EPHRATAH M292

RECENIA M46

 

As RECENIA

John Stevenson Collection

Official No: 144781  Port Number and Year: 28th in Aberdeen, 1920 (A394)

                                                                                -      in Peterhead, 1924 (PD5)

                                                                              -      in Aberdeen, 1932 (A180)

                                                                               -      in Peterhead, 1932 (PD170)  

                                                                               9th in Milford, 1948 (M292)

                                                                               5th in Milford, 1949 (M46)

Description: Admiralty Steel Drifter / side trawler; steam screw, coal burning. Ketch rigged: mizzen sail. 

Crew: 9 men (1945)

Registered at Milford: 11 Aug 1948

Built: 1919, by Colby Brothers, Oulton Broad, Lowestoft

Tonnage: 96.43 grt  42.4 net. (1948: 96.43 grt 42.04 net; 1949: 96.30 grt 41.98 net.)

Length / breadth / depth (feet): 86.2 / 18.55 / 9.3

Engine: T 3-Cyl. 34 rhp. 9.5 kts.  Engine by Pollitt & Wigzell, Sowerby Bridge, 1918; boiler by Danks & Co., Oldbury, Birmingham, 1918.

Owners:

 

As QUICKSAND A394

30 Aug 1920: William H. Gore, 66 Victoria Rd., Torry, Aberdeen.

Manager: Benjamin Allenby, 52 Springbank Tce., Aberdeen.

 

As  PD5

Apr 1924: William Ritchie, 9 Victoria Road, Peterhead.

Managing owner.

 

As  EPHRATAH PD5

1930: Alexander Hay, 17 Whinnyfold, Aberdeenshire.

Managing owner.

 

As  A180

29 Jan 1932: Alexander Hay, 17 Whinnyfold, Aberdeenshire.

Managing owner.

 

PD170

29 Jan 1932: Alexander Hay, 17 Whinnyfold, Aberdeenshire.

Managing owner.

 

As M 292

11 Aug 1948: William Wilcox, Greville Rd., Milford (32/64)

Henry Eastoe Rees, The Rath, Milford (32/64)

Managing owner: W. Wilcox.

 

As RECENIA M46

18 Aug 1948: The Manor Steamship Co. Ltd., The Docks,  Milford.

 

As SALMOOR (Mooring vessel.)

1952: Air Ministry.

 

Landed at Milford:  As EPHRATAH: 1 Jan - 6 Sep 1948.

As RECENIA: 13 May 1950 - 8 Jun 1951.

Skippers: A.V. Long (1948); Fred Sutton (1948).

Notes:

Ephratah is the Hebrew name of a Biblical place and a personal name meaning "fruitful".

Recenia is a feminine Christian name.

5 Mar 1919: Launched for the Admiralty (No.3991) as H.M. Drifter QUICKSAND, and completed as a fishing vessel.

4 Aug 1920: Transferred to Fisheries Board, Scotland, for disposal.

28 Mar 1924: Aberdeen registry closed.

29 Jan 1932: Aberdeen registry opened and closed.

1940: Requisitioned for war service (P.No. FY310) and employed on Harbour Patrol Defence duties.

4 Sep 1948: Went aground in Fishguard harbour; constructive total loss [see below], but sold on and renamed RECENIA.

1952: Converted to Auxiliary RAF mooring vessel SALMOOR , and registered in London in 1953.

1955/56:  Broken up by Haulbowline Industries, Passage West, County Cork.

Cert. Cancelled & Milford Registry Closed: 19 Jan 1949: (As EPHRATAH). Vessel a constructive total loss.

24 Mar 1952: (As RECENIA). Vessel no longer used for fishing.

Accidents and Incidents:

From the West Wales Guardian of Friday 10th September 1948:

    Caught in last week-end's stormy weather in the Irish sea, the Milford trawler "Ephratah" put into Fishguard harbour for shelter on Friday, but this was not the end of her troubles, for in the early hours of Saturday the "Ephratah's" anchor chain broke and she drifted helplessly onto the rocks at the Marine Point. With the storm still raging the Fishguard lifeboat put out and succeeded in taking off seven members of the crew who were aboard. The skipper and two members of the crew were already ashore when the anchor chain parted.

    The members of the crew who jumped from the drifting vessel to the safety of the lifeboat included sixteen year old deckhand learner D. O. Jones, 62, Waterloo Road, Hakin, who was making his first trip.

    The others were:

Skipper Fred Sutton, 20, Eastleigh Drive, Milford.

Mate C. D. Picton, 28, Upper Hill Street, Hakin.

Third Hand A. Beamish, Glenside House, Llanreath, Pembroke Dock.

Decky G. Coombs, 36, Glebelands, Hakin.

          H. S. Mann, 33, Minden Road, Lowestoft.

Decky Trimmer R. Taylor, Lower Ferry Castle, Tiers Cross.

Cook W. Peek, 38, Church Street, Padstow.

Chief Engineer J. Jones, Brooke Avenue, Milford.

Second Engineer H. Edwards, 14, Point Street, Hakin.

    Fortunately the "Ephratah", owned by Mr W. Wilcox, Milford, was little damaged and was refloated on Saturday morning. It landed sixty eight kits of fish at Milford on Monday.

 

[EPHRATAH was later declared a Constructive Total Loss, but was recovered and renamed RECENIA. The skipper and chief engineer of EPHRATA were both suspended, at the behest of the C in C Western Approaches, probably because some form of wartime regulations were still in place.  (Information from Terry Beckett.)]

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

From The Irish Times of Wednesday 4th April 1951, p.4:

 

Trawler Rushes Ill Seaman to Hospital

    While the Milford Haven trawler, Recenia, was fishing near the Coningbeg light vessel off the Wexford coast, yesterday, one of the crew became seriously ill.  The trawler made a full-speed dash to Rosslare after sending a radio message to have a doctor standing by.

 

 

As SALMOOR

Courtesy Gil Mayes

 

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