View source for SS Bury Hill

{{Short description|British steamship}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=December 2016}}
{{Use British English|date=December 2016}}
{|{{Infobox ship begin}}
{{Infobox ship image
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{{Infobox ship career
|Ship name            = '''''Cardigan'''''<ref name=WreckSite>{{cite web |url= http://www.wrecksite.eu/wreck.aspx?133524#111574 |title=SS Bury Hill [+1936] |last=Allen |first=Tony |date=30 December 2010 |work=The Wreck Site |access-date=25 May 2011}}</ref>
|Ship namesake        = 
|Ship owner           =*1917–1921: Cardigan Steamship Co Ltd, Cardiff
*1921–1924: Henry W Renny, Dundee<ref name=Teesbuilt>{{cite web |url= http://www.teesbuiltships.co.uk/richardsonduck/cardigan1917.htm |title=CARDIGAN |work=Shipbuilding on the River Tees |access-date=30 December 2012}}</ref><ref name=Haws>{{cite book |last1=Haws |first1=Duncan |year=1996 |title=French Line: Compagnie Générale Transatlantique |series=Merchant Fleets in Profile |volume=30 |publisher=TCL Publications |isbn=0946378304 }}</ref>
|Ship operator        =*1917–1921: Jenkins Brothers, Cardiff
*1921–1924: E J Leslie, Dundee<ref name=Teesbuilt/><ref name=Haws/>
|Ship registry        =*{{flagicon|UK|civil}} Cardiff (1917–21)
*{{flagicon|UK|civil}} Dundee (1921–)<ref name=MNL>{{cite web |url=http://www.crewlist.org.uk/data/vesselsalpha.php |title=Mercantile Navy List 1918-1937 |publisher=Crew List Index Project |access-date=30 December 2012}}</ref>
|Ship route           = 
|Ship ordered         = 
|Ship builder         =*[[Richardson, Duck and Company|Richardson, Duck & Co]],
*[[Thornaby-on-Tees]], England<ref name=WreckSite/><ref name=Teesbuilt/><ref name=BoT>{{cite book |title=Report of Court of Inquiry into loss of "Bury Hill", 1937 |last1=Harris |first1=John |last2=Whittingham |first2=Wallace |last3=Stockwell |first3=Henry |year=1937 |publisher=[[Board of Trade]] |location=London |url= http://www.plimsoll.org/resources/SCCLibraries/WreckReports/14138.asp |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20120312090512/http://www.plimsoll.org/resources/SCCLibraries/WreckReports/14138.asp |url-status= usurped |archive-date= 12 March 2012 |access-date=2 June 2011}}</ref>
|Ship original cost   = 
|Ship yard number     = 653<ref name=Teesbuilt/>
|Ship way number      = 
|Ship laid down       = 
|Ship launched        = 16 August 1917<ref name=Teesbuilt/>
|Ship completed       = October 1917<ref name=Teesbuilt/><ref name=Haws/>
|Ship christened      = 
|Ship acquired        = 
|Ship maiden voyage   = 
|Ship in service      = 
|Ship out of service  = 
|Ship identification  = [[UK Official Number]] 139622<ref name=WreckSite/><ref name=MNL/>
|Ship fate            = 
|Ship notes           = 
}}
{{Infobox ship career
|Ship name            = '''''Pensylvanie'''''<ref name=WreckSite/><ref name=Haws/><ref name=BoT/>
|Ship namesake        = Commonwealth of [[Pennsylvania]], USA
|Ship owner           =*1924–1926: Harlem Steamship Co Ltd, London
*1926–1934: [[Compagnie Générale Transatlantique]], Paris<ref name=Teesbuilt/><ref name=Haws/><ref name=BoT/>
|Ship operator        =*1924–1926: Brown, Jenkinson & Co Ltd, London
*1926–1934: Compagnie Générale Transatlantique, Paris
|Ship registry        =*1924–1926: {{flagicon|UK|civil}} Dundee<ref name=MNL/>
*1926–1934: {{flagicon|France}} Le Havre<ref name=LR>{{cite book |url= http://www.plimsollshipdata.org/ship.php?ship_id=54246&name=Pensylvanie |title=Lloyd's Register of Shipping |year=1934 |location=London |publisher=[[Lloyd's Register]] |access-date=30 December 2012}}</ref>
|Ship route           = France-North America<ref name=Haws/>
|Ship ordered         = 
|Ship builder         = 
|Ship original cost   = 
|Ship yard number     = 
|Ship way number      = 
|Ship laid down       = 
|Ship launched        = October 1917<ref name=LR/>
|Ship completed       = 
|Ship christened      = 
|Ship acquired        = 
|Ship maiden voyage   = 
|Ship in service      = 
|Ship out of service  = 
|Ship identification  = 
|Ship fate            = 
|Ship notes           = 
}}
{{Infobox ship career
|Hide header          = 
|Ship name            = '''''Bury Hill'''''<ref name=Haws/><ref name=BoT/>
|Ship namesake        = [[Bury Hill]], [[Hampshire]], England
|Ship owner           = Sussex Steamship Co Ltd<ref name=Teesbuilt/><ref name=Haws/><ref name=BoT/>
|Ship operator        = [[Counties Ship Management]] Ltd, London<ref name=Teesbuilt/><ref name=Haws/><ref name=BoT/>
|Ship registry        = {{flagicon|UK|civil}} London<ref name=MNL/>
|Ship route           = 
|Ship christened      = 
|Ship acquired        = 
|Ship maiden voyage   = 
|Ship in service      = 
|Ship out of service  = 
|Ship identification  =*UK [[official number]] 139622<ref name=MNL/>
*[[Maritime call sign|Call sign]] GWXT<ref name=LR/>
*{{ICS|Golf}}{{ICS|Whiskey}}{{ICS|X-ray}}{{ICS|Tango}} (from 1934)
|Ship fate            = ran aground 7 December 1936<ref name=WreckSite/><ref name=BoT/>
|Ship notes           = 
}}
{{Infobox ship characteristics
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|Header caption       = 
|Ship class           =
|Ship type            = [[cargo ship]]<ref name=WreckSite/><ref name=Haws/>
|Ship tonnage         =*{{GRT|4521}};
*tonnage under deck 4,233;
*{{NRT|2,767}}<ref name=WreckSite/><ref name=BoT/><ref name=LR/>
|Ship displacement    = 
|Ship length          = {{convert|400.0|ft|abbr=on}}<ref name=MNL/><ref name=BoT/><ref name=LR/>
|Ship beam            = {{convert|52.0|ft|abbr=on}}<ref name=MNL/><ref name=BoT/><ref name=LR/>
|Ship height          = 
|Ship draught         = {{convert|24|ft|3|in|abbr=on}} laden<ref name=WreckSite/><ref name=LR/>
|Ship depth           = {{convert|24.3|ft|abbr=on}}<ref name=MNL/><ref name=LR/>
|Ship decks           = 
|Ship deck clearance  = 
|Ship power           = 425 [[Horsepower#Nominal horsepower|NHP]],<ref name=LR/> 2,600 [[Horsepower#Indicated horsepower|IHP]]
|Ship propulsion      =*Blair & Co 3-cylinder [[Marine steam engine#Triple or multiple expansion|triple expansion steam engine]];<ref name=Haws/><ref name=MNL/><ref name=BoT/>
*single screw<ref name=BoT/>
|Ship speed           = 10 [[knot (unit)|knots]]{{citation needed|date=March 2013}}
|Ship capacity        = 
|Ship crew            = 31<ref name=WreckSite/>
|Ship notes           = 
}}
|}

'''SS ''Bury Hill''''' was a [[cargo ship]] built in England during the [[World War I|First World War]] as ''Cardigan'', later becoming ''Pensylvanie'' of [[Compagnie Générale Transatlantique]] (CGT).  In 1934 she returned to the British register as ''Bury Hill'' but was wrecked on the coast of [[Senegal]] in 1936.

==Trading career==
The ship was built by [[Richardson, Duck and Company]] of [[Thornaby-on-Tees]] in northeast England. She had nine corrugated furnaces with a combined grate area of {{convert|192|sqft|0}} heating three 180 [[Pounds per square inch|lb<sub>f</sub>/in<sup>2</sup>]] single-ended boilers with a combined heating surface of {{convert|7171|sqft|0}}.<ref name=LR/> The boilers fed a three-cylinder [[Marine steam engine#Triple or multiple expansion|triple expansion steam engine]] that was built by Blair & Co, [[Stockton-on-Tees]] and rated at 425 [[Horsepower#Nominal horsepower|NHP]]<ref name=LR/> (2,600 [[Horsepower#Indicated horsepower|IHP]]).

==Trading career==
The ship was launched in 1917 as ''Cardigan'' for the Cardigan Steamship Co of Cardiff, who placed her under the management of Jenkins Brothers, also of Cardiff. In 1921 Cardigan sold her to Henry W Renny of Dundee, who placed her under the management of EJ Leslie, also of Dundee. In 1924 Renny sold her to Harlem Steamship Co Ltd, a British subsidiary of CGT (known internationally as "French Line"), who renamed her ''Pensylvanie'' and placed her under the management of Brown, Jenkinson & Co Ltd.<ref name=Haws/><ref name=CGT>{{cite web |url= http://www.frenchlines.com/ship_fr_373.php |title=Cargo Pensylvanie |work=French Lines |publisher=Association French Lines |access-date=30 December 2012}}</ref>  In 1926 she was transferred to the parent company's ownership and French register. She worked on CGT's regular cargo service between France and North America until 1932, when she was laid up.<ref name=Haws/><ref name=CGT/>

CGT sold ''Pensylvanie'' in 1934 for £8,500<ref name=BoT/> to the Sussex Steamship Company Ltd, a British company managed by [[Counties Ship Management]], under the control of [[Mavroleon family|Basil Mavroleon]].<ref name=MNL/> She was reconditioned at [[Newport, Wales|Newport]], [[Monmouthshire (historic)|Monmouthshire]] for a gross cost of £13,007, renamed ''Bury Hill'' and returned to the British flag.<ref name=Haws/><ref name=BoT/>

{{location map|Senegal|width=304
|lat=14.45
|long=-17.33
|relief=yes
|caption=Approximate position of the sinking of ''Bury Hill'' off Senegal.
}}

==Wreck==
On 20 October 1936 ''Bury Hill'' sailed from [[Bunbury, Western Australia]] with a cargo of wheat. On 13 November she bunkered (refuelled) at [[Durban]], [[Union of South Africa|South Africa]]. On 5 December she entered the port of [[Dakar]], [[Senegal]], and at 21.27 hrs on 7 December she sailed from Dakar without a pilot. At 23.43 hrs she stranded on the Almadi Reef, which was a known navigational hazard near Dakar port, marked by a fixed white light with a range of 10 miles. At the time of the incident the wrecks of four other ships already lay on the reef, including {{SS|Beryl}} whose position was found to have contributed to the ''Bury Hill''{{'}}s grounding. ''Bury Hill'' was not refloated and became a total loss.<ref name=WreckSite/><ref name=BoT/>

Allowing for 10% ''per annum'' depreciation, her [[book value]] at the time of the loss was £10,828 0s 2d. She was insured for £21,500 and her cargo was insured with both a time policy for £4,000 and a voyage policy for £5,400. At the time of her loss, her owners valued ''Bury Hill'' at £29,000.<ref name=BoT/>

==Board of Trade investigation==
On 4–7 May 1937 the UK's [[Board of Trade]] held an investigation hearing into the accident and on 17 June the Court published its report. It found that ''Bury Hill''{{'}}s [[Captain (nautical)|Master]], Captain Walter V. Smith, had failed:
<blockquote>''...to navigate his vessel with that degree of care which is to be expected from a prudent seaman in that he did not give the coast, of which he had no previous knowledge and for the navigation of which his aids were insufficient, a safe and proper offing; did not take proper steps to provide himself with sufficient aids to navigation for the voyage upon which he was engaged; failed to make proper use of such aids to navigation as he had on board his vessel; and assumed too readily that the Almadi light, of whose existence he was wholly unaware, was the light of another vessel.''<ref name=BoT/></blockquote>

''Bury Hill'' had no chart of the approaches to Dakar, so when in Durban, Captain Smith had tried without success to obtain one. He was therefore limited to large-scale charts of the area and was completely unaware of the Almadi light. The [[Third mate|third officer]], Mr. Walter, was on watch at the time of the grounding, and both Walter and Smith sighted the light. However, the wreck of ''Beryl'' lay on the reef behind the light in their line of sight. Smith and Walter saw ''Beryl'', failed to realise she was a wreck and mistook the Almadi light to be one of her navigation lights. They accordingly set the wrong course and struck the reef.<ref name=BoT/>

The Court considered suspending Smith's [[Licensed mariner|Master's Certificate]]. However, the Court made allowance for what it called Smith's ''"sheer ill fortune"'' that the necessary chart was out of stock when he sought to buy a copy in Durban. The Court also made allowance for the conjunction of the Almadi light and ''Beryl''{{'}}s wreck in Smith and Walter's line of sight contributing to their error. The Court therefore allowed Smith to retain his certificate but charged him £50 court costs.<ref name=BoT/>

===Logbook alterations===
The Court found that a number of entries in ''Bury Hill''{{'}}s [[Logbook|"scrap log"]] had been erased and rewritten, and observed that inquiries into incidents on other vessels had found similar cases of alteration. The court therefore recommended:
<blockquote>''that it should be a standing order on all British sea-going vessels that all entries in log books should be made either in ink or, if pencils are used, in indelible pencil; and that no erasure should be permitted, any alteration necessary being made by drawing a line through the original entry, the alteration being initialled by the officer making it.''<ref name=BoT/></blockquote>

==References==
{{reflist}}

{{French Line ships}}
{{coord|14.45|N|17.33|W|display=title}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bury Hill}}
[[Category:1917 ships]]
[[Category:Maritime incidents in 1936]]
[[Category:Ships of Counties Ship Management]]
[[Category:Ships of the Compagnie Générale Transatlantique]]
[[Category:Ships built on the River Tees]]
[[Category:Shipwrecks in the Atlantic Ocean]]
[[Category:Steamships of the United Kingdom]]