SS Empire Bowman
Empire Bowman was a cargo ship built in 1942 for the Ministry of War Transport. Completed in May 1942, she served until 30 March 1943 when she was torpedoed and sunk by. One of her crew was awarded an Albert Medal for his actions in the sinking.
Description
The ship was built by C Connell & Co Ltd, Scotstoun. She was yard number 437. Launched on 4 April 1942, she was completed on 25 May 1942.The ship was long, with a beam of and a depth of. She was propelled by a triple expansion steam engine which had cylinders of, and bore by stroke. The engine was built by Barclay, Curle & Co Ltd, Glasgow.
Career
Empire Bowman's port of registry was Glasgow. She was operated under the management of Hain Steamship Co Ltd. Empire Bowman was a member of a number of convoys during the Second World War.;ON 99
Convoy ON 99 departed from Liverpool on 29 May 1942 and arrived at Boston on 12 June. Empire Bowman was in ballast for this voyage.
;SL 126
Convoy SL 126 departed Freetown, Sierra Leone on 12 March 1943 and arrived at Liverpool on 1 April. Empire Bowman was on a voyage from Karachi, India to Hull via Mormugao, India; Durban, South Africa and Freetown. She was carrying a cargo which included 5,791 tons of general cargo and 2,500 tons of manganese ore. On 30 March, Empire Bowman was torpedoed by U-404 at, some northwest of Cape Finisterre. The captain, 39 crewmembers and six DEMS gunners were rescued by and landed at Liverpool. Four crew were killed; they are commemorated on the Tower Hill Memorial. Her Second Engineer, Gordon Love Bastian, rescued two stokers from the sinking ships' flooded engine room at great personal risk. For this act, he was awarded the Albert Medal on 17 August 1943, the citation read:
In 1971, all living holders of the Albert Medal and the Edward Medal were instructed to exchange their medal for the George Cross. Bastian thus became a recipient of the highest civilian award for gallantry in the United Kingdom.