Booking Form - Thames Boat: Fill & Download for Free

December 27th I was asked what the “moral” of Three Men in a Boat was. This was my answer;“While Jerome intended the book as a travel guide, I felt it was an allegory about getting out of one’s routine and experiencing life, with friends. While the overworked business man’s approach to a Thames camping trip was a delight, I have a sense it would have been fun spending time doing almost anything (outside work) with these guys.”I feel weird quoting myself, but I stand by this reply. I really believe Jerome Jerome intended this as a travel guide, a cottage industry form of writing popular at the time in England. (Ian Fleming initially wrote the Bond novels as a sort of travel guide series). It was only as the book progressed that the novel morphed into the story we read today. Jerome was probably as surprised as anyone at how the humorous his novel was viewed.It was really the story of Jerome and two actual friends, George and Carl (Harris in the book), who often accompanied Jerome on his boating trips. Evidently, Montmorency the dog was entirely fictional

My late Father-in-Law served in the RN from 1933 to 1955. At the start of the war he was on HMS Intrepid, responsible for the sinking of U45, took part in rescue of survivors from HMS Courageous, the interception of the Altmark, the destruction of the German tanker Baldur, numerous mine-laying operations which resulted in the sinking of further U-Boats and the evacuation of Dunkirk. Here she provided Naval Gunfire Support for the trapped troops, rescued survivors from SS Mona’s Queen on passage to the beaches and embarked 661 troops from the pier at Dunkirk. Subsequently she was damaged by an air attack at Dunkirk. A near miss from a bomb killed 2 and wounded 17 of men, the red-hot bomb splinters setting the ship on fire.On the 28th September 1940 he was drafted to HMS Burnham (formerly the USS Aulick), one of the 50 destroyers which the UK acquired from the USA. First some back ground of the 50 destroyers acquired by the UK:BackgroundThe US Navy had embarked on a major capital ship programme prior to 1914 but were woefully short of other modern ships in at the start of WW1. The US embarked on a massive destroyer construction programme, drawing on their perceived lessons of the European war, resulting in these ships which are often known as the “four stack” or “flush deck” type.When the USN procured these vessels, they defined only the basic dimensions, armament, type of propulsion and contract speed. There were considerable detail differences between them especially due to war-time supply problems. Although they are often referred to as a single type, they did in fact comprise three different classes (Wickes, Clemson, Caldwell) with a total number of 273 vessels built by two main contractors and a number of others.Calling them “Four Stackers” is perhaps a little misleading as some only had three (HMS Leeds/USS Conner, HMS Ludlow/USS Stockton and HMS Lewes/USS Conway). Three others were converted to long range escorts by the British which involved removing the two forward boilers and associated smokestacks to fit extra fuel bunkerage (HMS Bradford, HMS Clare and HMS Stanley).Original DesignThe hull form had much finer lines than equivalent UK designs, fore and aft, and although they had a fair amount of sheer, not much freeboard forward. Combined with a lack of flare this meant that the hull would pierce waves more readily than ride over them and together with a large access hatch ahead of the forward 4” gun, the Flush Deckers were inevitably wet, uncomfortable ships.Main armament consisted of four 4” guns. Unlike British practise of mounting these on the centre line, two of these guns were mounted high up on the beam, restricting their arcs of fire, and putting weight high up which affected stability. The ships were fitted with one 3” AA gun. Their only sensors were range finder optics and the Mk1 eyeball. They were not fitted with ASDIC originally although some sets had been fitted by the USN. The fine lines at the stern provided very little room for depth charge rails (not envisaged at the time of design) and there were no throwers.American naval doctrine called for destroyers to carry out massed torpedo attacks on a battle line. Rather than attempt re-loading in the cramped deck spaces, the Flush Deckers had two triple torpedo mountings on each side. The concept being that the tubes are swung outboard, a broadside of six torpedoes fired at the enemy line and then a 180 degrees turn is executed to bring the other tubes into play. Unfortunately anything more than a slow turn in calm seas dipped the tubes to into the swell causing damage to the tubes and/or mountings. The weight of the four mountings adversely affected stability and further increased the degree of roll. The sterns also tended to dig unto the sea during a turn which also limited the turning rate.Despite their small size the Flush Deckers were not very manoeuvrable which is a highly undesirable characteristic for anti-submarine warfare as the attacking destroyer had to pass over the U-Boat to drop its depth charges and then go about to repeat the attack. The longer the delay in turning, the more options the U-Boat has to manoeuvre and evade being re-acquired by the destroyer’s ASDIC .There were several other problems too. The fine lines at the aft end meant that the tips of the propellers projected significantly beyond the ships aft sides which resulted in a much increased incidence of damage when coming along side. (Other answers have said that the propeller shafts did not counter-rotate and that this adversely affected steering but Picture 3 below in dry dock shows that the shafts did counter-rotate although I don’t know whether this is the case across all the classes that made up the British Town class as a whole).The steering gear was provided by wires and chains across the upper deck, an arrangement used in trawlers and other small craft. This exposed the steering gear to weather damage, debris etc. causing the steering to jam, usually at an inopportune moment. The history of these ships in UK hands shows a regular litany of collisions and groundings.The enclosed bridge, and in fact the vessel as a whole, did not withstand severe Atlantic weather as can be seen from the photos below. It is clear that these ships were not great even when new and would have struggled with their designed role let alone carrying out a new role as convoy escorts.SpecificationsThere were three different classes (and actually four different variants) which comprised the Flush Deckers, all with similar specifications.Displacement (Standard): 1020 – 1190 tonsDisplacement (Deep): 1145 – 1725 tonsLength overall: 314’ 4” – 315’ 6”Beam, maximum: 31’ – 31’ 8”Mean Draught: 11’ – 12’ 10”Machinery: Geared turbines (except for 2 which had direct drive turbines)Shafts: 2 (except for 2 which had 3 shafts)Speed in 1941: 28.5 – 30 knotsBoilers: 4Armament: 4 x single 4”, 1 x single 3”/23 cal AA gun, 4 x Triple 21” Torpedo TubesRange: About 2,000 miles at 10 knots, convoy duty probably reduces this by 1/3Acquisition by the UKIn early 1940 the British destroyer force had suffered considerable loss and damage due to fighting in Norway and the Low Countries. In May 1940 the British Ambassador in Paris advised that the US had discussed the possibility of France acquiring 12 older destroyers and had then raised the query as to whether the UK would like 50 or 100 such ships. The British immediately responded that they would like 16 modern destroyers, 32 Flush Deckers and 1,000 close range AA weapons. The matter then bogged down in diplomatic circles until the losses at Dunkirk and the prospect of invasion concentrated the minds of those involved.At the beginning of August 1940, President Roosevelt suggested either that that the US might sell 50 destroyers to Canada against a legal lien on British cruisers in Canada’s favour such that if defeated, Britain would cede the ships to Canada who would donate them to the USA or transfer the ships in return for the sale of base rights to the USA. Churchill rejected the first option as impractical and the second as undesirable but accepted that the leasing of base rights in principle. Thus the negotiations over the 50 Flush Deckers became the fore runner of the whole lend-lease agreement. Events then moved so rapidly that by the middle of August the Admiralty was discussing manning of ships with Dominion navies and by the 1st of September the transfer was agreed with 1,000 officers and ratings sailing that day to Halifax, Nova Scotia.UK ServiceThe 50 ships chosen for transfer, mostly in reserve, some active and a couple stricken from the US Navy List, were steamed by their US crew to Halifax Nova Scotia. Here over a couple of days their new UK crews were familiarised with their ships, spent a day at sea and then the US colours were hauled down and the ships commissioned into the RN. Initially these ships were to have retained their American names out of courtesy but in due course it was decided to rename all 50 with names of towns common to the U.K. and the USA and so became the Town class.In Halifax a detailed survey was carried out and a report made out to the Admiralty. In general the condition of the hulls and main machinery was found to be reasonable but that the auxiliaries, wiring, piping were poor. Several of the ships suffered complete power loses due to contaminated fuel. At the time the tanks were pumped out, cleaned and carefully fuelled to resolve the problem The vessels weren’t dry docked so the actual cause wasn’t discovered at the time (rusted rivets allowing seawater into the fuel tanks). This problem was never fully rectified so the danger of contaminated fuel remained throughout their remaining service life.1 - Water pouring from HMS Burnham's fuel tanksThe Inspecting Officer disliked the enclosed bridge which didn’t reflect British practise of using an open bridge, he commented adversely on the wire and chain steering gear and produced a long list of improvements to be put in hand as soon as possible.He noted that the 4” gun was a low compact weapon compared with the British equivalent but that the ammunition was fragile and the replenishment from the magazines (which had no flooding arrangements) difficult and labour intensive.The 3”AA gun was capable of elevating to 70 degrees but could not actually be operated past 40 degrees as it could not be served at these elevations thus limiting its effectiveness against air targets. The sights were in any case not suitable for high elevation use. Space for depth charge throwers was very limited but would have to be fitted. The torpedoes were a poor design and known to run below their set depth.In conclusion the report called for the removal of the four triple torpedo mounts to be replaced by a single British triple launcher on the centreline, a complete gun rearmament with British weapons, removal of the mainmast, shortening of the foremast and removal of the aft search light platform, all in a bid to improve stability. The Admiralty commented that the report “was most interesting” and that once this was done would bring the vessels up to an equivalent of the British “S Class”. Of the 50 ships, six were manned by the Canadians and the remaining 44 sailed for the UK where they underwent refits in Devonport to rectify the most pressing defects and carry out some at least of the desired improvements depending on the timescales of the required work. The initial refit included:• Removal of the mainmast and shortening of the foremast• Shortening the aft 3 funnels by several feet• Removal of the aft 4” gun and the 3” AA gun• Fitting a British 12 pounder HA mounted in the “X” position• Removal of the aft two sets of torpedo tubes• Fitting of depth charge throwers• Fitting ASDIC where the equivalent US gear wasn’t already present and fitting British trace recorders on all ships.As the war progressed, addition modifications were made to reach a Stage 2 condition which involved:• Removing the bear 4” guns and fitting single manual 20mm Oerlikons instead• Removing the two forward triple torpedo mountings and replacing with a single British triple mounting aft of the funnels• Fitting Radar Type 286 at the masthead• Fitting Radar Type 271 on top of the bridge.Over time some additional modifications were carried out for instance to fit the Hedgehog ASW forward throwers on the foredeck and the fitting of HF/DF on its associated tall mast aft.Three of the ships were converted to long range escorts by removing their forward boilers (with the associated funnels) and replacing them with additional fuel tanks for 80 tons of additional oil. This reduced their top speeds to 25 knots but with an extended range. Accommodation and stores spaces were provided above the new oil bunkers, a new British style bridge constructed and the ASDIC updated.2 - Stern View Showing Vulnerable Props and Cramped Quarterdecks for Depth Charge Rails and ThrowersService HistoryOf the 50 ships transferred, the six initialled manned by the Royal Canadian Navy remained in Canadian waters. The 44 British manned ships were destined to sail to the UK for brief refits prior to entering service in UK waters. A number of these were delayed in sailing to the UK due to accidents and breakdown. A further ship was transferred to the Canadians and later some of the Canadian ships were refitted in the UK.The British manned ships were used in three main areas. Rosyth based ships served carried out escort duty for East Coast convoys; those in the 1st Minelaying Squadron served as Anti-Submarine escorts on the Northern Mine Barrage scheme and the balance served as escorts on the North Atlantic convoys. The Rosyth ships remained on that duty throughout the war. The 1st Minelaying Squadron ships passed into Reserve when the squadron was disbanded in 1943. Those vessels on the North Atlantic convoys gradually passed into second line duties or into Reserve as age took its toll.For those on escort duty the number of successful attacks on U-Boats doesn’t necessarily tell the whole tale. The presence of escorting destroyers often served to disrupt and frustrate enemy action against convoys and this should be seen as a success even if no U-Boat was damaged or destroyed. The following is a list of 11 successful attacks in which Town class destroyers participated (even if this was in co-operation with other vessels, and the Town class in question was not directly attributed with the actual sinking):22/2/41 Italian submarine Marcello sunk with all hands by HMS Montgomery during patrol. Boats9/5/41 U110 sunk by HMS Broadway whilst attacking Convoy OB 318, 15 dead and 32 men captured The Type IXB U-boat U-1103/8/41 U401 sunk with all hands by Norwegian ship HNoMS St. Albans whilst attacking Convoy SL 81 The Type VIIC U-boat U-40111/9/41 U207 sunk with all hands by HMS Leamington whilst attacking SC 42 The Type VIIC U-boat U-20717/12/41 U131 sunk with all hands by HMS Stanley whilst attacking HG 76 The Type IXC U-boat U-13118/12/41 U434 sunk with all hands by HMS Stanley whilst attacking HG 76 The Type VIIC U-boat U-43427/3/42 U587 sunk with all hands by HMS Leamington whilst attacking WS 17 The Type VIIC U-boat U-58724/7/42 U90 sunk with all hands by Canadian ship HMCS St Croix whilst attacking ON 113 The Type VIIC U-boat U-904/2/43 U187 sunk with all hands by HMS Beverley whilst attacking SC 118 The Type IXC/40 U-boat U-1874/3/43 U87 sunk with all hands by Canadian ship HMCS St Croix whilst attacking KMS 10 The Type VIIB U-boat U-8714/5/43 U89 sunk with all hands by HMS Broadway whilst attacking HX 237 The Type VIIC U-boat U-89The destruction of U110 is perhaps one of those events that helped to ensure the eventual Allied victory in the Battle of the North Atlantic. This extract is from The U-boat Wars 1939-1945 (Kriegsmarine) and 1914-1918 (Kaiserliche Marine) and Allied Warships of WWII:"The Secret Capture"U-110 was captured by the Royal Navy on May 9 1941. This was perhaps the most important capture of the entire war and was so secret that even the crew of U-110 did not know of it! U-110, under the command of Kptlt. Fritz Julius Lemp, had been attacking a convoy in the Atlantic south of Iceland together with U-201 (Oblt. Adalbert Schnee), when Lemp left his periscope up too long (probably to confirm a kill: he sank two ships totalling 7500 GRT that day) and the escort corvette HMS Aubretia sighted it and rushed to the scene and began depth charging.U-110 survived the first attacks, but then HMS Bulldog and HMS Broadway joined the hunt. U-110 was forced to surface, and HMS Bulldog immediately set course to ram (its commander realised it might be possible to capture U-110, and veered aside at the last moment) which caused Lemp to order "Abandon Ship". Lemp assumed the boat would be sunk, and its confidential material would go down with it. When he was in the water he realised the boat was not sinking, and attempted to swim back to prevent capture. That was the last seen of him. Members of U-110s crew later claimed he was shot in the water by the British boarding party, but that was never confirmed.The boarding party commanded by Lt David Balme made several journeys between U-110 and HMS Bulldog to collect whatever they could get their hands on inside the boat. This proved to be very fruitful, as U-110 was abandoned in a hurry, and being a Type IXB U-boat, did not sink as rapidly as a Type VIIC would have. It is almost certain that many U-boats were sunk as a result of the material found inside U-110, including an Enigma machine with rotors set and current code books.The day after the capture, the British Admiralty realised the importance of this, and that if the Germans knew the boat had been captured, they would assume the worst and change their codes and cipher system. The boat was accordingly ordered to be scuttled while being towed to Britain, the surviving crew were taken straight to Iceland to be interned, and everyone involved in the capture sworn to secrecy. 15 of U-110's crew died in the action and 32 were interned.This event was the subject of a British parliamentary motion in 1999 condemning the portrayal of the capture of U-110 and subsequent breaking of German codes as an American success in the film U-571.War losses were not all one sided of course. A total of nine Town class ships were lost on active service as follows:19/8/41 HNoMS Bath, escorting Convoy OG 71, was hit by two torpedoes from U-204 with the loss of the Commanding Offices and 82 crew USS Hopewell (DD-181) - Wikipedia31/1/42 HMS Belmont was sunk by U-82 with loss of all hands (138) USS Satterlee (DD-190) - Wikipedia11/4/1943 HMS Beverley was seriously damaged in a collision with a merchantman in Convoy ON176. She fell out of the convoy and was sunk by U-188 the following day with only four survivors out of a crew of 155 USS Branch (DD-197) - Wikipedia18/1041 HMS Broadwater was torpedoed by U-101 whilst escorting Convoy SC 48 USS Mason (DD-191) - Wikipedia15/12/40 HMS Cameron sunk in Portsmouth harbour by bombing without ever becoming operational. Later refloated and used as a hulk and for shock testing USS Welles (DD-257) - Wikipedia16/1/45 HMS Churchill transferred to Russia as Dejatelnyj sunk as she attacked a diving U-Boat. A heavy explosion blew her stern off subsequently sinking with the loss of the Commanding Officer and 116 men with only seven survivors. It isn’t clear if the explosion was a torpedo, mine or accidental detonation of a depth charge USS Herndon (DD-198) - Wikipedia27/9/44 HMS Rockingham struck a mine whilst acting as a target for aircrew training. Sank under tow USS Swasey (DD-273) - Wikipedia20/9/43 HMCS St Croix, escorting Convoy ON202, sunk by U-305 using a Gnat Acoustic Homing torpedo. 68 crew were lost, 5 Officers and 68 Ratings were picked up by HMS Itchen. She was sunk a few days later by U-666. Only one of the St. Croix crew survived the second sinking USS McCook (DD-252) - Wikipedia19/12/41 HMS Stanley sunk by U-574 with only 25 survivors whilst escorting Convoy HG 76. The U-Boat was swiftly sunk by the Sloop HMS Stork USS McCalla (DD-253) - Wikipedia3 Newspaper Front Page Report on Loss of St CroixThe Town class as a whole didn’t become operational until early 1941, well after the reasons for their emergency acquisition had passed. They also passed into second line duties or reserve fairly quickly with few remaining in front line duty beyond 1943. The Town Class vessels were seen as particularly dispensable. Some ships were lent to Russia or were manned by the Norwegians. HMS Cambletown was manned at various times by a part Polish, a Dutch and finally a British crew before being expended on the St Nazaire attack. Operation Chariot, perhaps the most famous Commando raid of the entire war resulted in the destruction of the only dry dock in France capable of accommodating the Tirpitz.4 - Remains of HMS Cambletown after the Explosions which Destroyed the St. Nazaire Dock CaissonSt Nazaire Raid - Wikipedia.Whilst there is no doubt that the Town class destroyers did contribute to the Battle of the North Atlantic, the quote that they were the “50 ships that saved the world”, was rather a long way from the truth. They did do was represent the start of the Lend Lease approach and brought forward the participation of the USA in the war against the Nazis.HMS BurhamHMS Burnham, formerly USS Aulick was the ship which my Father-in-Law, David McGarva, joined on 28th September 1940 as an Engine Room Artificer 2nd Class (ERA Cl 2). He left the ship on the 18th November 1942 as Acting Chief Engine Room Artificer (A/CERA).5 - USS Aulick as built6 - HMS Burnahm post refit. Radar 271 (on new bridge roof) and 286 on foremast, Centre line Torpedo Tubes. May – October ‘42Summary of HMS Burham’s War ServiceIn many ways HMS Burnham’s service record is typical of the class. She was commissioned at Halifax on 8th October 1940 and then sailed for Devonport on the 16th October where she completed as brief refit before working up at Scarpa Flow from 12th November. She then joined the Western Approaches Command. Her first job was escorting the new carrier HMS Formidable from Belfast to the Clyde and then was tasked with bringing in convoy SL56. Severe weather damage incurred during this task resulted in her being placed on repair at Belfast from 17th December to 30th January 1941. The damage can be seen in the photos below. The bridge was badly damaged, boats carried away, the main mast bent and torpedo tubes damaged. Much of this is likely to be due to the effect of the classes’ poor seakeeping.On completion of repairs HMS Burnham joined the 12th Escort Group operating in UK waters. A collision with HMS Malcolm on the 3rd March sent her into Liverpool for repairs lasting to 27th April. On completion she proceeded first to Iceland where the 12th Escort Group was now based and then to St. John’s, Newfoundland in late May 1941 to join the Newfoundland Escort Force.A second collision, this time with sister ship HMS Chesterfield, put her into Boston for repair from mid-September to 23rd October 1941, after which she resumed escort duty from St. John’s. In March 1942 the ship went South to Charleston SC for a six week refit, followed by a month’s duty based on Bermuda. Following this she returned to the Royal Canadian Navy remaining in Canadian waters until called home to the UK for a refit on the Thames during November and December 1942.On completion of this refit and work up, HMS Burnham joined the Canadian C3 Escort Group and remained on trans-Atlantic escort duty until late October 1943.By that date new ships were replacing many of the oldest escorts. HMS Burham returned to the Western Approached Command and was refitted in Liverpool as an Air Target Ship. Duty as an Air Target Ship lasted eight months from March 1944 to 1st December 1944 paying off to Reserve until listed for disposal. In March 1947. She arrived at Pembroke Dock on 1st December 1948 to be broken up.7- HMS Burnham Bridge Damage8- HMS Burnham Severe Weather DamageThe North Atlantic is unforgiving. Gales and heavy seas are not the only problem; sub-zero temperatures in winter could result in the formation of ice on the upper decks. The vessels were already top heavy so it is necessary to chip away the ice with axes or hammers to prevent the danger of a capsize.Apart from the dangers from weather and sea, there was always the danger presented by the enemy, mostly U-Boats, sometimes aircraft and on two occasions narrowly avoiding Bismark (Convoy HX 126) and Gneisenau /Scharnhorst (Convoy HX 106).9- HMS Burnham IceEscort ServiceThe two years David spent on Convoy duty must have been extremely tough, cramped and with miserable conditions, mostly tedious and with only rare moments of excitement to alleviate the boredom. It was mentioned above that these ships were ‘wet’ due to their seakeeping characteristics and the foredeck hatch down to the mess decks. The ship’s bows would penetrate rather than ride over waves and water inevitably found its way below. As an ERA, David spent his watches in the machinery spaces and Engine Room, ankle or calf deep in near freezing Atlantic water which swirled around the deck. I imagine that the mess decks were little better. Eventually he was hospitalised with Trench Foot as a result.Typically escort vessels didn’t have the range to accompany a Convoy from departure to arrival so escorting vessels would for example assemble with the Convoy at Halifax, hand over to replacement escorts based in Iceland and they would subsequently hand over to escorts for the Western Approaches.During her war service HMS Burnham escorted at least 49 Convoys as below, details of which can be found in Home of Siri (Holm) Lawson/Warsailors.com, ConvoyWeb or Royal Navy and Naval History.Net :ONS (Liverpool to Halifax (Slow) – ONS 016 and ONS 019HX (Halifax or NYC to Liverpool) – HX 106, HX 109, HX 124, HX126, HX130, HX136, HX 143, HX 144, HX 193, HX 201, HX 221, HX 226, HX 238, HX 244, HX 249, HX 255 and HX 262OB (UK Liverpool Outbound) – OB 283, OB 289, OB 319, OB 322, OB 334 and OB 347ON (UK to NYC, Halifax, Cape Cod or dispersed) – ON 8, ON 38, ON 50, ON 69, ON 100, ON 113, ON 119, ON 129, ON 152, ON 163, ON 172, ON 180, ON 187 and ON 192SC (NYC, Sydney SC, Halifax to UK Liverpool) – SC 33, SC 53, SC 59, SC66, SC 89, SC 97, SC 102 and SC 124SL (Freetown to UK) - SL/MKS 56TH NN2 (Trinidad to Halifax)Convoy HX 126This is an account of Convoy HX 126, reproduced from Convoy HX 126 General Report as below. It should be noted that on leaving HX 126 around the 25th Maythe Icelandic based escorts passed within 17 miles or so of the Bismark which was on the loose following the Battle of Denmark Strait on the 24th May and the sinking of HMS Hood:HX 126 departed Halifax on May 10-1941 and arrived Liverpool on the 28thOcean Escort: HMS Aurania and HMS TribuneLocal Escort: HMS Malcom, Burnham, Scimitar, Burwell, Mallow, Verbena, Arabis, Heliotrope, Northern Gem and Northern Wave (Westerly rendezvous).Also, HMS Keppel, Sabre, Lincoln, Dianella, Sunflower, Kingcup, Gladiolus and Springbank (Easterly rendezvous).May 19:19:13 - Admiralty made G.M.B.S. to all stragglers from HX 126, giving them a route in.May 20:06:01 - Malcolm reported that he and Scimitar (from OB 322) were proceeding to Iceland to refuel, while Burnham, Burwell, Mallow, Heliotrope, Arabis, Verbena, Norther Wave and Northern Gem were proceeding to meet the convoy.06:31 - Aurania reported that Norman Monarch and Harpagus had been torpedoed.11:50 - Aurania gave a U-boat sighting report.12:59 - Burnham reported that she and Burwell were proceeding to this position, followed by remainder of escort vessels.13:00 - Darlington Court and British Security were reported torpedoed and at 16:08, Aurania reported that convoy had scattered.13:41 - Admiralty warned the convoy that a it had been sighted.14:44 - Aurania replied that the convoy had already scattered, and that 3 ships had been sunk (see Aurania's report).13:58 - (the times don't make sense here) Commander in Chief consequently ordered Malcolm (who had proceeded to Iceland earlier) and the 12th Escort Group to attempt to reform the convoy.16:04 - Rothermere torpedoed.16:24 - John P. Pedersen torpedoed.18:01 - Burnham reported that she had the crew of Norman Monarch on board, giving the position, course and speed of Harpagus (which had also picked up survivors from Norman Monarch). Burwell was searching to the W.N.W., Burnham to the south (see also Burnham and Burwell's report).18:13 - Nicoya reported U-boat sighting (ref. her captain's report).19:10 - Northern Wave and Northenr Gem ordered to search for the torpedoed ships, together with Hontestroom, which was to be escorted. (The latter was a Dutch Rescue Vessel, on her way home, and not the Rescue Ship assigned to the convoy). Burnham reported having proceeded to the given position, but found nothing (again, see Burnham's report).May 2104:12 - Burnham reported Elusa had been torpedoed.04:34 - Burnham reported that she was rejoining Burwell, and had survivors from Harpagus and Norman Monarch on board. 17 ships in company.05:14 - Commander in Chief Western Approaches ordered Malcolm to report to Iceland at her discretion.05:51 - Burnham reported rescuing survivors from the torpedoed Elusa, on fire, but salvage considered to be possible. Vicinity of wreck had been reached one hour after the explosion, but searched without results.09:03 - Verbena reported having attacked an enemy submarine (this is also mentioned in the Commodore's narrative) in 58 55N 39 30W, and was ordered by Malcolm to remain in neighbourhood for 48 hours. Burnham was detached from convoy to assist.15:44 - Burnham reported several attacks on the submarine had taken place, but contact had been lost and not yet regained. By that time, Verbena had only one depth charge left.16:39 - C. in C. informed all escorts of the position as far as could be ascertained, ordering Arabis and the 2 trawlers with Hontestroom to continue searching for survivors, until satisfied all had been picked up.21:00 - Scimitar (having refuelled) repored she expected to rejoin convoy at 16:00 the next day.May 22:12:46 - Malcolm announced she had left the convoy with 17 ships, escorted by Burwell, Mallow and Heliotrope.16:53 - N.O.I.C. Iceland told Burnham and Verbena to expect air support.19:07 - Admiralty warned the convoy that it had been reported by U-boat, and was told to alter course to port, rejoining the route ordered in 61 40N 28W.19:37 - British Freedom ordered by Admiralty to proceed to Reykjavik, and if not present, Rosewood to go instead. (Burwell signalled at 06:29 on May 24 that British Freedom was not present, and that Rosewood was heading to Iceland as ordered).19:20 - Scimitar reported convoy "not met".May 23:06:01 - Iceland confirmed arrival of HMS Aurania.11:46 - Burnham reported that if no further contact was made she intended to abandon hunt at 16:00 that day.(There's a note here for 16:13 May 23, which looks like it has been crossed out, saying: "Keppel signalled not met Venemous, Lincoln, Sabre, Scimitar, Springbank and Toward").16:32 - Keppel, which was to join at 13:00 in 61 35N 25 45W, together with Sabre, Lincoln, Dianella, Sunflower, Kingcup, Lady Elsa and Springbank, reported "convoy not met", but subsequently announced at 21:56 that convoy had been met.19:01 - Aircraft reported the convoy in position 61 40N 27 30W, 095° at 16:00 hours, this position being about 30 miles astern of estimate.20:00 - Arabis, her fuel being expended, signalled Malcolm that she was returning to Reykjavik with Hontestroom. Northern Wave and Northern Gem continued their search for survivors of torpedoed ships.23:59 - Primrose signalled "not met"May 24:12:00 - Heliotrope signalled Iceland that estimated time of arrival Reykjavik was 21:00 May 24, with Scimitar and Rosewood.12:59 - C. in C. Western Approaches ordered Churchill to immediately proceed to Iceland at best speed, and was to await orders there after fuelling, along with Burnham.14:54 - C. in C. told Keppel that Kingcup was required for minesweeping (training?) for one day and was to leave convoy off Butt of Lewis and proceed directly to Loch Foyle, and to report estimated time of arrival when clear. Wires to be streamed and kites calibrated before arrival. M/S officer to report to N.O.I.C. Londonderry on May 27.May 25:10:10 - Iceland reported that in view of the situation Zwarte Zee and Buttermere were not sent to tow in Elusa, and proposed sending Zwarte Zee to the U.K. with B.D.? 4. If salvage of Elusa was still considered possible, Tenacity could be sent instead.17:45 - Burnham reported revised number of survivors from Elusa 49, Harpagus 16, Norman Monarch 22, for a total of 89.May 26:06:35 - Iceland requested Northern Gem and Northern Wave to report position of British Security and, if known, whether she was salvable.11:41 - Keppel was ordered to leave convoy off Butt of Lews and proceed to Scapa, and from there to ?(illegible) to refit.19:46 - Venomous signalled that escort was detailed as follows:Sabre for Loch Ewe - estimated time of arrival 01:30 May 27Venomous for ClydeLincoln and Mallow for Liverpool21:36 - Aultbea confirmed the arrival of Lincoln and at 06?:37, advised that she had sailed to rejoin the convoy.22:37 - Aultbea confirmed the arrival of Mallow, later signalling she had sailed May 27 (time illegible).23:58 (the date here still says May 26) - Loch Ewe confirmed arrival of HX 126 (including Westport from SC 31), except for stragglers Ribera and Eemland.May 27:03:13 - Sabre left Aultbea to rejoin the convoyConvoy arrived Liverpool on May 28.HMS Burnham's reportTo the Senior Officer of 12th Escort Group - dated May 24-1941(in HMS Malcolm's report, the 12th has been crossed out and replaced by an 8 - in other words, it's to the 8th Escort Group)May 2013:00 - Received a report of the torpedoing of the British Security. Directed Mallow to take charge of trawlers and corvettes and proceeded with Burwell, course 218°. Worked up to 26 knots.17:03 - Sighted a ship and altered course towards her on 270°. She proved to be the S.S. Harpagus. She had the crew of the Norman Monarch on board and thought most of the convoy were to the W.N.W. I directed Burwell to search in this direction while Burnham searched further south. Fifteen minutes after leaving Harpagus I received a sighting report of U-boat from S.S. Nicoya and proceeded towards the position at 26 knots at 18:15.18:30 - Ships were sighted to the Westward but none apparently being Nicoya. I proceeded on to position given.19:45 - Position was reached, but nothing was sighted. I swept West for half an hour and then turned North. S.S. Dorelian was sighted and I closed on her at 20:45. Set her course 037°, 10 knots.21:10 - Sighted the tanker Elusa ahead and closed her.21:55 - Sighted convoy, Burwell in company, 15 ships, course 044°, 8 knots. Had speed reduced to 6 knots while Dorelian and Elusa joined.May 2102:00 (about) - When screening on starboard bow of convoy a red flare was sighted. This proved to be from two boats and a raft with 35 survivors from S.S. Harpagus and Norman Monarch. *These were picked up and station regained at 03:15.03:30 - A tanker in the middle of the convoy was torpedoed. Search with star shell was carried out but with only two ships escorting the convoy it was impossible to make it effective. As it was not really dark I was in some doubt as to the U-boat being on the surface or submerged, consequently after searching on the bow and beam I carried out an Asdic sweep astern. In doing this I closed the burning wreck and found three boats and a raft with survivors. Finding nothing astern, the survivors were picked up. The master was still on board and had to be taken off with a line. The tanker proved to be the Elusa, 48 survivors*. Malcom arrived as the last of the survivors was being picked up and the convoy was rejoined with her.* Note that Burnham reported revised numbers of survivors on May 25: Elusa 49, Harpagus 16, Norman Monarch 22 - see this report.Elusa had been hit on the starboard side and was second ship in the centre column. When the explosion occurred two ships were lit up between her and Burnham and it seems probable that the U-boat dropped down from right ahead and got among the convoy escaping afterwards either ahead or astern. No doubt before attacking she had observed the positions of the escorting ships which were 10° before the beam of the leading wing ship on either side and covering as much ground as possible at a mean distance of one mile, and acted accordingly.Signed by J. BostockCommanding Officer of HMS Burnham.Letter to ForrestallOn leaving HMS Burnham, David was drafted to HMS Balfour, a brand new Captain Class Destroyer Escort (initially named as USS McAnn), powered by the very latest technology of a steam turbine/electric drive HMS Balfour (K464) - Wikipedia . She served with the 1st Escort Group and 18th Escort Group and took part in the Normandy invasion as part of the anti-submarine screen which protected the invasion fleet. She was also responsible for the demise of U672.Despite the privations and despite the fact that the Town class ships were very much on their last legs, I have no doubt that David and his shipmates were immensely grateful that the USA had provided some of the tools urgently needed to wage war against Nazi Germany. That is certainly the very strong impression given by his letter below.When going through David’s papers we came across a draft of the letter addressed to US Secretary to the Navy Forrestall. This is the transcript of the letter actually held in the Forrestall archive.E.R.A’s Mess,H.M.S. Balfourc/o G.P.O.LondonSept 16th 1945Dear Mr Forrestall,You may think it very presumptuous of me writing to you, but the truth is that I am a very disappointed Chief Engine room Artificer, the equivalent to a Chief Machinists Mate in your US Navy, on board the above ship. But I think you will agree that I have a small claim to write to you having had the unique experience of using American equipment and serving in Ex US and American built Lend Lease ships in the last five years.On Oct. 8th 1940 I had the privilege of being present at Halifax, Nova Scotia, when “Old Glory” or the Stars and Stripes was hauled down on board USS Aulick and I along with others walked on board and ran up the White Ensign and so commissioned HMS Burnham, one of the 50 over age destroyers.Previous to this I had lived on board with the US crew in the C.P.O.’s mess, as one of the key ratings I was working with the American crewmen getting to know the running of the machinery in the engine rooms, firerooms and other machinery spaces.Well Sir, I was on board the Burnham for over two years and two months and can assure you, that she did yeoman service for the Allied Cause in the North Atlantic on convoy escort duty when we were in such straits in those days when we stood alone. In fact we were credited along with a corvette with the destruction of a U-Boat. This Unterzeeboaten had created havoc on a convoy and we picked up ninety-one officers and men, the survivors of eleven sunken merchantmen, fifty-one of these were the Chinese of a Royal Dutch tanker. Whilst on the way back to Iceland, the hunt for the Bismarck was on and she actually passed us one night about seventeen miles from us and we carried on to Iceland and landed the survivors and arrived in port very short of fuel. About twenty tons of fuel were all that we had on board so you can well imagine we could not have even run from her had we been attacked.Now it was plain to see that the convoys would have to be escorted all the way across the Atlantic, so along with HMS Churchill we were sent from Iceland to St Johns Newfoundland to open up a base, and from here we convoyed back to Iceland. We kept on this job convoying from Newfoundland to Iceland and back again, all through the long wintry gales and heavy seas of the North Atlantic. I am quite sure if you care to examine the records, you will no doubt find that we were among the top in mileage covered by the Ex US destroyers in the years 1941 - 42.During my service on board the Burnham, we were twice refitted in U.S. Navy yards; first at South Boston Navy Yard in September and October 1941. This no doubt you well remember before the U.S. as a nation was involved in war, and secondly at Charleston Navy yard South Carolina in April 1942. where we had good attention and enabled us to keep our ship running during this period when we were so sorely tried and in great need of ships ans supplies. No Briton realizes any more than I do what we owe to your People and your great President for sustaining us during the years of the great build up period. As a sailor who has spent five years of this war in and around the great waters of the Atlantic, I saw the ever increasing volume of supplies coming across this great Ocean.After we left Charleston S.C. we were given a tough job. We dashed up to New York at 25 knots and you know what was happening on your Eastern seaboard at that time, passing newly sunken wrecks etc, still on we dashed because of the urgency of our job and we were actually machine gunned that night by a C.A.P. pilot who must have mistaken us. However he managed to drop the correct colour flare before he was shot at. We oiled in New York and took on tropical clothing for the crew and we left New York with our convoy of three large tankers after a stay of only 2 hours in harbour.This convoy we took down into the tropics, the temps of the firerooms and enginerooms reaching 130°F when we were battened down at nights, the tankers went up the Orinoco to load up their cargo of Venezuelan oil whilst we lay waiting at Port of Spain, Trinidad, as Venezuela was neutral in those days and so was barred to ships of the Royal Navy. When ready we left for Halifax, stopping at Bermuda to oil and then right on to Halifax N.S. where this convoy was welcomed as the stocks of fuel oil were getting low. We were congratulated on the safe delivery of our convoy as no doubt you will recall the U-Boat menace in the Caribbean and along your Eastern seaboard during May and June 1942.Next we were based at Halifax N.S. running from there with the newly assembled convoys and after seeing them well on their way we handed them over to British based escorts off Newfoundland. Then we took over the inward convoys and took them to Cape Cod after which we would tie up at the Commonwealth Pier Boston where we would lay for a day or so before proceeding back to Halifax. During those days in Boston it was a pleasure to relax and enjoy ourselves with some real and true friends, friends I had made amongst the machinists and workmen who had refitted my ship in South Boston Navy Yard. After a spell of this triangular run we returned to our old job of convoying all the way across the Atlantic from St John’s Newfoundland to the Western Approaches at Liverpool.Another distinction we had whilst convoying in the North Atlantic was that Mr. Churchill and a distinguished number of British and American politicians and naval and military experts on board the HMS Prince of Wales fresh from signing the Atlantic Charter at Argentia, Newfoundland, passed through a convoy led by the Burnham and her consort of corvettes, showing that our great wartime Premier and leader trusted the Royal Navy to his safe passage and delivery. He saw for himself that the old almost worn out and over age Ex USS destroyers were doing a great job on the broad wastes of the Atlantic by ensuring that the much needed U.S. supplies, lend-lease etc were being safely shepherded across the Atlantic from their US producers to the British, American and Russian users.On being relieved on board by a younger rating, we senior engineering ratings were urgently required to take diesel courses on Gray Marine or General Motors diesels for what was then a very “hush hush job”. Can you imagine my great surprise when I was taken across the Atlantic and on arriving in the USA was sent to Boston to take over a Diesel D.E. But after awaiting at Frazier Barracks, Boston Navy Yard for a ship, I was suddenly hustled down to the Bethlehem Yard at Hingham Mass., to take over a Turbo Electric D.E.The first time I saw her on Monday morning she was doing her basin trials and on the following Thursday Oct 3 of that week she was commissioned with a British Naval crew. So you can imagine I was extremely busy and I had a young and in-experienced crew. She was mine and I had only three days in which to familiarise myself with a new and revolutionary type of propulsion for a Naval vessel, and we moved with the aid of a dockyard party from Hingham to Charleston Navy Yard, Boston, where we carried out a series of trials etc. However after losing around twenty pounds in weight in the first two months, the result of dashing up and down engine room and fireroom ladders to prevent disasters happening in those compartments due to the greenness and inexperience of the crew most of whom have never been to sea before. However before we left the U.S. we managed to settle down and lick the job and turned into a great team in the black gang of this ship.Now after almost two years in commission we have quite a useful record to our account, we have sunk two confirmed U-Boats and whilst a ship in the 1st Escort Group under Commander Clive Gwinner D.S.O., D.S.C., R.N., quite a renowned U-Boat sinker we helped in the location and sinking of other U-Boats.From D-Day and until the occupation of Brest and Cherbourg peninsulas we carried out anti-U-Boat patrols and sweeps on these areas in fact we have been under German gun fire from the long range guns on Alderney, one of the Channel Islands. Then a long spell of anti-U-Boat sweeps and protection of convoys in the approaches to the English Channel. During the midget submarine attacks we were moved right up into the Channel and were working with the Cross Channel convoys of LSTs etc to Cherbourg and Le Havre. Then to crown our efforts in anti U-Boat patrols U776 surrendered to us shortly after the capitulation of the German land forces.Well Sir as I have mentioned before I have been privileged to attend two unique and historic ceremonies; (1) seeing the Stars and Stripes hauled down on USS Aulick and the White Ensign run up on HMS Burnham, Oct 8 1940, (2) the commissioning of a British Naval ship built in an American ship building yard and the White Ensign run up on HMS Balfour at Hingham, Mass. Oct 7th 1943.So now I come to the story of my great disappointment, we have just got the signal to proceed to a port where we will hand back HMS Balfour to the U.S.Navy. That completes the cycle and ceremony (3) of hauling down the White Ensign on HMS Balfour and running up the Stars and Stripes on USS ?. To my everlasting disappointment it means that the hopes I had of taking her back to the U.S.A. and telling my Boston Navy Yard friends of our exploits etc during our two years in commission in the dangerous waters of the Atlantic and English Channel are doomed to disappointment.Hoping to have a reply from you with your signature however short, as I would treasure it as a great addition to my Anglo-American trophies and photographs etc of this War.Yours sincerelyDavid McGarva, C.E.R.ABackground and some photos from Destroyers for Great Britain by Arnold Hague, ISBN 0–87021–782–8Also Warships of WWII by H.T. Lenton & J.J. Colledge ISBN 0–7110–0403-X

Thank you for asking. The major impediment to metal hulls was the challenge of shaping the plates without weakening the structure of the metal. For decades, the wooden hulls of ships had been encased in copper sheathing, but iron was less forgiving than the relatively malleable copper.Ironically, it was realized that the techniques of bending iron plates and riveting them together to build ships were similar to the principles involved in making boilers. The two emerging technologies combined to produce metal-hulled, steam-driven, screw propeller, ocean-going vessels.The SS Great Britain (1845) was the first large iron steamship driven by a screw propeller to cross the Atlantic. The Great Britain had a chain driven overdrive gear so that the slow-turning marine steam engines could turn a screw propeller at suitable RPMs to produce the required thrust. The SS Great Eastern an iron sailing / steamship also designed by Isambard Brunel, built on the River Thames, London, was by far the largest ship ever built at the time of its 1858 launch. Its measurements were six times larger by volume than any metal hull ship then afloat. Such a large vessel benefited from economies of scale and required fewer crew than the equivalent tonnage made up of smaller ships. In 1881 the SS Servia, a British merchant steamer (Cunard Line) capable of crossing the Atlantic in just 7 days, was the first vessel to be constructed of steel.Discussion:Wood is almost the perfect material for building a vessel. Less expensive to produce than iron, wood can be bent and formed, carved and sized, sawed and drilled, rounded, smoothed, and squared, pinned together and lengthened with mechanical joints, and easily repaired in foreign ports — all with relatively simple tools. And it floats! (This last characteristic is not actually necessary.) *The American vessel Wyoming was a wooden six masted schooner built and completed in 1909 by the firm of Percy & Small in Bath, Maine. It was the largest known wooden ship ever built, but it was technologically obsolete when launched.While acknowledging the answers of other respondents, the major impediment to metal vessels was the cost of tooling or retooling the shipyards — not the availability or the expense of metal. Appropriate stands of trees for shipbuilding in Britain had long before been exhausted, and the UK had become highly dependent on Canada and Scandinavia for its maritime “naval stores” after the American Revolution. Certainly the advances in the production of metal plates and complicated cast iron appliances was important, but this does not explain the continued use of wood technologies by American builders virtually until the end of the 19th century.John Laird, Sons & Co. Shipyard -Worlds largest iron-hulled construction in the mid-1800's Britain (Birkenhead). Laird was one of the first to use iron in the construction of ships. The Laird rams were two ships secretly funded and constructed at Birkenhead, England on behalf of the Confederacy between 1862-1863. Iron-hulled from the keel up and fitted with two revolving turrets. Strong diplomatic pressure led to their seizure by the British government and eventual commissioning into the Royal Navy.Americans were the best wooden windship builders and designers of the 18th century. But the wooden windship design had reached its practical engineering limits with the development of the clipper ships of the 1850s. The wooden windships had a decided economic edge, at least on the long-haul routes. Nevertheless, wooden-hulled American clippers saw severe competition in the Oriental trade from British windship designs that utilized composite hulls, wood with cast iron beams and bracing, before the American Civil War. Although generally smaller than the American ships, and somewhat slower under the best of conditions, the British vessels proved to be better suited to a variety of weather extremes.It can be demonstrated that the US shipbuilding industry was simply no longer competitive and that a change to steam-driven, metal-hulled vessels was essential to reinvigorate US ocean shipping. With modern wood-working and wood-turning apparatus installed during the Clipper Ship Era, American shipyards could crank out their best work at as little as 60 percent of the cost of British builders, who generally did not invest in such devices. It can be demonstrated that the US shipbuilding industry was simply no longer competitive and that a change to steam-driven, metal-hulled vessels was essential to reinvigorate US ocean shipping. Americans found themselves saddled with expensive wood shipbuilding apparatus made obsolete by the sudden popularity of metal hulls and steam. British builders, by contrast, had made no large investment in wooden windship technology and were able to update their shipyards directly to metal and steam production without taking a loss. The failure to accomplish this change may have served as a primary mechanism for much of the decline in US foreign carrying trade while concurrently explaining the sustained growth of the coasting trade and inland navigation where wood based technologies were still both efficient and economical. [i]There was a clear prejudice against iron hulls. It was thought that they were too “brittle” to survive “groundings” and too subject to corrosion by sea water. The prejudice against iron hulls, moreover, was such that some shipbuilders held out against it for decades, and even where metallurgical personnel could be recruited from other civil engineering fields many shippers refused to make the change. Even in technologically advanced British yards, iron substructures and supports like knees and braces had been only slowly adopted. The lack of metal repair facilities in foreign ports (of even the materials to make repairs) should not be overlooked especially in terms of the important Far Eastern trade.The Great Eastern under construction — J. Scott Russell & Co. at Millwall Iron Works. The vessel had sail, paddle, and screw propulsion. The power came from four steam engines for the paddles and an additional engine for the propeller — Brunel's initial concept of using both paddle wheels and a screw.Early iron hull plates were very small by later standards, no more than 6 ft by 2 ft 6 in. by approximately 3/4 to 7/8 in. thick. The arrangement of plates was like bricks in a wall with about 18 inches of frame spacing. Metal hulls were considered untrustworthy especially in rough seas or in the case of hard groundings or collisions. Marine insurers initially refused to insure them until there continued operation evidenced a degree of safety. By the 1860s the plates had increased in length to a minimum of 9 ft and butt joints were spaced at least one frame space clear of one another. Each strake of plating was still very narrow, between 2 ft 6 in. and 3 ft wide, which meant easier handling in erection and a minimum of shaping.Shaping the plates to the hull form was done by passing the plate between rollers, which could be adjusted to different curvatures, sometimes in three dimensions. This machinery was very expensive, and in some cases so large as to be impractical to place in small woodship yards. Any compound curves in the hull design necessitated the plate being furnaced until red hot and then quickly hammered to shape over iron-strapped templates. As soon as the piece was withdrawn from the furnace, a gang of men attacked it with heavy hammers. The plate might have to be heated a second time before the correct shape was made. This process was expensive and kept to an absolute minimum because it affected the tensile strength of the plate.The expansion of American shipbuilding during the Golden Age of Sail actually served to disadvantage the industry after the Civil War. Americans found themselves saddled with expensive shipbuilding apparatus designed for working wood and canvas sails, made obsolete by the sudden popularity of metal hulls and steam. British builders, by contrast, had made no large investment in wooden windship technology and were able to update their shipyards directly to metal and steam production without taking a loss. The vessels remaining in the US merchant fleet after the Civil War were described as "old, obsolete, and nearly worthless craft."[ii]Note: When the US was challenged (made worse by the disaster at Pearl Harbor) to build a fleet of Motor Torpedo Boats (PTs) for the defense of the Pacific in the late 1930s and early 1940s, it was found that a form of plywood construction was the best material for the hulls. Though often said to be made of plywood, they were actually made of two diagonal layers of 1 inch (25 mm) thick mahogany planks, with a glue-impregnated layer of canvas in between. Holding all this together were thousands of bronze screws and copper rivets. This type of construction made it possible for damage to the wooden hulls of these boats to be easily repaired at the front lines by base force personnel.[i, ii] Clinton H. Whitehurst, The U.S. Merchant Marine: In Search of an Enduring Maritime Policy (Annapolis, MD: Naval Institute Press, 1986), 1-2.See:Amazon.com: Civil War Tech: How Simple It Is After All (Traditional American History Series Book 15) eBook: Volo, James M: Kindle StoreMore than warSee also:Daily Life in the Age of Sail: (The Greenwood Press "Daily Life Through History" Series): Volo, Dorothy, Volo, James M.: 9780313310263: Amazon.com: Books