LEUKOS A103
LEUKOS D86
Painting by Kenneth King from the National Maritime Museum.
Official No: 137154 Port Number and Year: Aberdeen, 1914 (A103)
Dublin, 1927 (D86)
Description: Steel side trawler, steam, coal fired, single screw. Ketch rigged.
Crew: 9 men (1920).
Built: 1914, by J. Duthie Torry Shipbuilding Co., Aberdeen. (Yard no. 405)
Tonnage: 216 grt 83 net.
Length / breadth / depth (feet): 115.0 / 22.6 / 12.3
Engine: T.3-Cyl., 55 rhp.; by Charles D. Holmes, Hull.
Owners:
As LEUKOS A10327 Aug 1914: The National Steam Fishing Co. (Aberdeen) Ltd., 164 Market St., Aberdeen.
Manager: James Scott, jnr., 205 George St., Aberdeen.
1920: Tucker, Tippet & Co. Ltd., 1 Stuart St., Cardiff.
Manager: James C. Tippett. [Same address.]
H. E. Rees, Docks, Milford.
As LEUKOS D86
24 Jun 1927: Dublin Trawlers, Ice and Cold Storage Co. Ltd., 8 Cardiff Lane, Dublin.
Manager: Patrick Fannon. [Same address.]
Landed at Milford: 1 Nov 1922 - 1 Jun 1927
Skippers: Edward Major (1927)
Notes:
Leukos is classical Greek meaning "light, bright, brilliant" or dazzling white; as of the garments of angels, and of those exalted to the splendour of the heavenly state.
Jun 1915: Requisitioned by the Admiralty and converted to a boom defence vessel.
1919: Returned to owners.
29 Feb 1940: Sailed Dublin for the fishing grounds via Troon to coal (Sk. James Potter Thomasson); eleven hands all told. The ship had the Irish tricolour painted on her hull clearly indicating a vessel from a neutral country; fitted with wireless.
1 Mar 1940: Sailed Troon for the ‘the bank’ off Tory Island .
9 Mar 1940: Sunk by U38 (Kapitan Heinrich Liebe) 12½ miles NW of Tory Island, with the loss of all 11 crew. The shot was fired at 2013 (Wilhelmshaven time) on 9 March not 10 March - the date was shown as in UK time.
16 Mar 1940: Owners expressed fears for the safety of the vessel.
21 Mar 1940: Lifeboat containing a lifebuoy bearing the name ‘S.T. Leukos’ washed up at Scarinish, Tiree, Inner Hebrides.
26 Mar 1940: Posted missing. 1940: Dublin registry closed.
Thanks to Gil Mayes and Andy Hall for the information on her crew losses.
Accidents and Incidents
We left Milford Docks by noon high tide on Saturday February 27th bound for the fishing grounds. Owing to the weather being stormy, we came to anchor off Popton Point with 45 fathom of chain and our big anchor. It was blowing strong from south to south-west when we anchored. It was blowing strong all through Saturday night from about the same quarter, going more to the westward on Sunday morning.Statement by Edward Major, of 45 Great North Rd., Milford:
I am Skipper of the steam trawler LEUKOS of Aberdeen, A103, fishing out of Milford. I have been skipper of her since January 15th 1927.
About 10 am Sunday we observed the steam trawler THOMAS BARTLETT coming in from sea and anchoring about 40 to 500 yards from us. The tide then was about half flood, the wind south west to west, blowing strong of gale force. The Bosun was on watch and he reported to me that the THOMAS BARTLETT was dragging her anchor and coming in our direction. I then saw the THOMAS BARTLETT about 20 or 30 yards away and it appeared to me that she would drive across our bows. I blew our whistle once and shouted to him. I saw him slack away his chain and moved his engines astern, but he did not clear us, and he hit our stem with his midships on his port side. His head then went to starboard and he dropped down alongside of us on our starboard side. We did not shift our position of anchorage at all. We examined our bow after the collision and no damage was then apparent.
We went to sea on Monday the 28th February and had only been at sea about an hour when we found water coming through the bow in the way of the stem, but our Chief Engineer was able to make temporary repairs and we carried on with our voyage.
[The Bosun was Charles Richard Johnson, of 14 Greville Rd., Milford, and on watch with him was the Third Hand, Alexander M. Symmons, of 38 John St., Neyland.]
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