Official Number:                      115633

Laid down:

Builder:                                   J Readhead & Sons, West Yard, South Shields

Pennant No:                    Y 3.948

Launched:                               10 September 1903

Into Service:                            22 July 1916

Out of service:                         end of WW1

Fate:                                       11 April 1948 stranded and sunk

Items of historic interest involving this ship: –

Background Data:  One of an additional group of ships requisitioned by the Admiralty during WW1 to augment the ships of the RFA

Career Data:

10 September 1903 launched by J Readhead & Sons, West Yard, South Shields as Yard Nr: 372 named Ulidia for Mercantile Steamship Co of Ulster Ltd., (1903) (J Fisher & Sons, Managers) Newry

November 1903 completed

28 March 1904 arrived at the River Tyne from Hamburg

17 August 1904 arrived Hull from Nicholaieff

9 October 1909 Apprentice James Samuel Elphinstone at 49º 40N 05º 56W discharged dead having drowned

24 May 1908 at Buenos Aires Able Seaman George H Woolton discharged dead through an accident

15 November 1913 Able Seaman David Shea at Mobile, Ireland discharged dead through an accident

13 March 1914 Ordinary Seaman Wiktar Kaba at the Metropolitan Hospital, Blackwells Island, New York discharged dead from TB. Admitted to hospital on 18 February 1914

1 July 1915 sailed Baltimore

20 July 1915 passed Gibraltar sailing east

6 August 1915 Seaman E Kropp at Alexandria discharged dead having drowned

6 September 1915 arrived at Philadelphia from Alexandria

25 November 1915 Seaman Caralambus Pafranlon at Buenos Aires discharged dead through an accident

20 February 1916 Ordinary Seaman Rudolf Humble while at sea discharded dead having drowned

1916 purchased by Cliffe Steamship Co Ltd., (G T Readhead & Co, Managers) Newcastle

22 July 1916 requisitioned for Admiralty service as a collier – name unchanged – deployed to Northern Russia for the Russian Government a/c and was the released to Hudson’s Bay Co Ltd until 9 September 1916

16 December 1916 re-deployed as a collier until 17 July 1917

18 July 1917 re-deployed as a collier to Northern Russia for the Russian Government a/c until …

21 August 1917 Leading Seaman James J Peterson RNR discharged dead through illness. Buried in Kem Cemetery and remembered with pride on the Memorial in the Murmansk New British Cemetery

6 September 1917 was wrecked at Soroka in the White Sea while loading timber for the UK. Was later salvaged and repaired

1920 purchaed by D/s A/S Skaraas (Christen K Gran, Managers) Bergen and renamed Skaraas

1923 purchased by A/S Phoenix (Johan Erland, Manager) Bergen – name unchanged

1927 purchased by Skibs A/S Nanset (Iver Bugge, Manager) Larvik – name unchanged

1 March 1935 arrived at Port Said from Alexandria

1935 purchased by Hwah Sung Steamship Co Ltd., Shanghai and renamed Hwah Jang

1940 owners became U S War Shipping Administration, Panama, placed under the management of Alaska Steamship Co and renamed Coventry

2 February 1945 sailed Cristobal in unescorted convoy ZG119 to Guantanamo arriving 5 February 1945

March 1945 managers became the United Fruit Co. – name unchanged

May 1945 ran aground off Cuba – was refloated

29 May 1945 laid up

1946 returned to Hwah Sung Steamship Co Ltd., Shanghai and her name reverted to Hwah Jang

11 April 1948 stranded on Piting Rock in position 29.53N 122.31E while on passage Keelung to Shanghai with a cargo of coal and later sank