THIS IS FINDON VILLAGE — these Findon Chronicles are created by Valerie Martin and contain scenes from her home village of Findon,
West Sussex, U.K.    Everyday stories about real people.

THE SOUTHERN RAILWAY'S FERRY NAMED "WORTHING"

Copyright Valerie Martin 2010

   

The first ship to go by the name of WORTHING after the nearby town of Worthing was the most illustrious one over the years bearing that name.

This was the Southern Railway's ferry SS WORTHING built in 1928 by William Denny of Dumbarton. Tonnage 2,343 gross, 932 net. Dimensions 300 ft. by 39 ft. Engines were coal, steam turbine; twin screw. Speed 24 knots.

She continued to fly the flag of the London, Brighton and South Coast Railway fleet until the Second World War and I now record her most fascinating and rewarding Second World War service.

The WORTHING was to become part of the British Expeditionary Force in France and received her orders to be in Southampton on 8th September 1939 and my following narrative is a summary of her career from then on.

In her new role as a troop carrier, she departed from Southampton two days later on the first of six crossings that month to Cherbourg, France.

On 26th September 1939 she was despatched to Falmouth to make one return voyage to Brest and then returned to Southampton on 2nd October 1939 but on the following day her port quarter was damaged by the DUKE OF ARGYLL.

She was selected in the role as a military hospital carrier on 17th November 1939. She departed from Southampton on 7th January 1940 to make medical crossings between Dieppe and Newhaven in Sussex. The frequency of these was increased in late May 1940.

As Hospital Carrier No. 30, the WORTHING joined Operations Dynamo and Cycle — the evacuations from Dunkirk and north west France. On 26th May 1940 she was ordered to Dover in Kent for the evacuation of the French port. She made her first arrival Dunkirk at 4.30 p.m. that day and brought a total of three hundred wounded back to Newhaven on 27th May 1940. Her tired crew were immediately told to turn round and return to France. Upon their arrival off the French coast the WORTHING was turned back.

Following a third crossing, the WORTHING transported a further three hundred patients to safety and they were brought to Newhaven on 31st May 1940.

At 12.55 p.m. on 2nd June 1940 she slipped anchor for Dunkirk once again. At 3.32 p.m. twelve German aircraft attacked her in force. What a sight that must have been. The captain increased her speed to 24 knots and the helm put hard to starboard. Nine bombs were dropped either side of her, two within a few feet. With her engine room castings broken and the ship making water slightly, the WORTHING limped back to Dover by 5 p.m. and made it to Newhaven by the next day.

On 11th June 1940 she was ready to go to Le Havre — which she reached at 9.30 a.m. Unfortunately, as no berth was available for her, she embarked her patients from launches in the anchorage and by 10.30 a.m. the next day she was safely back in Southampton with them.

The WORTHING's medical duties were now at an end and on 13th July 1940, she arrived at Preston to be transferred for naval use as a Fleet Air Arm Target Vessel.

The WORTHING arrived in the Mersey on 8th August 1940 to be adapted for her new task as a target vessel and on 13th November 1940 was commissioned HMS WORTHING. Two weeks later she carried out power and gun trials off Mersey. On her return and entering the lock, her starboard side was damaged just abaft the bridge.

HMS WORTHING finally departed from Liverpool on 30th November 1940 for Scapa and on 7th December 1940 we (alas) lost the name of HMS WORTHING when she was renamed HMS BRIGADIER. Two days on she reached the Forth where she was to be based for service as a target vessel for Crail Naval Air Station.

To give you an idea of her exercises that winter:

16th January 1941

8.27 a.m. Slipped from Port Edgar in the Forth. Passed FAA Target Ship ISLE OF THANET inward bound.

Exercise air attacks started at 10.45 p.m. Eighth and last at 3.03 p.m.

Ship anchored off Methil at 4.39 p.m.

17th January 1941

Weighted at 12.13 p.m.

Three practice attacks 2.23 p.m. - 3.45 p.m.

Ship anchored at 4.25 p.m. off Methil.

18th January 1941

Weighted at 9.25 a.m.

10.44 a.m. - 11.54 a.m. four attacks.

At noon the ship stopped to repair leak in starboard condenser. Exercises resumed at 2.01 p.m. with four attacks. Finished at 2.45 p.m.

3.20 p.m. Heavy squall of snow brought the day's programme to a quick conclusion.

3.50 p.m. anchored at Methil for drifter to come alongside. 4.22 p.m. Weighted.

5.55 p.m. passed under Forth Bridge.

6.20 p.m. made fast alongside ISLE OF THANET at Port Edgar.



Our ship was then required for service as a White Ensign Infantry Landing Ship. After being relieved by the veteran destroyer NEWMARKET, she was sent to West Hartlepool on 11th May 1941 for the required work to be carried out.

By October 1941, she was in the Solent as part of Raiding Squadron H with landing craft embarked and took part in assault exercises off our south coast.

On the 5th June 1944, she departed the Solent as part of Assault Convoy J10 to land troops at Juno beach-head on 6th June, 1944. She then returned to join the cross-Channel shuttle service carrying reinforcements.

She was starting out from Southampton on one such crossing with 430 troops on board on 11th November 1944 when she rammed the stern of HM headquarters ship, HILARY, at anchor in Spithead. The vessels were locked together and had to be cut apart. (BRIGADIER's bow was pushed back to the hawse pipes).

She returned to Southampton the next day and paid off on 18th December 1944 for repair and austerity refit in preparation for Red Ensign service as WORTHING (again!).

On 23rd March 1945, the WORTHNG made a return to the Newhaven-Dieppe route which, because of the block ships sunk by the British outside Dieppe in 1940, was tidal at that time, with movements being possible only within two hours of high water.

The WORTHING continued her peacetime service on the Newhaven to Dieppe run after 1948 and was finally withdrawn in 1954. The following year she was sold to J.S. Latsis (Greece) for Mediterranean cruises and renamed PHRYNI and could accommodate 1,300 passengers.

As with all ships, after her most illustrious career, the courageous WORTHING was sadly eventually broken up in Greece in 1964.

Continue if you would like to read about Yet Another View of FINDON.

THIS IS FINDON VILLAGE — www.findonvillage.com is a continually growing record created by Valerie Martin exclusively for documenting life in Findon.