Previous name:
Subsequent name:                   AGW V11

Official Number:                         140340

Class:                                          SECOND 1000 t CREOSOL CLASS Harbour Oiler

Pennant No:                                X23 / A154

Laid down:
Builder:                                        Swan Hunter, Wallsend
Launched:                                   23 July 1917
Into Service:                                27 August 1917 
Out of service:                            Sold commercially
Fate:                                             Broken Up

Items of historic interest involving this ship: -

Background Data:  On the outbreak of WW1, the Admiralty embarked on a further programme of tanker construction for the newly-formed RFA Service. Eventually there were 18 ships in this Class, 12 of which were named after trees with the OL suffix, while the remainder had names connected with the oil industry also with the OL suffix. 4 of the Class were diesel engined and were sold after the Armistice but the rest, being triple expansion steamers, had long and successful lives.

23 July 1917 Launched by Swan Hunter & Wigham Richardson, Wallsend as Yard Nr 1034 named  ELMOL

 8 August 1917 Engineer Lieutenant William J Gill RNR appointed as Chief Engineer Officer until 26 April 1919 when he was demobilised.

13 August 1917 Lieutenant W Distant RNR appointed in command until 1 June 1918 when he took command of RFA Scotol

27 August 1917 completed and spent her entire career in U.K. Dockyards and coastal waters

14 September 1917 Able Seaman H Davies logged for deserting - he had signed on on the 27 August 1917

18 May 1918 at Scapa Flow alongside HMS ACHILLES refuelling her with 160 tons FFO

1 June 1918 Lieutenant Charles H Noel RNR  appointed in command until 15 October 1918. He had previously been in command of RFA Petrobus and he went onto command RFA Elderol

Lieutenant Charles H Noel RNR

18 October 1918 Lieutenant William C Meikle RNR appointed in command previously having been in command of RFA Elderol

11 November 1918 Ordinary Seaman John Ash MMR 962058 logged as deserting. He had signed on on the 25 October 1918

27 December 1918 at Harwich alongside HMS CENTAUR receiving 350 tons of FFO from the warship

13 May 1919 Cook Arnold E Sanders MMR 550781 discharged dead having died when the ship was at Burntisland, Fife. He had signed on on 7 September 1917. He was buried in Dunfirmline Cemetery, Fife in grave ED 2628

Courtesy and © of The War Graves Photographic Project

22 July 1919 Stoker Fred S Betty and Stoker W Gadbois both logged for deserting. They had both signed on on the 31 May 1919.

2 September 1919 Able Seaman S Harrison MMR 963444 logged as deserting at Rosyth. He had signed on on 4 July 1919

3 October 1919 Donkeyman T Cook MMR 933652 logged as deserting. He had signed on on the 10 September 1919.

7 October 1919 2nd Officer G F Taylor RFA discharged for misconduct. He had signed on on the 8 September 1919

29 October 1919 Ordinary Seaman A Marks MMR 1001084 logged as deserting at Rosyth. He had signed on on 10 September 1919

1 January 1920 Captain William C Meikle RFA appointed as Master - had been in command as Lieutenant (RNR) since 18 October 1918

17 April 1920 at Malta alongside HMS Torch refuelling her with 102 tons of FFO

4 August 1920 Chief Steward W Brookland MMR 854671discharged to shore at Malta for misconduct

21 January 1921 at Gibraltar

30 January 1923 at Gibraltar alongside HMS REPULSE refuelling her

31 January 1923 at Gibraltar alongside HMS REPULSE refuelling her

20 June 1923 at Devonport alongside HMS HOOD to refuel her

26 September 1923 at Weymouth Bay alongside HMS HOOD to refuel her - supplied 500 tons of FFO and also alongside HMS REPULSE refuelling her - amount not stated in warships log

10 December 1924 Mr W D Hewitt RFA appointed as Chief Engineer Officer

11 December 1924 Chief Officer Reginald J Harland RFA appointed as Acting Master

1 March 1926 Chief Officer John P Tugwood DSC RFA appointed as Acting Master

10 September 1927 Mr W W Ridgeway RFA appointed as Chief Engineer Officer

25 May 1928 Captain David A Gibbins RFA appointed as Master

5 May 1930 navigated the Manchester Ship Canal

19 August 1930 Chief Officer B Ellis RFA appointed as acting Master

3 February 1931 Mr J E Hawthorn RFA appointed as Chief Engineer Officer

24 April 1933 Captain R T Gallon RFA appointed as Master

4 May 1933 Mr William W Ridgway RFA appointed as Chief Engineer Officer

21 December 1934 Captain T C Robinson RFA (Lieutenant Commander RNR (ret)) appointed as Master

26 February 1935 Mr D H Evans RFA appointed as Chief Engineer Officer

22 September 1938 Captain Edmund H Butterworth RFA appointed as Master

Captain Edmund H Butterworth RFA

18 December 1938 Chief Officer Robert D Almond RFA appointed as Acting Master until 4 January 1939

1 November 1938 Mr F W G Tucker RFA appointed as Chief Engineer Officer

June 1939 Captain F A Shaw RFA (Lieutenant RNR) appointed as Master

3 September 1939 at Sheerness on the outbreak of WW2

10 January 1940 at Rosyth alongside HMS DEVONSHIRE refuelling her

11 March 1940 at Rosyth alongside HMS DEVONSHIRE refuelling her

6 August 1940 Captain Albert V Barton RFA appointed as Master

22 September 1940 refuelling HMS HOOD at Scapa Flow - alongside

19 December 1940 sailed from Methil in convoy EN43 and detached for Dundee arriving on 23 December 1940

23 April 1941 under repair at Leith. Repairs completed 1 May 1941

18 March 1942 Captain Iden W J Hall RFA appointed as Master

26 June 1942 under repair at Leith. Repairs completed 18 July 1942

9 December 1942 at Scapa Flow alongside HMS HOWE refuelling her

24 December 1942 in refit at Leith completed 27 January 1943

15 June 1943 at Rosyth Dockyard, South Wall alongside HMS ANSON refuelling her with 714 tons of FFO

20 September 1943 at Rosyth Dockyard alongside HMS WALLACE refuelling her

8 November 1943 in refit at Leith until 30 November 1943

15 August 1944 sailed Southend in Convoy ETC69 and detached for to Portsmouth arriving on 16 August 1944

12 January 1945 Captain William J Cairns RFA appointed as Master

21 July 1945 sailed Portsmouth for Sheerness ariving the next day

25 September 1945 at Dover

5 October 1945 at Harwich

17 October 1945 sailed Sheerness to Harwich arriving the same day

18 October 1945 sailed Harwich to Sheerness 

29 October 1945 sailed Sheerness to Dover arriving the same day

4 December 1945 at Gravesend

11 February 1946 sailed Gravesend to Sheerness arriving the same day

8 September 1947 Captain Griffith O W Evans DSC RFA appointed as Master

5 September 1948 at Sheerness alongside HMS JUTLAND refuelling her

25 March 1949 at Sheerness alongside HMS SUPERB refuelling her

28 March 1949 Captain B Smith RFA appointed as Master

27 June 1949 Captain F C Holt RFA appointed as Master

21 June 1950 Captain C N Rennels RFA appointed as Master

22 March 1952 Captain Sydney S F Dalgleish OBE RFA appointed as Master

26 May 1952 and 27 May 1952 at Chatham alongside HMS Tracker refuelling her

28 May 1952 at Chatham alongside HMS Tracker refuelling her

19 January 1953 Captain Iden W J Hall RFA appointed as Master

31 May 1954 at Spithead alongside HMS Albion refuelling her

15 October 1955 placed in reserve

1956 chartered by Enid Shipping Co Ltd, Edinburgh for a season on the St Lawrence River, but this proved to be financially disastrous and she returned to the U.K. where she acted as a bunkering vessel on the Mersey

1960 when she came up for her Special Survey, she was too old to be put through it and was only given a year’s extension to her Class

1961 purchased by Hammond Lane Foundry, Dublin for scrap but was resold to A.G.Weser, Bremen who converted her into a tank cleaning vessel named AGW V11

17 July 1978 breaking up commenced at Bremen, Germany by her owners