DAVID OGILVIE LO363

Official No:  143930   Port and Year:   London, 1920 (LO363)

Description: Castle Class steel side trawler; single screw, coal burning.  Ketch rigged. 

Crew:  10 men (1920); 12 men (1929).

Built: 1917, by Smiths Docks Co., Southbank-on-Tees.  (Yard no. 681)

Tonnage:  276 grt  107 net.

Length / breadth / depth (feet): 125.5  / 23.4 / 12.8

Engine: T 3-Cyl. 61 rhp.  Engine and boiler by builders

Owners:

 

As DAVID OGILVIE LO363

25 May 1920: T. J. Jenkerson & D.G. Jones, Docks, Milford.

Manager: Tom Jenkerson.

 

Landed at Milford:  As HMT: 31 Jul 1919. As LO363: 19 May 1920.

4 Aug 1920 - 3 Sep 1939.

Skippers: Jack Phillips (1929); Edgar Garnham (1932)

Notes: 

David Ogilvie, age 23, born London; Midshipman, HMS VICTORY, at Trafalgar.

7 May 1917: Launched for the Admiralty (No. 3514) as a minesweeper.

4 May 1920: Seventeen Castle trawlers sold at auction at Milford; six others were withdrawn, including DAVID OGILIVIE. [The Times, Thursday 6 May 1920.]

6 Sep 1939: Requisitioned by the Admiralty as a minesweeper (P.No. FY. 720).

Jan 1941: Minesweeping Group 54 (North Shields).

Jan 1942: Minesweeping Group 54 (Aberdeen).

7 Oct 1946: Returned to owners.  [Laid up, and then broken up?]

 Accidents and Incidents

Statement by Robert Herbert Limbrick, February 1921:  

 

    I live at No. 49, Shakespeare Avenue, Milford Haven.  I am at present Skipper of the steam trawler "John Evan" working out of the port of Milford. I have held a Skipper's Certificate since 1919.

    I was Master of the steam trawler "David Ogilvie" for about two trips. We left Milford Docks in that vessel on Friday, January 21st, bound for the fishing grounds off the south coast of Ireland. We were 10 hands all told. We commenced fishing on the following Sunday morning and at 9 p.m. on Wednesday, January 26th, the Mate who was then on watch reported to me that he had observed signals of distress showing from a [vessel] about 3 miles away.  At that time we were about

130 miles west 3/4 south from St. Ann's Head. I then went up on our bridge and ordered our gear to be brought up, which was done, and we proceeded in the direction of the vessel showing the signals of distress. There was then a strong wind from south west with a heavy swell.

    The vessel in distress proved to be the steam trawler "Gillygate" of Milford, whose Skipper was John Setterfield, and the letter informed me that his rudder was gone and he asked me to stand by until the morning. We stood by all night, there was a nice breeze from south west with heavy swell.

    At 8.15 next morning, Thursday, the "Gillygate" hailed us and asked to be taken in tow for Milford. We steamed round him and we threw him a line and they hauled two of our warps on board and shackled up these to their cable. We had about 170 fathom of each warp out. When all was made fast we commenced towing, and this would be about 9.30 a.m. The weather was then moderate, light breeze, from north west with heavy swell. The wind varied from north west to south west during the whole time of the tow and there was a heavy swell until we reached harbour.

    We arrived in Milford Harbour about 5 a.m. on Friday, January 28th, and brought the "Gillygate" into Milford Docks at 8.30 a.m. the same morning.  Our cargo of fish realised £212 gross.  The two warps were badly strained in the towing.  The average daily coal consumption of the "David Ogilvie" is about 7 tons.

    I did not take the "David Ogilvie" out again as I had only arranged to be in her the two trips mentioned above. I did not see any other vessel from the time we saw the distress signals until we had been towing about 80 miles.

 

 

Statement by Hugh Keeton of 2, North Road, Milford Haven:

 

    I am at present mate of the steam trawler "Fishergate" sailing out of Milford Haven.  I was mate of the "David Ogilvie" at the time she rendered the services to the "Gillygate".

    I was on the Bridge and had charge of the watch. We had our port gear down and were towing. About 8.30 on the night in question I observed signals of distress

being shown about 5 miles in the south south east, i.e. two flares, one soon after the other and also showing two red lights, one above the other. I reported this to our Skipper and he came up on the Bridge and took charge. We bore up our gear immediately and proceeded in the direction from which the distress signals were showing.    

    The vessel in distress proved to be the steam trawler "Gillygate" and her skipper informed us that his rudder was gone and he asked us to stand by until the morning. This we did and soon after daybreak next day we were hailed from the "Gillygate", and we steamed round him and we threw lines and he hauled in our two wire warps and these were shackled both on to his cable and when all had been made fast we commenced to tow for Milford. There was a stiff breeze from the southward and westward with heavy swell during the whole of the night and in the morning the wind veered round to the west and the weather came on misty and gradually getting to a dense fog. The wind kept about north west during the whole of the tow with choppy sea.

    There was no other vessel about when we picked up the "Gillygate" and we had been towing about 80 miles before we saw another vessel and this vessel, by the signals she was giving, was in my opinion also towing another vessel.

    We were about an hour getting fixed up for towing and arrived in Chapel Bay early next morning, and got the "Gillygate" into Dock on the morning's tide.

    Our two warps were chaffed considerably and much strained and in my opinion would not be safe for fishing purposes afterwards. Our warps were brought, one through each hawse pipe and then fixed on the winch.

    I am leaving for sea tomorrow, Tuesday, and am due back about March 17th.

    I did not sail again on the "David Ogilvie".

 

 

From the West Wales Guardian of Friday 25th March 1932:

 

    The steam trawler "David Ogilvie" (Tom Jenkerson) left Milford Docks between seven and eight a.m. on Tuesday, but before reaching St Ann's Head she had to put back with her fireman injured. After receiving medical attention, he was sent to the County Hospital, Haverfordwest, in the ambulance. The fireman in question was Frank Lamb, of [Sligo?], aged twenty three. He slipped on the iron plate of the stokehold, and came down on his head with great force.

 

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From the West Wales Guardian of Friday 24th May 1946:

 

    On Wednesday the reconverted "Hatano"  left on her first post-war voyage in charge of her pre-war skipper, Mr. Tom Donovan, D.S.C., North Road.  This brings the fleet to six ships, compared with sixteen before 1939.

    The firm, which specialised in Castle trawlers, always had a fine maintenance reputation, and their trawlers, to quote a fisherman, were turned out like yachts.  At the start of the war, their whole fleet of fourteen trawlers was conscripted.  Three were returned for fishing, but eleven performed grand work as minesweepers through the war.  Two, the "Nogi" and "Tamura" [ were lost ].  The "Togimo", another Jenkerson trawler, was sunk while fishing off Ireland in February 1940.  The "Yezo" is still in service, the "Settsu" is undergoing reconversion at Plymouth, and should return to Milford within the next six weeks.  The "Our Bairns" is being refitted for fishing at Milford, but it has not yet been decided whether the "David Ogilvie", lately returned from service, will fish again.

 

 

 

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