D/S Norvarg
Updated Febr. 2-2009

To Norvarg on the "Ships starting with N" page.


This was received from T. Cooper (owner Jerry Mason - originally from USAFHRC / USAF Historical Research Centre). Dated May 12-1942.
Please note that the reference to Nordvard is incorrect. Nordvard had already been taken by the Germans by the date given on the picture, and the reference to the U.S. Coast Guard is also an indication that this is not Nordvard - see also this Guestbook message. The poster of the message thinks that it might show Norjerv, ex Empire Eagle or Norvarg ex Empire Elk. The second one is more probable, because this name is more likely to have been heard and written erroneously as Nordvard and the ship was taken over earlier by Norway and may well have been in American waters in May 1942.
See also this Guestbook message, in which the poster confirms that this is not Nordvard. He also refers to a Norwegian newspaper article where links to severeal pictures can be found (PDF files). Additionally, he later posted this message, confirming the picture does indeed show Norvarg.

Some Convoy Voyages:

(More will be added).

As already mentioned, Norvarg came under the Norwegian flag in March-1942. The following month we find her in the westbound North Atlantic Convoy ON 90*, which departed Liverpool on Apr. 28 and arrived Halifax May 15; Norvarg arrived New York on the 18th, having joined from Clyde. At the beginning of July-1942 she's listed in the slow Sydney (C.B.)-U.K. Convoy SC 90, cargo of steel for Newport, where she arrived July 17, subsequently returning across the Atlantic with the westbound Convoy ON 118*, leaving Liverpool on Aug. 1-1942, dispersed Aug. 20, Norvarg arriving New York on Aug. 21, later proceeding to Hampton Roads. According to Arnold Hague, she went back to the U.K. in Convoy SC 102, departing New York on Sept. 19-1942, arriving Liverpool Oct. 6. This convoy is not available among the SC convoys included on my own website, but I've linked directly to Hague's listing at the end of this page. She later joined Convoy ON 142*, which left Liverpool Oct. 30-1942 and arrived New York Nov. 21, and in Dec.-1942 she's listed in Convoy SC 113, which left New York on Dec. 12 and arrived Liverpool Jan. 2-1943 - again, ref. external link at the end of this page. See also Page 1.

In Febr.-1943 she joined the westbound Convoy ON 167* (departure Liverpool Febr. 14, arrival New York March 8). Her destination is given as Philadelphia, where she arrived on March 10. Norvarg was 1 of 10 Norwegian ships sailing in Convoy SC 132 from Halifax to the U.K. in May-1943, and in July that year she appears in the westbound Convoy ONS 12*, which left Liverpool July 3 and arrived Halifax on the 18th. The following month we find her in station 74 of Convoy SC 140, again in the company of several other Norwegian ships - follow the links for further info. See also Page 2.

A couple of months later she made a voyage to Philippeville and Algiers, having joined Convoy KMS 28*, departing Liverpool on Sept. 26-1943 arriving Gibraltar Oct. 7; Norvarg arrived Philippeville Oct. 11, Algiers Oct. 16. Early the following month she's listed in Convoy MKS 29 to the U.K., together with the Norwegian Sirehei and Belnor. The first external website that I've linked to below subsequently has her going in the other direction again in station 55 of Convoy OS 63/KMS 37, which left Liverpool on Dec. 25-1943 and split up on Jan. 7-1944, the KMS portion arriving Gibraltar that same day, while the OS convoy continued to Freetown. Norvarg's voyage information is given as Aultbea to Naples, and she was in the Gibraltar portion, KMS 37*. According to the archive document mentioned above, she had sailed from Loch Ewe on Dec. 25 and arrived Philippeville Jan. 12-1944, proceeding to Augusta the next day. In March-1944 she's listed in the MKS portion* of Convoy SL 150/MKS 41, cargo of lemons, scrap and sulphur, voyage Syracuse-Loch Ewe. SL 150 had started out from Freetown on Febr. 21 and joined up with the MKS convoy from Gibraltar on March 3, arriving Liverpool March 14. Norvarg had sailed from Syracuse on Febr. 24 and arrived Loch Ewe March 14. The website about this convoy series has more information.

She later made another voyage across the North Atlantic, having joined the westbound Convoy ON 236* (from Liverpool May 11-1944, to New York May 27). In July she's listed as sailing in Convoy HX 298 from New York, bound for Clyde with a cargo of sugar, subsequently joining the westbound Convoy ON 248S*, which left Liverpool on Aug. 10-1944 and arrived New York on the 27th. In Oct.-1944 she shows up in Convoy SC 158 from Halifax, cargo of sugar for Liverpool. See also Page 3, which shows her voyages in between those mentioned here; compare these to the convoy information resulting from following the instructions at the external link below.

At the beginning of the new year she joined the westbound Convoy ONS 40*, which left Liverpool on Jan. 12-1945 and arrived Halifax on the 30th. Norvarg, however, was bound for New York, where she arrived on Febr. 2. In March we find her in Convoy SC 171, departing Halifax on March 27, arriving Liverpool Apr. 10 - see link below. She returned the following month with Convoy ON 301* (departed Southend May 6-1945, arrived New York May 22). See also Page 4.

* All the ON and ONS convoys mentioned here are available and will be added to individual pages in my Convoys section in due course, along with further details on each. In the meantime, the ships sailing in them (and escorts) are named in the section listing ships in all ON convoys and the page for ships in all ONS convoys. As will be seen, they all had several Norwegian ships. The MKS and KMS convoys will also be added, but for now, see ships in all MKS convoys and ships in all KMS convoys.

POST WAR:

Sailed as Nan Chiang (Wallem & Co., Shanghai) from 1946, then Northern Glow (Great Northern Shipping Co. Ltd., Hong Kong) 1950 and from 1959 as Hoping Ssu Shi Liu (Government of China). Deleted from registers in 1971. According to the Empire Ships website, she was seen at Shanghai as Zhan Dou 46 in 1979.

Related external links:
OS/KMS Convoys - The site also has a section on the returning SL/MKS convoys. As can be seen, Norvarg is listed in Convoy OS 63/KMS 37 and SL 150/MKS 41, as are several other Norwegian ships. Note also that by going to this section of the site (based on Arnold Hague's database) and clicking on "Ship Search" on the left hand side, using "Norvarg" as keyword, several convoys that are not mentioned in the above narrative will come up. Here are SC 102, SC 113, and SC 171, all mentioned in my text.

Empire Ships - Empire Elk can be found on this page.

Back to Norvarg on the "Ships starting with N" page.

The text on this page was compiled with the help of: Misc. sources, incl. E-mails from Barbara Mumford - her source: "Empire Ships" by Mitchell & Sawyer.