Dagmar I

[valfredchristie@aol.com]

Hello Catleman,

Some time ago you and some other kind people kindly responded to my request for information on the ships my father Wilfred Paul McCormick Christie (R153646) sailed on. The last one being the Dagmar 1 (167545) sailed 10 Sep 1940. The Dagmar I was an ex-danish "butter boat?". I have done further searches and found two books one is Beware Raiders which gives a report of the sinking. Apparently Commodore Dawson of Convoy HG53 sailed on Dagmar I and transfered his command when Dagmar I sank. The Captain A D Holburn made a report of the incident.
My question is: Having seen the photo that you sent to me of Dagmar I which appears to be a coastal ship and not very large, I can also see a person standing on the open bridge in the photo. The ship in the photo, could it possibly be the same Dagmar I which was carrying boxes of oranges and oxide of iron in barrels from North Africa that was nearly sunk by a torpedo from U-37 and then sunk the next day 9 Feb 1941 by German Focke-Wulf Condor 200 off the coast Spain some 200 miles west of Cape Vincent.
Not being a Merchant Seaman the ship in the photo seems rather small to be an ocean going vessel also is it likely that the Commodore would choose it as the Commodore's ship for Convoy HG53. Sorry to trouble you again. Thank you. Regards Fred Christie.

[DeepSea]

Dagmar I had a gross registered tonnage of 2,471, which compared to the rest of the ships in convoy HG-53, was actually one of the biggest ships in the convoy.

BRANDENBURG 1,473
BRITANNIC II 2,490
COURLAND 1,325
COXWOLD 1,124
DAGMAR I 2,471
DAGO 1,757
DISA 2,002
EGYPTIAN PRINCE 3,490
EMPIRE LOUGH 2,824
EMPIRE TERN 2,479
EMPIRE WARRIOR 1,306
ESTRELLANO 1,982
ICELAND 1,236
JURA (Br) 1,759
MARKLYN 3,090
OUSEL 1,533
SALLY MAERSK 3,252
TEJO 967
TOWARD 1,571
VANELLUS 1,886
VARNA 1,514
WROTHAM 1,884

[Ivan Cloherty]

Dagmar I had a gross registered tonnage of 2,471, which compared to the rest of the ships in convoy HG-53, was actually one of the biggest ships in the convoy.

BRANDENBURG 1,473
BRITANNIC II 2,490
COURLAND 1,325
COXWOLD 1,124
DAGMAR I 2,471
DAGO 1,757
DISA 2,002
EGYPTIAN PRINCE 3,490
EMPIRE LOUGH 2,824
EMPIRE TERN 2,479
EMPIRE WARRIOR 1,306
ESTRELLANO 1,982
ICELAND 1,236
JURA (Br) 1,759
MARKLYN 3,090
OUSEL 1,533
SALLY MAERSK 3,252
TEJO 967
TOWARD 1,571
VANELLUS 1,886
VARNA 1,514
WROTHAM 1,884

Billy you never fail to impress, we sure appreciate that you are on this site and also the help you give to others, I didn't think that just the thankyou button was adequate on this occasion and on other occasions also

Ivan

[valfredchristie@aol.com]

Hi DEEPSEA,

Thanks for your response, however when you search for DAGMAR 1 the picture is of a smallish ship with an open bridge and a person can be seen on the bridge, surely thats not the same Dagmar I that was in the HG53?. Can you enlighten me.

Regards Fred Christie

[DeepSea]

Dagmar I was built in 1903, so she probably had an open bridge. She was a relatively small ship, but don't underestimate the size of the ships being used in theses convoys. There were a lot smaller ships than her used in the same convoys and Dagmar I had been used in two previous HG convoys.

Can you link me to the photo in question, as I do not know, which one you refer to.

[DeepSea]

To clear up ant doubt you may have, the National Maritime Museum has an original copy of a photo of this ship. Below is the address and negative number to quote when ordering.

DAGMAR (Da) 50.1 1903 General cargo (ref. mchy) ex IMPERATOR NICOLAI II ex IRKUTSK Det Forenede Dampskibsselskab P9880 (6) B May 1937 Passing Tilbury. Slight image movement.

Historic Photographs Section,
National Maritime Museum,
Greenwich,
London,
SE10 9NF
Tel: +44 (0) 20 8312 8600
Fax: +44 (0) 20 8317 0263
E-mail: plansandphotos@nmm.ac.uk

[valfredchristie@aol.com]

Hello DEEPSEA,

Thanks for your response. The photo I originally had of Dagmar I was the one below Dagmar 01, Dagmar -02 is a sailing ship, then 03 and 04 are further Dagmar's. What I thought was Dagmar I is I think photo 1 or 4 photos of Dagmars. Hence my reason for trying to identify the correct ship.

Thanks Fred Christie


Old Ship Picture Thumbnails D (Dagmar-01)

Old Ship Picture Thumbnails D (Dagmar-02) - sailing ship

Old Ship Picture Thumbnails D (Dagmar-03)

Old Ship Picture Thumbnails D (Dagmar-04)