D/S Samnanger

To Samnanger on the "Ships starting with S" page.

Crew List

Manager: Westfal-Larsen & Co. A/S, Bergen
Tonnage: 4276 gt.7403 tdwt.
Dimensions: 380' x 49' x 30'.
Machinery: Triple exp. 1500 ihp, 10.5 knots.
Signal Letters: LCYA

Delivered in Aug.-1918 from Canadian Vickers Ltd., Montreal (Shipping Controller, managed by Furness Withy & Co. until 1920).

Captain: Andreas Hansen.

Some War Voyages:

(details found in an article in "Krigsseileren", issue 1, 1986)

Samnanger departed Bergen on March 3-1940 for Buenos Aires to take on board a cargo of grain for Norway. She was without ballast and when she encountered a horrendous storm in the North Sea she very nearly ran aground. After a couple of weeks they bunkered in St. Johns, N. B. before heading to Norfolk where a cargo was loaded for Rio de Janeiro, and en route they heard the news about the German invasion of Norway. They all agreed to continue to their destination, but were met by the British cruiser Norfolk, which placed a prize crew on board and set the course for Freetown, Sierra Leone, where the British wanted to place her under the English flag, but in the end she continued to Rio under the Norwegian flag. From Rio she went to Rosario and La Plata for a cargo of wheat then back to Freetown. While waiting for a convoy the majority of the crew came down with malaria. It took them 3 weeks to get to Liverpool. The author of this story says Captain Hansen barely slept; when he wasn't taking care of his duties he was taking care of his sick crew, even after arrival Liverpool, because the hospitals were full. They were in Birkenhead where they endured numerous air attacks and had many a close call with bombs falling near the ship.

Samnanger then continued to New Foundland and loaded props in Woodstock, before heading to Cornerbrook and Sydney, N. S. where she joined a convoy back to England. The author mentions that they had a converted passenger vessel as one of the escorts, but a few days off the coast of Scotland this ship was sunk. He says there were explosions and fire all around them that night, and several ships went down. The captain gave the orders to turn around, and they headed in the opposite direction until the next day, before turning back towards England again, going through debris and bodies all day long. A couple of days later they arrived Methil where they found out only 5-6 ships of the convoy had made it to their destination. Samnanger then went to Hartlepool where about half the crew payed off and were replaced by new men. On the next trip out she was sunk. (Keep in mind that some of these personal stories can sometimes have incorrect information in them, as they are often written many years after the fact).

Final fate - 1940:

In November-1940 she was on a voyage from Hartlepool to Pepel, Sierra Leone in ballast and was meant to follow a convoy as far as 15° W before heading south on her own, but lost the convoy on Nov. 29, and nothing further was heard from her. At the external website that I've linked to below, she's mentioned in Convoy OB 249, which left Liverpool on Nov. 24-1940, but she probably did not sail, because she also shows up again in Convoy OB 251, leaving Liverpool on the 28th, dispersed on Dec. 1. Her destination is indeed given as Pepel. Follow the link for the names of other ships taking part in these convoys, several of which were Norwegian.

She was torpedoed amidships, then shelled (by 50 rounds) on the evening of Dec. 2-1940 by U-99 (Kretschmer), in approx. 53 51N 18 15W. On fire for several hours, then capsized and sank in the early morning hours of Dec. 3, there were no survivors.

Roger W. Jordan states that Samnanger was sunk by U-99 in 08 26N 16 50W on Dec. 21, so there's quite a difference in the date (and location) here. (This date may have been the date all hope of her showing up at her destination was finally given up?). The position is the location in which the Admiralty assumed the ship had gone down, later shown to be wrong (R. W. Jordan has probably based his info on this initial assumption). Jürgen Rohwer also mentions this erroneous report in a footnote regarding Samnanger, saying the following: "In B.R. 1337 the Samnanger is reported lost on 21/12/40 in 08 26N/16 50W together with the Charles Pratt, but U-65/Stockhausen, which sank this tanker, attacked only one ship. U 99 identified the ship as the Samnanger". B.R. 1337 refers to "British and Foreign Merchant Vessels Lost or Damaged by Enemy Action During the Second World War. From 3rd September 1939, to 2nd September 1945". Rohwer does not mention a convoy in connection with Samnanger.

Crew List - No survivors:

Casualties
† Captain Andreas Hansen	† 1st Mate Karl Andersen	† 2nd Mate John Åsane Lilleskare	† 3rd Mate Magnus Stenevik	† Carpenter Alfred Furre	† Boatswain Erling Berg Nilssen
† Able Seaman Otto Monsen	† Able Seaman Gustav Andersen (New York)	† Able Seaman Johan Larsen Haugerud	† Ordinary Seaman Johan Prestnes	† Ordinary Seaman Erik Halvorsen	† Ordinary Seaman Ragnvald Hordvik
† Ordinary Seaman Jacob Villesvik	† Deck Boy Augusto Dionissio (Spanish)	† 1st Engineer Jens Storvik	† 2nd Engineer Alfred Åsbø	† 3rd Engineer Elias Toft	† Donkeyman Leif Gromstad
† Stoker Asle Nilsen	† ? Torvald Johannesen	† ? Gustav Johansson Swedish	† ? Johan Henriksen	† ? Johannes Tobiassen	† ? Rikard Kristoffersen
† ? Magnus Johansen	† ? Birger Hauge	† Steward Kristian Eeg	† Cook August Fossdal	† Galley Boy Lionel Gannaway (British)	† Mess Boy Ricardo Honrubia (Spanish)

Related external links:
OB / OA / OG convoys - OB 249 and OB 251 are included, and as will be seen, Samnanger is mentioned.

Norwegians who died - There's a Captain Sigurd Jamne named here. This is an error - in fact, he was the captain of Sandanger, and is also listed among the dead there.

U-99 | Otto Kretschmer

Back to Samnanger on the "Ships starting with S" page.

Other ships by this name: Norway had previously had another Samnanger. This was originally the Den of Airlie (Dundee), built in Glasgow 1895, 3520 gt - whale factory. Named Vasca da Gama 1911-1915 (Chr. Nielsen & Co., Larvik), then Samnanger 1915-1916 (H. Westfal-Larsen, Bergen), Bestum in 1916-1917 (K. Th. Einersen, Kristiania). Sunk by shelling from a German U-boat on Aug. 12-1917, voyage Baltimore-London with flour and grain. ("Damp - Dampskipets æra i Vestfold"). In Dec.-1963 a tanker named Samnanger was delivered to Westfal-Larsen from Burmeister & Wain, Copenhagen. Became Herborg for Vaboens Rederi A/S Kristiansand in 1973, Balder Borg (K/S A/S Balder Tank - P. Augustsson, Kristiansand) 1976, Thracian Shirley of Monrovia 1979, Balder Borg again in 1981 (same owner as in 1976), then Panamanian Thracian Shirley in 1982. (Westfal-Larsen fleet list).

The text on this page was compiled with the help of: "Nortraships flåte", J. R. Hegland, "Sjøforklaringer fra 2. verdenskrig", Norwegian Maritime Museum, Volume II, and misc. others as named within the text above - (ref. My sources).