The Wartime Memories Project - The Second War

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HMS Dorsetshire H.M.S Dorsetshire, a County Class Cruiser was launched at Portsmouth Dockyard in 1929 by the Countess of Shaftesbury. The ship was part of the fleet that sunk the German battleship Bismark. The Dorsetshire was sunk on the 5th April 1942, by a Japanese carrier aircraft, three hundred miles west of Colombo, Ceylon. 227 lives were lost. On our 12th Anniversary we would like to thank all those who have contributed to this project. Research your own Family History. June 2011 - Please note we currently have a large backlog of submitted material, our volunteers are working through this as quickly as possible and all names, stories and photos will be added to the site.        We are aware of the issue with missing images, this is due to the redesign of the website, images will reappear as soon as the new version of the page is completed, thank you for your patience. We are now on Facebook. Like this page to receive our updates. If you have a general question please post it on our Facebook page. If you have any unwanted photographs, documents or items from the First or Second World War, please do not destroy them. The Wartime Memories Project will give them a good home and ensure that they are used for educational purposes. World War 1 One ww1 wwII greatwar great List of those who served on HMS Dorsetshire during The Second World War Telegraphist Edwin Francis Armstrong (d.5th Apr 1942) Read his Story. Joseph Austin (d.5th Apr 1942) Read his Story. Joseph Austin (d.5th Apr 1942) Read his Story. Ldg. Stkr. Arthur Bellis (d.5th Apr 1942) ERA 3rd Class Charles Stanley Branagan (d.5th Apr 1942) Read his Story. CPO. William Richard Cambridge Read his Story. Surgeon Lieut. (D) Harold Bernard Concanon (d.5th Apr 1942) Read his Story. Surgeon Lt. (D) Harold Bernard Concanon (d.5th Apr 1942) Read his Story. William Walter Eades (d.5th Apr 1942) Read his Story. Ord.Sea. Edward Anders Eriksen (d.5th April 1942) Read his Story. Sgt. Robert Francis Joseph Herbert Read his Story. Chaplain Denzil Laborde (d.5th Apr 1942 ) Read his Story. Alfred Ernest Meadows Robert Nicklin Read his Story. Robert Nicklin Read his Story. William Pitt (d.5th Apr 1942) Read his Story. Stkr. Albert Henry Rule (d.5th Apr 1942) Read his Story. Charles Sheldon (d.5th April 1942) Read his Story. Charles Sheldon (d.5th April 1942) Read his Story. CPO. Bruce Sydney George Spriddle Edwin Trebilcock Charles Wade Read his Story. Lesley George Wills Read his Story. Lesley George Wills Read his Story. Stanley Anderson Francis Albert Anstis. Stoker First Class Read his story Hugh Atkinson Fred Ball George Bell George Bennet Geoffrey M. Berlyn William Henry Braddon George Bryant Ted Bodman Bob Byrne John Cannon Ray "Chippy" Carpenter Fred James Carter Sam Cawthra Gerald Charles Nick Chandler Ray Chandler Allan Johnson "Nobby" Clarke. Engine Room Artificer John Clements Noel "Nibs" Cogdon F Cooper Harry Cuffling Denys Damerel William Davey. WO Electrician (d.5th April 1942) S Davies Sam Duffy Robert Dyke. Anti-Aircraft Gunner. A. G. Elsegood. Chief Naafi Canteen Manager. Read his story Albert Evenpol (d.5th April 1942) Ernie Feltham John FLOOD Lloyd Foster William Foster Vic Foulson Walter Fudge Mick Fallon Bert Gollop Ron Gartside Jimmy Green Thomas Green Warren William Herridge Stan Higgins George Hiscock Leslie Ives. stoker Frederick Jayne. gunner Norman Jones Leading Seaman John Thomas Jordan Bill Kelly Pettty Officer. David. M. Keenan Geoff Kitchen Sidney Arthur Legg. Ordinary Telegraphist Read his story Lewis Leonard. stoker Ray Lock Sam Mckeown CPO John MacLeod Eric Marks Vincent Merrick. Royal Marines Victor Morgan Cpl. Henry Muirs Royal Marines Syd Normington Acting Petty Officer, Samuel Pile. (d.5th April 1942) Eddie Phelps Thomas Pollard Reg Racher CPO William Samuel Leigh Radford (d.5th April 1942) Harold George Reader. Able Seaman (d.5th April 1942) Joe Rigby Bill Roberts L B Robinson. stoker Len Sansford George Stanton. leading torpedoman Albert Saville Tom Shirley Allon Smith Jack Southcott. Leading Wireman Read his story Horace Stanley Ordinary Seaman Read his story A. Jock Swankie First Lt. Cuthbert Robert Holland Taylor. Read his story W. Teschener Roy Bernard Charles Thorpe. (d. 5 Apr 1942) Percy Thompson Peter Turner Mick Uren Jack Wheeler Norman Wilks Bungy Wiliams Norris Williams William Wyatt Bert Wynn S. Shiner Wright Bernard York. Yeoman of Signals Surgeon Lieut. (D) Harold Bernard Concanon HMS Dorsetshire (d.5th Apr 1942) My father's cousin, Harold Concanon was the dentist on HMS Dorsetshire when she was sunk in 1942. He and my father were about the same age and effectively grew up together in Ireland. My Father qualified as a doctor in 1941 at the National University of Ireland. Harold qualified as a dentist a year earlier. Both joined the Royal Navy (even though Ireland was neutral). Harold was initially posted to Liverpool but then joined Dorsetshire. My Father went to Portsmouth, initially as a civilian, but then joined the Navy after Harold's death. Lesley George Wills HMS Dorsetshire My grandfather, Lesley George Wills, served on HMS Dorsetshire. He was on her when she was sunk. He was picked up and taken to South Africa; our family is still in contact with the family who looked after him there. Charles Wade HMS Dorsetshire Does anybody remember my grandad, Charles Wade? He served with the Royal Navy with HMS Dorsetshire. He never spoke much about his time with the navy, but once a year he would recall how he got sunk and how he lost some good friends. Sadly he passed away about 12 years ago. I would be grateful for any info about my grandad. Lesley George Wills HMS Dorsetshire My grandfather served on HMS Dorsetshire. He was called Lesley George Wills, and was on her when she was sunk. He was picked up and taken to South Africa - our family are still in contact with the family who looked after him there. Robert Nicklin HMS Dorsetshire I am a ww2 Navy veteran, I volunteered at 17 and a few months served on the cruiser HMS Dorsetshire in the action against the Bismark. She had the distinction of finishing her off with torpedoes and picking up most of the survivors. Served on a Destroyer in the landings at Madagascar, numerous actions in the Mediterranean including three Malta convoys and, in company with another Destroyer, sank eleven enemy ships in a three hour night action. I finished my sea duty on another Cruiser at the Normandy landings. I kept a diary of my time in the Med and looking back now at my age I realise how lucky I was as I lost a lot of great pals and comradeship the likes of which I have never seen again. Charles Sheldon HMS Dorsetshire (d.5th April 1942) Marine Charles Sheldon served and died on the HMS Dorsetshire. He was my wife’s uncle. Charles Sheldon HMS Dorsetshire (d.5th April 1942) Marine Charles Sheldon served and died on the HMS Dorsetshire. He was my wife’s uncle. Telegraphist Edwin Francis Armstrong HMS Dorsetshire (d.5th Apr 1942) Edwin Francis Armstong; RN Telegraphist, died on 5 April 1942 aboard the HMS Dorsetshire. He is remembered by the Plymouth Naval Memorial, Panel 68, Column 2. He is also remembered on the CWGC website ERA 3rd Class Charles Stanley Branagan HMS Dorsetshire (d.5th Apr 1942) Charles Stanley Branagan, Engine Room Artificer 3rd class was killed 5th April 1942 aboard HMS Dorsetshire. He was the son of Thomas and Nellie Branagan of New Moston, Manchester, and husband of D. Branagan. William Pitt HMS Dorsetshire (d.5th Apr 1942) While researching my Family Tree it seems my Dad has a Step Brother who he knew nothing about. His name is William Pitt & he was lost at Sea when the Dorsetshire was sunk but his body was never recovered & from Family Stories seems my Grandmother, William's Mother saw a Medium many times & was told he was still alive. Obviously he will be long gone now but any information however little would be greatly appreciated. Joseph Austin HMS Dorsetshire (d.5th Apr 1942) My grandfather's uncle, Joseph Austin, served on the Dorsetshire, and went down with her on April 5th 1942. Many thanks for producing such a wonderful website. William Walter Eades HMS Dorsetshire (d.5th Apr 1942) My Grandfather served on HMS Dorsetshire as CPO William Walter Eades, unfortunately he went down with the ship, so I never met him. Robert Nicklin HMS Dorsetshire My most vivid memory of WW2 out of dozens of action's that I participated in was the sinking of Hitlers pride of the german navy the Bismark, my ship had raced through gales to take part in the action H.M.S. Dorsetshire was a County class cruiser eight 8" guns when we arrived on the scene the action had just started and in the next two hour's we fired 240 eight inch shells at the Bismark and I could see our's and another ships shells smashing into her superstructure and when she was nothing more than a burning wreck we were ordered to finish her off,and as we fired three torpedoe's into her I could see hundreds of men jumping into the very rough sea,we lay off and watched her turn over and bottom up with scores of men standing on her steel plates as she slowly sank beneath the waves' the pride of the german navy was no more and H.M.S.Hood had been avenged. We then started the dangerous task of picking up the survivors being stopped in the water for this task we were sitting ducks for any Uboat but we managed to pick up some eighty odd men and were still hauling men over the side when a lookout spotted what he thought was a periscope and as I have already pointed out to a question from a German 'would the skipper of that Uboat let us carry on picking up survivors?' I think not! so off we went. CPO. William Richard Cambridge HMS Dorsetshire I would like you to put my father's name on the list of personel who served on H.M.S.Dorsetshire during the Second Word War He served from 1937 until she was sunk in 1942. He is a survivor. Thank you. Joseph Austin HMS Dorsetshire (d.5th Apr 1942) Joseph Austin, died on the Dorsetshire, he was my grandmother's brother. He was a professional sailor. I have in my possession a letter written on the Wednesday before the ship sailed on the Saturday. In his letter he writes about starting a 10,000 mile journey home, a trip which we now know was never completed. I have also letters listing his service duties, one of which was to escort the King on his tour of the West Indies. Sgt. Robert Francis Joseph Herbert G Company My father served on the Dorsetshire from 8th September 1937, until it was sunk, as a coporal in the Royal Marines. He never spoke much about his time in the Royal Marines or during WW2. He did speak briefly of the sinking and mentioned some of his time in the water and how lucky he was not to be killed. I believe he was taken back to Cape Town after being rescued and was stationed there for some time. He met my mother in Cape Town and they were married there before being stationed back at Plymouth in 1944. Many years ago we watched a documentary about the sinking of the Bismark and after the sinking there was a film scan of the ship and a number of the crew and he named a number of the crew which was amazing and interesting. He passed away in 2002 and was very proud of his time in the Royal Marines. Ord.Sea. Edward Anders Eriksen HMS Dorsetshire (d.5th April 1942) Edward Eriksen was my fathers brother, Uncle Eddie. On a recent holiday in Plymouth I found his name on the War Memorial.He is still well remembered by the family and I was very emotional when I found his name. Surgeon Lt. (D) Harold Bernard Concanon Volunteer Reserve (d.5th Apr 1942) Harold Bernard Concanon, my mother's first husband, was killed when HMS Dorsetshire was sunk during WWII. He was a South African who had trained as a dentist at Liverpool University. While he was at Liverpool University I understand he was President of the Students Guild. His dental practice was at 60 Rodney Street, Liverpool and my mother lived there during the war. He was a commissioned officer and was the ships dentist. I know that my mother still thought of him until the day she died, although she happily re-married and had me. 'Uncle Bernard', as she referred to him when she talked of him to me, would not consider having a family whilst the war was on, so he has no direct descendants. I suspect that his nephews know little about him as his brother died at an early age as well. There must be very few survivors still living now, but, I am glad that the internet helps to keep alive the memory of those brave men and women who battled to keep us free. Update: Harold Bernard Concanon is remembered on the Plymouth Naval Memorial, Panel 76 Column 3 according to CWGC. Chaplain Denzil Laborde HMS Dorsetshire (d.5th Apr 1942 ) Denzil Laborde was ship's Chaplain on board HMS Dorsetshire for most of the war and was lost when the ship sank. His young wife had two small girls, the youngest never saw her father, and was only 5 months old when he died. Close to the end of the war, my father, a close university friend of Denzil Laborde, married his young widow. I grew up hearing about the tragedy from both my half-sisters and well remember the small blue book all about this famous ship, which I believe my elder sister still has. Stkr. Albert Henry Rule HMS Dorsetshire (d.5th Apr 1942) Firstly I would like to congratulate you on such a well researched and interesting site. It brings home how much we owe to so many, one of the many being my father, Albert Henry Rule, Stoker 1st class. He was serving on HMS Dorsetshire and went down with the ship on Easter Sunday 1942. He was 24 yrs of age and left a widow of 21yrs and 2 children my brother and myself. He only saw me once when he came home on leave when I was 6 or 7 months old so I do not remember him. My Mother sadly died recently and I now have a photo of him with a couple of his crew mates. Can you help us to add to our records? Add a record to our website. The names and stories on this website have been submitted by their relatives and friends. If your relations are not listed please add their names so that others can read about them Did you or your relatives live through the Second World War? Do you have any photos, newspaper clippings, postcards or letters from that period? Have you researched the names on your local or war memorial? Were you or your relative evacuated? Did an air raid affect your area? If so please let us know. Help us to build a database of information on those who served both at home and abroad so that future generations may learn of their sacrifice. Contact us. Celebrate your own Family History Celebrate by honouring members of your family who served in the Secomd World War both in the forces and at home. We love to hear about the soldiers, but also remember the many who served in support roles, nurses, doctors, land army, muntions workers etc. Please use our Family History resources to find out more about your relatives. Then please send in a short article, with a photo if possible, so that they can be remembered on these pages. Links H.M.S. DORSETSHIRE The sinking of the Bismarck We are currently conducting a survey of users to improve the website, please could you spare a few moments to complete our survey? The Wartime Memories Project is a non profit organisation run by volunteers. This website is paid for out of our own pockets and from donations made by visitors. The popularity of the site means that it is far exceeding available resources. If you are enjoying the site, please consider making a donation, however small to help with the costs of keeping the site running. 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