M/S Stirlingville - Norwegian Merchant Fleet 1939-1945

Related items on this website:
Message on my "Find Old Shipmates" forum from the daughter of the stoker on board Stirlingville; she's interested in getting in touch with someone who knew her father, Arne Kristian Kristiansen Nordaas.
An entry on my "Warsailor Stories" page from someone who joined this ship in Jan.-1945. He had previously sailed with Ole Bull, Britannia and Solør.

Misc. Convoy Voyages – 1940-1945:

More convoy information will be added.

According to the first external website that I've linked to at the end of this page, Stirlingville was in Convoy SL 35, which left Freetown on June 8-1940 and arrived Liverpool on the 26th; Stirlingville stopped at Weymouth Bay on June 25. The Norwegian Eli and Para are also included. The following month, she appears, together with Athene, Cetus and Dux, in Convoy OA 118, departing Methil on July 22, dispersed July 23, Stirlingville arriving Tampa on Aug. 12.

Her subsequent voyages are listed on Page 1 and Page 2 of the archive documents.

In the fall of 1943, she sailed in Convoy SL 121, which left Freetown on Sept. 3-1942 and arrived Liverpool on the 21st. She had a cargo of grain and was bound for Loch Ewe from Fremantle. The company's Corneville is also listed. The following month, we find her in the westbound North Atlantic Convoy ON 140*, originating in Liverpool on Oct. 17-1942, arriving New York Nov. 7. See also Page 3.

In July-1943, she made a voyage from Tripoli to Bizerta, where she arrived on July 20, having sailed in Convoy MKS 18. She left Bizerta again 2 days later, (possibly) joining Convoy MKS 19 for Gibraltar, and from there, she joined Convoy MKS 20 on July 31, bound for Swansea with scrap, arriving there on Aug. 11. The following month, we find her in the westbound North Atlantic Convoy ONS 18, which joined up with Convoy ON 202 and lost several ships, including Oregon Express and Skjelbred. Stirlingville was bound for New York again on that occasion, arriving there on Oct. 2. Please follow the links for much more information on this convoy battle, including the Commodore's report and several other reports. She returned to the U.K. again in Nov.1943 in the slow Convoy SC 147 from Halifax, general cargo for London.

Early in the new year, she joined the westbound Convoy ONS 27*, which originated in Liverpool on Jan. 13-1944 and arrived Halifax on the 31st. Stirlingville, however, was bound for New York, where she arrived Febr. 3, having started out in Oban on Jan. 14. Later that month, she's listed among the ships leaving Halifax with Convoy SC 154 on the 28th, arrived Liverpool on March 15-1944. A couple of weeks later, she headed back across the Atlantic in the westbound Convoy ONS 32*, departing Liverpool on March 28-1944, arriving Halifax Apr. 18; Stirlingville was again bound for New York, arriving there on Apr. 20. On May 10, she joined Convoy HX 291 from New York, which included several other Norwegian ships, among them Heranger, Høyanger (Vice Commodore ship), O. B. Sørensen, Para, Villanger, Vav, Minerva, Velox, and others. Stirlingville was bound for Manchester with a general cargo. See also Page 4

She later returned to New York with the westbound Convoy ON 242*, which left Liverpool on June 25-1944 and arrived New York July 11. The following month, we find her in the large Convoy HX 303 with 16 other Norwegian ships, namely Tanafjord, Dalfonn, Noravind, Atlantic, Sommerstad, Skotaas, Geisha, Thorhild, Petter, Romulus, Rena, Para, Titanian, Mui Hock, Fjordaas and Norse Lady, all listed on this website. She was again bound for Manchester with general cargo, where she arrived on Aug. 28, according to Page 5. Some of these ships, including Stirlingville, subsquently returned with the westbound Convoy ON 254*, which departed Liverpool on Sept. 16-1944 and arrived New York Oct. 5.

Captain from Oct. 9-1944 was Karl Johan Løvik. Captain Løvik's story, which includes some of Stirlingville's voyages after he had joined her, can be found in Norwegian via the last external link provided at the end of this page. He says he relieved her previous captain by the last name of Ulriksen, who then took command of Vadsø. They (Stirlingville) took on bord a cargo in New York, departing on Oct. 21-1944 for Boston (according to Page 5 above, they arrived Boston the next day). In addition to her general cargo, she had 3000 tons ammunition as well as 7 tanks on deck. She subsequently joined a convoy for Halifax (BX 131), where she joined a Trans-Atlantic convoy for the U.K. at the end of Oct. (see * below), in heavy fog and snow. 17 additional ships joined from Sydney, C.B. Stirlingville's final destination was London, so from Loch Ewe she joined a coastal convoy to Methil (see WN 654 - external link), where she joined another convoy for London (see FS 1641 - also external), arriving the latter late in the evening of Nov. 27. In his account he also mentions Steward Nilsen, Mate Tallaksen, Mate Ask Terkelsen, and 2nd Mate Heffermehl, and adds that a V 2 bomb exploded not far away that evening, causing the entire ship to shake, and the whole time they were there, V1 and V2 bombs exploded all over London (see also one of my father's letters with regard to these bombs, Letter No. 4, which can be reached from this page).

* This does not quite fit with available convoy information. The last SC convoy from Halifax in Oct.-1944 was SC 159, which departed Halifax on Oct. 18 and arrived Liverpool on Nov. 2. However, this in turn does not fit with what the captain says about leaving for Boston on Oct. 21, and besides, Stirlingville is not listed in SC 159. The next SC convoy, SC 160, left Halifax on Nov. 2-1944 and arrived Liverpool on the 17th, and as can be seen, Stirlingville is indeed listed in this convoy with a general cargo for London - she stopped at Loch Ewe on Nov. 16.

Captain Løvik says that Stirlingville remained in London until Dec. 7-1944, then left early the following morning in a convoy for Methil (Convoy FN 1565 - external link) where she joined a convoy for Loch Ewe (Convoy EN 461 - external page), then a convoy bound for the U.S. (this was Convoy ONS 38*, which had originated in Liverpool on Dec. 13-1944 and arrived Halifax on Jan. 2-1945). However, due to heavy weather, and the fact that the ships from Liverpool were delayed, Stirlingville had to return to Loch Ewe, where they waited most of the day before they could go out again to join the other ships at the designated meeting place. He also mentions Brønnøy as being in this convoy, which on Christmas day encountered heavy hail. Captain Løvik describes how several ships lost their steering, so that the convoy was in complete chaos for a while, with many near collisions, and by the next morning, at least 8 ships had lost touch. Stirlingville was bound for Philadelphia, and arrived there on Jan. 4-1945 (according to the captain - archive doc gives Cape Cod Canal Jan. 4, Philadelphia Jan. 6), then left again for Boston on Febr. 1, and on to Halifax for convoy back to the U.K., again with tanks and ammunition (including depth charges and bombs), and again encountering heavy weather and fog (this was the slow Halifax-U.K. Convoy SC 167). About 2 weeks later, on March 2, just as the convoy was about to split up, some ships heading to Liverpool, others to New Haven, the Norwegian Novasli and the British King Edgar (Captain Løvik calls her King Edward) were torpedoed.

Stirlingville discharged her cargo in Liverpool for about 2 weeks, then returned to the U.S. in March, this time as Commodore vessel for the convoy. She's listed in the westbound Convoy ONS 44*, which departed Liverpool on March 12-1945 and arrived Halifax on the 31st. Stirlingville, however, was bound for New York, where she arrived on Apr. 2-1945. She was ready to leave for Boston again on Apr. 21, then on to Halifax for a convoy to the U.K., as usual with ammunition and tanks, and while they were at sea, the news came that the war was over in Europe. This was Convoy SC 174, which left Halifax on Apr. 28-1945 - see link at the end of this page. They arrived Liverpool on May 14, then left for the the U.S. again on May 29, bound for Baltimore to load a cargo of grain and general, this time sailing alone (Captain Løvik mentions a couple of times in his account that Stirlingville sailed for Fred. Olsen). The grain was initially meant for Glasgow, but due to a strike there, Stirlingville was ordered to Avonmouth, arriving July 12-1945, departing again in the evening of July 25 for New York, with arrival Aug. 9. Captain Løvik then paid off in order go home to Norway, while Mate Terkelsen took over as captain in his place. Stirlingville's next voyage took her to Rotterdam. Again, please compare Captain Løvik's details with the info found on Page 5 of the archive documents. See also Page 6. From the latter page we also learn that she went home to Norway in Jan.-1946.

Captain Løvik died i Dec.-1990.

See also Fred Turner's story in my "Warsailor Stories" section.

For information on some of Stirlingville's other convoy voyages, made in between those already noted here, please follow the instructions provided at the external link below, then compare the results with the details found on the various archive documents.

* The ON and ONS convoys mentioned on this page 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 on the page listing ships in all ONS convoys. They all had several Norwegian ships.

For more information on all the other Norwegian ships named here, please see the alphabet index at the bottom of this page, or go to the Master Ship Index.

POST WAR:

Renamed Georgios M II. (Greek); according to Lillesand Sjømannsforening, Norway, she had been sold in 1959 to Everest Cia. Mar. SA (Loucas G. Matsas, Piraeus), Beirut, Liberia and given that name. Abandonded on Nov. 20-1968 in sinking condition following an explosion and fire in position 21 30 N 17 16 W (30 m west of Cape Blanco), when on a voyage Gdynia - N. Korea with coke.

Related external links:
SL Convoys - As can be seen, Stirlingville is listed in SL 35 and SL 121. Note also that by going to this section of the same site (based on Arnold Hague's database) and clicking on "Ship Search", using "Stirlingville" as keyword, several convoys that are not mentioned in the above narrative will come up (please be aware that errors may exist). Here are OA 188 and SC 174, both mentioned in my text.

Lilleand Sjømannsforening has Captain Løvik's story; scroll down on the page for his WW II experiences. The site also has a picture of Stirlingville, which can be found by going to the S's on this page.