Queen City (2)
Comments from the forum - 1
I joined the M.V. Queen City as Junior Engineer at Salford Docks in August 1963. The ship was discharging grain from Thevenard, South Australia. Jakie Vaughan who was stand by Master took all the newcomers to the Mercantile Marine Office to sign on old style.
The officer complement on sailing as far as I can remember was as follows:
Master: Albert Justin, C/O: Tony Lightfoot, 2/O: Geoff Garlick, 3/O: N/A, Apps: Pete Hemnel, Clancy Collins, Jimmy Shepherd, and Woody Woodward, R/O: Chris Knight, C/E: Steve Willis, 2/E: Willie Shears, 3/E: Jock Morrison, 4/E: Haggis Lapsley, J/E: Jinxy Jenkins, John Snowball, and T Graham-Russel, Elec: Wilfie Carr.
We loaded salt in Torrevieja for Osaka and stayed East of Suez for a long, long time. Eventually we arrived back in Hamburg where we paid off. Tex Graham-Russell. Posted on Forum 6 September 2009.
I joined RSL in 1965 as deck apprentice on Queen City in Birkenhead.Sold her to the Greeks 12 months later. Nick (Oscar) Winnington. Posted on Forum 27 November 2010.
Nick this may be a long shot but the reason I joined RSL was a school friend of mine was a deck cadet with RSL at the same time as you.
His name was Alan (Haggis) MacAlmont, a big ginger haired lad from Edinburgh.
Approx 2 months ago after a lot of detective work I made email contact with Alan in the USA, he is a senior cargo executive with a world leading shipping company. John C Gardiner Lekie. Posted on Forum 27 November 2010.
Yes indeed I do remember Haggis ,that's how I remember him his proper name I wouldn't have recognised . We both joined the Queen City as first trippers at the same time.We did a Union castle charter to East Africa, then Mauritius for sugar back to UK, then a couple of trips to Norfolk Va with tobacco to Bristol and Liverpool and finally Albany NY for grain to India then Mauritius, sugar again to liverpool where we sold the aging Queen to the Greeks. Nick (Oscar) Winnington. Posted on Forum 27 November 2010.
The following report is an extract from “Hansard” dated 22nd April 1953,
British Grain Ships, Vancouver. HC Deb 22 April 1953 vol 514 c1147 1147
"§ 10. Mr. Gower
asked the Minister of Food what steps he is taking to deal with the problems arising from the detention at Vancouver of British grain-ships chartered by his Department, owing to a strike of elevator workers at that port.
Dr. Hill
Some of the ships are making intermediate voyages pending the end of the strike, while others are being released from charter.
§ Mr. Gower
May I ask, first, whether this involves my hon. Friend's Department in a direct financial loss? Second, has my hon. Friend any news of the "Queen City," owned by Reardon-Smith, Ltd., of Cardiff, and chartered by his Department, which has been detained at Vancouver since 17th February last? Has he thought of arranging for the vendors to ship this cargo from the two elevators unaffected by the strike or from another port where there is no strike?
Dr. Hill
Following a letter from the hon. Member two days ago on a particular aspect of this matter, inquiries are being made and a reply will be sent to him in due course."
As a footnote to the above, older members may recall that Dr.Hill, who was Minister of Food, in Churchill’s 1951 Tory government, later, as Lord Hill, became the first Director of ITV. Even older members, will remember that through the later years of WW2 and after, he was known as the Radio Doctor: he would babble on just after (before?) the 0800 BBC news giving health advice in those austere years. MikeJones. Posted on Forum 9 December 2010.
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