D/S Sneland I
Updated July 8-2012

To Sneland I on the "Ships starting with S" page.

Crew List

A picture is available on this external page (slow to load - click in it to enlarge).

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

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

Voyage Record From Sept.-1940 to May-1945:

Follow the convoy links provided for more information on each (listings for some of the external convoys are incomplete). Where the "Convoy" column is left blank it means that convoy is not known.

Errors may exist, and some voyages are missing.

	Departure	From	To	Arrival	Convoy	Remarks
1940	Sept. 19	Hampton Roads	Halifax	Sept. 24	Independent	A. Hague says: Previously traded West Indies/E Coast USA in 1940 (earlier voyages, Page 1)
	Oct. 3	Halifax	Sydney, C.B.	Oct. 5	Independent	–
	Oct. 5	Sydney, C.B.	Clyde	Oct. 22	SC 7	–
	Oct. 24	Clyde	Milford Haven	Oct. 26	Independent	–
	Nov. 3	Milford Haven	Newport	Nov. 5	Independent	–
	Dec. 14	Newport	Swansea	Dec. 14	Independent	–
	Dec. 20	Swansea	Milford Haven	Dec. 20	Independent	–
	Dec. 21	Milford Haven	Clyde	Dec. 23	Independent	–
	Dec. 25	Clyde	Halifax	Jan. 8-1941	–	See also narrative below
1941	Jan. 16	Halifax	Hantsport	Jan. 22	Independent	–
	Jan. 28	Hantsport	Halifax	Jan. 30	Independent	–
	Jan. 31	Halifax	Preston	Febr. 19	SC 21	–
	March 17	Preston	–	–	OG 56	For British Guiana. Detached March 25. Convoy will be added. See ships in OG convoys
	March 25	Detached from OG 56	Halifax	Apr. 5	Independent	–
	Apr. 7	Halifax	New York City	Apr. 10	Independent	–
	May 30	New York City	Demerara	June 10	Independent	–
	June 19	Demerara	Trinidad	June 20	Independent	–
	June 21	Trinidad	Hampton Roads	June 29	Independent	–
	July 1	Hampton Roads	Sydney, C.B.	July 6	Independent	–
	July 12	Sydney, C.B.	Loch Ewe	July 27	SC 37	Convoy will be added. See ships in SC convoys
	July 27	Loch Ewe	Methil	July 29	WN 158	Convoy available at WN convoys (external link) Missing movements, Page 2
	Aug. 4	Methil Roads	Loch Ewe	Aug. 6	EC 54	Convoy available at EC convoys (external link)
	Aug. 8	Loch Ewe	–	–	ON 4	For Sydney, C.B. Dispersed 52 40N 47 26W, Aug. 18.
	Aug. 18	Dispersed from ON 4	Sydney, C.B.	Aug. 23	Independent	On to Halifax same day (Page 2)
	Sept. 7	Dartmouth, NS*	Sydney, C.B.	Sept. 8	Independent	*From Halifax
	Sept. 11	Sydney, C.B.	Belfast Lough	Sept. 29	SC 44	Convoy will be added. See ships in SC convoys
	Sept. 30	Belfast Lough	Sharpness	Oct. 2	BB 82	Convoy available at BB convoys (external link)
	Oct. 12	Sharpness	Barry	Oct. 13	Independent	–
	Oct. 15	Barry	Milford Haven	Oct. 16	Independent	–
	Oct. 21	Milford Haven	Liverpool	Oct. 22	MH 35	Convoy available via this page (external link)
	Oct. 28	Liverpool	Holyhead	Oct. 29	Independent	–
	Nov. 1	Holyhead	Cardiff	Nov. 2	BB 95	Convoy available at BB convoys (external link)
	Nov. 5	Cardiff	Milford Haven	Nov. 6	Independent	–
	Nov. 7	Milford Haven	Liverpool	Nov. 8	MH 40	Convoy available via this page (external link)
	Nov. 13	Liverpool	Holyhead	Nov. 13	Independent	–
	Nov. 14	Holyhead	Newport	Nov. 15	Independent	(Left Newport, Nov. 20)
	Nov. 21	Barry Island	Solent	Nov. 23	WP 69	Compare w/Page 2 Convoy available at WP convoys (external link)
	Dec. 1	Yarmouth Roads	Barry Roads	Dec. 3	PW 74	Convoy available via this page (external link)
	Dec. 10	Mumbles	Solent	Dec. 12	WP 79	Again, see also Page 2. Convoy available at WP convoys (external link)
	Dec. 17	Yarmouth Roads	Cardiff	Dec. 19	PW 82	Convoy available via this page (external link)
	Dec. 22	Cardiff	Milford Haven	–	Independent	See also Page 3
	Dec. 25	Milford Haven	Liverpool	Dec. 26	MH 56	Convoy available via link above
1942	Jan. 1	Liverpool	Holyhead	Jan. 2	Independent	–
	Jan. 6	Holyhead	Barry	Jan. 7	BB 120	Convoy available at BB convoys (external link)
	Jan. 10	Barry	Milford Haven	Jan. 11	Independent	–
	Jan. 13	Milford Haven	Liverpool	Jan. 14	–	–
	Jan. 19	Liverpool	Holyhead	Jan. 19	Independent	–
	Jan. 20	Holyhead	Barry	Jan. 22	BB 126	Convoy available at link above
	Jan. 29	Barry	Milford Haven	Jan. 30	Independent	–
	Jan. 31	Milford Haven	Liverpool	Febr. 1	–	–
	Febr. 5	Liverpool	Holyhead	–	Independent	–
	Febr. 7	Holyhead	Cardiff	Febr. 9	BB 134	Convoy available at link above
	Febr. 12	Cardiff	Liverpool	Febr. 13	–	Via Milford Haven (Page 3)
	Febr. 17	Liverpool	Holyhead	Febr. 17	Independent	–
	Febr. 19	Holyhead	Barry	Febr. 21	BB 139	Convoy available at link above
	Febr. 25	Barry	Milford Haven	Febr. 25	Independent	–
	Febr. 27	Milford Haven	Liverpool	Febr. 28	MH 76	Convoy available via this page (external link) Arr. Garston, March 1 (Page 3)
	March 6	Liverpool*	Holyhead	March 6	Independent	*From Garston, March 6 (Page 3)
	March 7	Holyhead	Mumbles	March 8	BB 146	Convoy available at BB convoys (external link) Again, see also Page 3
	March 13	Mumbles	Cardiff	March 14	Independent	–
	March 19	Cardiff	Milford Haven	March 20	Independent	–
	March 22	Milford Haven	Liverpool	March 23	MH 84	Convoy available via this page (external link)
	March 28	Liverpool	Holyhead	March 29	Independent	–
	March 30	Holyhead	Barry	March 31	BB 155	Convoy available at BB convoys (external link)
	Apr. 2	Barry	Milford Haven	Apr. 3	Independent	–
	Apr. 4	Milford Haven	Liverpool	Apr. 5	MH 89	Convoy available via this page (external link)
	Apr. 14	Liverpool	Halifax	Apr. 29	ON 86	Convoy will be added. See ships in ON convoys
	Apr. 30	Halifax	Boston	May 3	XB 15	Convoy available at XB convoys (external link)
	May 21	Boston	Halifax	May 23	BX 19	Convoy available at BX convoys (external link)
	May 24	Halifax	Sydney, C.B.	May 26	HS 5	Convoy available at HS convoys (external link)
	May 29	Sydney, C.B.	Belfast Lough	June 11	SC 85	–
	June 13	Belfast Lough	Swansea	June 14	BB 186	Convoy available at BB convoys (external link) See also Page 4
	June 15	Swansea	Southampton	June 17	WP 172	Convoy available at WP convoys (external link) Left Southampton June 21 (Page 4)
	June 22	Solent	Port Talbot	June 24	PW 175	Convoy available via this page (external link)
	June 28	Port Talbot	Milford Haven	June 28	Independent	–
	June 29	Milford Haven	Halifax	July 15	ON 108	Convoy will be added. See ships in ON convoys
	Aug. 4	Halifax	Clyde	Aug. 18	SC 95	–
	Sept. 4	Clyde	Liverpool	Sept. 5	Independent	Missing movements, Page 4
	Sept. 10	Liverpool*	Oban	Sept. 11	Independent	*From Eastham, Sept. 10
	Sept. 12	Oban	Gibraltar	Sept. 21	–	–
	Oct. 2	Gibraltar	Liverpool	Oct. 14	XK 1	Convoy available via this page (external link)
	Nov. 15	Liverpool	Barry	Nov. 17	Independent	–
	Nov. 19	Milford Haven*	Southampton	Nov. 21	WP 251	*From Barry (Page 5) Convoy available at WP convoys (external link) Left Southampton Nov. 23 (Page 5)
	Nov. 24	Solent	Barry	Nov. 26	PW 253	Convoy available via this page (external link)
	Nov. 29	Barry	Southampton	Dec. 1	WP 256	Convoy available at WP convoys (external link) Left Southampton Dec. 3 (Page 5)
	Dec. 3	St Helens Roads	Southend	Dec. 4	CE 136	Convoy available at CE convoys (external link) See also Page 5
	Dec. 15	Southend	Blyth	Dec. 17	FN 892	Convoy available at FN convoys (external link)
	Dec. 21	Blyth	Methil	Dec. 21	FN 895	Convoy available at link above
	Dec. 22	Methil	Loch Ewe	Dec. 24	EN 176	Convoy available at EN convoys (external link)
	Dec. 30	Loch Ewe	Reykjavik	Jan. 4-1943	UR 56	A. Hague says: After collision Jan. 1-1943 (no further info). Convoy available at UR convoys (external link)
1943	Jan. 19	Reykjavik	Loch Ewe	Jan. 25	RU 58	Convoy available at RU convoys (external link)
	Jan. 26	Loch Ewe	Methil	Jan. 28	WN 388	Convoy available at WN convoys (external link)
	Febr. 9	Methil	Belfast Lough	Febr. 12	EN 194	Convoy available at EN convoys (external link) See also Page 5
	Febr. 17	Belfast Lough	Swansea	Febr. 19	–	–
	Febr. 25	Swansea	Loch Ewe	–	–	–
	March 1	Loch Ewe	Reykjavik	March 5	UR 65	Convoy available at UR convoys (external link)
	March 22	Reykjavik	Belfast Lough	March 27	RU 67	Convoy available at RU convoys (external link)
	March 27	Belfast Lough	Swansea	March 28	BB 274	Convoy available at BB convoys (external link)
	Apr. 11	Swansea	Milford Haven	Apr. 11	Independent	–
	Apr. 12	Milford Haven	Halifax	May 4	ONS 4	Convoy will be added. See ships in ONS convoys
	May 13	Halifax	Sheet Harbour	May 13	–	–
	May 18	Sheet Harbour	Halifax	May 18	–	–
	May 26	Halifax	Loch Ewe	June 11	SC 132	–
	June 12	Loch Ewe	Methil	June 14	WN 440	Convoy available at WN convoys (external link)
	June 14	Methil	Rochester	June 17	FS 1142	Convoy available at FS convoys (external link)
	June 21	Rochester	Southend	June 21	Independent	–
	June 22	Southend	Methil	June 24	FN 1054	Arrived Leith, June 24 (Page 6) Convoy available at FN convoys (external link) Missing movements, Page 6
	July 2	Methil	Oban	July 4	EN 250	Convoy available at EN convoys (external link)
	July 5	Oban	–	–	OS 51/KMS 20	For Aguilas. Convoy split, July 13. Available at OS 51/KMS 20 (external link)
	July 13	Convoy split	Gibraltar	July 14	KMS 20G	Convoy will be added. See ships in KMS convoys
	July 20	Gibraltar	Aguilas	July 21	Independent	–
	Aug. 4	Aguilas	Gibraltar	Aug. 5	Independent	–
	Aug. 14	Gibraltar	Barrow	Aug. 26	MKS 21	Gibraltar to UK.
	Aug. 29	Barrow	Clyde	Aug. 30	Independent	Again, see also Page 6
	Sept. 7	Clyde	Gibraltar	Sept. 18	KMS 26G	Convoy will be added. See link above
	Sept. 28	Gibraltar	Seville	Sept. 29	Independent	–
	Oct. 5	Seville	Gibraltar	Oct. 9	Independent	–
	Oct. 14	Gibraltar	Ardrossan	Oct. 28	MKS 27	Missing movements, Page 6
1944	Jan. 31	Clyde	Milford Haven	Febr. 2	Independent	–
	Febr. 5	Milford Haven	Gibraltar	Febr. 13	KX 14	Convoy available at KX convoys (external link)
	March 4	Gibraltar	Oran	March 5	–	–
	March 7	Oran	Algiers	March 8	–	–
	March 19	Algiers	Gibraltar	March 22	MKS 43	Algiers to UK. Convoy will be added. See ships in MKS convoys
	Apr. 2	Gibraltar	Liverpool	Apr. 12	XK 15	Convoy available via this page (external link)
	Apr. 21	Liverpool	Barry	Apr. 22	Independent	–
	May 10	Milford Haven	St. Helens Roads	May 12	WP 520	Compare w/Page 7 Convoy available at WP convoys (external link)
	May 14	St Helens Roads	Southend	May 15	CE 267	Convoy available at CE convoys (external link)
	May 30	Southend	Hull	May 31	FN 1373	Convoy available at FN convoys (external link)
	July 13	Hull	Southend	July 15	FS 1512	Convoy available at FS convoys (external link) See also Page 7
	July 19	Southend	Sunderland	July 20	FN 1423	Convoy available at FN convoys (external link)
	July 22	Sunderland	Southend	July 24	FS 1521	Convoy available at FS convoys (external link)
	July 27	Southend	Tyne	July 28	FN 1431	Convoy available at FN convoys (external link)
	Aug. 19	Tyne	Blyth	Aug. 19	–	–
	Aug. 23	Blyth	Southend	Aug. 25	FS 1553	Again, see also Page 7 Convoy available at FS convoys (external link)
	Aug. 29	Southend	Hull	Aug. 30	FN 1464	Convoy available at FN convoys (external link)
	Sept. 1	Hull	Southend	Sept. 3	FS 1562	Convoy available at FS convoys (external link)
	Sept. 5	Southend	Southampton	Sept. 6*	ETC 89	*See also Page 7 Convoy available at ETC convoys (external link)
	Sept. 17	Solent	–	–	FBC 85	Detached, Sept. 19. Convoy available at FBC convoys (external link) See also Page 7
	Sept. 19	Detached from FBC 85	Clyde	Sept. 20	Independent	–
	Sept. 27	Clyde	Loch Ewe	Sept. 29	Independent	–
	Sept. 30	Loch Ewe	Methil	Oct. 2	WN 640	Convoy available at WN convoys (external link)
	Oct. 5	Methil	Belfast Lough	Oct. 8	EN 443	Convoy available at EN convoys (external link) See also Page 8
	Oct. 14	Belfast Lough	Cardiff	Oct. 16	Independent	–
	Oct. 20	Cardiff	Belfast	Oct. 22	Independent	–
	Oct. 26	Belfast	Newport	Oct. 28	Independent	–
	Oct. 29	Newport	Liverpool	Oct. 30	Independent	Missing movements, Page 8
	Nov. 17	Liverpool*	Milford Haven	Nov. 18	Independent	*From Eastham, Nov. 17
	Nov. 19	Barry*	Solent	Nov. 21	BEC 42	*From Milford Haven. Convoy available via this page (external link)
	Nov. 21	Solent	Southend	Nov. 22	MTC 43	Convoy available via link above. Compare w/Page 8
	Nov. 29	Southend	Hull	Nov. 30	FN 1556	Convoy available at FN convoys (external link)
	Dec. 21	Hull	Grimsby	Dec. 21	Independent	–
	Dec. 29	Grimsby	Downs	Dec. 30	FS 1680	Convoy available at FS convoys (external link)
	Dec. 30	Southend*	Newport	Jan. 2-1945	TBC 23	*From Downs. Convoy available at TBC convoys (external link)
1945	Jan. 11	Newport	Liverpool	Jan. 13	Independent	–
	Jan. 17	Liverpool	Barry	Jan. 22	Independent	–
	Febr. 2	Barry	Southend	Febr. 6	BTC 58	Convoy available at BTC convoys (external link) See also Page 8
	Febr. 11	Southend	Blyth	Febr. 13	FN 1630	Convoy available at FN convoys (external link)
	Febr. 19	Blyth	Methil	Febr. 20	FN 1637	Convoy available at link above
	Febr. 23	Methil	Belfast Lough	Febr. 25	EN 477	Convoy available at EN convoys (external link) Page 9 gives arrival Belfast Febr. 27
	March 2	Belfast Lough	Barry	March 4	BB 40/2	Convoy available at BB convoys (external link)
	March 8	Barry Island	Southend	March 11	BTC 91	Convoy available at BTC convoys (external link) See also Page 9
	March 16	Southend	Hull	March 18	FN 1663	Convoy available at FN convoys (external link)
	March 21	Hull	Southend	March 23	FS 1763	Convoy available at FS convoys (external link)
	March 23	Southend	Southampton	March 24	TBC 106	Convoy available at TBC convoys (external link)
	March 28	St. Helens Roads	Barry	March 30	TBC 110	Convoy available at link above
	Apr. 2	Barry	Southend	Apr. 5	BTC 116	Convoy available at BTC convoys (external link) See also Page 9
	Apr. 15	Southend	Hartlepool	Apr. 16	FN 1689	Convoy available at FN convoys (external link)
	Apr. 19	Hartlepool	Southend	Apr. 21	FS 1786	Convoy available at FS convoys (external link)
	Apr. 26	Southend	Blyth	Apr. 27	FN 1697	Again, see aslo Page 9 Convoy available at FN convoys (external link)
	May 5	Blyth	Methil Roads	May 5	–	–
	May 7	Methil	–	–	EN 491	Sunk - See "Final Fate" below. Convoy available at EN convoys (external link)

Some Convoy Voyages:

Please follow the links provided for more details on the convoys mentioned here; several Norwegian ships took part. For information on voyages made in between those noted below, please see the documents received from the National Archives of Norway and A. Hague's Voyage Record above.

As will be seen when going to Page 1 of the archive documents, Sneland I was on her way from Newport News to Trinidad when war broke out in Norway on Apr. 9-1940. It'll also be noticed that she spent about a month at Hampton Roads that fall, before proceeding to Halifax, then on to Sydney, C.B., and from there she joined Convoy SC 7 on Oct. 5, which lost so many ships, including the Norwegian Snefjeld. Follow the links for more details, Local Escort HMS Leith's report is also available. Sneland I had a cargo of sulphur for Newport, where she arrived on Nov. 5, subsequently spending several weeks there.

At the external website that I've linked to further down on this page she's listed as scheduled for Convoy OB 263, leaving Liverpool on Dec. 23-1940, dispersed Dec. 27, but there's a note saying she did not sail. Her destination is given as Halifax. According to the archive document she did, however, make a voyage from Greenock to Halifax in this period, departing Greenock on Dec. 25, arriving Halifax Jan. 8-1941. I have no convoy information for this voyage; had she sailed independently all the way, or perhaps she had started out in OB 263 afterall?

Sneland I returned to the U.K. at the end of Jan.-1941 in the slow Halifax-U.K. Convoy SC 21, cargo of pit props for Preston, where she arrived Febr. 19, again spending quite a long time in port (Page 1). In March, we find her in Convoy OG 56, which left Liverpool on March 17 and had Gibraltar as its final destination, arriving there on Apr. 2. Her destination is given as British Guiana; when going back to the archive document, we see that she arrived Halifax on Apr. 5 (having started out from Preston on March 17). According to A. Hague, she had detached from the convoy on March 25. OG 56, which also included Atle Jarl, Hørda, Rym and Vigsnes, will be added to an individual page in my Convoys section, but for now, please see the page naming ships in all OG convoys. From Halifax, she proceeded to New York 2 days later, and it looks like she remained there for several weeks before heading to Demerara and Trinidad, then back to the U.S. and on to Sydney, C.B. From there, she now joined Convoy SC 37* to the U.K., departing on July 12. She had a cargo of bauxite and pitch, sailing in station 44. The Norwegian Acasta, Berto, Borgholm, Ingerfem, Ingertre, Mathilda and Veni are also listed.

The following month, she was one of several Norwegian ships in the westbound North Atlantic Convoy ON 4, which originated in Liverpool on Aug. 6-1941. Her destination is given as Sydney, C. B., where she arrived on Aug. 23, the convoy having been dispersed on the 18th (she had started out from Loch Ewe on Aug. 8). Having made a voyage to Halifax and back to Sydney, C.B. (possibly also to Dartmouth, NS? - see Page 2), Arnold Hague has her returning in Convoy SC 44*, in which the Norwegian Barbro and others were sunk - follow the link for details (see also the external link provided further down on this page). The convoy left Sydney on Sept. 11 and arrived Liverpool on the 30th and also had Ada, Bollsta, Borgfred, Carrier, Cetus, Gudvin, Hjalmar Wessel, Iron Baron, Lago, Marita, Rolf Jarl, Sirehei, South Africa and Spero in its ranks. Sneland I (cargo of lumber, station 116) stopped at Belfast Lough Sept. 29, later proceeding to Sharpness, with arrival there on Oct. 2.

Her subsequent voyages are listed on Page 2 and Page 3 (mostly around the U.K.); convoy information for some of these can be found in A. Hague's Voyage Record above.

Skipping now to Apr. 14-1942, when we find her, together with the Norwegian Bonde, Bur, Drammensfjord, Harpefjell, Maud, Norhauk and Trolla, in the westbound North Atlantic Convoy ON 86*. Sneland I was bound for Halifax, where she arrived Apr. 29, according to Page 4. Acanthus, Eglantine, Potentilla and Rose are named among the escorts; see ON convoy escorts. From Halifax, she continued to Boston, remaining there for over 2 weeks, before returning to Halifax and Sydney, C.B., heading back to the U.K. on May 29 in Convoy SC 85, cargo of lumber for Swansea and Southampton. She stopped at Belfast Lough on June 12, then proceeded to Swansea, where she arrived June 14, continuing to Southampton the next day. At the end of that month, she joined the westbound Convoy ON 108*, which originated in Liverpool on June 30, Sneland I arriving Halifax July 15. Don, Inger Lise, Senta, Star, Far, Grado, Iron Baron, Lido, Ramø and Selbo are also listed. On Aug. 4, she joined Convoy SC 95 from Halifax, cargo of lumber for Glasgow, where she arrived Aug. 19.

Page 4 and Page 5 now shows her subsequent voyages; convoy information for some of them can be found in the Voyage Record. (As will be seen, she had a month's stay in Liverpool in the late fall of 1942).

In the spring of 1943, she's listed, together with Hjalmar Wessel, Para and Borgholm, in the westbound North Atlantic Convoy ONS 4*, originating in Liverpool on Apr. 13, arriving Halifax May 5, and later that month, she was among several Norwegian ships in Convoy SC 132 from Halifax. In July that year, she made a voyage from Oban to Aguilas in Convoy OS 51/KMS 20 (station 14), which started out in Liverpool on July 4 and split up on the 13th, the KMS portion arriving Gibraltar on July 14, while the OS convoy proceeded to Freetown, with arrival there on July 23 - see the external link provided in the Voyage Record; Astra and Bosphorus are also included. Sneland I had been part of KMS 20*, and she later arrived Aguilas on July 21, having continued from Gibraltar on July 20 - see Page 6. With a cargo of phosphates, she headed back to the U.K. on Aug. 14 in station 53 of Convoy MKS 21 from Gibraltar, together with the Norwegian Norfalk. Sneland I's destination is given as Barrow-in-Furness, where she arrived on Aug. 26. Along with Atle Jarl and Frithjof Nansen, she's also listed in Convoy KMS 26*, originating in Liverpool on Sept. 5, arriving Gibraltar on the 18th, and on Oct. 14 we find her, carrying iron ore for Ardrossan, in Convoy MKS 27 from Gibraltar, together with Brønnøy and Toronto. Sneland I arrived her destination on Oct. 28.

She headed to Gibraltar again on Febr. 5-1944, having sailed in Convoy KX 14, which arrived Gibraltar on Febr. 13 (ref. link in the table above). In March that year, she made a voyage from Algiers to Gibraltar in Convoy MKS 43*. Her final destination was the U.K., and with Lysaker V, Måkefjell and Selvik she later joined Convoy XK 15 from Gibraltar on Apr. 2, arriving Liverpool on Apr. 12, cargo of iron ore.

Page 7, Page 8 and Page 9 has the rest of her voyages, with convoy details in the table above. It'll be noticed that she occasionally had long stays in port.

Final Fate - 1945:

The narrative that follows has been compiled with the help of several different sources, including quite a bit of information received in E-mails from a number of visitors to my site, who have sources that I don't own myself.

Sneland I was sailing as No. 2 in the starboard column of an outward bound convoy* from Methil when she in the evening of May 7-1945 was torpedoed by U-2336 and sunk 56 09 36N 02 31 24W (Klusmeier had just taken over the command of this U-boat on Apr. 1). This position is according to Lloyd's War Losses; Hocking simply says "about 160 miles east of the Firth of Forth" (incorrect). The convoy consisted of 5 ships escorted by the armed trawlers Angle, Wolves and Leicester City, having departed Methil shortly after 8 o'clock that night. Sneland I's voyage had started out in Blyth on May 5 (Page 9), and she was bound for Belfast with a cargo of about 2800 tons coal (some sources say she was headed in the other direction, from Belfast to Blyth, but this is incorrect).

*According to Arnold Hague, she was in Convoy EN 491 at the time (external link - incomplete listing?). Other ships listed in this convoy, in addition to Sneland I and Avondale Park, are the Norwegian Rolf Jarl and Selvik and the British Weybank. There has been quite a bit of confusion over the convoy designation, which in most sources is given as EN 91. A convoy with this designation (EN 91 - Series 1) had sailed on March 25-1941, another in May-1942 (EN 91 - Series 2). There were 597 EN convoys altogether, and it has been suggested that the designation EN 91 for the convoy in which Sneland I was sunk several years later should perhaps be EN 591 (Uboat.net also gives EN 591, but as far as I can tell, there was no convoy with this designation. Uboat.net adds that Sneland I served as the Commodore Vessel). Again, she's listed in EN 491. As already indicated (according to Arnold Hague's "The Allied Convoy System") there were 2 series of EN convoys (Methil to Oban via Loch Ewe), interrupted by EC convoys which travelled from Southend to Oban via Firth of Forth in 1941 (see also this external page). Jürgen Rohwer lists convoy as unknown and position as 56 10N 02 31W for Sneland I, 56 05N 02 32W for Avondale Park, listing Sneland I first.

The initial attack took place just before 11 o'clock when the convoy was about 1.5- 2 miles south of the Isle of May. The first victim was the ship sailing in front of Sneland I, the Canadian S/S Avondale Park which lost 2 men out of a crew of 28 and 4 gunners, namely Chief Engineer Anderson and Donkeyman William Harvey who were in the engine room (Uboat.net gives 2 dead, 36 survivors - external link). In order to get clear of the sinking ship, Sneland I had to alter course to port, but just a few minutes later she was struck on the starboard side near No. 2 hatch (the journal excerpt gives the attack time as 22:45, Page 9 of the archive docs gives 22:40) and within 2 minutes she was gone.

The 1st mate and the 3rd mate had attempted to launch the port lifeboat but before they could get it on the water the ship capsized to starboard and the survivors ended up in the sea, clinging to a raft and debris until they were picked up by HM Trawlers Valse (T-151) and Leicester City (FY-223), later transferred to D/S Selvik and landed in Methil on May 8. Out of Sneland I's crew of 26 and 3 gunners 7 died, including the captain. An attempt to revive the 3rd engineer was unsuccessful.

Leicester City dropped depth charges before proceeding to pick up survivors from the torpedoed ships with George Ritchie in charge of the lifeboat launched to pick up survivors from Sneland I. He had already saved several when he thought he heard a cry, which turned out to be from Sneland I's stewardess* who was trapped in the debris, and he was able to swim across and rescue her. Leicester City at this time had gone in search of the U-boat, so the rescuers and the survivors were picked up by an escorting destroyer and taken to Methil, with the boat in tow (55 were landed at Methil). That morning, before leaving the ship, the stewardess sought out George Ritchie and gave him a brooch to remember her by. The Norwegian destroyer Stord, coming in from the ocean just as the attack had happened had also immediately gone in search of the U-boat, and had dropped a series of depth charges, but U-2336 arrived Kiel unharmed on May 14.

* The details in the above paragraph were received from a visitor to my website - there is no female included in the crew list below, so I can't quite get this to fit with Sneland I.

An inquiry was held in London on May 15-1945 with the 1st mate, the 1st engineer, Able Seaman Hagen (lookout) and Able Seaman Tuvnes (helmsman) appearing.

These were the last ships to be sunk by U-boat before VE Day. The attacks happened 3 days after Dönitz had given the U-boats the order to stop all enemy action and return to port. Klusmeier later claimed he knew nothing about the order to surrender. (The attack took place after the German surrender documents had been signed, but before the time of their effect at midnight on the 7th). The general belief according to (old) Norwegian sources appears to be that Klusmeier intentionally ignored Dönitz' May 4 order and that since this wast his first patrol as commander, he wanted something to show for it. But I've been told that one of the advantages of the type of boat that U 2336 was (Type XXIII) was the ability to remain submerged for up to three days before having to surface to recharge batteries. However, while submerged, they were not able to transmit or receive radio messages, and this may have been the reason why U 2336 did not know about the surrender order.

It didn't become clear until Oct.-1945 that U-2336 was, in fact, responsible for the sinkings. Klusmeier revealed that he had been in the vicinity of the Isle of May between 20:00 on the 7th and 06:00 on the 8th and that he circled the Isle of May after the attack. His approach appears to have gone undetected by the indicator loops, which were controlled from Canty Bay, North Berwick (loops to the south) and the Fixed Defence Station on the Isle of May (loops to the north). The records for Canty Bay had been destroyed by then, but those for the Isle of May revealed that U-2336 had indeed been detected passing eastwards over No. 4 Loop at 04:52 on the 8th and No.13 Loop at 05:16 that day, but her passage had been ignored, or had gone unnoticed because of the news that the war was over.

On May 28-1945 the British Admiralty and United States Navy jointly announced that as from 00:01 GMT on May 29 the convoys would no longer exist. At night merchant ships were to have their navigation lights on at full strength, and no longer needed to be blacked out. What a glorious and moving sight that must have been on that first night with all the brightly lit ships on the ocean!

As mentioned, the position given for Sneland I's sinking in Lloyds War Losses, Vol 1 is 56 09 36N, 02 31 24W. The charted position for the wreck today is 56 09 40N, 0 30 48W. According to Lloyd's the Avondale Park was sunk 1 mile southeast of May Island while en route from Hull to Belfast. The wreck was located by HMS Scott in 1959 (56 09 17N 02 30 07W). When dived in 1992, she was found to be lying with a list to starboard.

Crew List:
* Nils A. Konradsen (Harkestad) had escaped from Norway with M/B Fred / Fri in Sept.-1941. (Possibly the brother of Vilhelm Harkestad who survived the loss of Ruth I?).

Survivors
1st Mate Nils Ingvald Nilsen	2nd Mate Kaare Duedahl	Radio Operator Eivind Jensen	Able Seaman Oddvar Lunde	Able Seaman Andreas Hagland	Able Seaman Karsten Johansen
Able Seaman Harry Ferdinand Hagen	Able Seaman Kaare Tuvnes	1st Engineer Olaus Kverneland	2nd Engineer Kristian Heitmann	Donkeyman Antonio Martinsen	Stoker Alfred Svendsen
Stoker Arvid Olsen	Oiler Johan Lysgård	Trimmer Hjalmar Brattebø	Trimmer Patrick Dougherty (British)	Steward Ingebrikt K. Antonsen	Cook Bernhard Bang
2nd Cook Trygve Olsen	Gunner C. C. Hall (British)	Gunner Thomas Barnes (British)	Gunner Douglas Harwood (British)
Casualties
† Captain Johannes Lægland	† 3rd Mate Alf Berentsen	† Able Seaman Thormod Ringstad	† 3rd Engineer Otto Skaugen	† Stoker Simon Johan Johansen	† Oiler Nils A. Konradsen*
† Messboy William Henry Ellis* (age 17, from Hull)

* William H. Ellis is commemorated at Tower Hill, Panel 99 - see this page on The Commonwealth War Graves Comm. website (external link).

Related external links:
Stavern Memorial commemorations - Norwegians only are commemorated here.

Operations information for U-2336

U-2336

VE Day

Back to Sneland I on the "Ships starting with S" page.

Other ships by this name: D/S A/S Vestland (Rich. Amlie & Co.), Haugesund had another ship by the name Sneland I after the war. This ship had been delivered in Sept.-1944 as Raymond V. Ingersoll (Liberty ship) to U.S. War Shipping Administration, 7254 gt (I've also seen 7176 gt listed for this ship). Purchased by D/S A/S Vestland in Febr.-1947 and renamed Sneland I, put into world-wide tramping service. Sold in 1959 to Polish S.S. Co., Szczecin and renamed Kopalnia Zabrze. Went to Zarzad Portu, Gdynia in 1975, renamed MP-ZP-GDY-8. Converted to floating warehouse for Gdynia Port Authority (conversion commenced Sept. 17-1976). Marek Twardowski has told me that she from 1984 had the number MP-MPH GDY-8. Broken up in 1994. Marek says this was the last one of the Liberty class ships used by the Polish Merchant Navy. A 3rd Sneland I was built in France in 1962 for D/S A/S Vestland (Rich. Amlie & Co.), Haugesund, 11 434 gt. Later became Lita of Helsinki 1972, Timur Endurance 1974 (Singapore), Greek Alkor 1980. Broken up in 1985. The company also had a Sneland, built in Haugesund, delivered as such in June-1972, 14 137 gt. Renamed Southland in 1982, then Sneland again in 1983. Became Panamanian Island in 1983, Anadolu Guney same year (Turkish owners), Panmanian Youming in 1991, Yan Fa in 1996, broken up in 2003.

The text on this page was compiled with the help of: "Våre gamle skip", Leif M. Bjørkelund & E. H. Kongshavn, "Nortraships flåte", J. R. Hegland, "Sjøforklaringer fra 2. verdenskrig", Volume II, Norwegian Maritime Museum, and misc. others as mentioned within text - (ref. My sources).