Royal Canadian Navy :
Historical Photos & Christmas Cards

134 PHOTOS, THREE CREW LISTS & FIVE VIDEO LINKS IN THIS SECTION

This section contains historical photos related to the RCN. If you have any photos in your family album, taken by yourself, or perhaps a friend or relative, please send me a scan as I would love to use it in this section. Items are listed more or less as received from website users.

Surnames in this section: This is not a complete list – for example, the complete ships' companies of HMCS Aurora, Niobe, Patrician, Patriot, and Rainbow are listed, per the 1911 and 1921 censuses. The casualties of HMCS Athabaskan, which was sunk April 29, 1944, are also not listed here. Adams, Akers, Alexander, Allen, Ambler, Aris, Arkwright, Armstrong, Arnott, Arpin, Ashley, Atherton, Atkinson, Auckland, Bankes, Barnard, Beal, Beaupre, Bell, Bennet, Benson, Biletchi, Binnie, Birchall, Blackhurst, Block, Blyth, Boak, Bordinuck, Borglund, Bowen, Boyd, Bridgman, Bronson, Brosseau, Browett, Brown, Brownless, Callanan, Campbell, Carmichael, Carr, Carter, Charron, Cherry, Christie, Clark, Clarke, Clason, Clement, Colburn, Cole, Commerford, Connors, Corbet, Couvrette, Coyle, Creber, Creechan, Creed, Crocker, Crockett, Crone, Culmer, Davis, Dawson, Day, De'Ath, Dean, Denny, Derouin, Dicy, Domshy, Donaldson, Douglas, Dubbs, Duhamel, Dunn, Duy, Eaglesham, Ecclis, Edwards, Ellliott, Fenwick, Forbes, Fox, Fraser, Gagnier, Gallant, Galletly, George, Ghel, Gillespie, Gillis, Giroux, Glover, Goldfinch, Gourley, Grant, Granville, Gray, Greason, Greer, Gregory, Gunn, Haggett, Hale, Haliday, Hall, Hamm, Handley, Hansen, Harrison, Hart, Hatt, Hawkins, Heaney, Hearn, Helfrich, Hildebrand, Hill, Hindle, Holowaty, Hood, Hopper, Howe, Hughes, Hutchison, Isbell, Jamieson, Jeandron, Jefferson, Jenkins, Johnson, Johnston, Jones, Kennedy, Kernaghan, Kiren, Kite, Knight, Knox, La Roche, Laliberte, Lang, Langley, Lapierre, Lawrie, Lee, LeGier, Leitch, Leonard, LeVere, Lindley, Livingstone, Long, Longbottom, Longstaff, Lowe, MacDonald, MacIntosh, MacLellan, MacMillan, MacPhee, Makeranko, Marlatt, Marner, Martin, Mazur, McCort(?), McCullough, McDougall, McDowell, McEwan, McEwen, McGinnis, McGuire, McKendry, McKenzie, McLaughlan, McLure, McMillan, McMurdo, McNeil, McWilliams, Meek, Mercer, Meredith, Merril, Miller, Mitchell, Montague, Montgomery, Monture, Moore, Morel, Morina, Morrison, Mosley, Moxham, Murchy, Murray, Musgrave, Nairn, Naughton, Nelson, Newell, Nicolson, Oberich(?), Olson, Page, Parker, Passerini, Patterson, Pattison, Paxton, Peach, Pearson, Peebles, Pelletier, Perks, Philley, Poirier, Pope, Porth, Pronych, Randall, Rayworth, Rees, Reid, Rennie, Richard, Richards, Riordon, Ritchie, Robertson, Robinson, Roruiq, Ross, Rowland, Ryan, Samson, Schwager, Seaborn, Seal, Seeley, Seguin, Seymour, Silvester, Simmons, Simpson, Sivertz, Small, Smith, Sockett, Somerville, Spanik, Spears, Speers, Spence, Sproston, St Pierre, Stapleton, Starr, Stevens, Storey, Stutley, Swainson, Sykes, Talling, Tassell, Taylor, Theriault, Thivierge, Thomas, Thompson, Tinkess, Trottier, Turbide, Turcot, Tushingham, Vokey, Vollet, Wade, Walters, Webber, Webster, White, Wickens, Wilkinson, Williamson, Wilson, Womack, Wood, Wright, Yorke, Young.

Ships or crews shown in this section: HMCS Beacon Hill, HMCS Bonaventure, HMCS Carlplace, HMCS Chilliwack, HMCS Cornwallis, HMCS Drumheller, HMCS Forest Hill, HMCS Huron, HMCS Iroquois, HMCS Kamsack, HMCS Kings, HMCS Loch Morlich, HMCS Minas, HMCS Naden, HMCS Niobe, HMCS Nootka, HMCS Ontario, HMCS Peregrine, HMCS Prince Robert, HMCS Rainbow, HMCS Quebec, HMCS St Laurent, HMCS Sioux, HMCS Ste Therese, HMCS Thetford Mines, HMCS York, HMT Thalia or HMT Jackdaw, ML 085. Section revised Jan 10, 2024.

Crew list of HMCS Niobe, 1911. A sortable and printable list of 575 names of the crew of HMCS Niobe, transcribed from the 1911 Canadian census, and with additional information from other sources. Should display correctly on your hand-held device. Crew list of HMCS Rainbow, 1911. A sortable and printable list of 214 names of the crew of HMCS Rainbow, plus 12 names of the crew of HMCS Kestrel, transcribed from the 1911 Canadian census, and with additional information from other sources. Should display correctly on your hand-held device. A link to a photo of William Edward Elliott has been added beside his name in the list. Some Crew Members of HMCS Rainbow, in 1914. Group photo of three officers, seven Petty Officers and 21 men of HMCS Rainbow, shown on March 13, 1914. Photo was posted on Facebook on March 13, 2022, by Richard Blackwolf. Photo added March 13, 2022. Crew lists of HMCS Patriot, Patrician & Aurora, 1921. A sortable and printable list of 496 names of the crew of HMCS Patriot, Patrician & Aurora, transcribed from the 1921 Canadian census images on Ancestry.com. These lists seem to have been compiled from pay records and not from actual census interviews, but I have no proof of that. Should display correctly on your hand-held device. Marines of HMS Niobe, about 1900. Niobe was handed over to Canada in 1909 and became her first warship: HMCS Niobe. Photo is a stereoscope slide. HMCS Niobe, before 1911. Postcard mailed in 1911 showing HMCS Niobe, Canada's first warship. Andrew Boyd Handley of HMCS Niobe. He appears in the crew list of HMCS Rainbow in 1911, and he was photographed on HMCS Niobe in the 19-teens. William Ireland Creed of HMCS Niobe. Two photos of him, one possibly taken on HMCS Niobe. Also a photo of his wife, Mary Ann Elizabeth Hill, plus a short biography. John Montague of HMCS Niobe. A faded and water-damaged photo of John Montague, an English boy who was put into the Royal Navy for stealing a pair of boots in London. William Rennie of HMCS Niobe. It's not certain yet that this is William Rennie, but this photo was found in the papers of Elizabeth Rennie, and this man may be her brother. HMCS Niobe, Model Lifebuoy. Once owned by William Truscott's great-uncle, who served on HMCS Niobe as a Ship­wright. The model is about 10 inches across. Unidentified HMCS Niobe and HMCS Rainbow crew members. Two photos purchased on Ebay by William Truscott. This is an outside link to James White's Flickr photo album with about 90 photos of crew members of HMCS Niobe. Click/tap any photo in the album to see a full size version. Added February 2, 2021. Crew of HMCS Ste Therese, 1944. Two photos taken in Bermuda, August 4, 1944. A partial crew list is included. Men identified in the photo are: Glover, Lindley, McGinnis. Crew of HMCS Chilliwack, 1945. Official crew photo taken in Ireland, June, 1945. Only one man is identified: Gerald James Ryan. A link is given to a full-size photo. HMCS Chilliwack, 1944. Four photos & 3 news clippings. Crew photo taken c. 1944 includes 38 signatures with home towns & link to full-size photo with 8 identified. Also photo of boarding party with all 11 identified. Surnames so far: Atherton, Biletchi, Commerford, Dunn, Hearn, Jenkins, Kennedy, Lawrie, Long, Longbottom, MacMillan, Makeranko, Martin, McMurdo, Passerini, Ryan, Sequin, Starr, Wilson. Revised April 11, 2021. News stories about HMCS Chilliwack and its involvement in the sinking of U-744, and also about HMCS Cayuga's destruction of German E-boats. Added April 29, 2021. Gerald James Ryan of HMCS Chilliwack. Three photos of him taken during WW 2; two in RCN uniform and the other as a merchant navy seaman. HMCS Beacon Hill crew, 1945-46. An undated publicity photo with the four crew members identified. Surnames: Bankes, Corbet, Morina, Smith. HMCS Beacon Hill crew, 1945-46. Thanks to James Bankes for two photos: one of 11 men and a PO, reputedly from HMCS Beacon Hill, and the other a portrait of Russ Spears, ship unknown. James's father, Reginald Vincent Bankes, is the only man identified in the group photo. Crew of HMCS Prince Robert, 1943. Official DND crew photo is from the collection of Ken Lloyd, and dated December 28th 1943. Only Kenneth William Helfrich, John ("Jack") McKirdy Miller and Harry Lorne Sykes are identified. A link is given to a full-size photo. Sailors of The Queen. A rare look at our past: the ships and sailors that participated in the Queen's Coronation in 1953. This is a 20-minute video from CBC archives.

A Stoker's War, 1941-1945. This 50-minute home doc­u­ment­ary on YouTube shares personal photo­graphs taken by Leading Stoker Gilbert Davis, as he narrates stories of his navy experiences; from joining the Royal Canadian Navy in 1941 and defending Canada's west coast aboard the HMCS Bellechasse to his service on the HMCS Merrit­tonia escorting Merchant Marine convoys across the Atlantic Ocean to provision needed supplies to England and the European allies, through to the mass surrendering of the German U-boat fleet on the Foyle River near Londonderry in Northern Ireland at the end of the war.

Recorded while nearing his 90th birthday, Gilbert's recol­lec­tions are of daily war-time service life rather than disting­uished battles, told in a manner that only a dedicated service­man could deliver; his emotion resonant as he describes the saving of a single survivor from a torpedoed supply ship. One of only a few service­men who traveled with a personal camera during the war, Gilbert Davis shares his experiences through his own photos and words.

Basic Training in Western Canada. Possibly the grad­ua­tion photo of 15 men in basic training, in or near Calgary, about 1944. All are identified. Surnames are: Boyd, Brown, Campbell, Colburn, Dicy, Gagnier, Gray, Hart, Holowaty, Hood, Kite, Monture, Ober­ich(?), St Pierre. HMCS Ontario, 1945. Three photos, one taken in Hong Kong & two in Pearl Harbour, after Japan's surrender. Two photos are of the ship's company mustered on a jetty. Surnames: Grant, St Pierre. Submitted by Al Brosseau, whose email address no longer works. HMCS Naden, 1958/59 Comm School. Trade Group 1 graduation photo of 10 men plus an officer & 2 POs. Only 5 men identified. Surnames so far: Domshy, Duhamel, Duy, Nairn, Richards. Unknown Ships in PWC Drydock. Three photos, two of an unknown RCN destroyer, and one of what might be HMCS Provider, in drydock in Esquimalt, BC, late 1980's. HMCS York, Ottawa Division, 1944. Two photos; one a basic training graduation photo. Identified are: Herbert Pope & LS Bill Webber. Also a 2nd photo of Herbert Pope who later sailed on HMCS Carlplace – see the adjacent photo. Crew of HMCS Carlplace. Commissioned Dec. 13, 1944, she was the last RCN frigate to enter service. PO Perks, Herbert Pope and possibly LtCdr Charles E. Wright, ship's captain, are identified. Revised Nov. 11, 2021. HMCS Thetford Mines With Some Crew Names. Two photos – one of the ship at sea and one of the crew signatures on the back (most are damaged). The only name mentioned is Anthony (Tony) Mazur. A Naval Family, 1919 & 1945. Two photos sent me by Don Montgomery shows his father and three older brothers, all of whom served in the RCN during WW2; his father also in WW1. Crew of HMCS Sioux, – 182 men gathered on the foc'sle, 1944. Identified are Boak, Eaglesham, Mitchell, Montgomery, Nicolson, Robinson, Turcot. Revised Jan. 10, 2024. Commonwealth War Graves in Hong Kong. Six photos sent me by Jim Diggins showing scenes of the well-maintained Sai Wan War Cemetery. Unidentified WW2 Sailors. This photo was found in a thrift store in Campbell River, BC. Can you identify anyone? Jim & Doris Alexander. Two photos of a WW2-era sailor, Jim Alexander and his wife Doris. Photos probably taken in Toronto. More info is needed. HMCS Cornwallis Silver Medal, 1944-45. Two photos, front and back of a silver hockey medal from HMCS Cornwallis, engraved with name of L/S E.A.W Newman. More info is needed. A link was added to a photo of the team. HMCS Bonaventure Crew, 1960's. Three photos – one of the crew of HMCS Bonaventure, and two of collision damage to the bow of HMCS Chaudiere. HMCS Cornwallis Gun Crew, 1962. MacKenzie Division, 66-man gun crew. HMCS Huron & St Laurent, 1944. Three photos – one of ice-covered HMCS Huron, one of the upper deck of HMCS St Laurent, and one of a battleship, possibly one of the three "Prince Class" armed merchant ships in the RCN. HMCS Cornwallis Phys Ed, 1944-45. Three photos, originally owned by PT instructor Kenneth W. Helfrich, taken during WW2. Most are unident­i­fied. Surnames so far: Arnott, Dawson, Dubbs, Ecclis, Edwards, Goldfinch, Helfrich, Kiren, Langley, Roruiq, Rowland. HMCS Peregrine Hockey Team, 1945. Thanks to Ed Creechan for these two photos of the HMCS Peregrine hockey team. Ed's father, James Creechan, is the only player identified. HMCS Protector II, 1943. Thanks to Colin Gillis for these two photos one of "Anson Division", HMCS Protector II, with 64 men, and the other with 23 men. Colin's father, Ronald Edward Gillis, is the only one identified. HMCS York, July, 1944. Thanks to Paul Mak for two photos – front and back of M83 Division, showing 24 petty officer recruits plus their division leader. In addition to Paul's grandfather, Charles Samuel Browett, there are 23 signa­tures: Balearras, Bud, Garvey, Gerold, Glassic?, Gray, Hammond, Harris, Lachapelle, Lawton, Lobattan(?), Maclean, McArthur, Muir, Mulvinna, Murphy, Perin?, Power, Ross, Summers, Woodward. HMCS St Hyacinthe, 1942. Thanks to Jamie MacLellan for this photo of a Telegraphy course, Aug. 2 - Oct. 30, 1942. His father, James Michael MacLellan, is the only one identified. Added November 12, 2022. HMCS St Hyacinthe, 1943. Thanks to Jamie MacMillan for two photos – one of members of a Telegraphy course, June 3, 1943, and the other of an unknown group, but possibly HMCS Montcalm. His father, John MacMillan, is the only one identified. Added April 29, 2021. HMCS St Hyacinthe, 1945. Thanks to Jason Wryghte for this photo of the shore patrol of HMCS St Hyacinthe. Surnames: Alexander, Clason, Coyle, Ghel, Granville, John­ston, La Roche, Leonard, Living­stone, Long­staff, McCul­lough, McDowell, McMillan, McNeil, Musgrave, Naughton, Nelson, Randall, Small, Smith, Sockett, Taylor, Tinkess, Trottier, Vollet, White, Wilkin­son, Yorke. What happened to HMCS Prince Robert's clock? Don West knows, and here are three photos to prove it. HMCS Kings, Glasgow II Div., Officer Training, 1944. Thanks to Andrew Wright for this photo of 24 officers. All are identified. Surnames: Allen, Auckland, Charron, Denny, Fraser, George, Greason, Hale, Hindle, Marner, McDougall, McEwen, McLure, Meredith, Morel, Moxham, Parker, Seaborn, Sivertz, Smith, Somerville, Talling, Wade, Wood. Added June 27, 2022. HMCS Kings, York II Div., Officer Training, 1945. Thanks to J.A. Newman for this photo of 18 officers. All are identified. Surnames: Arpin, Carter, Clarke, Crone, Hart, Hawkins, Knox, McKenzie, Miller, Page, Philley, Reid, Seaborn, Seal, Sivertz, Sproston, Swain­son, Wood. HMCS Athabaskan, Memorial Plaques. Thanks to Yvan Martin­eau for two photos of memorial plaques – one in the village of Brignogan in Britany, France, commemorating the sinking of HMCS Athabaskan, with the loss of 128 crew members. The second photo, in a naval war museum on Pointe de St-Mathieu, shows a plaque with the names of the dead. HMCS Cornwallis, Terra Nova Div., 1958-59. Thanks to Gord Cunningham for this photo of the graduating class of Terra Nova Division (Nov 3, 1958 to March 30, 1959). A photo of the men's signatures on the back of the photo is also provided. Two men are identified: Ronald Seburn Bridgman and Jim Hall. HMCS New Glasgow
This man has been re-united with his lost photo. He was ident­i­fied as Doug De'Ath of Campbell River, who joined the RCN in 1954. Thanks to Kerr Anderson for three photos related to the naval career of his wife's maternal grandfather, Robert Forbes. Also identified is CPO Robert Roy. A group photo shows crew members of a British armed trawler, almost certainly HMT Thalia or HMT Jackdaw. Thanks to William Gard for this panoramic photo of the crew of HMCS Kootenay, taken in March, 1960. Thanks to William Gard for these 18 photos of the 49th com­mem­orative service for the crew members of HMCS Kootenay who were killed in the RCN's worst peace­time accident, October 23, 1969. Surnames so far: Aris, Ashley, Bell, Birchall, Bowen, Boyd, Bronson, Brown, Christie, Connors, Couvrette, Crockett, Fenwick, Fox, Galletly, Gourley, Gregory, Haggett, Hamm, Hildebrand, Hopper, Hughes, Jefferson, Johnson, Lapierre, Lee, LeGier, MacDonald, MacPhee, Mazur, McGuire, Miller, Montague, Moore, Mosley, Richard, Rowland, Stutley, Theriault, Walters, White, Wickens, Womack. Names added May 1, 2022. Thanks to William Gard for this undated photo of crew members of HMCS Huron (I) Thanks to William Gard for this photo of HMCS Nootka seen up close during a jackstay transfer about 1953. Thanks to Greg Trudeau for this photo of a mixed group of Army, Navy and Air Force men, pre-1967, at HMCS Cornwallis (the cap tallies all are Cornwallis), but the purpose of the group is a mystery. Thanks to Cam Longhurst for this photo of HMCS Quebec tied up in Copenhagen, May 24, 1954. Thanks to Doug MacBean for two photos of his brother, Dennis Stapleton, who died February 12, 2019. Dennis served on HMCS Micmac and HMCS Magnificent in the 1950's, and in recent times was a volunteer on the Haida in Hamilton, as a Sparker in the radio room – watch the YouTube video of him teaching Morse Code. This painting by naval artist Dale Byhre, was commissioned by William Truscott, to honour his father's 93rd birthday in April, 2019, and to com­mem­orate the four gen­er­ations of William's family who served at sea in one of the ships in this painting: HMS Ocean, HMCS Niobe, HMCS Thunder, and HMCS Terra Nova. A 14-minute video on Youtube titled: "HMCS Bonaventure (1945-1970) of the Royal Canadian Navy". Informative and enjoyable. Thanks to Bob Moore for this official RCN photo of the crew of HMCS Loch Morlich, taken in 1944 or 1945. One of the crew members is his grandfather, Engine Room Artificer Joseph Kee Pearson. HMCS Cornwallis, 1968. Thanks to Earl Storey for this photo he posted on Facebook, of Skeena 1/68 Division. This was the second-last 16-week course before the changeover to tri-service basic training. Earl is the only one identified. HMCS Kamsack, Oct., 1943, crew photo with names. Thanks to Richard Bowes for this photo owned by his brother-in-law. Everyone is identified, but with quest­ions about rank, etc. Sur­names: Adams, Armstrong, Atkinson, Beal, Beaupre, Bennet, Berglund, Binnie, Block, Blyth, Brosseau, Callanan, Carmichael, Carr, Cherry, Clark, Clement, Cole, Crocker, Culmer, Davis, Dean, Derouin, Donaldson, Gallant, Giroux, Greer, Gunn, Haliday, Hatt, Heaney, Howe, Isbell, Jamieson, Jeandron, Johnston, Jones, Kernaghan, Knight, Laliberte, LeVere, MacLellan, Marlatt, Martin, McEwan, McWilliams, Meek, Mercer, Merril, Newell, Olson, Patterson, Paxton, Peach, Peebles, Pelletier, Poirier, Porth, Richards, Ritchie, Robertson, Ross, Samson, Seeley, Seymour, Speers, Tassell, Taylor, Thomas, Thompson, Tushingham, Webster, Williamson, Wood, Young. Corrected February 2, 2021. On April 2, 1959, Allan or Allen Moore of Magog, QC, was killed, along with three other men, when their Tracker aircraft botched a landing on HMCS Bonaventure, and crashed into the ocean. Many thanks to René Audet for two 2004 clippings from a Magog newspaper com­mem­orating the tragedy. The Halifax VE-Day Riots, May 7 & 8, 1945, were shameful days for the RCN. After victory in Europe was announced, rioting broke out in downtown Halifax. When peace was restored the centre of the city was in ruins; three people had died, hundreds were injured, and millions of dollars in damage was inflicted. This is an eye-witness account by navy medic Don Douglas, in a letter written to his family the day after the riot. Names mentioned: Jack Akers, Admiral Murray. Photos of damage from the 1945 Halifax Riot. Thanks to William Gard for these four photos taken just after the 1945 Halifax Riot. Some looted stores are shown, with bystanders peering through the broken windows. Added March 13, 2022. 'My Royal Canadian Navy Memories' is a Youtube video by Peter Pronych, who says: "(The video) covers the period (I spent) in the regular RCN force from 1958 to 1964 as a General List Officer. It covers most of the ports of call visited while serving on Her Majesty's ships. The first tour began on the HMCS Ste Therese on the West Coast, followed by short tour on HMCS Chaudiere, and final tour on HMCS Columbia on the East Coast before changing to Reserve RCN status to attend Dalhousie University, and training UNTD Navy Cadets during the entire summer break on both coasts at sea on Gate Vessels and on shore at HMCS Cornwallis." Thanks to David Arkwright for two photos – the one above and one of ships' badges – of the 'Match­maker Squadron', circa 1963-65. Shown are David, two unidentified men from HMCS Columbia, and Barnie Barnard in civies. Badges are of HMCS Columbia, USS Hammersberg, HMS Leander, and Hr Ms Overussel. Revised Oct. 4, 2023.

Memorial to Guy Maurice Clement Joseph Theriault, (1922-2017).

Guy served as a stoker on HMCS Athabaskan G07, and survived her sinking in 1944, with severe burns. Back in Montreal before his 22nd birthday, he drove a navy ambulance for the rest of the war. He passed away in 2017 at the age of 95. Added Jan. 25, 2021.

Wartime Album Brings 150 Sailors Back To Life. Thanks to William Gard for a link to this Royal Navy website item. It tells of how historians hope to trace the descendants and relatives of every sailor hosted by the Casey family in Queens, New York, during WW2. They kept photos & bios on most of the men who passed through their house, maintaining contact with some after the war. An amazing story. Revised June 10, 2021. Crew of HMCS Iroquois, 1942. This photo was posted on Facebook by CFB Esquimalt Naval and Military Museum, and is dated December 1, 1942, the day after she was commissioned. The FB posting is included and a man is identified: Surname is Pattison. Revised Sept. 8, 2023. Equator-crossing certificate awarded in 1955 to Lt(E) C.J. McLaughlan, of HMCS Quebec. Leaving Halifax 14 January, 1955, they followed the coast of Africa, visiting ports along the way; back through the Suez Canal to the Mediterranian, visiting Suez, Port Said, Alexandria, Nice, Barcelona, and Gibraltar, before returning to Halifax 15 April. Added Dec. 29, 2021. HMCS Cornwallis – Crusader Division (Aug. - Dec., 1952) group of 53 men, 1 CPO & 1 officer. Surnames: Allen, Blackhurst, Brownless, Davis, Harrison, Howe, Hutchison, Johnson, Jones, MacIntosh, McCort(?), McKendry, Morrison, Murchy, Pattison, Rees, Schwager, Spanik, Spence, Stevens. Added Sept. 17, 2022. Crew members and visitors on board Fairmile ML085. This motor launch was commissioned in June, 1942, and based at HMCS Fort Ramsey, Gaspé. Added Jan. 24, 2023. Thanks to Bill Gard for this photo of members of the Chiefs & PO's Mess on HMCS Forest Hill. He says the photo is circa 1945. Only man identified is Henry Silvester. Added Feb. 23, 2023. Thanks to Bill Gard for two photos – one of crew members, c.1943/45, on HMCS Drumheller, and the other of an unofficial version of the ship's crest. The only crew member identified is Irvine Ambler. Revised March 20, 2023. Thanks to Patrick Gillespie for a photo of 80 crew members of HMCS Minas, taken in Plymouth, England in July, 1945. Included is a complete list of names. Added April 14, 2023. Before WW2, Eric Riordon was a successful landscape artist. He joined the RCNVR, served in convoy escorts, and made a series of 34 paintings of the ships and events of a typical convoy travelling from St. John's NL to Great Britain. He died in 1948. In 1950 there was an exhibition of these paintings called North Atlantic Convoy. The exhibition travelled across Canada until October of 1952, when the paintings were sold and otherwise dispersed. The website ericriordon.ca attempts to digitally recreate that exhibition and there is the hope that 7 missing paintings may be located. Added Nov. 17, 2023.

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CHRISTMAS CARDS

FIVE CHRISTMAS CARDS IN THIS SECTION

This section contains images of Christmas Cards, listed in order of ship or establishment.

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NRS Churchill, circa 1955. HMCS Grandmere. Unknown date. HMCS Lanark, circa 1957-59. HMCS Springhill. Before 1945. HMCS St Croix. Unknown date.

Email me if you have corrections or comments.