HMCS COLLINGWOOD K180

 

Flower Class Corvette

 


 

HMCS COLLINGWOOD K180, Sep 1943

 

Laid down: 02 Mar 1940

Launched: 27 Jul 1940

Commissioned: 09 Nov 1940

Paid off: 23 Jul 1945

Fate: Sold Jul 1950 and broken up the same year.

 

The first RCN corvette to enter service, COLLINGWOOD was commissioned on 09 Nov 1940 at COLLINGWOOD, Ontario.  She arrived at Halifax 04 Dec 1940, and joined Halifax Force in Jan 1941. She sailed on 23 May 1941 as one of the seven corvettes that were charter members of Newfoundland Command, and in Jun 1941 commenced six months' employment as an escort between St. John's and Iceland. Early in Dec 1941 she began a two-month refit at Halifax, following which she resumed mid-ocean escort duties between St. John's and Londonderry. These duties continued, with time off for three minor refits, until the end of 1944. From Dec 1942, onward she was a member of EG C-4. COLLINGWOOD was involved in one major convoy battle, that of HX.133 in Jun 1941, when eight ships were torpedoed and six sunk. During her refit at New York City from Oct to Dec 1943, she received her extended fo'c's'le. She left Londonderry on 16 Nov 1944, for the last time, refitted briefly at Liverpool, N.S., then went to Digby to serve as a training ship from Apr to Jun 1945. She was paid off on 23 Jul 1945 and laid up at Sorel. She was sold in Jul 1950 and broken up by Steel Co. of Canada, Hamilton, Ont., the same year.

 


 

Photos and Documents          Ship's company photos          Battle for Convoy HX-133

 


 

Commanding Officers

 

 Lt N.G.W. Bennett, RCNR - 09 Nov 1940 - 16 Apr 1941

A/LCdr William Woods, RCNR - 17 Apr 1941 - 09 Dec 1942

Lt D.W. Groos, RCN - 10 Dec 1942 - 05 Jun 1943

A/LCdr Roderick John Cornell Pringle, RCNVR - 06 Jun 1943 - 04 Jul 1944

Lt Hugh Russell Knight, RCNR - 05 Jul 1944 - 02 May 1945

Lt Edward Burton Pearce, RCNVR - 03 May 1945 - 17 Jun 1945

Skpr/Lt Joseph David Burnham, RCNR - 18 Jun 1945 - 23 Jul 1945

  


 

     In memory of those who made the ultimate sacrifice    

     Lest We Forget     

 

SCALES, Alfred E.

AB, RCNVR

died - 05 May 1943

 


  

     In memory of those who have crossed the bar    

They shall not be forgotten

 

 


 

Former Crew Members

 

Bousquet, Jean Paul, SLt, RCNVR - 29 Mar 1941

 

Buggs, William Harry, SLt, RCNVR - 28 Apr 1945

 

Brighton, Gordon Jack, Lt, RCNVR - 17 Apr 1945

 

Graham, James Edward, SLt, RCNVR - Jan 1944

 

Harvey, Daniel Ross Cobb, SLt, RCNVR - Jan 1943

 

Knight, Hugh Russell, Lt, RCNVR - Jan 1944

 

Laurence, Robert Simpson, SLt, RCNVR - 25 Apr 1942

MacRae, Alexander, SLt, RCNVR - 03 Jul 1944

 

McCowan, Roy, SLt, RCNVR - Jan 1945

 

McLaughlin, Thomas Crane, Lt, RCNVR - 26 Jan 1943

 

Minty, John Robert, SLt, RCNVR - 26 Feb 1945

 

Mott, Ralph (Jigger) - commissioning crew

 

Nuttall, Raymond, A/War (E), RCNVR - 25 Jan 1944

 

Pringle, Roderick John Cornell, Lt, RCNVR - 17 May 1943

 

Quinn, Howard Lee, Lt, RCNVR - 06 Feb 1941

Robson, Henry, Lt, RCNVR - 21 Apr 1943

 

Rowlings, Harry Winfred, Lt, RCNVR - 17 Mar 1944

 

Stevens, Stanley Arthur, SLt, RCNVR - 09 Feb 1945

 

Talling, Gordon Thomas, SLt, RCNVR - 20 Apr 1945

 

Taylor, Kenneth E. - Coder

 

West, Horace Gordon, SLt, RCNVR - 10 Apr 1945

 

Wyllie, Ronald Alexander, Lt, RCNVR - 23 May 1944

 

Young, Robert MacKenzie, Lt, RCNVR - 26 Feb 1945

 


 

Photos and Documents

 

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(CLW001-CLW005) HMCS COLLINGWOOD K180 - RCN photos  //  Source-Credit: Library and Archives of Canada

 

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(CLW006) HMCS COLLINGWOOD K180 - RCN photo  //  Source-Credit: Library and Archives of Canada

(CLW007) HMCS COLLINGWOOD K180 during builder's trials.  Note she has no gun and is not flying an ensign - RCN photo

(CLW008) HMCS COLLINGWOOD K180

(CLW009) HMCS COLLINGWOOD K180 - Click here to view a cropped and zoomed in image of this photo

(CLW010) HMCS COLLINGWOOD K180  //  From the collection of Eric Baird  //  Courtesy of Roger Clarke

 

 

 

CLW011

 

 

(CLW011) Newspaper article on Ralph "Jigger" Mott returning to COLLINGWOOD for a reunion of the original HMCS COLLINGWOOD crew  //  From: The COLLINGWOOD Enterprise-Bulletin  //  Courtesy of Alexina Reid

 



 

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(DB13) Douglas Keith Beach and the ship's mascot of HMCS COLLINGWOOD K350

(DB14) Douglas Keith Beach on HMCS COLLINGWOOD K350, Shelburne, NS, March 1945

(DB15-DB16) Sailors on HMCS COLLINGWOOD K350 peeling potatoes

(DB17) Douglas Beach (right) and two shipmates on HMCS COLLINGWOOD K350

 

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(DB18)Unknown sailor on HMCS COLLINGWOOD K350 with ship's mascot

(DB19) Unknown sailor on HMCS COLLINGWOOD L350 with ship's mascot

(DB20) Two unknown sailors on HMCS COLLINGWOOD K350

(DB21) Two unknown sailors on HMCS COLLINGWOOD K350

(DB22) Douglas Beach and shipmate "loading" forward gun of HMCS COLLINGWOOD K350. Note that part of the ship's gunshield art can be seen mounted on the bridge face.

 

 

 

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(DB23) Douglas Beach with ship's mascot of HMCS COLLINGWOOD K350

 

 

 

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(BD24) Unknown sailor on HMCS COLLINGWOOD K350

 

The 4-bulb light fixture is a bit of a mystery and there are opposing arguments as to its use.  Here are two possible uses in the words of the men who were there:

 

1) "Four bulbs is a bit of a puzzle, but we had them as dim lights for ships following us when in 'Order 1' - line astern, so the dim people in the next astern didn't run into you. Not turned on when hunting a known or suspected U-boat! I thought there was only 1 medium blue light, but maybe there was an option, depending on local conditions. I know that when manoeuvering in company, if things got confused as to who was where, the C.O.'d order "Turn on stern light", or in extremis, "On navigation lights" which was port, starboard and masthead ... until things got sorted out! "

 

2) It was called quite simply, a "cluster". If you want to drop say a 10 charge pattern requiring; the clamping on and extracting of the charges from the ready-use storage, loading them onto the throwers, setting the depth, removing the keys, unscrewing the pistol and extracting the brass casing from a fired thrower, replacing it with new charge, firing simultaneously on queue, on the Q Deck of a heaving corvette in the middle of the ditch in the dark of night, with the PO ST in charge, screaming incoherently for no good reason, all without injuring or killing one or more of the crew, then, as Jesus said, "Let there be light, and with Moses being the LTO of the Watch, "Light there was" and the cluster burned merrily so that all could see.

 

From the collection of Douglas Beach, OS, RCNVR

Courtesy of Robert Wilson

 



 

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(LH02) PO Louis Hamilton (right) on HMCS COLLINGWOOD K180.  Photo was taken after the refit in which her fo'c's'le was extended

(LH03) PO Louis Hamilton (right) on the fo'c's'le of HMCS COLLINGWOOD K180

(LH04) Unknown sailor on the fo'c's'le of HMCS COLLINGWOOD K180

(LH05) Unknown sailor on the fo'c's'le of HMCS COLLINGWOOD K180

From the collection of Louis Hamilton, A/ERA 4c, RCNVR

Courtesy of David Hamilton

 



 

 

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(NV01) HMCS COLLINGWOOD K180 - photo taken from HMCS LANARK K669  //  From the collection of Nick Vukson, Tel (S.O.), RCNVR  //  Courtesy of John Vukson

(WC01) HMCS COLLINGWOOD K180  //  Courtesy of Wayne Caswill

(IC13)  L-R: Unknown corvette, HMCS CAMROSE K154 and HMCS COLLINGWOOD K180 circa 1945  //  From the collection of Ivan Chamberlain, AB AA3, RCNVR  //  Courtesy of Dave Chamberlain

 


 


 

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