PS ''Sandown'' was a passenger vessel built for the Southern Railway in 1934 and later served with distinction in the Royal Navy during the Second World War.

History

The ship was built by

William Denny and Brothers William Denny and Brothers Limited, often referred to simply as Denny, was a Scottish shipbuilding company. History The shipbuilding interests of the Denny family date back to William Denny (born 1779), for whom ships are recorded being built ...

in Dumbarton and launched on 1 May 1934 by Mrs E.J. Missenden, wife of the manager for the Southern Railway Company Docks at Southampton. Costing £39,850, she was one of two ships placed by the railway company, the other being . She was deployed on the Portsmouth to Ryde ferry service. HMS Sandown FL18662

At the outbreak of the Second World War, she was requisitioned by the

Admiralty Admiralty most often refers to: *Admiralty, Hong Kong * Admiralty (United Kingdom), military department in command of the Royal Navy from 1707 to 1964 *The rank of admiral * Admiralty law Admiralty can also refer to: Buildings *Admiralty, Tr ...

and converted to a minesweeper with the

pennant number In the Royal Navy and other navies of Europe and the Commonwealth of Nations, ships are identified by pennant number (an internationalisation of ''pendant number'', which it was called before 1948). Historically, naval ships flew a flag that iden ...

J.20, initially serving with the 10th Flotilla in the English Channel as the senior officer's vessel. On 27 May 1940, ''Sandown'' led the flotilla to the

Dunkirk evacuation The Dunkirk evacuation, codenamed Operation Dynamo and also known as the Miracle of Dunkirk, or just Dunkirk, was the evacuation of more than 338,000 Allied soldiers during the Second World War from the beaches and harbour of Dunkirk, in the ...

, returning with them on the following day and then operating independently. On 1 June, she rescued 250 men from a grounded

drifter A drifter is a vagrant who moves from place to place without a fixed home or employment. Drifter(s) or The Drifter(s) may also refer to: Films and television Films * ''The Drifter'' (1917 film), an American film directed by Fred Kelsey * ''Th ...

. The total number of men rescued by ''Sandown'' during the operation was 1,861. In 1942, she was reequipped as an anti-aircraft ship, later supporting the Normandy landings and the Battle of the Scheldt. She was returned to her owners in 1945. She was acquired by

British Railways British Railways (BR), which from 1965 traded as British Rail, was a state-owned company that operated most of the overground rail transport in Great Britain from 1948 to 1997. It was formed from the nationalisation of the Big Four British rai ...

in 1948. On 30 June 1954, she went to the rescue of her sister ship which had mechanical difficulties. The ''Sandown'' managed to secure a tow line and tow her to Portsmouth Harbour. She was scrapped in 1966.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sandown 1934 ships Steamships of the United Kingdom Paddle steamers of the United Kingdom Ships built on the River Clyde Ships of the Southern Railway (UK) Ships of British Rail