SS Severn Leigh

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limeybiker
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SS Severn Leigh

Unread post by limeybiker »

My uncle. CODD, HARRY EDWARD, d. 25/08/1940, Age 29, Third EngineerOfficer, Merchant Navy, S.S. Severn Leigh (Bristol), SON OF GEORGEFREDERICK AND ELIZEBETH ANN CODD; HUSBAND OF MAY CODD, OF HULL.

http://www.interment.net/data/eng/great ... -co-cu.htm


SEVERN LEIGH SS was a British Cargo Steamer built in 1919 and of 5,242 tons. She was formerly called Queen Olga (1937) Bembridge (1924) and was owned by Whitwill & Sons Ltd, Mark. Severn Steamship Co LTD.

On the 23rd August 1940 when on route from Hull for St John N.B. in ballast she was torpedoed and sunk by gunfire from U-37 and sunk. 33 crew lost from a total crew 42.

Built for the Shipping Controller and launched as War Anchusa on 7 December 1918 by Caird and Co. Ltd., Greenock. Her management was allocated to J. Temperlay and Co., London and later in 1919 she was purchased by the manager and renamed Bembridge for Temperlay SS Co., London.
In 1924 she was sold to Cadogan SS Co. Ltd., Glasgow and renamed Queen Olga and is seen as such in this rather over-exposed photograph. She served them well for 13 years before being sold to Kelston SS Co. (Mark Whitwell and Son Ltd.), Bristol in 1937 who traded her as Severn Leigh.
On 23 August 1940 she was under the command of Master Robert George Hammett, OBE and sailing as part of Convoy OA-200 on voyage Hull to St. John, New Brunswick in ballast.
At 12.50 hours she was dispersed from convoy when she was hit in the bow by a torpedo from U-37 south of Iceland. She had been sighted at 11.45 hours the previous day and had been fortunate that the torpedo fired at her had missed. Severn Leigh had then taken flight and during the chase U-37 had torpedoed and sunk the vessel Kerret. The U-boat again located Severn Leigh at 08.15 hours on the 23 August and then stalked her before firing the fatal torpedo.
As her crew abandoned ship in four lifeboats, Victor Oehm, the U-boat commander observed that the stern gun was still manned and picked up distress signals being sent by the radio operator. He therefore surfaced his boat with the intention of shelling the ship with his deck gun to accelerate the sinking and to silence to the radio signals.
Unfortunately two of the lifeboats were still alongside of the ship when the U-boat opened fire. The occupants were hit by shrapnel from the shells impacting on the hull. Most of the crew in the two boats were killed. Thirty two crew members and one gunner were lost while the master and nine crew members made landfall at Leverburgh, South Uist on 5 September. Master Hammett was later awarded the Lloyds War Medal fro bravery at sea.
U-37 was scuttled in Sonderburg Bay on 8 May 1945 and later raised and broken up.
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DaveH
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Re: SS Severn Leigh

Unread post by DaveH »

How those guys did that job beats me Barry , ploughing back and forth ever under threat of UBoat or Surface Raider attack .I've heard all the tales of them being p*****d out of their brains most of the time but analysis of this shows otherwise . Sadly it has taken many years to get recognition for our Merchant Marine and here in Plymouth in the next few months a National Memorial will be installed on Plymouth Hoe adjacent to the Naval Memorial and not before time .

Locally here on occasions the Merchant Standard is paraded alongside the RN Standard and rightly so . Annually we parade on "Merchant Navy Day" and "Atlantic Day"

Regards to you Jack Dusty's over there .
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