Was there a ship called The Rocksand?

[David Carroll]

My father, who is old now, has asked me if I can find out what became of a ship called The Rocksand, which he apparently saw or heard about while working for the Royal Navy as a merchant seaman during the war. I cannot find anything about this ship on the internet, but searches for it have led me to the Hood, and also my father has rerferred to the Hood while talking to me about the Rocksand. It may have been a destroyer.

Can you tell me anything about a ship by this name and what became of her.

[Tony Wilding]

Two ships calleed rocksand, first a royal naval patrol frigate built 1918, disposal date unknown, second was a american /cargo ship type c1-s-ay1 in service with royal navy, built in 1944. Details from mirimar.

[Tony Wilding]

Have uploaded a photo to the gallery under cargo \ships

[Tony Wilding]

Posted photo under cargo ships, she was passenger/cargo. Then in use with royal navy, so hard to know where to put her.. Tony wilding

[robpage]

Think this might be it , on Wikipedia , OK , I do look there sometimes



Landing craft leave HMS Rocksand for the island of Nancowry during the British occupation of the Nicobar islands in October 1945.



Career (UK)





Class and type:

Type C1-S-AY1[1] Infantry landing ship



Name:

Cape Argos (1943)
Empire Anvil (1943-44)
HMS Rocksand (1944-46)
Empire Anvil (1946-48)
Cape Argos (1948-50)
Empire Anvil (1950-60)
Hai Ya (1960-73)
Fu Ming (1973-74)



Owner:

United States Maritime Commission (1943)
Ministry of War Transport (1943-44)
Royal Navy (1944-46)
Ministry of War Transport (1946-47)
United States Maritime Commission (1947-60)
China Merchants Steam Navigation Co, Taiwan (1960-73)
Yang Ming Marine Transport Corporation, Taiwan (1973-74)



Operator:

owner operated except:-
Furness, Withy & Co (1943-44, 1946-47)



Port of registry:

USA (1943-44)
London (1944)
Royal Navy (1944-46)
UK (1946-47)
USA (1947-60)
Taiwan (1960-74)



Builder:

Consolidated Steel Corporation, Wilmington, California



Launched:

14 October 1943



Commissioned:

November 1944



Out of service:

1974



Identification:

UK Official Number 169768 (1943-44, 1946-47)[2]
Pennant number F184 (1944-46)
Taiwan Official number 1472 (1960-74)[3]
Code Letters MYMP (1943-44)[2]




General characteristics



Tonnage:

7,177 tons grt



Length:

396 ft 5 in (120.83 m)[2]



Beam:

60 ft 1 in (18.31 m)[2]



Depth:

35 ft (10.67 m)[2]



Propulsion:

2 x steam turbines (Westinghouse Electric & Manufacturing Co, Essington, Philadelphia), double reduction geared driving one screw.[2]



Armament:

1 x 4 in gun
1 x 12 pdr gun
12 x 20mm guns


HMS Rocksand was an infantry landing ship in service with the Royal Navy during the late stages of the Second World War. She was launched in 1943 as Cape Argos and renamed Empire Anvil before being taken into Royal Navy service. Postwar she reverted to Empire Anvil and then Cape Argos and back to Empire Anvil again. She spent ten years laid up before resuming service as Hai Ya and Fu Ming before being scrapped in 1974

[Tony Wilding]

The empire arquebus

[David Carroll]

Thank you very much for these replies and photo/s, my father will get a great amount of enjoyment reviewing these, as I think it meant a lot to him. So I will send the thread and photos to him shortly. I think he was thinking that he'll never hear about what became of this ship, and I kind of like the look of it as well. So I'll think I'll stay and see what else is going on here. Thank you for doing all this work looking up this information and that.