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D/S Ophir
Updated Sept. 8-2010

To Ophir on the "Ships starting with O" page.


From Bjørn Milde's postcard collection.

Manager: Rasmus F. Olsen, Bergen
Tonnage:
1005 gt

Built in Bergen, Norway in 1906.

Related item on this website:
Guestbook message from George Green, who served as a gunner on this ship.

Her voyages are listed on these original images from the Norwegian National Archives:
Page 1 | Page 2 | Page 3 | Page 4 | Page 5 | Page 6 | Page 7 | Page 8 | Page 9 | Page 10 | Page 11 | Page 12 | Page 13 | Page 14 | Page 15 | Page 16


Please compare the above voyages with Arnold Hague's Voyage Record below.

  Voyage Record
From Febr.-1940 to Apr.-1945:  

(Received from Don Kindell - His source: The late Arnold Hague's database).

Follow the convoy links provided for more information on each (it'll be noticed that listings for some of the external convoys are incomplete).

Errors may exist; this could mean that she may not have sailed in all the convoys mentioned here, even though she's listed in them. Also, as can be seen, several voyages are missing (including all her 1943 voyages).

Departure From To Arrival Convoy Remarks
1940 Febr. 13 Methil Norwegian Waters Febr. 16 ON 12
Febr. 28 Norwegian Waters Methil March 1 HN 15
March 19 Methil Norwegian Waters March 23 ON 21
March 31 Norwegian Waters HN 23B Returned Apr. 4
Apr. 9 Norwegian Waters Methil Apr. 12 HN 25
May 5 Sunderland Southend May 7 FS 163 Convoy available at FS convoys
(external link)
Missing voyages, Page 1
Sept. 3 Milford Haven Gibraltar* Sept. 16 OG 42 *Arrived Lisbon, Sept. 16,
to Gibraltar Oct. 2
(Page 1).
Convoy will be added.
See ships in OG convoys
Oct. 9 Gibraltar Liverpool* Oct. 27 HG 45 *Arrived Londonderry, Oct. 26
(Page 1).
Nov. 5 Clyde Methil Nov. 7 WN 31 Convoy available at WN convoys
(external link)
Nov. 9 Methil Sunderland Nov. 11 FS 332 Convoy available at FS convoys
(external link)
Nov. 26 Sunderland Southend Nov. 28 FS 346 Convoy available at link above.
Missing voyages, Page 1
Dec. 15 Methil Oban* Dec. 19 EN 41/1 *Oban not mentioned, Page 1
(arrived Liverpool, Dec. 23).
Convoy available at EN convoys
(external link)
1941 Jan. 25 Clyde Methil Jan. 29 WN 75 Missing voyages, Page 1.
Convoy available at WN convoys
(external link)
Febr. 21 Methil Oban* Febr. 25 EN 75/1 Missing voyages, Page 2
Convoy available at EN convoys
(external link)
*Compare w/Page 2
March 26 Clyde Methil March 30 WN 105 Convoy available at WN convoys
(external link)
Missing voyages, Page 2
Apr. 12 Southend Gt Yarmouth Roads Apr. 12 EC 6 Convoy available at EC convoys
(external link)
Missing voyages, Page 2
Apr. 21 Methil Milford Haven Apr. 25 EC 9 Convoy available at link above
Missing voyages:
Page 2 & Page 3
Aug. 17 Milford Haven Holyhead MH 14 Arrived, via Liverpool, Aug. 21
(Page 3).
Convoy available via this page
(external link)
Aug. 22 Holyhead Barry Aug. 24 BB 66 Convoy available at BB convoys
(external link)
Missing voyages, Page 3.
Sept. 6 Holyhead Newport Sept. 7 BB 72 Convoy available at link above
Missing voyages, Page 3.
Sept. 18 Holyhead Cardiff Sept. 19 BB 77 Convoy available at link above
Missing 1941 voyages:
Page 3 & Page 4
1942 March 14 Belfast Lough Cardiff March 16 BB 149 Earlier 1942 voyages:
Page 4 & Page 5
Convoy available at link above
Apr. 11 Belfast Lough Mumbles Apr. 13 BB 160 Missing voyages:
Page 5 & Page 6
Convoy available at link above
Sept. 7 St Helens Roads Southend Sept. 8 CE 118 Missing voyages:
Page 6, Page 7 & Page 8
Convoy available at CE convoys
(external link)
Sept. 8 Southend Tyne Sept. 10 FN 808 Convoy available at FN convoys
(external link)
Missing 1942 voyages:
Page 8 above.
Missing 1943 voyages:
Page 9, Page 10 & Page 11
1944 June 19 Barry* Plymouth June 20 EBC 16 Earlier 1944 voyages:
Page 11 & Page 12
Convoy available at EBC convoys
(external link)
*From Milford Haven, June 18
(Page 12 - Also, missing voyages)
July 17 Barry* Plymouth July 18 EBC 44 Convoy available at link above
*From Milford Haven, July 17
(Page 12)
July 29 Barry* Plymouth July 30 EBC 56 Convoy available at link above
*From Milford Haven, July 29
(Page 12 - Also, missing voyages).
Aug. 11 Barry* Devonport Aug. 12 EBC 69 Convoy available at link above
*From Milford Haven, Aug. 11,
arrived Plymouth Aug. 12
(left Aug. 19 - Page 12).
Missing voyages, Page 13
Sept. 11 Barry* Plymouth Sept. 12 EBC 100 Convoy available at link above
*From Milford Haven, Sept. 11
(Page 13 - Also, missing voyages).
Dec. 5 Solent Cardiff Dec. 7 EBF 57 Convoy available via this page
(external link)
Missing voyages, Page 13
Dec. 29 Plymouth TBC 21 Detached Dec. 31.
Convoy available at TBC convoys
(external link)
Dec. 31 Detached from TBC 21 Workington Independent Page 13 gives arrival (via Falmouth) Jan. 1-1945
1945 March 7 Milford Haven Southend(?*) March 10 BTC 90 Earlier 1945 voyages:
Page 13 & Page 14
Convoy available at BTC convoys
(external link)
*Compare w/Page 14
(Also, missing voyages)
Apr. 26 Milford Haven Southend(?*) Apr. 29 BTC 140 Convoy available at link above
*Compare w/Page 15
Also, subsequent voyages,
with more on Page 16


 Some Convoy Voyages: 
For information on voyages made in between those mentioned here, as well as later voyages, please see the documents received from the National Archives of Norway and Hague's Voyage Record above. Follow the convoy links provided for further details; several Norwegian ships took part.

Ophir is included in A. Hague's listing for Convoy ON 12, which left Methil for Norway on Febr. 13-1940. Later that month we find her in Convoy HN 15 from Norway to the U.K., in ballast for Sunderland. In March A. Hague has her in Convoy ON 21 to Norway, and at the end of March she's listed in the original Advance Sailing Telegram for Convoy HN 23B, again in ballast for Sunderland. According to A. Hague, she returned to port, later joining Convoy HN 25 on Apr. 7. From Page 1 of the archive documents we learn that she arrived Sunderland on Apr. 14 (the Germans had invaded Norway on Apr. 9).

With the exception of a couple of voyages to France that spring, Ophir was later mostly in coal service around the U.K., though made a voyage to Lisbon in the fall of 1940. For this voyage, she's listed in Convoy OG 42, which originated in Liverpool on Sept. 4 and arrived Gibraltar on the 16th; Ophir arrived Lisbon that day, having started out from Milford Haven on Sept. 3. This convoy will be added to an individual page in my Convoys section; in the meantime, the ships sailing in it are named on my page listing ships in all OG convoys. Ask, Avance I, Fagerbro, Kongshaug, Libra and Roy are also included. All these ships returned to the U.K. the following month with Convoy HG 45 from Gibraltar. Ophir was bound for Methil and Sunderland, cargo of pit props; according to Page 1, she arrived Londonderry on Oct. 26, proceeding to Methil and Sunderland later on.

A Guestbook message from George Green, who served as a gunner on this ship, states that she was severely damaged by bombs dropped by a Focke Wolf Condor in Oct.-1940 in the Pentland Firth. He adds: "We made port at Oban, then to Liverpool, we then made port at Milford Haven, only to end up at Swansea, and we were docked at the Cambrian Dry Docks, I was with her over the X/Mas period" (this does not match up with the details found on Page 1 above - could it have happened at another time?).

As will be seen when going to Page 16, she finally got to go home to Norway again in Nov.-1945.

Back to Ophir on the "Ships starting with O" page.

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