HMCS Quesnel (K133)
Encyclopedia
HMCS Quesnel was a of the Royal Canadian Navy
that took part in convoy escort duties during World War II. Named after Quesnel, British Columbia
, she was built by the Victoria Machinery Depot Company Ltd.
in Victoria, British Columbia and commissioned on May 23, 1941 at Esquimalt.
On June 20, 1942, the Imperial Japanese Navy submarine I-26
shelled the lighthouse at Estevan Point
on Vancouver Island
, while I-25
, under the command of Commander Meiji Tagami, torpedoed and shelled the freighter SS Fort Camosun off Cape Flattery. The freighter did not sink and she was towed to safety by the Quesnel into Victoria Harbour
.
The Quesnel left Esquimalt on September 13, 1942 with four other corvettes headed for Panama and the Atlantic. Transferred to the east coast to replace a ship taking part in Operation Torch
, Quesnel arrived at Halifax on October 13, 1942 and was assigned to the Western Local Escort Force
(WLEF). With the division of the force into escort groups in June 1943, she became a member of EG W-1. During this period she underwent a refit, including fo’c’s’le
extension, from early September to December 23, 1943 at Pictou, Nova Scotia. This refit was followed by workups in St. Margaret’s Bay, Nova Scotia and Bermuda.
On May 12, 1944, she picked up 17 crew members from the damaged SS Esso Pittsburgh. The Quesnel later joined the Quebec Force in the St Lawrence on June 10, 1944 and was tasked with escorting Labrador-Quebec convoys through the ice fields in the Straits of Belle Isle.
In November, 1944 she was transferred to Halifax Force, going to Sydney, Nova Scotia for refit and, on completion late in January 1945, to Bermuda for workups. She resumed escort duty late in March 1945, temporarily attached to EG W-5 and W-8 of the WLEF until the end of the war.
She brought her last convoy to Halifax in July 1945 and was decommissioned on July 3, 1945 and sold on October 5, 1945 to the United Steel and Metal Company in Hamilton, Ontario for scrapping. She was finally broken up at Hamilton
in 1946.
in the Queen Charlottes, the Quesnel sheltered from a storm in Alert Bay, BC. While ashore, some crew members removed a carved Thunderbird
from a local burial ground. The grave marker was for a man named Michael Dutch, from the Kwakwaka'wakw First Nation who died circa 1922. The crew members considered the totem a lucky talisman and had it depicted on the ship's crest. There are persistent rumours that the Thunderbird totem still exists and in 2007 some of the Quesnels former sailors issued a public plea for its return.
22 April 1941 – 4 March 1942
T/Lt. Albert Elliot Gough, RCNR
5 March 1942 – 3 April 1942
T/Lt. John Alexander Gow, RCNR
4 April 1942 – 16 November 1942
T/Lt. Murdo Smith, RCNR
17 November 1942 – 11 April 1943
T/Lt. John MacKay Laing, RCNR
12 April 1943 – 3 July 1945
Royal Canadian Navy
The history of the Royal Canadian Navy goes back to 1910, when the naval force was created as the Naval Service of Canada and renamed a year later by King George V. The Royal Canadian Navy is one of the three environmental commands of the Canadian Forces...
that took part in convoy escort duties during World War II. Named after Quesnel, British Columbia
Quesnel, British Columbia
-Demographics:Quesnel had a population of 9,326 people in 2006, which was a decrease of 7.1% from the 2001 census count. The median household income in 2005 for Quesnel was $54,044, which is slightly above the British Columbia provincial average of $52,709....
, she was built by the Victoria Machinery Depot Company Ltd.
Victoria Machinery Depot
Victoria Machinery Depot Ltd. was a ship builder located in Victoria, British Columbia, Canada.This was a historic metalworks and shipyard in Victoria, Canada. From the late 1850s on, with the Fraser Canyon and Cariboo Gold Rushes British Columbia was dependent upon Californian supplies and ships...
in Victoria, British Columbia and commissioned on May 23, 1941 at Esquimalt.
Wartime Service
Upon commissioning, the Quesnel patrolled the Pacific Coast as a member of Esquimalt Force. During the spring of 1942 she was doing anti-submarine patrols in the Straits of Georgia, the Queen Charlotte Sounds and Millbank Sounds. It was during this time that she was detailed to screen the Queen Elizabeth while she was waiting to go into drydock.Japanese submarine I-26
I-26 was a Japanese B1 type submarine which saw service in the Imperial Japanese Navy during World War II. She was completed and commissioned at the Kure Dockyard on 6 November 1941, under the command of Commander Yokota Minoru....
shelled the lighthouse at Estevan Point
Estevan Point
Estevan Point is a lighthouse located on the headland of the same name on the Hesquiat Peninsula on the west coast of Vancouver Island, Canada....
on Vancouver Island
Vancouver Island
Vancouver Island is a large island in British Columbia, Canada. It is one of several North American locations named after George Vancouver, the British Royal Navy officer who explored the Pacific Northwest coast of North America between 1791 and 1794...
, while I-25
Japanese submarine I-25
was a B1-Type submarine of the Imperial Japanese Navy that served in World War II, took part in the Attack on Pearl Harbor, and carried out the only aerial bombing on the continental United States during wartime; during the so-called Lookout Air Raid; and the Bombardment of Fort Stevens, both...
, under the command of Commander Meiji Tagami, torpedoed and shelled the freighter SS Fort Camosun off Cape Flattery. The freighter did not sink and she was towed to safety by the Quesnel into Victoria Harbour
Victoria Harbour (British Columbia)
Victoria Harbour is a harbour, seaport, and seaplane airport located in the Canadian city of Victoria, British Columbia. It serves as a cruise ship and ferry destination for tourists and visitors to the city and Vancouver Island. It is both a port of entry and an airport of entry for general...
.
The Quesnel left Esquimalt on September 13, 1942 with four other corvettes headed for Panama and the Atlantic. Transferred to the east coast to replace a ship taking part in Operation Torch
Operation Torch
Operation Torch was the British-American invasion of French North Africa in World War II during the North African Campaign, started on 8 November 1942....
, Quesnel arrived at Halifax on October 13, 1942 and was assigned to the Western Local Escort Force
Western Local Escort Force
Western Local Escort Force referred to the organization of anti-submarine escorts for World War II trade convoys from North American port cities to the Western Ocean Meeting Point near Newfoundland where ships of the Mid-Ocean Escort Force assumed responsibility for safely delivering the convoys...
(WLEF). With the division of the force into escort groups in June 1943, she became a member of EG W-1. During this period she underwent a refit, including fo’c’s’le
Forecastle
Forecastle refers to the upper deck of a sailing ship forward of the foremast, or the forward part of a ship with the sailors' living quarters...
extension, from early September to December 23, 1943 at Pictou, Nova Scotia. This refit was followed by workups in St. Margaret’s Bay, Nova Scotia and Bermuda.
On May 12, 1944, she picked up 17 crew members from the damaged SS Esso Pittsburgh. The Quesnel later joined the Quebec Force in the St Lawrence on June 10, 1944 and was tasked with escorting Labrador-Quebec convoys through the ice fields in the Straits of Belle Isle.
In November, 1944 she was transferred to Halifax Force, going to Sydney, Nova Scotia for refit and, on completion late in January 1945, to Bermuda for workups. She resumed escort duty late in March 1945, temporarily attached to EG W-5 and W-8 of the WLEF until the end of the war.
She brought her last convoy to Halifax in July 1945 and was decommissioned on July 3, 1945 and sold on October 5, 1945 to the United Steel and Metal Company in Hamilton, Ontario for scrapping. She was finally broken up at Hamilton
Hamilton, Ontario
Hamilton is a port city in the Canadian province of Ontario. Conceived by George Hamilton when he purchased the Durand farm shortly after the War of 1812, Hamilton has become the centre of a densely populated and industrialized region at the west end of Lake Ontario known as the Golden Horseshoe...
in 1946.
The Thunderbird
During the summer of 1942, while coming through Hecate StraitHecate Strait
Hecate Strait is a wide but shallow strait between the Haida Gwaii and the mainland of British Columbia, Canada. It merges with Queen Charlotte Sound to the south and Dixon Entrance to the north...
in the Queen Charlottes, the Quesnel sheltered from a storm in Alert Bay, BC. While ashore, some crew members removed a carved Thunderbird
Thunderbird (mythology)
The Thunderbird is a legendary creature in certain North American indigenous peoples' history and culture. It is considered a "supernatural" bird of power and strength...
from a local burial ground. The grave marker was for a man named Michael Dutch, from the Kwakwaka'wakw First Nation who died circa 1922. The crew members considered the totem a lucky talisman and had it depicted on the ship's crest. There are persistent rumours that the Thunderbird totem still exists and in 2007 some of the Quesnels former sailors issued a public plea for its return.
Commanding officers
T/Lt. John Alexander Gow, RCNR22 April 1941 – 4 March 1942
T/Lt. Albert Elliot Gough, RCNR
5 March 1942 – 3 April 1942
T/Lt. John Alexander Gow, RCNR
4 April 1942 – 16 November 1942
T/Lt. Murdo Smith, RCNR
17 November 1942 – 11 April 1943
T/Lt. John MacKay Laing, RCNR
12 April 1943 – 3 July 1945