SS Point Pleasant Park Cairn

Point Pleasant Park

Near the entrance to Point Pleasant Park from the lower parking lot stands a memorial cairn dedicated to those who lost their lives aboard the SS Point Pleasant Park.

S.S. Point Pleasant Park

A Canadian World War II 10,000 ton freighter named after this park was sunk by torpedo from enemy submarine 500 miles northwest of Capetown, South Africa on February 23, 1945.

The following men were lost* : Joseph Bayliss, Robert Munro, Fred (Singer) Breen, Leslie Toth, George Edwards, Louis Wilkinson, Patrick Guthrie, Robert Hallahan

This cairn is dedicated to these gallant and unsung men of the Merchant Navy, and to the happy ship in which they served Canada and died for her freedom.

Erected July 1967 by the Park Commission and Capt. Paul Tooke, M.N. for the survivors who sailed 414 miles in 10 days in lifeboats to the Kalahari Desert and were rescued by H.M.S.A.S. Africana.

The Southern Cross Their Eternal Flame

* Please note the men listed above are taken from the monument itself.  Reader Billy McGee points out that I've left out one of the casualties from the SS Point Pleasant Park: the Mess Boy Godfrey Alfred Marius Malmberg.  Billy McGee's website is the British Merchant Navy at War: 1939-1945.  Also, I believe the 'Fred 'Singer' Breen' listing reads 'Fred Brean' on the monument.  A family member of Mr. Breen corrected me and included the nickname which I've included above.  I'm sorry, I've misplaced this family member's name ~ they're welcome to write me again.

This site, dedicted to the 'Fort', 'Park' and 'Ocean' ships, lists the SS Point Pleasant Park as a 'North Sands' type, built by Davie SB & Rep. Co. Ltd., Lauzon, QC, and managed by Furness Whithy & Co. Ltd., Montreal.  The SS PPP was delivered August 11, 1943.

23/02/45: Sunk by torpedo from U-510 commanded by Alfred Eick, in the Atlantic, North West of Capetown (position 29.42S/09.58E) whilst sailing independently on a voyage from St John New Brunswick to Cape Town and Durban via Trinidad with general cargo.  The Master, Captain Owen Owens and 19 crew landed at Mercury Island on 02/03/45 and taken by fishing boat to Luderitz, SW Africa.  Twenty-nine crew were rescued by SAN trawler AFRICANA north of Spencer Bay on 04/04/45 and were landed at Walvis Bay, SW Africa.  Nine crew were lost.

Also see Canadian Merchant Ship Losses of the Second World War, 1939-1945.

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