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M/T Thorhild To Thorhild on the "Ships starting with T" page. Manager: O. T. Tønnevold & Co. A/S, Grimstad Built in Gothenburg 1935. Captains: Jørgen Tellefsen was captain from the time the ship was new, and up until the summer of 1941. Later captains during the war were Olaf Dock and Olaf T. Larssen (the latter from the torpedoed Thelma). Related pages on this website:
Thorhild was on Japanese charter, in service between Japan and the west coast of U.S.A. From the fall of 1941 until the end of the war she was in service in the Atlantic. In early 1943 she was fitted out with an extra deck to enable her to carry aircraft, and equipment for supplying escorts with oil and depth charges at sea was also installed. Chief Engineer was Erling Jørgensen, while Mate Odd Tønnevold was on board all through the war. Petter Birkeland (also from Thelma) also served on this ship for a while, and then became her captain in 1947. He had also served on Thordis as mate. In Jan.-1942 Thorhild was in Convoy HX 171 together with several other Norwegian ships. In Apr. that year she can be found among the ships in Convoy HX 183 which arrived England on Apr. 15. On the 22nd of that same month she joined convoy OS 26, voyaging from Liverpool to Curacao in ballast (station 95). In June/July-1942 she sailed in Convoy SL 113, which left Freetown on June 15 and arrived Liverpool on July 7. Thorhild is listed in station 82. Mike Holdoway, the webmaster of the site listing the SL convoys, has told me that she had left Curacao on May 26 with a cargo 14 256 tons whale oil in bulk, 1390 drums sperm oil and whale oil, bound for Bromborough. She arrived Mersey on July 6. The Norwegian Fagerfjell, Thorshavet and Vanja are also listed, but the latter did not sail. More info on OS 26 and SL 113 can be found by going to the first external website that I've linked to at the end of this text, while HX 171 and HX 183 are included in my own Convoys section - direct links have been provided above. Rick Pitz, a visitor to my website, has informed me via this message in my Gustbook that Thorhild was part of Convoy HK-106 Subsidiary, leaving Pilottown, LA on Sept. 27-1942, to join the main body of Convoy HK-106 (which left Bolivar Roads on 25-Sep). This convoy sailed to Key West, Florida, arriving Sept. 29. Thorhild's final destination is given as U.K., and in fact, she's listed among the ships in Convoy HX 211 which departed New York City on Oct. 8-1942, but lost touch in a gale and did not rejoin. According to another message in my Guestbook she later joined the westbound Convoy ON 145 the following month, in the company of the Norwegian Mosli, Skaraas and Brant County (the latter ship had also been in HX 211). "The Allied Convoy System" by Arnold Hague says this convoy left Liverpool on Nov. 9-1942 with 35 ships and arrived New York City on Nov. 25. Empire Sailor was sunk, while British Renown and British Promise were damaged, all by U-518. The ships that were in the convoy at the time of attack have been named in my Convoys section. She's also listed as being in Convoy HX 222 in Jan.-1943, subsequently returning across the ocean with ON 164 on Febr. 1-1943. That spring, on May 19-1943, she can be found leaving New York in Convoy HX 240. Her destination is given as Avonmouth, and she had station 61 of the convoy. Already at the end of June-1943 she was back in New York and ready to depart with Convoy HX 246, bound for Clyde, station 105, and on Aug. 7 she left New York with Convoy HX 251, cargo of gas oil for Swansea, station 53. The following month she returned to the U.S. with the westbound Convoy ON 202 (ONS 18), bound for Wilmington - ref. links above. Towards the end of March-1944 we find her in Convoy HX 284 from New York to the U.K., in May she's listed in Convoy HX 292, and in July-1944 she sailed in Convoy HX 298. She must have unloaded very quickly and gone straight back to the U.S., because the following month she shows up in Convoy HX 303 with 16 other Norwegian ships, namely Romulus, Dalfonn, Noravind, Atlantic, Sommerstad, Skotaas, Geisha, Tanafjord, Petter, Stirlingville, Rena, Para, Titanian, Mui Hock, Fjordaas and Norse Lady, all listed on this website. More information on each of them is available via the Index at the end of this page. She can also be found in Convoy HX 311 in Sept./Oct.that year (bound for Avonmouth), as well as in HX 318 in Nov. The following month she was scheduled for HX 327, but did not sail, nor did she get away in HX 328 or HX 329, but is listed as bound for Avonmouth with Convoy HX 331 in Jan.-1945. This convoy arrived Liverpool on Jan. 22-1945, and by Febr. 18 she was back in New York and ready to return to the U.K. with Convoy HX 339 (see the list of convoy links above for more on all these convoys).
On Charter to British Tankers Co. Ltd. for 2 years from 1946. Sold in 1954 to Einar Rasmussen and renamed Polyrover. Broken up by Norsk Skibsopphugnings Co., Grimstad in 1959 (1960?). Related external link: Back to Thorhild on the "Ships starting with T" page. Other ships by this name: O. Tønnevold had previously had another Thorhild, delivered in Apr.-1921. Sold to Denmark? After the war they had several more ships by this name. One was built at Rosenberg mekaniske Verksted and delivered Jan. 19-1956, 10 394 gt. Collided with a French ship near Hamburg in 1959 and damaged, but repaired. In May-1973 the company took over M/T Harry Borthen and named her Thorhild. Sold in 1974 to Fekete & Co., Tønsberg. The company's 5th Thorhild was the ex. Wilh. Wilhelmsen ship Tiberius, launched in Gothenburg on Sept. 13-1965, completed Jan. 14-1966, 43 572 gt, sold in March-1976 to Tønnevolds Tankrederi A/S (Olaf Tønnevold & Sønner A/S, managers) and renamed Thorhild. Broken up at Kaohsiung in Oct.-1978. See also list below. Out of the blue, O. T. Tønnevold A/S sent me and E-mail with the following details (much appreciated, thank you!): The text on this page was compiled with the help of: "Olaf Tønnevold & Sønner 1878-1978", Birger Dannevig and misc. as mentioned within above text (ref. My sources).
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