HMAS Bonthorpe (TR-8)[4] was an auxiliary minesweeper operated by the Royal Australian Navy during World War II. She was launched in 1917 by Collingwood Shipbuilding Company at Collingwood, Ontario, Canada. Bonthorpe was owned and operated by Albany Tug Company.[3] On 5 February 1940, Bonthorpe was requisitioned by the RAN for use as an auxiliary. She was decommissioned on 17 February 1945 and was reconverted to a trawler before becoming stranded at Cairns Inlet, Queensland in 1959.
| History | |
|---|---|
| Name | Bonthorpe[2] |
| Owner |
|
| Operator | Ch/Skpr Wallace James Naas, RCN - 26 Jun 1918 - 15 Feb 1919 |
| Laid down | 1917 |
| Completed | 6 Jun 1918 |
| Fate | Wrecked in 1959 |
 Australia | |
| Name | Bonthorpe |
| Commissioned | 5 February 1940 |
| Decommissioned | 17 February 1945 |
| Identification | TR-8 |
| Fate | Sold in 1948 |
| General characteristics | |
| Class and type | Minesweeper |
| Tonnage | 273 gross tonnage[3] |
| Displacement |
|
| Length | 125.5 ft (38 m)[3] |
| Beam | 28.5 ft (9 m)[3] |
| Draught | 13.41 ft (4.09m) |
| Depth | 12.7 ft (4 m)[3] |
| Speed | 10 knots |
| Crew | 20 (2 officers and 18 sailors) |
| Armament |
|
Operational History edit
This section needs expansion with: Any info on the ship's owners and history between 1917 and 1929. You can help by adding to it. (August 2010) |
In 1917, construction of the HMAS Bonthorpe began in Collingwood, Ontario, Canada. Her construction was completed on 26 June 1918, and she was accepted into the Royal Canadian Navy (RCN) that same day.[4] She was sold again in 1920 as the trawler Bonthorpe by the Western Australian Trawling Company, and sailed from Fleetwood, England to Sydney. She was sold again to the Albany Tug Company and converted into a tug based at Fremantle, Western Australia. She would continue as a tug until she was acquired by the Royal Australian Navy (RAN) in early 1940.[4] On 5 February, 1940, she would be commissioned by the RAN as the HMAS Bonthorpe, (TR-8) and would become a minesweeping trawler.[4]
During the war, Bonthorpe was based in Fremantle and operated along the Western Australia coastline. She was decommissioned on 17 February 1945, and was laid up at Careening Bay, Garden Island, as part of the Reserve Fleet before being sold in 1947-48.[5]
On 3 October 1950, Bonthorpe was damaged after being hit by Cooramba, when the latter broke from her mooring during a 75-mile-per-hour (121 km/h) gale.[6] She was later sold to M. Bern & Co in 1954. In 1959, she became wrecked at Cairns Inlet, Queensland, Australia.[4]
Citations edit
- ^ Kookaburra, Horatio J. (29 July 2015), Ca 1940: Auxiliary minesweeper HMAS BONTHORPE passes troopship QUEEN MARY and oiler HMAS KURUMBA off Western Australia - Graeme Andrews Collection., retrieved 3 April 2024
- ^ "Details of the Ship". Plimsoll ShipData. Retrieved 8 August 2010.
- ^ a b c d e "Llyods Reigister" (PDF). Plimsoll ShipData. Retrieved 6 August 2010.
- ^ a b c d e "Minesweeping Trawler TR 8 - For Posterity's Sake". www.forposterityssake.ca. Retrieved 3 April 2024.
- ^ "Navy News, February 8, Vol 42, No. 2, p.2" (PDF). Royal Australian Navy. Archived from the original (PDF) on 21 March 2011. Retrieved 8 August 2010.
- ^ "The Mercury (Hobart, Tasmania), Wednesday 4 October 1950, p.5". Mercury. 4 October 1950. Retrieved 8 August 2010.
References edit
- http://www.navyhistory.org.au/category/navy-day-by-day/1939/page/2/
- http://www.navy.gov.au/hmas-bonthorpe
- http://www.forposterityssake.ca/Navy/TR8.htm
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