Royal Navy Reserve service

[Guest]

I have obtained a copy of my Grandfathers RNR Service Record it lists the following which I believe are depots or depot ships, Victory, Kingfisher, White Oak, Dreel Castle, Wallington and Island Prince, there is some other writing which is very faint I think this could contain the names of the ships he served on, can you advise on if is possible to obtain further information on the ships he served on. I have attached a copy of his RNR service record. Regards, Ian Bruce 

BT-377-7-58141.pdf

[wightspirit]

Here's a start: Island Prince was a hired steam trawler, as was Wallington, Kingfisher was an Admiralty steam trawler, White Oak and Dreel Castle were hired steam drifters. These vessels were part of the Auxiliary Patrol and would have been engaged in activities such as escorts, minesweeping, net layers, and general duties. I have come across references to some of these vessels during my research - they were operating in the English Channel. White Oak was operating from Poole in 1915/16. More research will show if they were part of the Dover Patrol and/or attached to Portsmouth and/or Portland (Poole, I think, was a separate port which became subsumed either to Portland or Portsmouth) or elsewhere.

 

Dave W    

[rolt968]

Interesting.

It looks as if he was actually carried on the books of White Oak and Dreel Castle while serving on Sunbeam. (Sunbeam in brackets after White Oak or Dreel Castle.) Question: What was so small that the ship's company would be carried on the books of a drifter.

Possible Sunbeams are here:

https://www.naval-history.net/WW1NavyBritishShips-Dittmar3.htm#S

I can't make out the name in brackets after Wallington.

Is that T.R.V.2 at the top of the list?

RM

 

[ARABIS]

1 hour ago, wightspirit said:

Here's a start: Island Prince was a hired steam trawler, as was Wallington, Kingfisher was an Admiralty steam trawler, White Oak and Dreel Castle were hired steam drifters. These vessels were part of the Auxiliary Patrol and would have been engaged in activities such as escorts, minesweeping, net layers, and general duties. I have come across references to some of these vessels during my research - they were operating in the English Channel. White Oak was operating from Poole in 1915/16. More research will show if they were part of the Dover Patrol and/or attached to Portsmouth and/or Portland (Poole, I think, was a separate port which became subsumed either to Portland or Portsmouth) or elsewhere.

 

Dave W    

 

Island Prince - Auxiliary Patrol parent ship, North Shields.

Wallington - A/P base, Immingham.

Kingfisher - A/P base, Yarmouth.

White Oak - depot ship for net drifters, Poole.

Dreel Castle - A/P base, Falmouth.

 

While some of the above were also trawlers etc, they were also the nominal names for shore bases. More likely that he was on the books of the above.

 

[ARABIS]

The other trawlers he served in were Schipperke and Ninus.

 

ARABIS. 

[Guest]

Thank you all for your help and the information you have provided. According to some of the information I could find Victory, Kingfisher, Wallington, Island Prince, White Oak and Dreel Castle were land bases with some vessels attached to them having the same name, one account for Dreel Castle stated that drifter Dreel Castle was a supply vessel for the base. Unfortunately some of the information I have found can be confusing and contradictory.

I will keep on searching as I have found that he had a very long and eventful career at sea, he joined the Royal Navy at the age of twelve, he left the navy and became a merchant seaman joining the RNR in 1916 he went back to the merchant navy after the war and sailed on a number of the WW2 Russian Conveys. I’m currently trying to confirm family stories that he survived a number of sinkings including being torpedoed.

Once again thank you all for your help.

Regards, Ian