MV Putney Hill
| Career |  |
|---|---|
| Name: | MV Putney Hill |
| Owner: | Putney Hill Steamships Co Ltd |
| Operator: | Counties Ship Management Co Ltd, London[1] |
| Builder: | William Doxford & Sons, Sunderland[1] |
| Launched: | 1940[1] |
| Completed: | 1940[1] |
| Out of service: | 26 June 1942 |
| Fate: | Sunk by torpedo & shellfire[1] |
| General characteristics | |
| Class and type: | dry cargo |
| Tonnage: | 5,226 long tons (5,853 ST; 5,310 t) gross tonnage[1] |
| Propulsion: | diesel |
| Crew: | 38[1] |
| Armament: | 4 in (100 mm) gun[2] |
MV Putney Hill was a cargo ship completed by William Doxford & Sons Ltd in Sunderland in 1940.[1] She was owned by Putney Hill Steamships Co Ltd and managed by Counties Ship Management Co Ltd of London (CSM), both of which were offshoots of the Rethymnis & Kulukundis shipbroking company.[3]
Sinking
Putney Hill was sailing unescorted in the Atlantic about 450 miles east of Puerto Rico when at 0544 hrs on 26 June 1942 U-203 hit her with one torpedo[1] in her no. 3 hold.[2] Two lifeboats were destroyed so the crew abandoned ship in the remaining two.[2] A gunner and an assistant cook were lost.[2] U-203 then surfaced and fired 53 rounds from her deck gun, sinking Putney Hill.[1]
The survivors spent 10 days in the two lifeboats.[2] The smaller boat had suffered damage to her rudder gear.[2] The larger one took the smaller in tow, set sail and they tried to make for the West Indies.[2] After seven days the fourth engineer died of extensive burns sustained when the torpedo hit Putney Hill.[2] On the tenth day the Royal Navy corvette HMS Saxifrage (K04) found the boats and rescued the survivors: the Master, 29 crew and five gunners.[1] Saxifrage landed them at San Juan, Puerto Rico, whence they were repatriated via Norfolk, Virginia and New York.[2]
Replacement ship
In 1948 Putney Hill Steamships bought the Empire ship Empire Celia and renamed her Putney Hill.[4] In 1949 her name was changed again to Castle Hill. In 1950 she became London Statesman under a new Rethymnis & Kulukundis company, London & Overseas Freighters Ltd (LOF). In 1951 LOF sold her to new owners who registered her under the Panamanian flag of convenience as Morella but then before the end of the year sold her on to Polskie Linie Oceaniczne (Polish Ocean Lines), who renamed her Jedność ("Unity"). She was scrapped in Hong Kong in 1966.
References
- ↑ 1.00 1.01 1.02 1.03 1.04 1.05 1.06 1.07 1.08 1.09 1.10 Helgason, Guðmundur (1995-2010). "Putney Hill". uboat.net. Guðmundur Helgason. http://www.uboat.net/allies/merchants/ships/1852.html. Retrieved 30 June 2010.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 2.6 2.7 2.8 Shard, Alan (2007). "The Sinking of the Putney Hill". War Stories. LOF News. http://www.lof-news.co.uk/WarStories/WarStory2/Putney%20Hill%20Sinking.htm. Retrieved 3 July 2010.
- ↑ Fenton, Roy (2006). [http://www.lof-news.co.uk/CountiesHistory/Counties1.htm "Counties Ship Management 1934-2007"]. LOF-News. p. 1. http://www.lof-news.co.uk/CountiesHistory/Counties1.htm. Retrieved 30 June 2010.
- ↑ "Empire - C". Mariners. http://www.mariners-l.co.uk/EmpireC.html. Retrieved 1 July 2010.
Sources & further reading
- Sedgwick, Stanley (1993) [1992]. Kinnaird, Mark; O'Donoghue, K.J.. eds. London & Overseas Freighters, 1948-92: A Short History. World Ship Society. ISBN 0905617681.
- Sedgwick, Stanley; Sprake, R.F. (1977). London & Overseas Freighters Limited 1949-1977. World Ship Society. ISBN 0905617010.
