HMCS ''Cowichan'' was a that served in the

Royal Canadian Navy The Royal Canadian Navy (RCN; french: Marine royale canadienne, ''MRC'') is the Navy, naval force of Canada. The RCN is one of three environmental commands within the Canadian Armed Forces. As of 2021, the RCN operates 12 frigates, four attack s ...

during the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

. She saw action in the

Battle of the Atlantic The Battle of the Atlantic, the longest continuous military campaign in World War II, ran from 1939 to the defeat of Nazi Germany in 1945, covering a major part of the naval history of World War II. At its core was the Allied naval blockade ...

and the

Invasion of Normandy Operation Overlord was the codename for the Battle of Normandy, the Allied operation that launched the successful invasion of German-occupied Western Europe during World War II. The operation was launched on 6 June 1944 (D-Day) with the Norm ...

. After the war she was sold for mercantile use. She was named for

Cowichan Valley The Cowichan Valley is a region around the Cowichan River, Cowichan Bay and Cowichan Lake on Vancouver Island, in British Columbia, Canada. There is some debate as to the origin of the name Cowichan, which many believe to be an anglicized form ...

British Columbia British Columbia (commonly abbreviated as BC) is the westernmost province of Canada, situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. It has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that include rocky coastlines, sandy beaches, ...

Design and description

A British design, the ''Bangor''-class minesweepers were smaller than the preceding s in British service, but larger than the in Canadian service.Chesneau, p. 64Macpherson and Barrie, p. 167 They came in two versions powered by different engines; those with a

diesel engine The diesel engine, named after Rudolf Diesel, is an internal combustion engine in which ignition of the fuel is caused by the elevated temperature of the air in the cylinder due to mechanical compression; thus, the diesel engine is a so-call ...

s and those with vertical triple-expansion steam engines. ''Cowichan'' was of the latter design and was larger than her diesel-engined cousins. ''Cowichan'' was

long overall __NOTOC__ Length overall (LOA, o/a, o.a. or oa) is the maximum length of a vessel's hull measured parallel to the waterline. This length is important while docking the ship. It is the most commonly used way of expressing the size of a ship, and ...

, had a

beam Beam may refer to: Streams of particles or energy *Light beam, or beam of light, a directional projection of light energy **Laser beam *Particle beam, a stream of charged or neutral particles **Charged particle beam, a spatially localized grou ...

of and a draught of . The minesweeper had a

displacement Displacement may refer to: Physical sciences Mathematics and Physics *Displacement (geometry), is the difference between the final and initial position of a point trajectory (for instance, the center of mass of a moving object). The actual path ...

of . She had a complement of 6 officers and 77 enlisted. ''Cowichan'' had two vertical triple-expansion steam engines, each driving one shaft, using steam provided by two

Admiralty three-drum boiler Three-drum boilers are a class of water-tube boiler used to generate steam, typically to power ships. They are compact and of high evaporative power, factors that encourage this use. Other boiler designs may be more efficient, although bulkier, an ...

s. The engines produced a total of and gave a maximum speed of . The minesweeper could carry a maximum of of

fuel oil Fuel oil is any of various fractions obtained from the distillation of petroleum (crude oil). Such oils include distillates (the lighter fractions) and residues (the heavier fractions). Fuel oils include heavy fuel oil, marine fuel oil (MFO), bun ...

. ''Cowichan'' was armed with a single quick-firing (QF) /40 caliber Mk IV gun mounted forward. This was later replaced with a 12-pounder () 12 cwt HA gun.Macpherson, p. 19 For anti-aircraft purposes, the minesweeper was equipped with one QF 2-pounder Mark VIII and two single-mounted QF 20 mm Oerlikon guns. The 2-pounder gun was later replaced with a powered twin 20 mm Oerlikon mount. As a convoy escort, ''Cowichan'' was deployed with 40

depth charge A depth charge is an anti-submarine warfare (ASW) weapon. It is intended to destroy a submarine by being dropped into the water nearby and detonating, subjecting the target to a powerful and destructive Shock factor, hydraulic shock. Most depth ...

s launched from two depth charge throwers and four chutes.

Service history

''Cowichan'' was ordered on 23 February 1940 as part of the 1939–40 shipbuilding programme. The minesweeper was laid down on 24 April 1940 by North Vancouver Ship Repairs Ltd. at

North Vancouver North Vancouver may refer to: *North Vancouver (city), a city in British Columbia, Canada * North Vancouver (district municipality), a district municipality in British Columbia, Canada * North Vancouver (electoral district), a federal electoral di ...

and launched on 8 September later that year. The ship was commissioned into the Royal Canadian Navy on 7 April 1941 at Vancouver, British Columbia.Macpherson and Barrie, p. 170 After commissioning, ''Cowichan'' transferred to the east coast, arriving in September 1941. She worked up at Bermuda and upon her return, was assigned to the Halifax Local Defence Force for local patrol and minesweeping duty. In January 1942, she transferred to

Newfoundland Force Newfoundland and Labrador (; french: Terre-Neuve-et-Labrador; frequently abbreviated as NL) is the easternmost province of Canada, in the country's Atlantic region. The province comprises the island of Newfoundland and the continental region ...

. ''Cowichan'' was assigned to escort group 4.1.17 alongside the

destroyer In naval terminology, a destroyer is a fast, manoeuvrable, long-endurance warship intended to escort larger vessels in a fleet, convoy or battle group and defend them against powerful short range attackers. They were originally developed in ...

corvette A corvette is a small warship. It is traditionally the smallest class of vessel considered to be a proper (or " rated") warship. The warship class above the corvette is that of the frigate, while the class below was historically that of the slo ...

s , , and Free French and . From 29 December 1941 to 11 January 4.1.17 escorted convoy SC 62, handing the convoy over to the British escort group B7. From 17 January to 28 January the group escorted convoy ONS 56. From 6–15 February the group escorted convoy SC 68. In September the ship was ordered to join the

Western Local Escort Force Western Local Escort Force (WLEF) 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 (WOMP or WESTOMP) near Newfoundland where ships of the Mi ...

(WLEF), the command charged with escorting convoys along the coast of Canada and into the United States. In early 1942, the ship's main fans were sabotaged during repairs at St. John's. The resulting investigation was faulty and was closed quietly. This was one of the first recorded attempts of crew sabotage in Royal Canadian Navy history. In January 1943, ''Cowichan'' was assigned to a WLEF escort group 24.18.7 with destroyer and corvettes and . In June 1943, WLEF divided its escorts into new groups, with ''Cowichan'' becoming a part of escort group W-6. She remained with the group until February 1944. That month she traveled to the United Kingdom as one of the Canadian escorts assigned to the naval component of the

invasion of Normandy Operation Overlord was the codename for the Battle of Normandy, the Allied operation that launched the successful invasion of German-occupied Western Europe during World War II. The operation was launched on 6 June 1944 (D-Day) with the Norm ...

. She arrived in March and was assigned to the all-Canadian 31st Minesweeping Flotilla. Immediately preceding the D-Day invasions of 6 June 1944, the 31st Minesweeping Flotilla was tasked with mine clearance in the American sector. On 5 June, the 31st Minesweeping Flotilla arrived off Point Barfleur and began minesweeping activities at 1900. Unmolested by German shore positions, the minesweepers finished their work by 0515 on 6 June. ''Cowichan'' remained in British waters until returning to Canada in February 1945. She underwent a refit that kept her out of action until June, when she returned to the United Kingdom. She returned home for the final time in September 1945 and was paid off on 9 October 1945 and placed in reserve at Shelburne.

Mercantile service

Following the war, ''Cowichan'' was sold in 1946 to a buyer from New York who had her converted for mercantile purposes.Colledge, p. 93 Acquired by Cia Naviera Icaria SA, she kept her name but was registered in Panama. In 1948, the vessel was sold to C. Moraitis. ''Cowichan'' was converted to a trawler with a gross register tonnage of 663 tons. The ship was broken up in 1950 but was kept listed until 2008. Her Greek registry was closed in 1973.

References

Notes

Citations

Sources

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External links

Haze Gray and Underway

ReadyAyeReady.com
{{DEFAULTSORT:Cowichan (J146) Bangor-class minesweepers of the Royal Canadian Navy Ships built in North Vancouver 1940 ships World War II minesweepers of Canada