The WW2 Mariner From Kinkora Whose Ship Was Torpedoed In The Caribbean

February 20, 2020. On the Cenotaph outside the Borden-Carleton Legion there are 3 men who lost their lives due to being on ships that were torpedoed.  Two of these stories have already been told….

In WW1, mariner James Graham FARROW (FARRAR) lost his life when the ship he was working on was torpedoed in the English Channel on March 19, 1916.  The steamer, ‘Port Dalhousie, had been ferrying needed supplies from Britain to troops in France, while using the cover of being a fishing vessel.  (See https://bordencarletonresearchproject.wordpress.com/2019/01/20/the-mariner-whose-ship-was-torpedoed-in-the-english-channel/)

In WW2, Everett Samuel FRANCIS had the misfortune of being a passenger on the ferry S.S. Caribou when it was torpedoed off the coast of Newfoundland on Wednesday, October 14, 1942.  He was on his way back to his unit in Gander, and to meet his three week old daughter Greta, after being in Ontario for weapons training. Unfortunately, he was not one of the survivors. (See https://bordencarletonresearchproject.wordpress.com/2018/03/25/the-face-of-everett-samuel-francis/)

James Emmet Hughes. (Photo credit: courtesy “Around Kinkora Area” by G.K. Farmer.  Photo colourization by Pieter Valkenburg.)

Like James Graham FARROW (FARRAR), James Emmet HUGHES was a seaman in the Canadian Merchant Navy, not in the military.  Born in Kinkora on April 7, 1911, he was the son of Emmet Hughes and Mary Ann McKenna.

After joining the Waterman Steamship Agency of Mobile, Alabama, he was a trimmer aboard the Panamanian registered S.S. Ramapo, travelling between North America and England with badly needed supplies.  A trimmer works in the engine room on a coal-fired ship, such as the steamship Ramapo, responsible for loading of coal into the ship and delivering coal to the stoker or fireman. (See https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coal_trimmer)

S.S. Ramapo under her original name of Baron Wemyss. (Photo courtesy of http://www.naviearmatori.net)

Hughes made two successful runs to England but then on a routing of London-Bermuda-Philadelphia, it was torpedoed by German U-Boat 108, captained by Klaus SCHOLTZ, 180 miles north of Bermuda. While Canadian Merchant Navy records list the event as having occurred on ‘approximately February 12, 1942’, the date it had arrived in Bermuda, German records of ships torpedoed by U-boats record the date as being February 16, 1942.

According to German records, as transcribed into English on https://www.uboat.net/allies/merchants/ship/1338.html, the ship had an international crew complement of 40, none of whom survived. “At 15.56 hours on 16 February 1942 the unescorted Ramapo (Master Johan Magnus Ørn Lorentzen) was hit on port side amidships by one G7e torpedo from U-108, broke in two after a boiler explosion and sank 11 minutes later about 180 miles north of Bermuda. The U-boat surfaced and questioned 34 men in lifeboats, but the survivors were never found. The master, 37 crew members and two gunners were lost.”

Map showing location of sinking of Ramapo.  (Map courtesy of http://www.uboat.net)

As you can imagine, in that time period, it was a long time before families learned that something had gone wrong.  On March 31, 1942, six weeks after the incident, The Guardian reported that the Hughes family had received a message from the steamship company, advising that it believed the ship had been sunk and all hands lost.

Source: Page 1 article in the March 31, 1942 edition of The Guardian.

Aboard the S.S. Ramapo on February 16, 1942 were the following crew members, per www.uboat.net:

Nationality	Name	Age	Position
Greek	Artavanis, Marios, Merchant Marine	29	Oiler
British	Bailey, Mills Sandilands, Merchant Marine	44	Third Engineer
British	Birch, John, Merchant Marine	50	Trimmer
Canadian	Boyd, Fred, Merchant Marine	35	Messman
Canadian	Boyer, Clarence, Merchant Marine	41	Fireman/Wiper
Canadian	Brackenbury, Walter, Merchant Marine	22	Fireman/Wiper
Canadian	Courville, Roland, Merchant Marine	18	Trimmer
Chilean	Delano, Miguel, Merchant Marine	31	Second Mate
British	Finch, Thomas, Merchant Marine	20	Messman
Dutch	Glimmerveen, Albertus, Merchant Marine	38	Chief Cook
Canadian	Green, William, Merchant Marine	29	Oiler
Norwegian	Gustavsen, Karl Gustav, Merchant Marine	50	Chief Steward
Swedish	Haggberg, Eric, Merchant Marine	22	Able Seaman
Norwegian	Hansen, Bernhard, Merchant Marine	23	Fireman/Wiper
British	Harris, William John, RN	24	Able Seaman (DEMS gunner)
Norwegian	Helmers, Thorleif Gärtner, Merchant Marine	43	Chief Mate
British	Hendry, Frederick William, Merchant Marine	52	First Engineer
Argentinian	Hernandes, P., Merchant Marine	26	Fireman/Wiper
Canadian	Hughes, James Emmet, Merchant Marine	31	Trimmer
Norwegian	Kjennerud, Jul, Merchant Marine	24	Able Seaman
Canadian	Knickle, Fred, Merchant Marine	39	Able Seaman
Norwegian	Kristensen, Toralf, Merchant Marine	21	Able Seaman
Canadian	Lalonde, Germain, Merchant Marine	20	Able Seaman
French	Lawrence, Felix, Merchant Marine	30	Messman
British	Leary, Vincent, Merchant Marine	35	Second Engineer
Norwegian	Lie, Hans Kristian Jensen, Merchant Marine	20	Able Seamn
Canadian	Lord, Ian McLean, Merchant Marine	18	Radio Operator
Norwegian	Lorentzen, Johan Magnus Ørn, Merchant Marine	35	Master
Canadian	Manoff, Paul, Merchant Marine	23	Ordinary Seaman
American	McAdoo, John Cornelius, Merchant Marine	37	Messman
Canadian	McDonald, Charlie, Merchant Marine	25	Fireman/Wiper
British	Nicholson, William, Merchant Marine	36	Boatswain (Bosun)
Norwegian	Olsen, Andreas, Merchant Marine	50	Chief Engineer
Irish	Reynolds, William, Merchant Marine	28	Fireman/Wiper
British	Sinclair, Leslie, Merchant Marine	20	Ordinary Seaman
Norwegian	Vesterhus, Nils Andreas, Merchant Marine	38	Third Mate
American	Vitalis, Vasilios, Merchant Marine	29	Cook
Canadian	Waddell, Wesley, Merchant Marine	23	Oiler
Canadian	Wilson, Edgar John, Merchant Marine	23	Ordinary Seaman
British	Winder, Harry, Royal Navy	22	Able Seaman (DEMS gunner)

James Emmet Hughes is listed on the Halifax Memorial in Point Pleasant Park in Halifax, Nova Scotia, along with other Canadian mariners whose bodies were never recovered.

Halifax Memorial in Point Pleasant Park in Halifax, Nova Scotia. (Photo credit: Pieter Valkenburg)

Research continues on this and other stories.  If you have information or photos to share about James Emmet Hughes, the sinking of the Ramapo, or any of the crew members, please contact Pieter at dariadv@yahoo.ca or comment on the blog.

© Daria Valkenburg

The Mariner Whose Ship Was Torpedoed In The English Channel

January 20, 2019….Researching the names on the Cenotaph outside the Borden-Carleton Legion continually brings some surprises as we unlock the stories behind the names.  It’s well documented that there was a merchant navy in WW2, and there are many stories about the infamous U-boats used by the Nazis during WW2.  But, did you know that there was a merchant navy in WW1?……And did you know that there were German U-boats in WW1?…….

In researching what happened to James Graham FARROW (FARRAR), we learned that he was NOT a soldier, but served as Second Mate in WW1’s Merchant Navy aboard the SS Port Dalhousie, ferrying needed supplies from England to allied soldiers in France.

Farrow was born April 4, 1856 in Argyle Shore, the son of Henry Farrow and Mary Jane Gouldrup.  In 1897, he married Mary Jane Howatt and they had 4 children.  Mary Jane also had a son William from her first husband, John Morrell, and was the sister of Harold Keith Howatt who served in the same regiment as William Galen Campbell. Campbell is also listed on the Cenotaph outside the Borden-Carleton Legion.  (See Christmas At The Front During WW1)

A mariner, Farrow received his Captain’s papers by 1903.  He owned a schooner named ‘Eva May’, but sold it in 1906 and moved to a homestead in Saskatchewan.  However, by 1912 the family was back on PEI, where, according to ‘Seafarers of the Atlantic Provinces, 1789-1935’, he was the owner and operator of a schooner registered on PEI, named ‘Howard L’.  (Source: Ancestry.com. Canada, Seafarers of the Atlantic Provinces, 1789-1935)

In a February 19, 1916 letter to his son Welton, who was living in Portland, Maine with his mother and siblings, Farrow explains that that he gave up the schooner and on December 27, 1915 he accepted a position as second mate aboard a steamer, and was currently sailing between France and England.  “I am here in France.  I had charge of a schooner and when I laid her up in Pictou, I got a job in this steamer as second mate. It is a good job with a little more wages than on the schooner.  I got $50 a month on the schooner and $55 a month here.”  (Source: www.islandregister.com/letters/james farrow 1916.html)

Farrow explained that the steamer intended to return to Canada in July, but had decided to stay in Europe.  If he wanted to return to Canada, his way would be paid back after 6 months, but as he was paid promptly each month, he thought he would stay with the steamer.

Unfortunately, by the time that Welton Farrow received that letter, his father was dead.  On March 19, 1916, U-Boat 10 torpedoed the steamer Port Dalhousie, the ship he was on, and it sank in the English Channel.

From the New York Times, page 2, column 6:

“U-BOAT ATTACKS FISHERMEN”

“Sinks two trawlers off Northeast Coast of England. London July 13 – Following the attack by a German submarine on the British port of Seaham Harbor on Tuesday night, a submarine raid on fishing near the English coast was reported by Lloyd’s today.   A German submarine attacked a British fishing fleet off the northeastern coast and sank the trawlers Florence and Dalhousie and several smaller vessels.” (Source: www.islandregister.com/letters/james farrow 1916.html )

Fake news isn’t a new phenomenon!  The story about Port Dalhousie being a fishing boat, as reported in a New York Times article, was a cover the boat used. When it sank, the cargo manifest said it was transporting steel billets.  Farrow and 18 other crew members perished, their bodies lost to the sea.

Farrow’s wife, Mary Jane, stayed in Maine.  In 1930 she moved to Waterville, where she lived until her death on May 15, 1956, when she was buried in the Tryon Peoples’ Cemetery in Tryon.

Service and duty were legacies of Farrow as his sons Ralph, Harold, and Welton also served in WW1.  Ralph and Harold enlisted in the Canadian Overseas Expeditionary Force in July 1917.  Welton served in the US Army.  Ralph’s son joined the US Air Force and served in WW2, but after the war he met an untimely death when his plane crashed in Florida during an exercise.  He’s buried in Arlington National Cemetery in Virginia.

With no body to bury, James Farrow is remembered on the memorial stone at the Tryon People’s Cemetery in Tryon and on the Halifax Memorial in Point Pleasant Park in Halifax.

Photo: Memorial stone at Tryon Peoples Cemetery in Tryon, PEI. Photo credit: Pieter Valkenburg

Photos: Halifax Memorial at Point Pleasant Park in Halifax. Photo credits: Pieter Valkenburg

Besides Farrow, two additional names from this Cenotaph Research Project are listed on the Halifax Memorial:

• Elmer Allistair MABEY (See: The WWII Sailor Who Died In An Accidental Explosion and Fire)
• James Emmett HUGHES, whose ship was torpedoed in the Caribbean during WW2.  Like Farrow, he was not in the military, but in the merchant navy.

Although we know a lot about James Farrow’s life, we do NOT have a photo of him.  If anyone has photos or information to share, please let us know. You can send an email to dariadv@yahoo.ca or comment on this blog.

© Daria Valkenburg

Desecration of Halifax Memorial

October 10, 2018.  In the quest to honour the names of those listed on the Cenotaph outside the Borden-Carleton Memorial, the memorial trail journey has taken us to Europe and several cemeteries and memorials here in Canada.  One of those journeys was to the Halifax Memorial in Point Pleasant Park in Halifax, which honours those who lost their lives at sea in wartime and have no known grave.

Halifax Memorial at Point Pleasant Park in Halifax. (Photo credit: Pieter Valkenburg)

Inscription on Halifax Memorial in Point Pleasant Park in Halifax. (Photo credit: Pieter Valkenburg)

Three names from the Cenotaph Research Project are listed on this monument:

• Elmer Allistair MABEY, whose story was told in an earlier posting. (See: https://onthewarmemorialtrail.com/2018/06/27/the-wwii-sailor-who-died-in-an-accidental-explosion-and-fire/)
• James Graham FARROW, whose ship was torpedoed by a U-boat in the English Channel during WWI.  Farrow was not in the military, but in the merchant ‘navy’, delivering crucial supplies from England to troops in France.
• James Emmett HUGHES, whose ship was torpedoed in the Caribbean during WWII.  Like Farrow, he was not in the military, but in the merchant ‘navy’.

Three names from one monument from Prince Edward Island….  You can imagine our dismay….and disgust…. to read this morning that the monument was defaced.  (See https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/nova-scotia/halifax-war-memorial-defaced-1.4854588)

This was a disrespectful act towards those who served their country in time of war, and who do not even have a grave that families can visit.  This memorial is a substitute for their grave, just as is the Vimy Memorial in France and the Menin Gate Memorial in Belgium, among many others.

It is especially sad that this desecration has happened as we near the 100^th anniversary of the end of WWI.

UPCOMING PRESENTATION: Pieter will speak about the Cenotaph Research Project at South Shore United Church in Tryon, 7 pm on Friday, November 2, 2018.  This event is co-hosted by South Shore United Church and Tryon & Area Historical Society.  Note: this venue is equipped with a hearing loop for the benefit of those with hearing loss.  You are invited to bring photos and information on the men listed on the Cenotaph, or on any Canadian soldier buried in The Netherlands.  Email memorialtrail@gmail.com for more information.

© Daria Valkenburg

….Want to follow our research?….

If you are reading this posting, but aren’t following our research, you are welcome to do so.  Our blog address: https://onthewarmemorialtrail.com/

4 countries, 6 weeks, 7,000 km – an unforgettable war memorial journey in Europe…. Daria’s book ‘No Soldier Buried Overseas Should Ever Be Forgotten‘ is available in print and e-book formats.  Net proceeds of book sales help support research costs and the cost of maintaining this blog. For more information see https://nosoldierforgotten.com/ 

You are also invited to subscribe to our YouTube Channel: On The War Memorial Trail With Pieter Valkenburg: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCJ591TyjSheOR-Cb_Gs_5Kw. 

Never miss a posting!  Subscribe below to have each new story from the war memorial trail delivered to your inbox.

On The War Memorial Trail….The WWII Sailor Who Died In An Accidental Explosion and Fire

June 27, 2018.  In wartime, losing your life in battle is a terrible, but not unexpected event.  When someone loses their life in an accident, the tragedy is compounded.  The story of WWII sailor Elmer Allister MABEY, born June 2, 1918 in Tryon, son of Albert Mabey and Ellen McNeill, is about a promising young man who was very unfortunate.

Prior to enlistment, he worked with Wood and Company in Crapaud, R.T. Holman’s in Summerside, and lastly at Eastern Hay and Feed in Charlottetown.

Elmer Allister Mabey. (Photo courtesy of Allister Mabey Family Collection.)

In September 1939 Mabey enlisted with the Royal Canadian Navy Volunteer Reserve in Charlottetown and was soon transferred to Halifax to complete a wireless course at the HMCS Stadacona base.  In November 1939 he was assigned to the HMCS Otter.

Formerly a private yacht known as the Conseco, it was renamed the Otter and turned over to the Royal Canadian Navy for war service as a coastal patrol vessel.  A wooden boat, reinforced with a steel hull, it normally spent its days sailing back and forth across Halifax Harbour, watching for floating mines and German U-boats (submarines).

On the morning of March 26, 1941, as the Otter sailed only 24 nautical miles from Halifax, an explosion and a fire ripped through the vessel, in what was later determined to be an accident. In a newspaper account, a crew member on a merchant ship who witnessed the event said that “the Otter sank like a stone, stern first, just after her blazing bow reared high in the air”. Once the captain recognized that the fire was too much, he gave the order to abandon ship.

When the order was given to abandon ship, the Otter’s crew barely fit into the two lifeboats and one inflatable raft. Although a Polish freighter and a Royal Navy submarine were nearby, rescue proved to be very difficult due to heavy seas.

One of the lifeboats was flipped by an unusually large wave when the Polish freighter came alongside. Sailors on the lifeboat were flung into the icy water, with some never seen again. Many of those rescued didn’t survive the trip to Halifax, despite the efforts of the Polish merchantmen who took turns applying artificial respiration and trying to warm the men.

The British Submarine found the inflatable raft.  15 men were on it, but by the time they could be rescued only four were still alive.

22 men survived, but two officers and 17 enlisted men died, among them Mabey.  To make this tragedy even worse, Mabey’s body was never recovered. The Halifax Memorial in Point Pleasant Park in Halifax, which we visited, honours those who lost their lives at sea in wartime, including those aboard the Otter.

Halifax Memorial at Point Pleasant Park in Halifax. (Photo credit: Pieter Valkenburg)

Mabey’s name listed on the Halifax Memorial at Point Pleasant Park in Halifax. (Photo credit: Pieter Valkenburg)

A big thank you to Allister Mabey for sharing the photo of Mabey.  If you can add more to Mabey’s story, email us at memorialtrail@gmail.com, comment on the blog, or send a tweet to @researchmemori1. Comments or stories?  You can share them by email or by commenting on this blog.

UPCOMING PRESENTATION: Pieter has been invited to speak about the Cenotaph Research Project at St John The Evangelist Anglican Church in Crapaud at 7 pm on Thursday, July 12, 2018.  Location: 391 Nelson St, Trans Canada Hwy Rte, Crapaud, PE C0A 1J0.  Photos and information about soldiers welcome.

© Daria Valkenburg

…Want to follow our research?….

If you are reading this posting, but aren’t following our research, you are welcome to do so.  Our blog address: https://onthewarmemorialtrail.com/

4 countries, 6 weeks, 7,000 km – an unforgettable war memorial journey in Europe…. Daria’s book ‘No Soldier Buried Overseas Should Ever Be Forgotten‘ is available in print and e-book formats.  Net proceeds of book sales help support research costs and the cost of maintaining this blog. For more information see https://nosoldierforgotten.com/ 

You are also invited to subscribe to our YouTube Channel: On The War Memorial Trail With Pieter Valkenburg: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCJ591TyjSheOR-Cb_Gs_5Kw. 

Never miss a posting!  Subscribe below to have each new story from the war memorial trail delivered to your inbox.