Ahoy - Mac's Web Log

dear mac

have just looked through your site on SS RAMILLIES. It was a ship my grandfather served on at one time, he was a chief engineer. It must have been pre war we think as during the war he was refused sea duty (which ticked him off ) he was told they had enough men to crew the ships but not enough men with the knowledge and skill to keep them at sea when damaged etc. During the latter part of the war he was highly involved in the engineering and checking of the mulberry harbours for D Day.

As a young girl my gramp would tell us stories of trips to Canada mainly OTTOWA and MONTREAL, however there are other stories that have been forgotten and could have been about his second ship which is an unknown seeing gramp died when i was about 4or 5 there is no way to ask. maybe dad would have had some answers( he was also a ships engineer on SS BIRMINGHAM any info on that if possible) but he died 2 yrs ago just as i started getting interested in the family history.

Anyway i was told without any info on the ships they served on i could find out nothing.....however i remembered my gramps prized possession his metal crib board, (made from his ship he always told us every time it was used), i remembered it had an inscription around the side of it with a ships name and date, this has led me to you so please help!!!!!

the inscription reads as follows:

made from a piece cut from the propeller of the ss ramillies off hopes advance canada july 1957 and initailed by my gramp  SB    (Stanley Broucher)

Whether some of the ship was salvaged or this was made from a previous propeller of the ship i have no idea but as its one of the last things of my gramps we have there is no way we will ever part with it but i would love to know if anyone has any info on my gramp and his ship even a picture would be nice.

Thanks for your time

Liesl Broucher

Liesl,

W Gray shipbuilders of Hartlepool in all built 4 ships named Ramillies, all listed here.

From L to R The ships name, years of service, date built, ship builder, tonnage, what happened to each ship.

Ramillies 1 and 2 were both sunk in WW1 and WW2 respectively, and Ramillies 3 does not fit the time frame of 1957. 

Ramillies 4 is the most likely ship that a piece of her propeller may have been acquired by your Gramps for hid crib board, perhaps her original propeller, was damaged and replaced.

RAMILLIES          1892-1917     1892    W Gray, Hartlepool    2935      War Loss 21 July 1917 - sunk

RAMILLIES(2)       1927-41       1927    W Gray, Hartlepool    4553      War Loss 8 May 1941 - torpedoed

RAMILLIES(3)       1948-55       1942    Todd-Bath, USA        7174      Ex Ocean Vigour; Sold to A Crawford as Galavale

RAMILLIES(4)       1955-66       1951    W Gray, Hartlepool    5890      Ex Seawall; Sold to Pakistan as Surma

I cannot find any photos of any of the Ramillies ships, nor any mention of  Birmingham.

Best wishes.
Mac.

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