# Hartley Family War Service Research



## Paul McMillen (Jan 29, 2006)

G'Day everyone. It has been a while since I spoke to all of you. You were all great sending me info when I last asked for information and photos about my Dad, George (Paddy) Campbell McMillen who worked on the MV Paringa which sailed from Belfast to Brisbane regularly in the 50's. My Dad eventually emigrated to Australia and married and so here I am. I was researching his life at the time. Thanks again to all who contacted me.

Now I am working on my wife Deb's family's War service History and have traced their members service records. Several ships are mentioned in the details and I would love to get some images of them if possible to show relatives how they travelled to war. I will list them and I hope someone out there may have access to them. Cheers Paul - Bundaberg, Queensland Australia.

On the Australian military transport routes - Stratheden, New Zealand, Strathallen, Bopple, Katoomba, Paul Chandler, General Anderson, Landing Ship Tanks '457', Manoora, and in the Middle East Dutch ship 'Costa Rica' , destroyer 'Hero'. I hope this helps you as you will know if some of these names spelling is incorrect. Paul


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## ray1buck1 (Sep 4, 2005)

paul
Try the photship web site this one is the Manoora taken at random

http://www.photoship.co.uk/JAlbum Ships/Old Ships M/slides/Manoora-01.html

This is the index, there may be some of the others that you are looking for listed 
http://www.photoship.co.uk/Search Links Ship/

Ray


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## Paul McMillen (Jan 29, 2006)

*Many thanks Ray*

G'day everyone and especially Ray, I took your tip and found:
Stratheden
Strathallen
Katoomba
Manoora and Costa Rica and HMS Hero

Does anyone have any ideas on finding
Military Transport ship 1940 to Suez 'New Zealand' embarked 1 October 1940
Military Transport 'Bopple' - Cairns to Townsville 10 April 1943
Military Transport ' Paul Chandler' Port Moresby to Brisbane 15 February 1944
Military Landing vessel " Landing Ship Tanks - 457'- Morotai for Balikpapan, British North Borneo22nd June 1945.

Your advice is much appreciated to see these links to my past. Cheers and beers. Paul


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## K urgess (Aug 14, 2006)

If you search for those ship names at Miramar there are a couple of results, Paul.
Bopple http://www.miramarshipindex.org.nz/ship/show/304600
Paul Chandler http://www.miramarshipindex.org.nz/ship/show/134292

Cheers
Kris


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## Paul McMillen (Jan 29, 2006)

Thanks Kris, Good info. I would dearly like some photos as well. Cheers Paul


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## Richard Maskiell (Apr 4, 2007)

Bopple was built for the Queensland coastal sugar and timber trade based at Maryborough. Her register was closed in 1949 when she was converted to a lighter. Suspect you'll struggle for a pic. I beleive she was named after a town in the Maryborough area called Bauple, but pronounced Bopple!


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## Paul McMillen (Jan 29, 2006)

Thanks Richard
You have filled in yet another void. We live in Bundaberg. I thought it sounded familar. Yes Bauple is just off the highway between Maryborough and Gympie. It is the place where the original Macadamia nuts came from - the Bauple nut. Hope you are taking notes as there will be test after this!! Don't I sound like a teacher! The highway used to pass through there when I was a kid on the way from Brisbane to Hervey Bay on holidays. It is now bypassed. Someone may have a snap out there. Boats and ships are as large as life. Any ideas out there? Cheers Richard for your help


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## Paul McMillen (Jan 29, 2006)

*'Shire Liners'*

G'day to all you wonderful shipping enthusiasts. You have been great with your knowledge and guidance. I now have a further lead in the Hartley family history saga. Deb, my wife's father's father was born off the Cape of Good Hope on passage to Bundaberg in Queensland Australia in 1883 on a steel sailed ship called "Nairnshire' built in 1876 by Dobie and later sold to Norway in 1905 and renamed 'Hjordis' . I have been given this info by someone who read about it in a book without a known supplied title. I don't know them to contact them again. The very poor photocopied pages have a pic of her but I can barely make her out. The chapters on the head of the pages are headed 'The Last of the Windjammers' Pages 196 and 476 and "The Clippers of the Seventies' Pages 195 -196. Does anyone have any info, leads, links or a copy of this book that they can scan with a good copy to be emailed to me. Over to you guys. Cheers and Beers. Paul


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## Richard Maskiell (Apr 4, 2007)

Paul, The book "Last of the Windjammers Volume I" is by Basil Lubbock, published by Brown Son & Ferguson in 1927 with several subsequent reprints (my copy is "Third Impression 1948"). The info on pages 196 and 476 doesn't add a lot to what you already have, although there is a berthing plan facing page 195. No photos that I can see. "The Clippers of the Seventies" is chapter 2 of the book.


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## Steve Woodward (Sep 4, 2006)

HMS Hero - member of the G,H and I class - 24 destroyers with 8 each with names begining with the letters G H and I, the followed on from the previous E and F class but with economies made on the machinery by not fitting them with cruising turbines they were some 20 feet shorter 100 tons lighter than their pre-decesors.
Hero was built by Vickers Armstrong on the Tyne laid down on the 28th February 1935, launched on 10th March 1936 and commissioned 21st October 1936, November 1943 sold to canada and renamed HMCS Chaudiere, August 1945 paid off into lay-up awaiting disposal, and sold for scrap to the 
Dominion Steel Company during 1948 with the deed being carried out in 1950
L 323' B 33 Dr 13'04" Disp 1340 tons Standard and 1980 tons full load
Machinery : twin screw parsons geared turbines, 3 admiralty 3 drum O/F boilers 34,000 SHP 36 knots , bunkers 460 tons FFO 
Armament : four single shielded 4.7" C45 QF Mk9 guns - the G,H and I class could elevate the guns to 40 dgrees without the need for a gun well - literally a deep trough surrounding the gun allowing the beech of the gun to be loaded at 40 degrees, this was a good weapon against surface craft but a 40 degree max elevation made it useless for AA role, AA guns six single 20 Oerlikons and two 6 pounders.
Torpedoes two sets quadruple 21" tubes -8 torpedoes - no reloads
Two sets Mk4 depth charge throwers and two rails plus 45 charges,
Just prior to the hand-over to canada she was changed to a long range escort with the removal of two of her 4.7" guns and one set of torpedo tubes, depth charges were increased to 125 and a hedgehog 24 bomb spigot ASW mortar fitted.
Hero had a hard and well fought war with a distinguised record she participated in the sinking of two Uboatd - U568 and U559, took part in the Narvik battles, took part in the sinking of the Italian cruiser Bartolomeo Colleoni ( battle of Cape Spada) Med convoys, Malta runs - her list is almost endless.

For pictures of her click HERE also gives her full service history
Steve


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## Paul McMillen (Jan 29, 2006)

*Hartley Service History*

G'Day Steve, Many thanks for your reply. I must admit it has been a while since I checked out this site and was pleasantly surprised to see your post. It was a great lift to my spirits. My wife Deb and I walked 'The Kokoda Track' this time last year and I have been do***enting the experience in our self produced diary for family and friends as well as creating a DVD of all our huge number of photos into movie format with music and songs as a background.Your efforts are sincerely appreciated and fill in another piece of the story. Now where is that keyboard..........Best wishes and cheers Paul


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## Roger Griffiths (Feb 10, 2006)

Hello,
A little off topic.
There is an excellent piece on the Kokoda Trail in issue 137 of the British publication "After the Battle" Contains lots of photographs from WW2.
If you have not seen this, just Google After the Battle and you should be able to obtain a copy.
In the same issue, there is also a well researched chapter on the WW2 Merchant Navy POW camp at Milag Nord.

Roger


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