Sea Sweeper

iBase ID

260987

Vessel name

Sea Sweeper

Fishing number

FD171

Type of vessel

ST

Official number

139276

Year constructed

1915

Constructed by

Cook, Welton & Gemmell Ltd

Constructed at

Beverley

Gross tons

329

Length

136 ft

Beam

24.1 ft

Depth

12.7 ft

Engines

Amos & Smith, 100NHP, 11 knots

Construction notes

Yard No. 321

Owner/Manager

Dinas Steam Trawling

Previous owner

Thomas Hamling & Co Ltd Fresh Fish Supplies Ltd Humber Steam Trawling Co

Date sunk

20/09/1939

Place sunk

Tory Island

Casualties

07/1936 - Arthur Burton

General notes

SEA SWEEPER was launched on 31/05/1915 for the Humber Steam Trawling Co Ltd, Hull (H409).
January 1916 Requisitioned by the Royal Navy as a mine sweeper with Hydrophonic listening equipment (pennant no FY 1979).
1919 Returned to fishing.
1920 Sold to Fresh Fish Supplies Ltd, Hull.
1923 To Thomas Hamling & Co Ltd, Hull.
1928 To Dinas Steam Trawling Co Ltd, Fleetwood (FD171).
20/09/1939 The trawler was captured and sunk by the submarine U-33 25 miles NWxW of Tory Island. The u-boat surfaced 100 yards astern of the vessel at 5 o'clock and fired a warning shot. The crewmen got into the ships lifeboat and pulled away from the vessel. The u-boat then fired six shells into Sea Sweeper. The fishermen spent the night in the lifeboat. They saw a ship, soaked mufflers in paraffin, tied them to the oars and set them alight. The signal was spotted and the men were picked up by the trawler 'Lois' and brought back to Fleetwood. The same u-boat sank two other British fishing vessels the same day.
The crewmen on board on this trip were John Tomlinson, G. Beech, J. Calvert, F. Raywell, G. Barcock, J. Barcock, R. Wright, T. Higham, E. Curtis, G.E. Pook, W. Spearpoint and H. Neave.

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