BOWEN Walter Henry

Distinguished Service Cross.

The nformation below was reported on

GLAMORGAN-L Archives

S.S. Parracombe (London) was owned by Pyman Brothers, Ltd., of 16 St Helen's Place, London EC3,

and had been built in 1928 for general tramping. 4,698 gross tons.

Peacetime colours - funnel: black with white band bearing black disc; hull:

light grey, with red boot-topping (that's the band of colour around the

water line).

On 2nd May 1941, she sailing from the UK to the Eastern Mediterranean on

Admiralty service, and struck a mine (according to Young:

"Britain's Sea War" and HMSO: "British Merchant Vessels Lost or Damaged by

Enemy Action During Second World War") and sank in the Eastern Med., according to Young.

31 of the crew were killed, 18 were made PoWs.

Seems to be two different versions of her sinking, but the mining is the

correct one. There are two records in the National Archive:

ADM 1/11584 MERCHANT NAVY (64): Awards to Merchant Navy personnel after

sinking of S.S.PARRACOMBE by mines 1941-1942

BT 373/244 Parracombe 1941-1943

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