
HMCS
BADDECK K147
Flower
Class Corvette
HMCS BADDECK K147 - 10 Jun 1944
Click on the above photo to view a larger
image
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Laid down: 14
Aug
1940
Launched: 20
Nov 1940
Commissioned: 18 May 1941
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Paid off: 04
Jul 1945
Fate:
Wrecked 11 Mar 1966
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Commissioned at Quebec City on
18 May 1941, BADDECK arrived at Halifax on 29 May 1941. She again left Quebec City
late in Jun 1941 for Halifax, escorting SS Lady Rodney, but had to
return to her builder's at Lauzon owing to an engine breakdown. In
Sep 1941 the two set out from Halifax for Jamaica, but again BADDECK's engine failed, and she reached her destination only with
difficulty. When further repairs had been completed, she was
assigned to Newfoundland Command, leaving Sydney on 05 Oct 1941 for
Iceland as ocean escort to convoy SC.48, which lost nine ships to
U-boats. Engine repairs kept her at Hvalfjord, Iceland, until
mid-Dec 1941 but failed to cure the problem and she was in dock at
Halifax for the first six months of 1942. She worked up at Pictou in
Jul 1942, then joined WLEF until allocated to duties in connection
with the invasion of North Africa, arriving at Londonderry on 01 Nov
1942. For the next four months she escorted U.K.-Mediterranean
convoys, returning to Halifax on 04 Apr 1943. Later that month BADDECK
was assigned to ERG C-4 for two round trips to Londonderry,
then in mid-Jul 1943 went to EG W-2, WLEF. In Aug 1943 she underwent a
major refit at Liverpool, N.S., including fo'c's'le extension and,
after working up in St. Margaret's Bay in Jan 1944, sailed in Mar
1944 to join EG 9, Londonderry. In Apr 1944 she transferred to Western
Approaches Command for invasion escort duties, based at Portsmouth,
and on 13 Jun 1944 beat off an attack by motor torpedo boats while so
employed. In Sep 1944 she was transferred to Nore Command, based at
Sheerness, escorting local convoys until her departure for home on
24 May 1945. She was paid off at Sorel on 04 Jul 1945 and sold for
mercantile purposes in 1946, and renamed Efthalia. After a number of
name-changes, she was lost ashore near Jeddah as the Greek-flag Evi
on 11 Mar 1966.
Photos and Documents
Ship's
company photos
Commanding Officers
Lt Alan Herbert
Easton, RCNR - 18 May 1941 - 05 Apr 1942
Lt William Ernest Nicholson, RCNR
- 06 Apr 1942 - 20 Apr 1942
Lt Lysson Gordon
Cumming, RCNVR - 21 Apr 1942 - 05 Oct 1942
Lt John
Brock, RCNVR - 06 Oct 1942 - 17 Oct 1943 |
Lt G.C.
Brown, RCNVR - 18 Oct 1943 - 19 Apr 1944
A/LCdr Frank Goddard
Hutchings, RCNR - 20 Apr 1944 - 23 Jul 1944
Lt Claude Lane
Campbell, RCNVR - 24 Jul 1944 - 14 Oct 1944
Lt Douglas Horton Tozer, RCNVR - 15 Oct
1944 - 04 Jul 1945 |
In memory of those who have crossed the bar
They shall not be
forgotten
Aucoin, Paul
B.
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Bain,
Glen D.
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Bourdage,
Alphee
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Brissenden,
Barry S.
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Brock, John
P.
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Cartwright,
Gordon D.
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Clark,
William N.
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Cox,
Peter S.
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Delaney,
George H.
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Easton,
Alan H.
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Elstone,
Thomas E.
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Fraser,
Francis P.
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Firth,
Herbert C.
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Gaudet, J.
Leonard
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Goode,
Cephas E.
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Hawthorne, Charles
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Huard,
Joseph O.W.
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Knight, Herbert
R.
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Knowles,
Robert A.
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MacArthur, Charles
E.
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MacAulay,
William F.
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Medford,
Kenneth A.
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Olson,
Carl J.
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Osburn,
Anthony G.
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Trann,
Milton A.
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Van Ooyen, Dirk
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Former Crew Members
Beardmore,
Alfred George, SLt, RCNVR - 06 Apr 1942
Bichan,
William James, A/Lt, RCNVR - 27 Jun 1941
Brissenden,
Barry Samuel, Lt, RCNVR - 01 Mar 1944
Burns,
Ronald Mavius, SLt, RCNVR - 18 May 1941
Carruthers,
Colin Mackenzie, SLt, RCNVR - 24 Jul 1941
Dodds,
Donald Jackson, SLt, RCNVR - 25 May 1942
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Gertell,
LS, LR3, Commissioning crew
Hickock,
AB, Commissioning crew
Kent,
William Gerald, Ch/Skpr, RCNR - 18 May 1941
Kirkendale,
John, SLt, RCNR - 08 Jun 1942
Large,
Ellsworth Field, Lt, RCNVR - 27 May 1942
Lumsden,
Peter Digby, SLt, RCNVR - 23 Feb 1944
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Mason,
AB, QR2, Commissioning crew
McGuire,
OS, Commissioning crew
McTagart,
OS, Commissioning crew
Saunders,
OS, Commissioning crew
Spindler,
Fred Royal, SLt, RCNVR - 25 Apr 1942
Thomason,
Francis Wilfred, Lt, RCNVR - 06 Apr 1942
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Photos and Documents

HMCS BADDECK K147 in the North Atlantic escorting
Convoy SC.48
On
05 Oct 1941, HMCS BADDECK departed Syndey, NS as part of the escort for
Convoy SC.48. Nine merchant ships of the 52 in the convoy were lost
along with two escorts, HMS Gladiolus and the Free French corvette
Mimosa. USS Kearny was also torpedoed but not sunk. She lost 11 of her
crew and 22 were wounded. These photos of HMCS BADDECK were taken
during that voyage.
From the collection of Kenneth Medford
Courtesy of Gary Medford
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HMCS BADDECK K147
From the collection of Kenneth Medford
Courtesy of Gary Medford
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Kenneth Medford in front of the 4-inch gun on HMCS BADDECK
K147
From the collection of Kenneth Medford
Courtesy of Gary Medford
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Unknown sailors on the fo'c's'le of HMCS BADDECK K417. HMCS
BADDECK was in the Dartmouth Slips, Halifax Shipyards at
the time of the photo - circa Jan 1942
From the collection of Kenneth Medford
Courtesy of Gary Medford
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Kenneth Medford on the fo'c's'le of HMCS BADDECK K147,
Dartmouth, NS
From the collection of Kenneth Medford
Courtesy of Gary Medford
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Kenneth Medford on HMCS BADDECK, Dartmouth, NS
From the collection of Kenneth Medford
Courtesy of Gary Medford
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Kenneth Medford sitting on the stern rail of HMCS BADDECK
K147
From the collection of Kenneth Medford
Courtesy of Gary Medford
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HMCS BADDECK K147 at Gaspé, QC. (Possibly alongside
Fort Ramsay)
From the collection of Kenneth Medford
Courtesy of Gary Medford
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Hvalsfjord, Iceland


"Hvalsfjord,
Iceland was used as a Naval Base as no shore facilities were available.
Large ships (in these photos) are USS Vulcan and HMS Hecla which were
"Mother" ships and provided facilities and repairs normally done
in shore bases. It was not unusual to have larger ships and aircraft
carriers here."
From the collection of Kenneth Medford
Courtesy of Gary Medford
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HMCS
BADDECK K147 returning from Jamaica escorting the Lady Rodney carrying
Winnipeg Rifles who were to go on leave before being shipped to Hong Kong on
that fateful mission. Circa summer 1941
From the collection of Kenneth Medford
Courtesy of Gary Medford
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Unknown sailor on the Lewis gun bandstand on HMCS BADDECK
K147
From the collection of Kenneth Medford
Courtesy of Gary Medford
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Ken Medford by the 4-inch gun on HMCS BADDECK K147
From the collection of Kenneth Medford
Courtesy of Gary Medford
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HMCS BADDECK K147 visits Jamaica

Everyone got a tailor made light cotton uniform to
replace the heavy issue which was the most uncomfortable piece of clothing
imaginable.
From the collection of Kenneth Medford
Courtesy of Gary Medford
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Ken Medford on Barrington Street, Halifax - photo taken
during the time he was drafted to HMCS BADDECK K147
From the collection of Kenneth Medford
Courtesy of Gary Medford
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HMCS BADDECK K147 jacket patch
Courtesy of Colin Stevens
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Tin Hat painted with HMCS BADDECK, her signature 5
cards and a green maple leaf
Courtesy of Colin Stevens
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HMCS BADDECK K147
Credit: Ken MacPherson / Naval Museum of Manitoba
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Sailors on an unknown ship.
This photo is from the collection of Charles Euwart
MacArthur and it is believed this photo was taken on HMCS BADDECK
Courtesy of Ben Mucke
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HMCS BADDECK K147 - date unknown
Note how the censor blocked out her radar antenna
Courtesy of Stephen Boyd
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HMCS BADDECK jacket patch
From the collection of Kenneth Medford
Courtesy of Gary Medford
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(JH01)
Sailors on HMCS BADDECK (JH02) Sailors on HMCS BADDECK (JH03)
Ships alongside St. John's, Newfoundland. Photo taken from HMCS BADDECK (JH04) Sailors on HMCS
BADDECK'S gun deck. Joseph Huard
1st on right.
From
the collection of Joseph Huard, RCNVR
Courtesy
of Claude Huard
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HMCS BADDECK after conversion to
merchant ship - SS Efthania (Efthai).
Source: Facebook
page of the Royal Canadian Legion #53 - BADDECK
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FF01
(FF01)
HMCS
BADDECK crew list written on a gunshirt. Close-ups of each section below

Image of
Baddeck's gunshield art
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Upper left column of names
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lower left column of ports visited
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From
the collection of Francis P. Fraser,
RCNVR
Courtesy
of Shawn Fraser
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