1941 by Barclay Curle & Co, Glasgow, Renfrewshire, United Kingdom for the Ministry of War Transport (MoWT). Converted to a cargo ship in 1943, she was sold to a British company in 1946 and renamed Jessmore. In 1958, she was sold to a Panamanian company and renamed Antiope. A further sale in 1964 saw her renamed Global Venture. She served until 1971, when she was scrapped.

Pengreep was a 8,806 GRT cargo ship that was built in 1914 by Irvine's Shipbuilding and Drydock Co Ltd, West Hartlepool, Co Durham, United Kingdom for a British company. She was requisitioned by the Admiralty on completion and returned to her owners in 1920. She was seized in June 1940 by Vichy French forces and renamed Ste Jacqueline. In 1942, she was seized by British forces, being renamed Pengreep in 1943. She was passed to the Ministry of War Transport (MoWT) later that year and renamed Empire Fal. In July 1945, she was scuttled with a cargo of gas bombs.

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Prins Harald was a 7,244 GRT cargo ship that was built as Empire Field in 1941 by William Doxford & Sons Ltd, Sunderland for the Ministry of War Transport (MoWT). She was transferred to the Norwegian Government in October 1942 and renamed Prins Harald. She was torpedoed and sunk on 20 November 1942 by U-263 with the loss of three of her crew.

Athelstane was a 8,129 GRT tanker that was built in 1941 as Empire Flint by Swan, Hunter & Wigham Richardson Ltd, Wallsend, Northumberland, United Kingdom for the Ministry of War Transport (MoWT). She was sold to Athel Line Ltd in 1945 and renamed Athelstane. She was sold to Skibs A/S Vaholm in 1952 and renamed Oakley. Sold to H A Moller A/S in 1959, she served until 1962 when she was scrapped.

Stad Schiedam was a 6,140 GRT cargo ship which was built in 1942 as Empire Fortune by John Readhead and Sons Ltd, South Shields, County Durham, United Kingdom for the Ministry of War Transport (MoWT). She was transferred to the Dutch Government in 1943 and was renamed Van Honthorst. She was sold to the Halcyon Lijn in 1945 and renamed Stad Schiedam, serving until she was withdrawn in 1961. She was scrapped in 1962.

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References

  1. 1 2 "1166215" . Miramar Ship Index . Retrieved 4 January 2009.
  2. 1 2 3 "LLOYD'S REGISTER, NAVIRES A VAPEUR ET A MOTEURS" (PDF). Plimsoll Ship Data. Retrieved 4 January 2009.
  3. ↑ "Convoy JW.51B". Convoyweb. Retrieved 4 January 2009.
  4. ↑ "Order of Battle - The Battle of the Barents Sea - The Attack on Convoy JW 51B - 31 December 1942". Navweaps.com. Retrieved 4 January 2009.
  5. 1 2 3 "The Arctic Convoy's". Toys out of the pram. Retrieved 4 January 2009.
  6. ↑ "Convoy KMS 19". Warsailors. Retrieved 4 January 2009.
  7. ↑ "Navy and Merchant ships on Convoy RA-56". 50megs.com. Archived from the original on 23 July 2010. Retrieved 4 January 2009.
  8. ↑ "Convoy OS.89/KMS.63". Convoyweb. Retrieved 4 January 2009.
  9. ↑ Mitchell, W H, and Sawyer, L A (1995). The Empire Ships. London, New York, Hamburg, Hong Kong: Lloyd's of London Press Ltd. p. 35. ISBN   1-85044-275-4.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  10. ↑ "Spitfire aircraft production page 066". spitfires.ukf.net. Retrieved 4 January 2009.
  11. ↑ "Spitfire aircraft production page 101". spitfires.ukf.net. Retrieved 4 January 2009.
  12. ↑ "CONVOY RA 64". Warsailors. Retrieved 4 January 2009.
  13. ↑ "EMPIRE - A". Mariners-L. Retrieved 4 January 2009.
  14. ↑ UK Official Number would remain with the ship as long as it was UK registered
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