D/T Norholm
Updated March 19-2012

To Norholm on the "Ships starting with N" page.

Pictures are available on this external page (click in them to enlarge).

Misc. Convoy Voyages:

For information on voyages made in between those mentioned here, please see the documents received from the National Archives of Norway and A. Hague's Voyage Record above. Follow the convoy links provided for further details; the Commodore's notes are also available for some of them and several Norwegian ships took part.

As mentioned further up on this page, Norholm was taken over in Liverpool on April 25-1942, having arrived U.K. earlier that month as Empire Druid in Convoy HX 182 from Halifax. According to Page 1 of the archive documents, she had been drydocked at Birkenhead on the 14th.

The following month, she's listed, together with Athos, Belnor, Kaldfonn, Mosli and Toledo, in Convoy OS 27, voyaging in ballast from Liverpool to Curacao in station 25 of the convoy, which left Liverpool on May 2. Norholm stopped at Trinidad on May 20, before proceeding to Aruba and Curacao on May 23, arriving her destination on the 29th. From Curacao, she sailed to Freetown a few days later, and in June she joined Convoy SL 114, leaving Freetown on June 25. Belnor was again in company, as were Solfonn, Vanja, Villanger and the Panamanian Norbris (Norwegian managers). Norholm had a cargo of gasolene and kerosene, and was bound for Belfast, station 72. She arrived Belfast Lough on July 16, proceeding to Avonmouth the next day, with arrival July 18. Please see the external links provided in the Voyage Record for more info on these convoys.

We now find her, along with Atlantic, Solstad, Tai Shan, Villanger and the Panamanian Norlys (also Norwegian managers), in the westbound North Atlantic Convoy ON 117*, originating in Liverpool July 31, Norholm arriving Halifax on Aug. 13. Having made another voyage to Curacao, she returned to Halifax in order to join Convoy HX 207 on Sept. 13, and arrived Avonmouth (via Belfast Lough) on Sept. 26. With Corneville, Iris (joined from Halifax), Norsol, President de Vogue, Stiklestad, Tai Shan, Velma and the Panamanian Norvinn (Norwegian managers), she subsequently joined the westbound Convoy ON 137*, which originated in Liverpool Oct. 9-1942 and arrived New York on the 29th. Having made a voyage to Curacao and back to New York (convoy info in table above), she was schedueld for Convoy HX 217 on Nov. 27, but instead joined HX 218, departing New York on Dec. 5, arriving Liverpool on the 21st. A few days later, she can be found in the westbound Convoy ON 157, sailing in station 44 of the convoy, which arrived New York on Jan. 15-1943. Skiensfjord had served as Commodore Vessel.

Norholm subsequently remained in New York for over a month (Page 1), before returning to the U.K. For this voyage, Arnold Hague has included her, together with B. P. Newton, Belinda, Ferncourt, Haakon Hauan, Kaldfonn, Mosli, Pan Aruba, Polartank (collided, returned), Skaraas, Stiklestad, Strinda and Thorshov, in Convoy HX 227*, which departed New York on Febr. 18-1943 and arrived Liverpool March 6; Norholm stopped at Belfast Lough on March 5, continuing to Avonmouth, where she arrived March 7. The Norwegian corvettes Acanthus and Eglantine are named among the escorts (see HX convoy escorts). With Abraham Lincoln (Commodore vessel), Norefjord and Spinanger, Norholm later joined the westbound Convoy ON 177*, originating in Liverpool on Apr. 6, arriving New York on the 23rd, and at the beginning of May we find her in Convoy HX 237 from New York (Sandanger and Brand were sunk - follow links for details). Via Belfast Lough, she arrived her destination Avonmouth on May 18, subsequently joining the westbound Convoy ON 186*, which also included B. P. Newton, Herbrand, Meline, Spinanger and Trondheim (from Liverpool May 24, to New York June 7 - see also Page 2).

On June 15 she headed in the other direction again with Convoy HX 244, bound for Avonmouth, station 105 (Vice Commodore in Samuel Bakke), then joined the westbound Convoy ON 192*, which originated in Liverpool July 9 and arrived New York on the 22nd and also had Anna Knudsen, Buenos Aires, Emma Bakke, Ferncourt, Ivaran, Laurits Swenson (Commodore Vessel), Petter, Reinholt, San Andres, Skaraas (returned), Tai Shan, Topdalsfjord, Vest, Villanger and the Panamanian Norvinn in its ranks. Norholm returned in Convoy HX 252 from New York the following month, in which Santos was lost - follow the links for more info. See also the Commodore's narrative, these collision reports and this report from the Flag Officer, Newfoundland. Norholm's destination is given as London and Isle of Grain, cargo of gasoline; according to the Commodore's notes, she was detached for Loch Ewe at 09:00Z on Aug. 27, position 55 15N 10 00W. She arrived Loch Ewe the next day, continuing to Methil Roads and Gravesend, where she arrived Sept. 4 (Page 2).

Together with California Express, Dageid, Duala, Gefion, Lista, Polartank, Skaraas, Trondheim, Vav, Vinga and the Panamanian Norlys, Norholm later joined Convoy ON 203* (originated in Liverpool Sept. 22, arrived New York Oct. 10). A. Hague now has her in Convoy HX 263*, departing New York on Oct. 24, arriving Liverpool Nov. 8 (Norholm arrived Milford Haven that day), again with other Norwegian ships in company, namely Herbrand, Villanger, Washington Express, Østhav and the Panamanian Norlys. Just a few days later we find her in Convoy ON 211*, which originated in Liverpool on Nov. 13 and arrived New York Nov. 29. Bañaderos, Elisabeth Bakke (Commodore Vessel), Herbrand, Trondheim, Vanja and Østhav are also listed. Christmas that year was celebrated while in Convoy HX 270*, which left New York on Dec. 10 and arrived Liverpool on the 26th. A. Hague has also included Elisabeth Bakke (Commodore Vessel), Heranger, Herbrand, Høyanger, Martin Bakke and Washington Express in this convoy. Again, please compare these voyages with what can be found on Page 2.

She headed back across the Atlantic again with Convoy ON 219*, which left Liverpool on Jan. 8-1944 and arrived New York on the 27th and also included Elisabeth Bakke (Commodore Vessel), Garonne, Heranger, Høyanger, Ivaran and Laurits Swenson. From New York, she sailed to Hampton Roads in order to make a voyage to the Mediterranean. Unfortunately, the archive documents showing the rest of her voyages are missing, which means that the rest of the voyage information on this page, and in the table above, is based on A. Hague's record only (except for cases where she's listed in original convoy documents). He says she joined Convoy UGS 32 on Febr. 3 in order to make this voyage; her destination is given as Algiers, where she arrived Febr. 21. This convoy is available via the external link provided in the table above. A few days later, she made a voyage from Algiers to Augusta, having joined Convoy KMS 42*. In March she sailed from Augusta to Algiers with Convoy MKS 43*, then returned to the U.S. from Algiers in Convoy GUS 34, which arrived Hampton Roads on Apr. 14 - Norholm arrived New York that day.

On Apr. 18 we find her in the New York-U.K. Convoy HX 288, for which Laurits Swenson acted as Commodore Vessel while Emma Bakke's captain served as Vice Commodore. Norholm's destination is given as Swansea, and according to A. Hague she arrived there on May 5, proceeding to Belfast Lough on May 10, and from there she subsequently joined the westbound Convoy ON 236*, which had started out in Liverpool on May 11 and arrived New York May 27. Buenos Aires, Fjordaas, Montevideo, Norvarg, Rena, Solsten, Sommerstad, Thorshov, Titanian and Vera are also listed. Norholm can now be found among the ships in Convoy UGS 45 from Hampton Roads on June 12, along with Norheim, Hjalmar Wessel (joined from Bizerta) and Roald Amundsen. As can be seen when following the link to my page about this convoy, Høegh Silverstar is also mentioned, but I'm not sure where she had joined. This convoy had Port Said as its final destination, but the Norwegian ships parted company at Augusta, then on July 19, they joined Convoy GUS 46, going in the other direction (Commodore in Høegh Silverlight). This convoy, which also included Ole Bull, Gallia and Elise, had originated in Port Said on July 14 and arrived Hampton Roads on Aug. 8 - Norholm is said to have arrived New York that day. It'll be noticed that some of the other Norwegian ships were not bound for the U.S. and had stopped along the way.

Again, please see A. Hague's Voyage Record above for his listing of the rest of her voyages. As mentioned, there was a page together with the archive documents for Norholm's voyages showing some 1945 voyages. Ship's name was given as Norholmen and I thought perhaps this should be Norholm, but according to A. Hague's record she was in a different part of the world at that time.

* The ON convoys will be added to individual pages in my Convoys section in due course, along with further details on each. In the meantime, the ships sailing in them are named in the section listing ships in all ON convoys. Also, the entire HX series will eventually be updated and completed, including the already existing convoys (some have already been updated), but for now, please go to ships in all HX convoys. The MKS and KMS convoys will also be added; see ships in MKS convoys and ships in KMS convoys.

More details on the other Norwegian ships mentioned on this page can be found via the alphabet index below, or go to the Master Ship Index.

POST WAR:

Sailed as Haukefjell for Olsen & Ugelstad, Oslo from 1946. Converted to a motorship in 1949 (see Post War details for Vega). Renamed Bluewater for Cia. Aralantica Pacifica S.A., Panama (Tidewater Commercial Co. Inc., Baltimore, U.S.A.) in 1952. Arrived Osaka on July 27-1959 for breaking up.

Related external link:
Empire Ships - Empire Druid can be found on this page.

Back to Norholm on the "Ships starting with N" page.

The text on this page was compiled with the help of: "Nortraships flåte", J. R. Hegland, and misc., including information received from Barbara Mumford, her source Mitchell & Sawyer's "Empire Ships".