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A Royal Canadian Navy Historical Project
HMCS MINAS J165 / 189
Named for Minas Basin in the Bay of Fundy, she was built at Vancouver and commissioned there 02 Aug 1941. She sailed for Halifax on 13 Sep 1941, arriving on 19 Oct 1941. After brief service with Sydney Force, she was assigned in Jan 1942, to Newfoundland Force. In Nov 1942 she transferred to WLEF, and when WLEF was divided into escort groups in Jun 1943, she became a member of EG W-7. That December she was re-assigned to W-4. On 01 Feb 1943, she collided with HMS Liscomb outside Halifax, necessitating a month's repairs. Minas left Halifax for the U.K. on 20 Feb 1944, with Blairmore, Fort William and Milltown, via the Azores. on arrival in the U.K. on 08 Mar 1944, she was assigned to the 31st Minesweeping Flotilla for invasion duties, and was on hand on D-Day. In Sep 1944 she proceeded to Canada to refit at Dartmouth, N.S., returning to Plymouth in Jan 1945. There she rejoined the 31st Flotilla until she sailed again for Canada on 04 Sep 1945. She was paid off into reserve at Shelburne on 06 Oct 1945, and later moved to Sorel, but was re-acquired by the RCN in 1952 and re-commissioned on 15 Mar 1955 for training on the west coast. Paid off on 07 Nov 1955, she was sold in Aug 1958, and broken up at Seattle in 1959.
Minas' return to Canada: After the invasion of Normandy and after we had completed most of the work that we needed to do there, we got sent back to Canada for a refit and I remember the day, we got word, pick up a convoy that was sailing back to Canada, to America. And we headed from the English Channel out, we were working in the English Channel at the time and we headed into the Atlantic to pick this convoy and we went by the Channel Islands. At this time, the Channel Islands had not yet surrendered and they’re still occupied by Germans. And of course, to us, I guess we didn’t know it at the time and we could see the beach over there on our left and we could see the water actually slopping up on the beach and we were sailing past it, happy as hell, heading back to Canada when all of a sudden, the big guns on the island start firing on us. We were a little minesweeper all by ourself. The old man [Lt. James Barrett Lamb], quick thinking guy, he just ordered the ship to turn toward the island and the next salvo, you know, these are 12 inch guns I think, and the next salvo went over the top and some of them exploded in the air and some of them, when they hit the water. And then he ordered black smoke. (Source: The Memory Project - excerpt for the entry of William Lorne Empey)
Minas' return to Canada: Minas had been working off the coast of France when it was ordered back to Canada and the skipper, James B Lamb, wanted to take the shortest route possible. He didn’t take into account that the Channel Islands were still in German hands and that his course was well within the range of their big guns. All hell was breaking loose around them and the skipper had ordered smoke but for some unknown reason there was none. My father (Hugh Menzies) was not on watch at the time and made his way to the engine room as fast as he could and was able to produce the requested smoke screen. According to my father, the stoker on duty was quite notorious for making smoke when not required or wanted and when they needed it badly it couldn’t be produced. He explained that the some damage was done to the superstructure and the crew was told to keep quiet about it and as far as I know the incident was never reported. My father and the rest of the crew had a good deal of respect for Lamb even though he was younger than many of them. (From the memoirs of Hugh Cameron Menzies, Sto PO, submitted by his son Bill Menzies)
Photos and Documents Ship's company photos The Ship's Bell
The Thirty-First Minesweeping Flotilla
Photos and Documents
(MB04) Marshall Burns and shipmates on HMCS MINAS. Marshall leaning on Kisby ring (MB05) Marshall Burns with ammunition belt on HMCS MINAS (MB06) Marshall Burns sitting on minesweeping paravane on HMCS MINAS (MB07) Marshall Burns on HMCS MINAS (MB08) Marshall Burns on the quarterdeck of HMCS MINAS
(MB09-MB12) Lou Machuk at various positions on the quarter deck of HMCS MINAS (MB13) Marshall Burns in quarterdeck hatch to minesweeping stores on HMCS MINAS
(MB14-MB15) Marshall Burns standing on the jetty in St. John's, Nfld, 1942, on duty as Jetty Sentry - note the lanyard attached to the pistol on his belt (MB16-MB17) Unknown sailor on the jetty - HMCS MINAS in the background (MB18) Lou Machuk on duty as Quartermaster on the jetty beside the brow of HMCS MINAS, Aug 1942
(MB19) Marshall Burns on the jetty with his foot on the brow of HMCS MINAS (MB20) Marshall Burns on the quarterdeck of HMCS MINAS (MB21) Unknown sailor on duty as Quartermaster on HMCS MINAS (MB22) HMS GREENWICH whaler crew, St. John's Harbour, Oct 1942 (MB23 Fishing schooner seen from HMCS MINAS - St. John's, Nfld, Oct 1942
(MB24) Marshall Burns on gun deck of HMCS MINAS (MB25) Sailors doing gunnery drills on HMCS MINAS (MB26) Unknown sailors on the quarterdeck of HMCS MINAS at St. John's NFLD (MB27) Marshall Burns on the quarterdeck of HMCS MINAS at St. John's, NFLD. Note the ice-covered corvette in the background (MB28) Ice-covered corvette alongside St. John's, NFLD
(MB29-MB31) Gun and gun deck of HMCS MINAS iced-up at sea. Sailor using steam hose to clear ice off the gun ... and gun deck cleared of ice
HMCS MINAS being repaired after her collision with HMS LISCOMB off Halifax on 01 Feb 1943
(MB32) Hoult, Submarine Detector (SD) sitting on the screw of HMCS MINAS in dry dock, Aug 1942 (MB33) HMCS MINAS on the slips in Halifax, Aug 1942 (MB34) Damage to HMCS MINAS - view from inside the seaman's mess deck (MB35) Two sailors looking out their new window. Damage to HMCS MINAS - looking into the seaman's mess deck. All that remains of her pendant number is the "5" - the J16 are missing due to the damage (MB36) Sailor looking out off the hole in the hull of the seaman's mess deck - note that the LISCOMB hit MINAS at Frame 19.
HMCS MINAS being repaired after her collision with HMS LISCOMB off Halifax on 01 Feb 1943
(MB37) Marshall Burns sitting on the edge of the gun deck above the new entrance to the seaman's mess in HMCS MINAS (MB38) Unknown sailor sitting above the new entrance to the seaman's mess on HMCS MINAS (MB39) McNiven on the port anchor of HMCS MINAS while she is in the slips - Aug 1942 (MB40) Dunlop and Ansley on the anchors of HMCS MINAS while she is in the slips - Aug 1942
Webmaster's note: the sailor on the port anchor in both MB39 and MB40 appear to be the same person but the photo captions indicate otherwise.
(MB41) HMCS MINAS at sea - view from the ship's boat (MB42) Unknown sailor working by the depth charge thrower on HMCS MINAS (MB43) Ammunition on the deck of HMCS MINAS by the forward gun (MB44) J. McKnight with the "guts of Y gun" - on HMCS MINAS - Seup 1942 (MB45) Unknown sailor on duty as Quartermaster, sitting on depth charges on HMCS MINAS. Note that a number of the depth charges have had their fuse removed
(MB46) Lou Machuk posing with the .50 Cal machine gun on HMCS MINAS - Aug 1942 (MB47) Marshall Burns posing with the .50 Cal machine gun on HMCS MINAS - Aug 1942 (48) unknown sailor posing with the .50 Cal machine gun on HMCS MINAS - Aug 1942 (MB49) J. McKnight posing with the .50 Cal machine gun on HMCS MINAS (MB50) Twin .50 Cal machine gun mounts on HMCS MINAS
(MB51) Varrn sitting with the ship's mascot on HMCS MINAS - Sep 1942 (MB52) Unknown sailor by one of the two QF 20 mm Oerlikon guns on HMCS MINAS. These guns were later replaced by the twin .05 cal machine gun mounts (MB53) HMCS MINAS J165 (MB54) Marshall Burns on HMCS MINAS at Lunenburg, NS - Jul 1942
From the collection of Marshall Burns, LS.LR, RCNVR
Courtesy of the Burns family
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For Posterity's Sake 
