SS City of Johannesburg

SS City of Johannesburg was a British cargo steamship that was sunk in 1942.[1] She was built by Barclay, Curle & Co, of Whiteinch, Glasgow in 1920, for Hall Lines of Liverpool, a subsidiary of Ellerman Lines, being launched as SS Melford Hall.[1] She was renamed SS City of Johannesburg in 1926.[1]

History
United Kingdom
Name
  • Melford Hall
  • City of Johannesburg
OperatorEllerman Lines Ltd, London
Port of registryUnited Kingdom Liverpool
BuilderBarclay, Curle & Co, Whiteinch, Glasgow
Yard number581
Launched23 May 1920
Completed1920, as the Melford Hall
IdentificationUK official number 143712
FateSunk on 23 October 1942
General characteristics
Class and typecargo steamship
Tonnage
  • 5,669 GRT
  • tonnage under deck 5,394
  • 3,583 NRT
Length417.2 ft (127.2 m)
Beam54.8 ft (16.7 m)
Depth29.0 ft (8.8 m)
Propulsion2 steam turbines double-reduction geared onto a single shaft
Crew89

Sinking

Her final voyage was to take her from Calcutta to the United Kingdom, calling at Colombo on 6 October 1942 and later at Cape Town on the way. She carried 7,750 tons of general cargo, including pig iron, cotton, jute and tea, under the command of her master, Walter Armour Owen.[2]

At 2312 hours on 23 October she was travelling unescorted off East London South Africa, when she was sighted by German submarine U-504 commanded by Fritz Poske. The U-boat torpedoed the City of Johannesburg, and succeeded in sinking her.[2] Two of the 89 crew were lost, but the master and 12 crew members were rescued by the Dutch cargo ship Zypenberg, which took them to Durban. Another 54 crew members were rescued by the British cargo ship Fort George and landed at Port Elizabeth, with the final 20 crew members being picked up by King Edwin, which took them to Cape Town.

References
  1. "Screw Steamer MELFORD HALL built by Barclay, Curle & Co. Ltd. in 1921 for Ellerman Lines Ltd. – Hall Line Ltd., Liverpool, Cargo". clydeships.co.uk. Retrieved 2 June 2021.
  2. "City of Johannesburg (British Steam merchant) – Ships hit by German U-boats during WWII – uboat.net". uboat.net. Retrieved 2 June 2021.

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