Convoy HX 161 - warsailors.com (original) (raw)

Convoy HX 161 Cruising Order
Departed Halifax on Nov. 21-1941 and arrived Liverpool on Dec. 6 (Arnold Hague's "The Allied Convoy System" gives 42 ships).

Received from Ted Agar (His source: A diary. Although the information is usually incomplete, I consider this diary valuable and important in and of itself and, therefore, I've transcribed it and kept it "as is" on this website, and have added further details and/or corrections from other sources separately, rather than within the form itself [except for cargoes], as seen below).

Cargoes have been extracted from a document received from D. Kindell, based on the late Arnold Hague's database - see his listing for HX 161 at Ships in all HX convoys.

Br=British, Am=American, Bel=Belgian, Norw=Norwegian, Pa=Panamanian, Can=Canadian, Sw=Swedish.

11
Empire Lugard
grain
(Br)

31
British
tanker

41
Sicilian Prince
general
(Br)

61
British
tanker

71
Lochkatrine
refrig. - general
12 passengers
(Br)

81
Pacific Pioneer
general
4 passengers
(Br)

91
Gloucester
refrig. - general
3120 mails
(Br)

12
British
freighter
(listing)

42
British
tanker

52
Emma Alexander*
ballast
(Br - Ex Am)

62
Floristan
general
1516 mails
4 passengers
(Br)

72
British
tanker

82
Carelia
aviation gas
(Br)

92
Devis
general
189 mails
(Br)

13
Banffshire
general
(Br)

33
Havprins
gas oil
(Norw)

43
British
tanker

53
Nueva Andalucia
petrol
(Norw)

63
Solfonn
gas oil
(Norw)

83
British
tanker

93
British
freighter

14
Boringia
general
(Br)

24
Norw.
tanker

44
Norw.
tanker

54
Jean Jadot
general
(Bel)

64
Norw.
freighter

84
Havkong
gas oil
(Norw)

15
City of
Bombay
general
1439 mails
(Br)

25
Cold
Harbor**
general
(Pa)

35
Dramatist
general
(Br)

45
Vav
petrol
(Norw)

55
British
freighter

75
Vaalaren
general
12 passengers
(Sw)

85
Bic Island
general
(Can)

56
Athelchief
petrol
(Br)

* Emma Alexander became the British Empire Woodlark shortly thereafter.

** Cold Harbor (from HX 160) returned to port, later joining the slow Convoy SC 57 on Nov. 28.

The Rescue Vessel Copeland was also with this convoy for a while - see details further down on this page.

Additionally, Ted's diary names the following, but pendant numbers not known at the time (they are given in A. Hague's database below):
Icelandic Godafoss, British Manchester Citizen, British Prestige, Empire Flamingo. Note however, that a visitor to my website has informed me that Empire Flamingo had run aground on Nov. 16 while approaching Halifax. She wasn't refloated again until Nov. 20, towed to Halifax in a sinking condition and temporarily repaired, before she was drydocked in New York for major repairs on Dec. 31. If this is so, she could not have been in this convoy - in fact, she's not included in Hague's listing for HX 161. She does not show up again until HX 191 in May-1942, returned, then joined HX 192.

Comparing the above with Arnold Hague's information for HX 161 at Ships in all HX convoys, we find that the un-named ships in Ted's list were In station 31 - British Refast (lub. oil)
In station 12 - British Levernbank (general cargo, ran aground Dec. 5, later salvaged)
In station 24 he has the Norwegian Havprins, which is listed in 33 above. Instead he has the Norwegian Thorshøvdi in 33 (cargo of dieso, returned after a collision with escort - see the note further down on this page).
In station 42 - Panamanian George H. Jones (dieso)
In station 43 - British Donacilla (petrol)
In station 44 - Norwegian Fernwood (but not a tanker, general cargo)
In station 55 - British Clan Macilwraith (general cargo)
In station 61 - British Coimbra (lub. oil)
In station 64 - Norwegian Taborfjell (general cargo)
In station 72 - British Inverilen (petrol)
In station 83 - British Empire Gem (petrol)
In station 93 - British Nebraska (refrig., general)

Otherwise, his information agrees on the whole with what can be found in Ted's list, but with the addition of several ships in stations where none are listed in Teds diary, namely
* In station 21 - British British Prestige (petrol - A. Hague has also given this station for the Norwegian Stigstad, but this might be a typing error)
In station 51 - British Manchester Citizen (general cargo).
In station 32 - American Sapelo (USN fuel, returned, sailed in HX 162).
In station 23 - Norwegian Morgenen (lub. oil)
In station 73 - British British Colony (fuel oil, for Reykjavik)
In station 34 - Norwegian Brasil (lub oil)
In station 74 - Norwegian Athos (cargo of gas oil - nationality is given as British, but this was a Norwegian ship)
In station 94 - British Broompark (grain)
In station 65 - Icelandic Godafoss (general cargo, detached to Iceland Dec. 3)
In station 95 - British Toltén (general cargo - returned, listed in next convoy, returned again. Joined HX 168, returned following collision)
He has also added the Norwegian Torfinn Jarl (joined at sea from SC 56)

The ships left port in the following order:
The first ship to leave at 09:56 was the British Manchester Citizen, then British Prestige, Pacific Pioneer, Empire Lugard, Carelia, Gloucester, an unnamed British freighter, the Norwegian Stigstad, another unnamed British freighter (with the notation "lumber, listing to starboard"), the Norwegian Havprins and Solfonn, an unnamed British tanker, and unnamed Norwegian freighter followed by a British freighter, the British Empire Flamingo (see note in above table), an unnamed British tanker, the Norwegian Vav, British Dramatist, Belgian Jean Jadot, British Sicilian Prince, an unnamed freighter and 2 unnamed tankers (all British), Bic Island, Lochkatrine, the Norwegian Nueva Andalucia (had been scheduled for the previous convoy HX 160, but did not sail), an unnamed British tanker followed by an unnamed Norwegian tanker and another British tanker, Panamanian Cold Harbor (had also been scheduled for HX 160), 2 unnamed Norwegian tankers, the British Boringia (originally Danish, under Ministry of War Transport), Floristan, Swedish Vaalaren, Icelandic Godafoss, British Banffshire, unnamed British freighter, then Devis, American Emma Alexander (British flag), British City of Bombay, Athelchief (this was formerly the Norwegian Kongsten). The Norwegian Havkong was the last ship to leave at 14:45.

Arnold Hague ("Convoy Rescue Ships 1940-1945") says the Rescue Vessel Copeland was with this convoy from Dec. 3 till Dec. 6-1941 (to Clyde). She had been with ON 39 from Clyde to detachment Nov. 22-29, on her 13th voyage as rescue vessel (having started her service as such on Jan. 31-1941, Convoy OB 280).

NOTE: According to Robert Cressman's "The Official Chronology of the U.S. Navy in World War II", the American destroyer Du Pont (DD-152) was damaged in a collision with Thorshøvdi on Nov 24-1941, convoy HX 161 (scroll down to the relevant date at the link to "Hyperwar" below. I've been told that she was one of 5 ships in HX 161 that had their names removed from the convoy document; the others being the Norwegian Taborfjell and the British Clan Macilwraith, Empire Gem and Donacilla, but as can be seen above, they all appear to have joined). According to her Voyage Record for this period, Thorshøvdi put back to Halifax on Nov. 28, departing again already on Dec. 3; in fact, she's listed in Convoy HX 163. Thorshøvdi may have been repaired before joining HX 163. One piece of information that supports this to a certain extent, though the dates don't quite fit, is a report written by the captain of Daghild, saying that this ship took some cargo from Thorshøvdi because the latter had to go in for repairs after a collision in convoy - see my text for M/T Daghild.

A. Hague names the following escorts (extracted from this list of HX convoy escorts, also received from D. Kindell; dates are European style, day/month/year):
Anemone - From 02/12/41 to 05/12/41
Annapolis - From 21/11/41 to 23/11/41
Douglas - From 03/12/41 to 06/12/41
Hamilton - From 21/11/41 to 23/11/41
Kirkella - From 06/12/41 to 06/12/41
Leamington - From 03/12/41 to 05/12/41
St. Elstan
St. Kenan
St. Zeno
Thyme - From 02/12/41 to 05/12/41
USS Bernadou - From 23/11/41 to 02/12/41
USS Du Pont - From 23/11/41 to 25/11/41
USS Lea - From 23/11/41 to 03/12/41
USS MacLeish - From 23/11/41 to 03/12/41
USS Roe - From 23/11/41 to 03/12/41
USS Woolsey - From 23/11/41 to 03/12/41
Veronica - From 02/12/41 to 06/12/41
Veteran - From 03/12/41 to 05/12/41

Related external link:
Hyperwar - linked to the 1941 section of Robert Cressman's book, where Thorshøvdi's collision is mentioned under Nov. 24.

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