Thomas Lea

[Les Gee]

SHIPS NAME AND SERVICE RECORD

Full Name

Thomas Lea

Discharge Book Number

R168420

Department

Catering

Your Rank/Rating

Steward

Which Ships were you on and When

Bangkok-Mar-Jun 1942

Antennor-Jul 1942-Jul 1943

Settler Oct 43-Feb 1944

Llangibly castle Mar-Apr 1944

Empress of Australia Apr 1944-Oct 1944

Volendam Nov 1944-Mar 1946

Notes:

The details are of my late father-in-law. I have no idea of the routes of the above dates, and ideas on where details can be found would be much appreciated.

[Gulliver]

Hello Les,you were asking about the wartime movements of your father-in-law's ships.
I've sifted out some info for you.

Best Regards
Gulliver


s.s.BANGKOK II
(O.N. 168828)/cargo ship 8,056 grt blt. 1919 for French as BANGKOK (France Indo- Chine Co.)
1942 Requisitioned by British Govmt. Renamed BANGKOK II. 1944 Reverted to name BANGKOK.
.Broken Up La Spezia 30/8/54

　
　
s.s.ANTENOR
(O.N 147292.) Pass/cargo 11,174 grt built 1925 for A.Holt & Co.,Liverpool.
Broken Up Blyth 19/7/53


s.s.
SETTLER (O.N. 166273) Cargo. 6,202 Grt blt.1939 for Charente SS Co (T.& J. Harrison),Liverpool

　

1959 Sold & renamed MARGALANTE.Broken up Hong Kong 11/12/59

LLANGIBLY CASTLE
? No record of that name.Is there a possibility that you mean the Union Castle liner LLANGIBBY CASTLE ?


s.s.EMPRESS OF AUSTRALIA.
(O.N. 145300) Pass 21,560 grt .Laid Down 1913 as ADMIRAL VON TIRPITZ. For Hamburg-Amerika Line.Seized by British Govmt. 1919 and renamed TIRPITZ. Completed 1920. In 1921 Renamed EMPRESS OF CHINA by Canadian Pacific Railway Co. London and further renamed EMPRESS OF AUSTRALIA in 1922.
Broken Up Inverkeithing 10/5/52


　
s.s.VOLENDAM
Pass. 15,434 Grt Blt for Nederlandsch- Amerikaansche Stoomvaart M’ij (Netherlands Flag) in 1922.
Broken Up Netherlands 2/52.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

　
I found some wartime movements for the timelines you stated in your Crew List(Thanks to Arnold Hague/Convoy Web databases.)
There are a very few gaps in the info,where possibly a vessel would sail independently,or on unpublished operations.
　
　
BANGKOK II
Appears to be sailing independently at first as is recorded dep.East London(SA) 10/3/42,arr.Durban 14/3,then arr.again 28/3.Then dep.Durban independently on 3/4/42 arr.Cape Town 7/4/42.
Sailed Cape Town 12/4/42 independently arr.Freetown 27/4/42.
Sailed Freetown 4/5/42 in convoy SL/MKS 109* with cocoa beans ,rice & graphite.
Arr.Liverpool 28/5/42
[*Note on Convoy SL 109
There were 34 vessels in this convoy. The convoy speed was limited to 7.25 knots by the Dutch s.s.Jaarstroom with a foul bottom.One vessel,the British Denholms freighter Denpark) with manganese ore for the Clyde was sunk NW of Cape Verde Islands by U-109 on 12th May.The Master,15 Crew and 5 DEMS gunners were lost.] R.I.P.



　
　
　
　
ANTENOR
(Arr.Liverpool independently from Freetown on 16/7/42)
Dep.Liverpool in convoy WS21(troops) on 29/7/42
Arr/Dep. Freetown 10-15/8/42
Arr.CapeTown 27/8/42
Sailed Cape Town 30/8/42 in convoy WS2IB to Bombay arr. 19/9/42
Sailed Bombay 29/9/42 Independently to Cape Town arr. 15/10/42
Sailed Cape Town 20/10/42 in convoy CF7 to Freetown arr.2/11/42
Sailed Freetown 4/11/42 in convoy CF7A to Liverpool arr.17/11/42. Six (6)days for repairs.
Sailed Liverpool 27/11/42 in convoy KMF 4 to Phillippeville,Algeria arr. 7/12/42
Sailed Algiers 10/12/42 in convoy MKF 4 to Clyde arr. 18/12/42
Sailed Clyde 24/1/43 in convoy WS26 bound Freetown…but Returned to Clyde 26/1/43 with Engine Trouble. 24 Days Repairs.
Sailed Clyde 24/2 in convoy WS27 to Freetown
Arr/Dep Freetown 9-11/3/42
Durban arr.26/3/43
Sailed Durban 8/4 Independently to Cape Town arr. 11/4/43
Sailed Cape Town 15/4/43 Independently to Takoradi,Gold Coast arr.24/4/42
Sailed Takoradi 11/5/43 Independently to Freetown arr. 14/5/43
Sailed Freetown 16/5/43 in convoy SR4F to Gibraltar arr. 23/5/43
Sailed Algiers 28/5/43 in convoy MKF 15 arr.Clyde 5/6/43. 37 Days Repairs.
(Her next recorded movement would be dep.Clyde on 16/8/44)
LINK-The WS Convoys 42/43.


　
SETTLER
(Arr.Liverpool 6/10/43 from New York in convoy HX 258.)
Sailed Liverpool 21/10/43 for Londonderry .
Sailed Londonderry 25/10/43 with general cargo and 52 passengers for Curacao in convoy ON 208 to New York arr.7/11/43.
Sailed NY 8/11/43 to Guantanamo(Cuba) in convoy NG 397 arr. 14/11/43
Sailed Guantanamo 14/11/43 in convoy GAT 99 to Curacao arr.17/11/43
Sailed Curacao 27/11/43 in convoy GAT 101 to Trinidad arr.29/11/43
Sailed Trinidad 4/12/43 Independently to Demerara arr. 6/12/43
Sailed Demerara 16/12/43 Independently to Trinidad arr. 17/12/43
Sailed Trinidad 30/12/43 in convoyTAG 106 to Guantanamo arr. 4/1/44
Sailed Guantanamo 4/1/44 in convoy GN 106 to New York arr. 12/1/44
Sailed NY 21/1/44 ,not reported and returned NY on 23/1/44
Sailed New York 28/1/44 with general cargo destined London in convoy HX 277 arr. Liverpool 13/2//44,then onto convoy WN 544 from Loch Ewe (14/2 44) to Methil (15/2/44) then convoy FS 1363 arr. Southend 17/2/44.
(Next movement would record dep.Southend on 24/3/44)
　
　
　
　
EMPRESS OF AUSTRALIA
(Arrived Liverpool 22/2/44 in convoy UT8 from New York with 5,246 troops. 66 days repairs scheduled.)
Sailed Liverpool 5/5/44 with 4,236 troops for Naples in convoy KMF 31 arr.16/5/44
Sailed Naples 18/5/44 with Escort to join convoy MKF 31 ,arr.Clyde 29/5/44
Sailed Clyde 3/6/44 Independently.Unknown movements. Returned to Clyde 15/7/44
Sailed Clyde 18/7/44 in convoy KMF 33 to Algiers arr.28/7/44
Sailed Algiers 2/8/44 in convoy MKF 33 to Clyde arr. 10/8/44. 12 days boiler clean scheduled.
Sailed Liverpool 4/9/44 in convoy UC 36 for New York arr. 15/9/44
Sailed NY 20/9/44 with troops in convoy CU 40 for Liverpool arr.1/10/44.12 days repairs scheduled.
Sailed Liverpool to Belfast(possibly for repairs) on 21/10/44,returning Liverpool 28/10/44.
(Next voyage would depart Liverpool for Murmansk on 3/11/44)

　
　

　
　
　
　
　
　
　

[Gulliver]

VOLENDAM
(Arr.Liverpool 21/10/44 ex Port Said in convoy MKF 35 ,with 2,673 passengers,28 bags consular mail,909 bags ordinary mail.)

Sd. Liverpool 29/10/44 in convoy UC 43A to New York arr.9/11/44. Forty-five (45) days repairs scheduled.
Sd NY 26/12/44 in convoy CU 52 with troops to Solent(for Le Havre) then Liverpool arr. 7/1/45
Sd Clyde 28/1/45 in convoy KMF 39 with 2,436 troops for Gibraltar arr. 4/2/45
Sd Gibraltar 6/3/45 in convoy MKF 40 for Liverpool arr. 12/3/45. Thirty-five(35) days scheduled repairs.
Sd Clyde 16/4/45 in convoy UC 64A for Halifax) arr. 27/4/45
Sd Halifax 2/5/45 in convoy CU 68 arr.Liverpool 14/5/45. Eleven(11) days repairs scheduled.
Sd. Liverpool 29/5/45 in convoy UC 70A with 2100 troops for Halifax arr 8/6/45.

[Les Gee]

Thank you so much for the information, we have been looking for so long, even hired a firm to search the National Archives for us with no result. My wife is delighted.

[Les Gee]

Re Llangibly, yes I should have said Llangibly Castle, number 161239,

Les

[Gulliver]

And I'm delighted to receive your reply Les and glad I could help-makes it all worthwhile.

So here's the LLANGIBBY CASTLE Info for the period in question then .....
m.v.LLANGIBBY CASTLE (O.N. 161329) blt. 1929 for U.C Mail .S.S.Co 11,951 Grt
Broken Up Newport 12/7/54




Sailed Naples 5/3/44 in convoy MKF 29 arr. Clyde 16/3/44
Sailed Clyde 11/4/44 Escorted to Falmouth arr.12/4/44.
Also arr/dep.Milford Haven -Escorted-12/4/44
No further details after this.