PORT
NAPIER (2) was built in 1940 by Swan, Hunter & Wigham
Richardson at Newcastle with a tonnage of 8947grt. As she
was taken over during building for completion as the minelayer
HMS Port Napier no further details were recorded in Lloyds
Register. Although part of the First Minelaying Squadron she
never saw any active service. On 26th November 1940 whilst
at anchor in the Kyle of Lochalsh a gale blew up and she dragged
her anchors fouling those of a nearby collier causing both
to drift into shallow water but undamaged. On the following
day she was de-bunkered in order to lighten the ship but as
this operation was being completed a fire was reported in
the engine room. This was lethal as the ship was loaded with
400 mines and an explosion would devastate the whole area.
Local inhabitants were hastily evacuated and all ships in
the harbour sailed. The collier slipped its fouled anchor
chain and sailed away as quickly as possible. There was no
explosion and volunteers went back to drop the mines over
the stern into the water. However, the situation deteriorated
and they had to quickly retreat. Shortly after there was an
enormous flash followed by an explosion which blew out the
innards of the ship. When the smoke cleared the ship was seen
to be settling on her side where she remained with the port
plating just visible at low tide. Fortunately nobody was killed.
In 1944 the steel plating was salvaged for re-use. (Photo:
Alan Green)
PORT VICTOR (3) was built in
1942 by Swan, Hunter & Wigham Richardson at Newcastle
with a tonnage of 12411grt, a length of 503ft 6in, a beam
of 68ft 2ins and a service speed of 16 knots. She was a sister
ship of the Port Jackson. On 1st May 1943, whilst travelling
unescorted in the Atlantic, she was torpedoed by U-107 when
600 miles south-west of Ireland with the loss of 10 crew members,
2 gunners and 5 passengers. Aware of submarine presence the
Port Victor was zig-zagging in order to deter an attack. However,
the U-boat positioned herself ahead of the ship and fired
the first torpedo from 1000 metres hitting the ship amidships.
Two more torpedoes followed which exploded under two life
boats that were being lowered killing all persons in the vicinity.
A fourth torpedo was used to sink the ship breaking the Port
Victor into two. The remaining 149 survivors were picked up
by HMS Wren. The sinking was the U-boat commander's 19th.
PORT
VINDEX was built during 1943/44 by Swan, Hunter & Wigham
Richardson at Newcastle with a tonnage of 10489grt, a length
of 523ft 10in, a beam of 68ft 5ins and a service speed of
16 knots. Before launching she was taken over by the Admiralty
for conversion into an escort aircraft carrier. She was completed
on 3rd December after having 22,000 buoyancy drums and 2000
tons of pig iron ballast added to counter the flight deck
top weight. In January 1944 she was commissioned as HMS Vindex
with a displacement tonnage of 13455 tons, a crew of 700 and
813 Squadron flying either 20 Fulmers or Swordfish aircraft.
She was the first of a class of three vessels, the others
being the Nairana and the Campania, and was initially deployed
around Europe on anti-submarine patrol escorted by three destroyers.
Later in the war she moved on to escorting the Russian convoys
to Murmansk and the battleship Royal Sovereign on her voyage
to become the USSR's Arkhangelsk. On 15th August 1944 she
escorted convoy JW-59 as Vice-Admiral Dalrymple-Hamilton's
flagship when all 22 ships were delivered in safety which
marked an end to enemy hostilities in the area. In the same
year she was one of the first aircraft carriers to be equipped
with rocket assisted aircraft launchers, flying the Fairey
Fireflys of 882 and 1790 Squadrons. She made her final Murmansk
convoy run on 16th April 1945 escorting JW-66 and then was
detached to the Far East where she acted as the flagship of
Rear-Admiral Cunningham Graham. Following VJ day in the September
she sailed to Hong Kong from where she evacuated POW's to
Australia. In 1946 she was laid up in reserve in the Firth
of Forth off Rosyth where she remained until 2nd October 1947
when she was repurchased by Port Line. Towed back to her builders
she was converted into a cargo vessel and re-entered service
on 22nd June 1949 as the Port Vindex in honour of her wartime
service as there is no such place as Port Vindex. Her HMS
Vindex bell and naval crest remained on the ship as a further
honour. On 10th March 1968 she came under the management of
Blue Star Port Lines (Management) - Blueport. During her penultimate
voyage she came across the yacht Frilo in the Atlantic, the
yachtsman Christian Loehr who had been undertaking a single-handed
Atlantic crossing was never found. On 23rd August of the same
year she arrived at Koahsuing where she was broken up. (Photo:
John Rix Collection)
PORT
VICTOR (4) was built in 1943 by John Brown & Co. at Clydebank
with a tonnage of 10390grt, a length of 523ft 10in, a beam
of 68ft 5ins and a service speed of 16 knots. Before completion
she was taken over by the Admiralty for conversion into the
auxiliary aircraft carrier HMS Nairana with a displacement
tonnage of 14046grt and a crew of 728. She was the last escort
carrier to be built in the UK as by this time similar ships
were being mass produced in the USA and under the Lease-Lend
arrangement 39 vessels were delivered. HMS Nairana was used
for escort duties mainly from Loch Ewe to Murmansk. In all
there were 40 convoys to North Russia during which 811 ships
were escorted with only 100 being lost including a rescue
ship and a fleet oiler. Half the casualties occurred during
1942, 24 being lost during the infamous convoy PQ17, with
only six ships being lost in 1945. One of the vital cargoes
included a consignment of 15,000,000 pairs of boots for the
Russian army. In February 1946 she was transferred to the
Netherland's Navy and renamed HNMS Karel Doorman where she
served until 1948 when she was return to the Royal Navy and
put in reserve. In the November she reverted to Port Line
and in the following year was rebuilt to the same specification
as her sister Port Vindex and renamed Port Victor. On 10th
March 1968 she came under the management of Blue Star Port
Lines (Management) - Blueport but her owner was Cunard not
Port Line. This situation remained until 1971 when ownership
was transferred to Port Line but in the same year, on 21st
July, she arrived at Faslane where she was broken up by Shipbreaking
Industries. (Photo John Rix Collection)
SAMPLER/PORT
ALBANY (2) was built in 1943 by (Kaiser's) Oregon Ship Building
Corp. at Oregon with a tonnage of 7219grt, a length of 441ft
8in, a beam of 57ft and a service speed of 10 knots. An EC2-S-C1
(Emergency Cargo Type 2) she was a Liberty ships ordered as
the William C Lane but delivered as the Sampler on a bare-boat
charter to the Ministry of War Transport with Port Line as
managers. She survived the war and was acquired by Port Line
in 1947 as a war loss replacement, the company's only Liberty
ship, and renamed Port Albany. In 1951 she was sold to Cia.
Vista Darada of Panama and renamed Teni but only stayed with
the company until 1953 when she was sold to the Mid-Atlantic
Shipping Co. of Greece and given the name Gloriana. On 3rd
June 1968 she arrived in Shanghai where she was broken up.
As a point of interest the Oregon Ship Building Co. holds
the all time shipbuilding record when they laid the keel of
the Joseph N. Tealand and launched her her 10 days later.
Photo: Iain Lovie Collection)
SAMBLADE was built in 1943
by the Californian Shipbuilding Corp. at Los Angeles with
a tonnage of 7219grt, a length of 441ft 8in, a beam of 57ft
and a service speed of 10 knots. Sister of the Sampler she
was built as the Augustus H. Garland for the US War Shipping
Administration but delivered to the Ministry of War Transport
on a bare-boat charter as the Samblade with Port Line as managers.
She reverted back to the US Shipping Board in 1948 with her
originally intended name, placed in reserve, laid up and eventually
broken up at Baltimore in 1949.
SAMLEVEN
was built in 1944 by the Bethlehem-Fairfield Shipyards Inc.
at Baltimore with a tonnage of 7219grt, a length of 441ft
8in, a beam of 57ft and a service speed of 10 knots. Sister
ship of the Sampler she was bare-boat chartered to the Ministry
of War Transport in February 1944 with Port Line as managers.
In 1947 she was purchased by Tramp Shipping Development Co.
with Counties Ship Management Co. of London as managers and
renamed Bisham Hill. She was sold to Global Carriers Inc.
of Monrovia in 1952 and renamed Nausica. Four years later
she became the Praglia owned by Leonado Arrivabene Soc. per
Azioni of Palermo, Sicily. She became the Vassiliki in 1960
owned by Olisman Cia. Naviera S.A. of Beirut and when the
company moved its base to Famagusta she was operated by Vassiliki
Shipping Co. On 31st March 1970, during a voyage from Sicily
to Havana with a cargo of fertiliser she was wrecked on Mayaguana
Island, Bahamas. (Photo as the Vassiliki: Iain Lovie Collection)
SAMEDEN
was built in 1944 by the Bethlehem-Fairfield Shipyards Inc.
at Baltimore with a tonnage of 7219grt, a length of 441ft
8in, a beam of 57ft and a service speed of 10 knots. Sister
ship of the Sampler she was bare-boat chartered to the Ministry
of War Transport in March 1944 with Port Line as managers.
In 1946 she was purchased by Mill Hill Steamship Co. with
Counties Ship Management Co. of London as managers and renamed
Mill Hill. Sold in 1951 to Costade Marfil Cia. Naviera S.A.
of Monrovia she became the Educator but was renamed Kanaris
by the same owners in 1961with the port of registry changing
to Piraeus. Five years later she was acquired by Active Steam
Ship Co. of Panama and renamed Splendid Sky. On 4th October
1969 she grounded in the River Schelde during a voyage from
Antwerp to Spezia with a cargo of silversand. Later refloated
she was found to have broken her back and was scrapped at
Antwerp in January 1970. (Photo as the Mill Hill: Iain Lovie
Collection)
LOWLANDER was built in 1925
by Stabilimento Tecnico S.A., San Marco in Trieste with a
tonnage of 8059grt, a length of 467ft 6in, a beam of 57ft
2in and a service speed of 12 knots. She was delivered to
Navegazione Libera Triestino in October 1925 as the Leme and
transferred to 'Italia' when it was formed in 1936. Her service
speed was increased to 16 knots when she was re-engined in
1938. In June 1940 she was interned in the USA and after the
attack on Pearl Harbor in December 1941 she was seized by
the Americans and placed on Lease-Lend to the British Government
with the name Lowlander and with Port Line as managers. She
was returned to Soc. per Azioni de Nav 'Italia' with her original
name, Leme, initially for use as an emigrant carrier between
Italy and the Argentine. In June 1949 she was transferred
to the North Pacific service and by 1957 was carrying cargo
only to Brazil and Argentine. Laid up in 1960 she was finally
broken up in 1961.
FORT
CHAMBLY was built in 1942 by Davie Shipbuilding & Repairing
Co. at Lauzon, Quebec with a tonnage of 7130grt, a length
of 441ft 10in, a beam of 57ft 2in and a service speed of 11
knots. On 20th April 1940 the Hyde Park Agreement was signed
whereby 90 Canadian 'North Sands' class of Fort vessels were
purchased by the US Government and then bare-boat chartered
to the Ministry of War Transport. One of the vessels, the
Fort Chambly, was launched on 18th April 1942 and delivered
in the May with Port Line as managers. In 1947 she was returned
to the US Maritime Commission who placed her on reserve and
laid her up. She was eventually broken up at Mobile in 1959.
(Photo: Iain Lovie Collection)
FORT
STIKINE was built in 1942 by the Prince Rupert Drydock &
Shipyard Co. with a tonnage of 7130grt, a length of 441ft
10in, a beam of 57ft 2in and a service speed of 11 knots.
One of the 'North Sands' Forts she was bare-boat chartered
to the Ministry of War Transport on 31st July 1942 with Port
Line as managers. On 24th February 1944 she sailed from the
Mersey bound for Karachi and Bombay with a cargo which included
1400 tons of explosives and 124 bars of gold worth £1,000,000.
She made her scheduled call at Karachi where she loaded further
cargo and arrived at No.1 berth Victoria Dock in Bombay on
12th April. Although she had a three category explosives priority
certificate she remained for over 24 hours totally unmanned.
During the morning of the 14th April the duty watch on the
Fort Crevier, berthed 400 yards away, noticed smoke coming
from the No. 3 hatch ventilators and the dock police were
informed. The fire alarm was sounded as a matter of routine
and fire fighting equipment arrived at the ship to attend
to the problem - fire fighting equipment which was inadequate
for the task. This inadequacy became apparent when the deck
plating became too hot to stand on. Hundreds of tons of water
delivered by 32 hoses was directed at the seat of the fire
but when, at 15.45, the fire reached the explosives the ship
was evacuated. The ship became an inferno with flames leaping
over 100 feet into the air, but her master, Captain Naismith
and Chief Officer Henderson, returned on board to check that
all personnel had left the ship. Seconds after they returned
ashore, at 16.06, the explosives in the forward holds blew
up killing both men and showering flaming debris onto the
adjacent ships and quayside sheds. An enormous tidal wave
lifted Scindia's Jalapadma at right angles on top of No. 2
shed and broke her back. The area was a flattened shambles
with eleven ships on fire and four sunk at their berths, swamped
by the deluge. But more devastation was to follow. At 16.40
the fire reached the 784 tons of explosives in the after holds
which detonated shooting flames and debris 3000 feet into
the sky demolishing and setting on fire over a square mile
of the port and the city. The casualties were extensive with
231 ships personnel unaccounted for and 476 injured. Over
500 civilian dockyard workers were killed with a further 1000
reported as missing and over 2000 taken to hospital for treatment.
In addition to the Fort Stikine a further 10 ships were lost
including British India Line's Baroda. It took six months
of intensive effort to clear up the mess. As a footnote to
an horrendous disaster during routine operations in 1960 a
Bombay Harbour Trust dredger recovered one bar of gold. (Photo:
Iain Lovie Collection)
EMPIRE
TREASURE was built in 1943 by Lithgows Ltd at Port Glasgow
with a tonnage of 7040grt, a length of 447ft 7in, a beam of
56ft 4in and a service speed of 10 knots. She was launched
the Empire Treasure for the Ministry of War Transport with
Port Line as managers and completed in March 1943. In January
1944, during a voyage to the UK with a cargo of 2000 tons
of munitions, she shed a propeller blade and became a straggler.
Soon after the remaining blades were lost and she wallowed
for three days before the rescue tug HMS Bustler, with a corvette
as an escort, came to her aid. In gale force winds and mountainous
seas the tug nursed the ship 1094 miles to Newport in South
Wales at a walking pace and never once breaking the tow. For
days neither ship could see each other in the darkness and
storm tossed spray and at times the Empire Treasure was blown
ahead of her tow. The operation is now considered to be one
of the finest feats of towage seamanship ever. In May 1946
she was purchased by Donaldson Bros for their Glasgow - North
Pacific service and renamed Gracia. When Donaldson's Pacific
routes were given to Blue Star Line in March 1954 she became
the Oregon Star but only until May 1955 when she was sold
to Williamson & Co. of Hong Kong and renamed Inchleana.
In March 1966 she was sold to the National Shipping Corp.
of Pakistan and renamed Tetulia. Initially based at Karachi
the company moved to Chittagong in East Pakistan during July
1968. The ship was broken up by Mohamadi Iron Traders at Chittagong
in 1969. (Photo as the Oregon Star: Iain Lovie Collection)
EMPIRE MOULMEIN was built in
1944 by J Readhead & Sons at South Shields with a tonnage
of 7047grt, a length of 446ft 5in, a beam of 56ft 4in and
a service speed of 10 knots. Sister of the Empire Treasure
she was launched for the Ministry of War Transport with Port
Line as managers and completed in August 1944. In 1945 she
was transferred to the French Government's Ministere de la
Marine Marchande under the management of Nouvelle Cie. Havraise
Peninsulaire de Nav. and renamed Colonel Vieljeux. She was
renamed Ville de Diego-Suarez by the same owners in 1948 and
in 1962 became the Vimy when owned by Soc. Monegasque d'Armement
et de Navigation of Monaco and then the Demirhan (2) when
she was sold to Riza ve Aslan Sadikoglu Ortaklari Komandit
Sirketi of Istanbul. In 1966 she was sold to Manizade Vapuru
Donatima Istoraki, restyled in 1973 to Serket Manioglu Denizcilik
Isletmesi Donatima Istiraki, and renamed Manizade. After a
further three years service she was broken up in March 1976
by Zeki Veren at Alaiga.
PORT
MACQUARIE (2) was built in 1944 by Swan, Hunter & Wigham
Richardson at Newcastle with a tonnage of 7319grt, a length
of 487ft 11in, a beam of 62ft 2in and a service speed of 15
knots. She was a utility build and her derrick posts were
staggered in order to confuse U-boat commanders. Completed
in February 1944 she participated in a convoy from the Tyne
to New York where she loaded US stores for troops in Guam
in the Pacific. From there she continued to Australia where
she loaded food for Britain. On 26th January 1953, during
a short voyage from Liverpool to Glasgow in fog, she grounded
at Seaforth but, after water ballast was discharged, was refloated
undamaged but returned to Liverpool for a hull examination.
During a voyage from the UK to Wellington, on 12th June 1957
and when 570 miles east of Auckland, she took in tow P Henderson's
liner Captain Hobson which had broken down. With 650 emigrants
on board and with HMNZS Stawell in attendance she towed the
ship to Auckland where she arrived on 17th June, earning a
salvage award of £4000. On 10th March she came under
the management of Blueport but was quickly replaced by the
Port Caroline and, consequently, was broken up at Kaohsiung
in September of the same year. (Photo: John Rix Collection)
PORT
WELLING TON (2) was built in 1946 by John Brown & Co.
at Clydebank with a tonnage of 10609grt, a length of 528ft
4in, a beam of 68ft 5in and a service speed of 16 knots. One
of two similar ships she was the company's first post was
new building. On 10th March she came under the management
of Blueport and after 25 years uneventful service left Southampton
on 16th July 1971 on her final voyage to Castellon in Spain
where she was broken up. (Photo: John Rix Collection)
PORT
NAPIER (2) was built in 1940 by Swan, Hunter & Wigham
Richardson at Newcastle with a tonnage of 8947grt. As she
was taken over during building for completion as the minelayer
HMS Port Napier no further details were recorded in Lloyds
Register. Although part of the First Minelaying Squadron she
never saw any active service. On 26th November 1940 whilst
at anchor in the Kyle of Lochalsh a gale blew up and she dragged
her anchors fouling those of a nearby collier causing both
to drift into shallow water but undamaged. On the following
day she was de-bunkered in order to lighten the ship but as
this operation was being completed a fire was reported in
the engine room. This was lethal as the ship was loaded with
400 mines and an explosion would devastate the whole area.
Local inhabitants were hastily evacuated and all ships in
the harbour sailed. The collier slipped its fouled anchor
chain and sailed away as quickly as possible. There was no
explosion and volunteers went back to drop the mines over
the stern into the water. However, the situation deteriorated
and they had to quickly retreat. Shortly after there was an
enormous flash followed by an explosion which blew out the
innards of the ship. When the smoke cleared the ship was seen
to be settling on her side where she remained with the port
plating just visible at low tide. Fortunately nobody was killed.
In 1944 the steel plating was salvaged for re-use. (Photo:
Alan Green) 
PORT
VINDEX was built during 1943/44 by Swan, Hunter & Wigham
Richardson at Newcastle with a tonnage of 10489grt, a length
of 523ft 10in, a beam of 68ft 5ins and a service speed of
16 knots. Before launching she was taken over by the Admiralty
for conversion into an escort aircraft carrier. She was completed
on 3rd December after having 22,000 buoyancy drums and 2000
tons of pig iron ballast added to counter the flight deck
top weight. In January 1944 she was commissioned as HMS Vindex
with a displacement tonnage of 13455 tons, a crew of 700 and
813 Squadron flying either 20 Fulmers or Swordfish aircraft.
She was the first of a class of three vessels, the others
being the Nairana and the Campania, and was initially deployed
around Europe on anti-submarine patrol escorted by three destroyers.
Later in the war she moved on to escorting the Russian convoys
to Murmansk and the battleship Royal Sovereign on her voyage
to become the USSR's Arkhangelsk. On 15th August 1944 she
escorted convoy JW-59 as Vice-Admiral Dalrymple-Hamilton's
flagship when all 22 ships were delivered in safety which
marked an end to enemy hostilities in the area. In the same
year she was one of the first aircraft carriers to be equipped
with rocket assisted aircraft launchers, flying the Fairey
Fireflys of 882 and 1790 Squadrons. She made her final Murmansk
convoy run on 16th April 1945 escorting JW-66 and then was
detached to the Far East where she acted as the flagship of
Rear-Admiral Cunningham Graham. Following VJ day in the September
she sailed to Hong Kong from where she evacuated POW's to
Australia. In 1946 she was laid up in reserve in the Firth
of Forth off Rosyth where she remained until 2nd October 1947
when she was repurchased by Port Line. Towed back to her builders
she was converted into a cargo vessel and re-entered service
on 22nd June 1949 as the Port Vindex in honour of her wartime
service as there is no such place as Port Vindex. Her HMS
Vindex bell and naval crest remained on the ship as a further
honour. On 10th March 1968 she came under the management of
Blue Star Port Lines (Management) - Blueport. During her penultimate
voyage she came across the yacht Frilo in the Atlantic, the
yachtsman Christian Loehr who had been undertaking a single-handed
Atlantic crossing was never found. On 23rd August of the same
year she arrived at Koahsuing where she was broken up. (Photo:
John Rix Collection) 
PORT
VICTOR (4) was built in 1943 by John Brown & Co. at Clydebank
with a tonnage of 10390grt, a length of 523ft 10in, a beam
of 68ft 5ins and a service speed of 16 knots. Before completion
she was taken over by the Admiralty for conversion into the
auxiliary aircraft carrier HMS Nairana with a displacement
tonnage of 14046grt and a crew of 728. She was the last escort
carrier to be built in the UK as by this time similar ships
were being mass produced in the USA and under the Lease-Lend
arrangement 39 vessels were delivered. HMS Nairana was used
for escort duties mainly from Loch Ewe to Murmansk. In all
there were 40 convoys to North Russia during which 811 ships
were escorted with only 100 being lost including a rescue
ship and a fleet oiler. Half the casualties occurred during
1942, 24 being lost during the infamous convoy PQ17, with
only six ships being lost in 1945. One of the vital cargoes
included a consignment of 15,000,000 pairs of boots for the
Russian army. In February 1946 she was transferred to the
Netherland's Navy and renamed HNMS Karel Doorman where she
served until 1948 when she was return to the Royal Navy and
put in reserve. In the November she reverted to Port Line
and in the following year was rebuilt to the same specification
as her sister Port Vindex and renamed Port Victor. On 10th
March 1968 she came under the management of Blue Star Port
Lines (Management) - Blueport but her owner was Cunard not
Port Line. This situation remained until 1971 when ownership
was transferred to Port Line but in the same year, on 21st
July, she arrived at Faslane where she was broken up by Shipbreaking
Industries. (Photo John Rix Collection) 
SAMPLER/PORT
ALBANY (2) was built in 1943 by (Kaiser's) Oregon Ship Building
Corp. at Oregon with a tonnage of 7219grt, a length of 441ft
8in, a beam of 57ft and a service speed of 10 knots. An EC2-S-C1
(Emergency Cargo Type 2) she was a Liberty ships ordered as
the William C Lane but delivered as the Sampler on a bare-boat
charter to the Ministry of War Transport with Port Line as
managers. She survived the war and was acquired by Port Line
in 1947 as a war loss replacement, the company's only Liberty
ship, and renamed Port Albany. In 1951 she was sold to Cia.
Vista Darada of Panama and renamed Teni but only stayed with
the company until 1953 when she was sold to the Mid-Atlantic
Shipping Co. of Greece and given the name Gloriana. On 3rd
June 1968 she arrived in Shanghai where she was broken up.
As a point of interest the Oregon Ship Building Co. holds
the all time shipbuilding record when they laid the keel of
the Joseph N. Tealand and launched her her 10 days later.
Photo: Iain Lovie Collection) 
SAMLEVEN
was built in 1944 by the Bethlehem-Fairfield Shipyards Inc.
at Baltimore with a tonnage of 7219grt, a length of 441ft
8in, a beam of 57ft and a service speed of 10 knots. Sister
ship of the Sampler she was bare-boat chartered to the Ministry
of War Transport in February 1944 with Port Line as managers.
In 1947 she was purchased by Tramp Shipping Development Co.
with Counties Ship Management Co. of London as managers and
renamed Bisham Hill. She was sold to Global Carriers Inc.
of Monrovia in 1952 and renamed Nausica. Four years later
she became the Praglia owned by Leonado Arrivabene Soc. per
Azioni of Palermo, Sicily. She became the Vassiliki in 1960
owned by Olisman Cia. Naviera S.A. of Beirut and when the
company moved its base to Famagusta she was operated by Vassiliki
Shipping Co. On 31st March 1970, during a voyage from Sicily
to Havana with a cargo of fertiliser she was wrecked on Mayaguana
Island, Bahamas. (Photo as the Vassiliki: Iain Lovie Collection)
SAMEDEN
was built in 1944 by the Bethlehem-Fairfield Shipyards Inc.
at Baltimore with a tonnage of 7219grt, a length of 441ft
8in, a beam of 57ft and a service speed of 10 knots. Sister
ship of the Sampler she was bare-boat chartered to the Ministry
of War Transport in March 1944 with Port Line as managers.
In 1946 she was purchased by Mill Hill Steamship Co. with
Counties Ship Management Co. of London as managers and renamed
Mill Hill. Sold in 1951 to Costade Marfil Cia. Naviera S.A.
of Monrovia she became the Educator but was renamed Kanaris
by the same owners in 1961with the port of registry changing
to Piraeus. Five years later she was acquired by Active Steam
Ship Co. of Panama and renamed Splendid Sky. On 4th October
1969 she grounded in the River Schelde during a voyage from
Antwerp to Spezia with a cargo of silversand. Later refloated
she was found to have broken her back and was scrapped at
Antwerp in January 1970. (Photo as the Mill Hill: Iain Lovie
Collection) 
FORT
CHAMBLY was built in 1942 by Davie Shipbuilding & Repairing
Co. at Lauzon, Quebec with a tonnage of 7130grt, a length
of 441ft 10in, a beam of 57ft 2in and a service speed of 11
knots. On 20th April 1940 the Hyde Park Agreement was signed
whereby 90 Canadian 'North Sands' class of Fort vessels were
purchased by the US Government and then bare-boat chartered
to the Ministry of War Transport. One of the vessels, the
Fort Chambly, was launched on 18th April 1942 and delivered
in the May with Port Line as managers. In 1947 she was returned
to the US Maritime Commission who placed her on reserve and
laid her up. She was eventually broken up at Mobile in 1959.
(Photo: Iain Lovie Collection) 
FORT
STIKINE was built in 1942 by the Prince Rupert Drydock &
Shipyard Co. with a tonnage of 7130grt, a length of 441ft
10in, a beam of 57ft 2in and a service speed of 11 knots.
One of the 'North Sands' Forts she was bare-boat chartered
to the Ministry of War Transport on 31st July 1942 with Port
Line as managers. On 24th February 1944 she sailed from the
Mersey bound for Karachi and Bombay with a cargo which included
1400 tons of explosives and 124 bars of gold worth £1,000,000.
She made her scheduled call at Karachi where she loaded further
cargo and arrived at No.1 berth Victoria Dock in Bombay on
12th April. Although she had a three category explosives priority
certificate she remained for over 24 hours totally unmanned.
During the morning of the 14th April the duty watch on the
Fort Crevier, berthed 400 yards away, noticed smoke coming
from the No. 3 hatch ventilators and the dock police were
informed. The fire alarm was sounded as a matter of routine
and fire fighting equipment arrived at the ship to attend
to the problem - fire fighting equipment which was inadequate
for the task. This inadequacy became apparent when the deck
plating became too hot to stand on. Hundreds of tons of water
delivered by 32 hoses was directed at the seat of the fire
but when, at 15.45, the fire reached the explosives the ship
was evacuated. The ship became an inferno with flames leaping
over 100 feet into the air, but her master, Captain Naismith
and Chief Officer Henderson, returned on board to check that
all personnel had left the ship. Seconds after they returned
ashore, at 16.06, the explosives in the forward holds blew
up killing both men and showering flaming debris onto the
adjacent ships and quayside sheds. An enormous tidal wave
lifted Scindia's Jalapadma at right angles on top of No. 2
shed and broke her back. The area was a flattened shambles
with eleven ships on fire and four sunk at their berths, swamped
by the deluge. But more devastation was to follow. At 16.40
the fire reached the 784 tons of explosives in the after holds
which detonated shooting flames and debris 3000 feet into
the sky demolishing and setting on fire over a square mile
of the port and the city. The casualties were extensive with
231 ships personnel unaccounted for and 476 injured. Over
500 civilian dockyard workers were killed with a further 1000
reported as missing and over 2000 taken to hospital for treatment.
In addition to the Fort Stikine a further 10 ships were lost
including British India Line's Baroda. It took six months
of intensive effort to clear up the mess. As a footnote to
an horrendous disaster during routine operations in 1960 a
Bombay Harbour Trust dredger recovered one bar of gold. (Photo:
Iain Lovie Collection) 
EMPIRE
TREASURE was built in 1943 by Lithgows Ltd at Port Glasgow
with a tonnage of 7040grt, a length of 447ft 7in, a beam of
56ft 4in and a service speed of 10 knots. She was launched
the Empire Treasure for the Ministry of War Transport with
Port Line as managers and completed in March 1943. In January
1944, during a voyage to the UK with a cargo of 2000 tons
of munitions, she shed a propeller blade and became a straggler.
Soon after the remaining blades were lost and she wallowed
for three days before the rescue tug HMS Bustler, with a corvette
as an escort, came to her aid. In gale force winds and mountainous
seas the tug nursed the ship 1094 miles to Newport in South
Wales at a walking pace and never once breaking the tow. For
days neither ship could see each other in the darkness and
storm tossed spray and at times the Empire Treasure was blown
ahead of her tow. The operation is now considered to be one
of the finest feats of towage seamanship ever. In May 1946
she was purchased by Donaldson Bros for their Glasgow - North
Pacific service and renamed Gracia. When Donaldson's Pacific
routes were given to Blue Star Line in March 1954 she became
the Oregon Star but only until May 1955 when she was sold
to Williamson & Co. of Hong Kong and renamed Inchleana.
In March 1966 she was sold to the National Shipping Corp.
of Pakistan and renamed Tetulia. Initially based at Karachi
the company moved to Chittagong in East Pakistan during July
1968. The ship was broken up by Mohamadi Iron Traders at Chittagong
in 1969. (Photo as the Oregon Star: Iain Lovie Collection)
PORT
MACQUARIE (2) was built in 1944 by Swan, Hunter & Wigham
Richardson at Newcastle with a tonnage of 7319grt, a length
of 487ft 11in, a beam of 62ft 2in and a service speed of 15
knots. She was a utility build and her derrick posts were
staggered in order to confuse U-boat commanders. Completed
in February 1944 she participated in a convoy from the Tyne
to New York where she loaded US stores for troops in Guam
in the Pacific. From there she continued to Australia where
she loaded food for Britain. On 26th January 1953, during
a short voyage from Liverpool to Glasgow in fog, she grounded
at Seaforth but, after water ballast was discharged, was refloated
undamaged but returned to Liverpool for a hull examination.
During a voyage from the UK to Wellington, on 12th June 1957
and when 570 miles east of Auckland, she took in tow P Henderson's
liner Captain Hobson which had broken down. With 650 emigrants
on board and with HMNZS Stawell in attendance she towed the
ship to Auckland where she arrived on 17th June, earning a
salvage award of £4000. On 10th March she came under
the management of Blueport but was quickly replaced by the
Port Caroline and, consequently, was broken up at Kaohsiung
in September of the same year. (Photo: John Rix Collection)
PORT
WELLING TON (2) was built in 1946 by John Brown & Co.
at Clydebank with a tonnage of 10609grt, a length of 528ft
4in, a beam of 68ft 5in and a service speed of 16 knots. One
of two similar ships she was the company's first post was
new building. On 10th March she came under the management
of Blueport and after 25 years uneventful service left Southampton
on 16th July 1971 on her final voyage to Castellon in Spain
where she was broken up. (Photo: John Rix Collection) 
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