Positional information courtesy of Captain Hilmar Snorrason
Goth crew information courtesy of the late Fred Hobbs

Technical

Official Number: 148478
Yard Number: 468
Completed: 1925
Gross Tonnage: 394.48
Net Tonnage: 173.79
Length: 147.5 ft
Breadth: 25.5 ft
Built: Cook, Welton & Gemmell Ltd, Beverley
Engine: 700ihp T.3-cyl and boiler by Amos & Smith, Hull
Speed: 10.5 knots

History

8.6.1925: Launched by Cook, Welton & Gemmell Ltd, Beverley (Yd.No.468) for Hellyer Brothers Ltd (64/64), Hull as GOTH.
12.8.1925: Registered at Hull (H211). Frank O. Hellyer & Owen S. Hellyer designated managers.
20.8.1925: Completed.
9.1925: Sailed for Greenland coast on an exploratory trip in an attempt to find new fishing grounds.
9.10.1925: At Hull landed 260kits mostly cod and codling and trip deemed successful.
1929: Fish carrier for halibut fishery in the Davis Strait, Greenland.
3.1.1930: Off Norway coast, stranded near Narvik, came afloat with engine but leaking and put into Lødingen. Divers plugged leaks.
15.2.1930: In collision Saltend with steam trawler MARCONI (H488). Both vessels taken in tow for Hull.
16.4.1931: Arrested in Icelandic water by Icelandic Coastguard ship AEGIR along with Hull trawlers CAPE DELGARDO (H47) and CAPE TRAFALGAR (H918) and escorted to Reykjavik. Each fined 10kroner for having fishing gear incorrectly stowed. Later fines rescinded and all three skippers admonished.
12.10.1933: On a Barents Sea trip (Sk. Herbert Brown). Fishing in company with steam trawlers KINGSTON PEARL (H296) (Sk. William Hornby) and LARWOOD (GY49) (Sk. S. Cantwell) at about 3.00pm. responded to distress message from Norwegian steamer HAUGLAND (3153grt/1896) disabled off the Murman coast with broken propeller shaft and drifting on a lee shore in a NE gale following loss of anchors. At about 6.30pm KINGSTON PEARL using DF was the first to reach casualty. In heavy sleet and and ground swell it was not until 10.00pm. that an attempt was made to connect via Schermuly rocket but line repeatedly parted. Closed vessel and managed to get a heaving line aboard and trawl warp made fast with difficulty as windlass damaged when anchors lost.
13.10.1933: Twice warps parted and it was not until 5.00am. that GOTH arrived on the scene and was able to connect by Schermuly rocket and between them hold the vessel off the shore. Again after about an hour the warps parted and by this time LARWOOD had arrived and succeeded in getting a line onboard and held the vessel for a further two hours. Shortly after 12.00 noon an attempt was made to tow the vessel away from the coast but the casualty was unmanageable, KINGSTON PEARL managed to get another line connected but shortly after both warps parted. KINFSTON PEARL and GOTH connected again but warps parted and GOTH was temporarily disabled with the wire round her propeller. With weather freshening and the vessel close to the shore the master requested that the crew be taken off. The trawlers closed the casualty, pumped oil on the water and GOTH managed to pick up all twenty-nine crew and later landed them at Vardø, Norway. HAUGLAND was subsequently refloated, repaired and returned to service.
25.7.1939: Insured value £13,700.
5.8.1939: Sailed Hull for White Sea last trip before requisition (Sk. J. W. Ellis).
29.8.1939: At Hull landed 1,461 kits grossed £1,664.
29.8.1939: Requisitioned for war service as a minesweeper (P.No.FY.649) (Hire rate £152.13.6d/month).
25.2.1941: Re-registered to Hellyer Bros Ltd ((64/64), Hull.
3-6.1945: Restored, special survey and inclined at North Shields.
1.8.1945: Sold to The Ocean Steam Trawling Co Ltd (64/64), Hull. Leslie Barkworth designated manager.
30.11.1945: Insured value £30,000; for 1946 proposed £33,000.
14.12.1946: Sold to The ‘Wyre’ Steam Trawling Co Ltd (64/64), Fleetwood.
14.12.1946: Hull registry closed.
12.1946: Registered at Fleetwood (FD52). Merchants (Fleetwood) Ltd designated managers.
4.12.1948: Sailed Fleetwood for Icelandic grounds (Sk. Wilfred Elliott); twenty one crew all told.
10.12.1948: Trawling NW of Straumnaes, north west coast of Iceland in company with steam trawler St. MELANTE (GY80).
11.12.1948: Storm, hauled and ran for shelter to Adalvik Bay.
13.12.1948: Reliable evidence that vessel was communicating by radio with other trawlers.
Post 13.12.1948: Presume foundered NNW of Halo, 43 miles to NW of Straumnes, Iceland in position 66.59.8N 24.28.9W; all twenty-one crew lost*.
23.2.1949: Posted missing. Fleetwood registry closed.
14.4.1950: At BOT Formal Investigation (No. S.416), the Court found that the casualty was probably caused by heavy weather, but other possibilities, mine explosion, boiler explosion, bunker explosion, could not be excluded.
15.11.1997: Icelandic trawler HELGA (RE49) (Sk. Vidar Benediktsson) fishing on NW Iceland grounds, trawled up a funnel which was identified in Reykjavik as belonging to the GOTH. Returned to Fleetwood.
12.2006: After repainting sited as a memorial to the lost trawlermen beside the Asda store at the corner of Dock Street and Station Road.

Note. Vessel was to have been renamed WYRE GALLANT (FD52) on her return.

Download the BOT Inquiry Report here.

* Lost (all Fleetwood unless stated):
Skipper: Wilfred (Wink) Elliot aged 36, Warbreck Hill Rd, Blackpool
Mate: A. E. Plummer, aged 47, Preston
Bosun: John Edwards, aged 35, Hathaway Place, Fleetwood
Chief Engineer: G. H. Knight, aged 52, Garfield Rd Fleetwood
2nd Engineer: Alfred Patterson, aged 24, Dock St Fleetwood
Wireless Operator: Stanley Bowles, aged 19, Newton-le-Willows
Fireman: Thomas Dagger, aged 25, Springfield Terrace, Fleetwood
Fireman: Harvey Ramsden, aged 24, Layton Blackpool
Fireman: J. Beattie, aged 24, Liverpool
Cook: H. P. Blyth, aged 51, Bolton
Assistant Cook: Albert Silcock, aged 20, Preston
Deckhand: Ernest Parker (DSM) aged 28, Heathfield Rd Fleetwood
Deckhand: John Tandy, aged 27, Victoria St. Fleetwood
Deckhand: Harry Buckley, aged 24, Carr Rd Fleetwood
Deckhand: William Durbin, aged 26, Shakespeare Rd Fleetwood
Deckhand: Norman Grisenthwaite, aged 24, Heathfield Rd Fleetwood
Deckhand: Harry Smith, aged 23, Heathfield Rd Fleetwood
Deckhand: Richard Snasdell, aged 23, Oak St Fleetwood
Deckhand: Benjamin Redman, aged 27, Blackiston St Fleetwood
Deckhand: J. Davies, aged 60, Gordon Rd Fleetwood
Brassie: Robert Rhimes, aged 16, Broomfield Rd Fleetwood

Click to enlarge images

S.T. Goth FD52
Picture from the Internet

S.T. Goth H211
Picture from the Internet

S.T. Goth FD52
Picture courtesy of The JJ Collection

Goth memorial and funnel
Picture courtesy of Alan Duggan

Changelog
19/09/2009: Page published. 4 updates since then.
24/10/2015: Added BOT Inquiry report.
25/04/2016: Updated information.
25/01/2017: Removed disputed image.
12/12/2020: Updated history.
03/10/2021: Minor update.