SS Tobruk

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SSTobruk.jpg
SS Tobruk after the War
History
Name
  • Empire Builder (1941–42)
  • Tobruk (1942–68)
Owner
Operator
Port of registry
BuilderWilliam Gray & Co Ltd
Yard number1123
Launched19 November 1941
CompletedJanuary 1942
Out of service1967
IdentificationIMO Number 5616130 (-1968)
FateScrapped June 1968
General characteristics
Tonnage
  • 7,090 GRT (Empire Builder)
  • 7,048 (Tobruk)
  • 5,050 NRT (Empire Builder)
  • 4,977 NRT (Tobruk)
  • 10,400 DWT (Tobruk)
Length430 ft (131.06 m)
Beam56 ft 2 in (17.12 m)
Depth35 ft 2 in (10.72 m)
Propulsion1 x triple expansion steam engine
Speed9.5 knots (17.6 km/h)

Tobruk was a 7,090 GRT cargo ship which was built in 1941 as Empire Builder by William Gray & Sons Ltd for the Ministry of War Transport (MoWT). On completion she was handed over to the Polish government-in-exile (along with four others; Narwik, Bałtyk, Białystok and Borysław, which in 1950 was renamed to Bytom) and renamed Tobruk. She was a member of a number of convoys during the Second World War. She was sold in 1951 to Polskie Linie Oceaniczne and served until 1967. She was scrapped in 1968.

Description[]

Empire Builder was built by William Gray & Sons Ltd, West Hartlepool.[1] She was yard number 1123. Empire Builder was launched on 19 November 1941 and completed in January 1942.[2]

The ship was 430 feet (131.06 m) long, with a beam of 56 feet 2 inches (17.12 m) and a depth of 35 feet 2 inches (10.72 m). She was propelled by a triple expansion steam engine which had cylinders of 24+1⁄2 inches (62 cm), 42 inches (110 cm) and 70 inches (180 cm) bore by 48 inches (120 cm) stroke. The engine was built by Central Marine Engine Works, West Hartlepool.[3] It could propel her at 9.5 knots (17.6 km/h)[4] Empire Builder was listed on Lloyds Register as having a GRT of 7,090 and a NRT of 5,050.[3] Tobruk was listed on Lloyds Register as having a GRT of 7,048 and a NRT of 4,977.[5] Her DWT was 10,500.[4]

Career[]

Empire Builder's port of registry was West Hartlepool.[3] On completion, she was handed over to the Polish Government and renamed Tobruk.[1] Her port of registry was changed to Gdynia.[5] Tobruk was owned by the Polish government and operated under the management of Gdynia-America Shipping Lines Ltd.[6]

PQ 13

Convoy PQ 13 departed Loch Ewe on 10 March 1942 and arrived at Murmansk, Soviet Union on 31 March having lost six ships to enemy action. A further two were sunk at Murmansk after the convoy's arrival.[7] Tobruk was damaged by enemy bombing at Murmansk, repairs took about six months to complete.[8] Crew members were joking later that the convoy departed on the 13th day of the month, the trip lasted 13 days, and Tobruk had the thirteenth position in the convoy.[9]

QP 14

Convoy QP 14 departed Murmansk on 13 September 1942 and arrived at Loch Ewe on 26 September, having lost four ships to enemy action.[10] Tobruk was carrying a cargo of Apatite. She departed Murmansk on 8 September bound for Archangelsk, from where she joined the convoy.[8]

SL 178

Convoy SL 178 departed Freetown, Sierra Leone on 25 November 1944 and arrived at Liverpool on 15 December. Tobruk was on a voyage from Pepel to Barry, Glamorgan. She was carrying a cargo of iron ore and two passengers.[11] On 9 December, a deceased seaman from Tobruk was buried at sea.[12]

Postwar, Tobruk continued in Polish Government service until 1951 when she was sold to Polskie Linie Oceaniczne.[1] In 1950 during a storm in the Bay of Biscay in order to prevent the ship from crashing into the local reefs the crew improvised a sail, saving the ship; this is the only known example of a modern bulk carrier using a sail.[13] She served until 1967,[4] and was scrapped at Gdynia in June 1968.[2]

In popular culture[]

The wartime history of the ship has been portrayed in a novel S.S. Tobruk – w konwojach śmierci (SS Tobruk – in the convoys of death) by .[14]

References[]

  1. ^ a b c Mitchell, W H, and Sawyer, L A (1995). The Empire Ships. London, New York, Hamburg, Hong Kong: Lloyd's of London Press Ltd. ISBN 1-85044-275-4.
  2. ^ a b "5616130". Miramar Ship Index. Retrieved 28 December 2009.
  3. ^ a b c "LLOYD'S REGISTER, STEAMERS & MOTORSHIPS" (PDF). Plimsoll Ship Data. Retrieved 29 December 2009.
  4. ^ a b c "Tobruk". Polish Ocean Lines. Retrieved 29 December 2009.
  5. ^ a b "LLOYD'S REGISTER, NAVIRES A VAPEUR ET A MOTEURS" (PDF). Plimsoll Ship Data. Retrieved 29 December 2009.
  6. ^ Dziennik Ustawy Rzeczypospolitej Polskiej Nr 3. Londyn. 24 marca 1942. http://eprints.hist.pl/135/1/1942-03-24_nr3.pdf
  7. ^ "Convoy PQ 13". Warsailors. Retrieved 29 December 2009.
  8. ^ a b "Report of Senior British Naval Officer (extracts) – September 1942". Halcyon-class. Retrieved 29 December 2009.
  9. ^ Jan Piwowoński (1989). Flota spod Biało-Czerwonej. Nasza Księgarnia. p. 90. ISBN 978-83-10-08902-1. Retrieved 14 May 2012.
  10. ^ "The Arctic Convoy's". Toys out of the Pram. Retrieved 29 December 2009.
  11. ^ "Convoy SL.178 / MKS.69". Convoyweb. Retrieved 29 December 2009.
  12. ^ The National Archives (UK), ref ADM 217/591 Retrieved 29 December 2009
  13. ^ Jan Piwowoński (1989). Flota spod Biało-Czerwonej. Nasza Księgarnia. p. 92. ISBN 978-83-10-08902-1. Retrieved 14 May 2012.
  14. ^ Jan Kazimierz Sawicki (1990). S/s "Tobruk" w konwojach śmierci. Graf. ISBN 978-83-85130-24-6. Retrieved 14 May 2012.
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