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Goodleigh was a 3,857 GRT cargo ship that was built in 1928 by J L Thompson & Sons Ltd, Sunderland for the Dulverton Steamship Company. In 1937 she was sold to Fisser & Van Doornum, Emden and was renamed Christian Van Doornum. She was in port in Canada when war was declared between the United Kingdom and Germany. She was seized as a war prize and passed to the Ministry of War Transport (MoWT). Renamed Empire Commerce, she served until 9 June 1940 when she struck a mine off Margate, Kent. She was beached and her cargo was salvaged, but Empire Commerce was deemed a constructive total loss and was scrapped in situ. She was the first Empire ship lost through enemy action in the Second World War.

Description

The ship was built by J L Thompson Ltd, Sunderland. She was launched in 1928, and completed in March of that year.

The ship was 360 feet 0 inches (109.73 m) long, with a beam of 50 feet 0 inches (15.24 m) and a depth of 23 feet 9 inches (7.24 m). She had a GRT of 3,845 and a NRT of 2,323.

The ship was propelled by a triple expansion steam engine, which had cylinders of 24 inches (61 cm), 40 inches (100 cm) and 66 inches (170 cm) diameter by 45 inches (110 cm) stroke. The engine was built by J Dickinson & Sons Ltd, Sunderland.

History

Goodleigh was built for the Dulverton Steamship Co Ltd. Her port of registry was London. The United Kingdom Official Number 160368 and Code Letters LBHC were allocated. In 1934, her Code Letters were changed to GNQB.

In 1937, Goodleigh was sold to Reunert & Co GmbH and was renamed Christoph Van Doornum. She was placed under the management of Fisser & Van Doornum, Emden. Her port of registry was changed to Hamburg and the Code Letters DJVA were allocated. She was now listed as 3,741 GRT, 2,240 NRT. On 4 September 1939, Christoph Van Doornum was in port at Botwood, Newfoundland. War was declared between the United Kingdom and Germany and the ship was seized by the Canadian authorities. The actual arrest of the ship being carried out by the town's Sheriff. This may have been the first act of war during the Second World War on the continent of North America.

Christoph Van Doornum was declared a war prize. She was passed to the MoWT and renamed Empire Commerce. She was placed under the management of H Chisholm & Co Ltd. Her port of registry was changed to London and the Code Letters GLVJ were allocated. She was reallocated the United Kingdom Official Number 160368. Empire Commerce was now listed as 3,857 GRT, 2,302 NRT. On 9 June 1940, Empire Commerce struck a mine off Margate, Kent and was severely damaged. She was beached on the Mucking Sands where her cargo of woodpulp was discharged. The engine room was severely damaged. Greaser Maurice Holden escaped from the engine room, but then realised that the engineer was trapped, went back in and rescued him. For his bravery, Holden was awarded a British Empire Medal. Empire Commerce was declared a constructive total loss and was scrapped in situ. She was the first Empire ship to be lost through enemy action.

References

1. ^ Mitchell, W H, and Sawyer, L A (1995). The Empire Ships. London, New York, Hamburg, Hong Kong: Lloyd's of London Press Ltd. ISBN 1-85044-275-4.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
2. ^ "LLOYD'S REGISTER, NAVIRES A VAPEUR ET A MOTEURS" (PDF). Plimsoll Ship Data. Retrieved 14 May 2010.
3. "LLOYD'S REGISTER, NAVIRES A VAPEUR ET A MOTEURS" (PDF). Plimsoll Ship Data. Retrieved 14 May 2010.
4. ^ "LLOYD'S REGISTER, NAVIRES A VAPEUR ET A MOTEURS" (PDF). Plimsoll Ship Data. Retrieved 14 May 2010.
5. "Botwood: History of an Airport". Virtual Museum Canada. Archived from the original on 16 January 2013. Retrieved 14 May 2010.
6. "LLOYD'S REGISTER, STEAMERS & MOTORSHIPS" (PDF). Plimsoll Ship Data. Retrieved 14 May 2010.
7. "No. 34921". The London Gazette (Supplement). 13 August 1940. pp. 4999–5000.

v t e Shipwrecks and maritime incidents in September 1939
Shipwrecks	1 Sep: ORP Mazur, Tiger Hill 3 Sep: Athenia, ORP Gryf, ORP Mewa (1935), ORP Wicher 6 Sep: ORP General Haller 8 Sep: HNLMS Willem van Ewijck 10 Sep: SS Magdapur, HMS Oxley 12 Sep: Davara 14 Sep: Fanad Head, ORP Jaskółka, U-39 16 Sep: Rudyard Kipling 17 Sep: HMS Courageous 18 Sep: Warszawa 20 Sep: U-27 23 Sep: Martti Ragnar 24 Sep: Phryné, Caldew 29 Sep: HMS Caledonia 30 Sep: ORP Komendant Piłsudski 30 Sep: Clement
Other incidents	2 Sep: USS Pigeon 3 Sep: Hannah Böge 4 Sep: Christian Van Doornum 10 Sep: Triton 16 Sep: City of Paris 18 Sep: ORP Orzeł (incident) 22 Sep: Martti Ragnar Unknown date: HMS Vanquisher, HMS Walker Unknown date: SS Toruń
1938 1939 1940 August 1939 October 1939

v t e Shipwrecks and maritime incidents in June 1940
Shipwrecks	1 Jun: HMS Basilisk, Foudroyant, HMS Havant, Ioanna, HMS Keith, Scotia 7 Jun: HMS Carinthia 8 Jun: HMS Acasta, HMS Ardent, HMS Glorious, HMT Juniper 9 Jun: Max Wolf, Prins Olav 10 Jun: Olterra 11 Jun: Bruges 12 Jun: HMS Calypso, C 60 13 Jun: HNLMS O 13, HMS Odin, Train Ferry No. 2 15 Jun: HMS Andania 16 Jun: HMS Grampus, Rastrello 17 Jun: Champlain, HMS Lancastria, Ingénieur Riebell 18 Jun: Achille, Agosta, Clemenceau, Cyclone, Dordogne, Kergroise, Ouessant, Pasteur 19 Jun: Mexique, Niagara, HMS Orpheus 20 Jun: Empire Conveyor 21 Jun: Vliereede 23 Jun: HMS Khartoum 25 Jun: HMCS Fraser 27 Jun: Console Generale Liuzzi 29 Jun: Uebi Scebeli Unknown date: U-122
Other incidents	9 Jun: Empire Commerce 10 Jun: Barbana G, Monte Piana 25 Jun: HMS Calcutta Unknown date: Mari Chandris
1939 1940 1941 May 1940 July 1940

• 1928 ships
• Ships built on the River Wear
• Steamships of the United Kingdom
• Merchant ships of the United Kingdom
• Steamships of Germany
• Merchant ships of Germany
• World War II merchant ships of Germany
• Maritime incidents in September 1939
• Ministry of War Transport ships
• Empire ships
• Maritime incidents in June 1940
• World War II shipwrecks in the North Sea
• Ships sunk by mines