When the trials commenced, the weather on Lake Ontario brought the wind from the south-west and the conditions were slight.
Trentonian’s steering was checked and performed very well. The ship could turn from amidships (straight) to hard starboard or hard to port in six seconds. The turn from hard starboard to hard port took twelve seconds and the ship was slightly slower turning in the opposite direction, from hard port to hard starboard took thirteen seconds. It took one minute twenty-five seconds to change from steam steering gear on the bridge to hand gear steering in the emergency steering position in the tiller flats, and twenty-five seconds to change back to steam. There was a slight difficulty in steering from the tiller flats, as the voice pipes had not yet been installed throughout the ship; all commands from the bridge had to be passed through several men stationed along the ship.
Anchors were tested, and when both dropped together, sixty-six feet of cable could be let out in one minute. When dropped one at a time, eighty feet of cable could be dropped in the same time.
Trentonian’s turning performance was tested and it was found the ship could complete a turn to port or starboard in less than two minutes. A complete circle could be turned in a radius of 325 feet.
During the engine trials the ship was able to go from full speed to stop in one minute fourteen seconds and from full speed to reverse in one minute twenty-six seconds.
During the trials the ship sailed at full speed for three hours and logged 46.7 nautical miles at 15.56 knots.
Trials were completed at 1630 and Trentonian returned to the dock at 1715. All aspects of the ship performed well except the time it took to change from steam steering to the hand gear in the emergency steering. Harrison recommended this be rechecked at the acceptance trials later.[36]
That same day, good news was waiting for the ship on its return to Kingston. After the loss of two Canadian ships in the previous months, two RCN ships had attacked and sunk a German submarine. Snowberry and Calgary, along with HMS Nene, had sunk U-536 off the Azores.[37]
Harrison took a break from overseeing the preparations of his ship on November 27 to travel the one hundred kilometres to Trenton. He paid a visit to Mayor Cory and thanked the city for the many useful and appropriate gifts that had been presented to the ship and crew. In an interview with the local newspaper, Harrison stated that the piano was three inches too wide to fit into the ship and if a trade could be made for something smaller it would get used. When asked if Trentonian could visit the city, he stated the water in the Bay of Quinte was too shallow for the ship, but all of Trenton was welcome to come and visit it in Kingston and be on hand for its commissioning.
During this visit, Harrison went to the local high school to meet the students and teachers. While there he met one of the members of the committee to support the ship, Hazel Farley. Miss Farley was one of the high-school teachers and had been assigned the position of correspondence with the ship and Lt. Harrison. She also set up a pen-pal system for the Trenton High School students to write letters directly with the crew.
Harrison’s visit with the city very much impressed the citizens of Trenton and the newspaper commented in an interview with the city’s newest dignitary, “Lt. Harrison is a fine upstanding chap and thoroughly qualified to command such a vessel as The Trentonian.”[38]
In this final week before commissioning, the builders finished the small details in the ship, and its skeleton crew slowly moved aboard as the mess decks and living quarters were completed.
Lieutenant William Burley Kinsman, RCNVR was appointed as Trentonian’s executive officer, the ship’s second-in-command. Originally from Vancouver, British Columbia, he joined the navy at the Naval Reserve Unit, Chippawa. He had come from the River-class destroyer St. Francis and joined Trentonian on November 11.
Three other officers were assigned to the ship: Lt. L.P. Parre, RCNVR, came on as the navigating officer; and two sub-lieutenants, C.H. LaRose, RCNVR, as the gunnery officer, and D.J. Dodds, RCNVR, of Westmount, Quebec, as anti-submarine officer.
Trentonian’s engineering officer was Hamilton Francis Hindle, RCN, warrant engineer, born in Victoria, B.C. but raised in Vancouver and Hong Kong. Hindle had joined the Royal Navy as an ordinary seaman in 1936. He later transferred to the RCN and was appointed as a warrant engineer in March 1943. Trentonian was his first ship. Hindle had a strong football background as an avid player, coach, and fan. To his friends he was known as Mr. Football. As the engineering officer, Hindle was responsible for the operation of everything mechanical in the ship. This included engines, boilers, generators, and winches. He was also responsible for the damage-control operations of the ship.
Prior to commissioning, forty-three of the ratings reported aboard in addition to the six officers.[39] The remainder of Trentonian’s crew would join later in Quebec and Halifax. The coxswain was Chief Petty Officer Thomas Raymond Roberts of Halifax, Nova Scotia. A ship’s coxswain, or chief, is the senior rating and responsible for all the men in the ship; he reports directly to the commanding officer. A good coxswain performs his duties with a combination of diligence and respect and will also instill a little bit of fear into those under him. Any of the ratings in the ship would not dare question any order given by the coxswain, and although he is not responsible for the officers in the ship, any officer that the coxswain made a “suggestion” to would be smart to follow his advice.
One of the ratings assigned to Trentonian was the Sick Bay Attendant (or “Tiffy,” the naval slang term for the position) Allen Egerton Singleton from Saskatoon, Saskatchewan. He was responsible for tending to the illnesses and injuries of the crew. Singleton was an avid amateur photographer, and with his box camera he would take many pictures of the everyday life aboard Trentonian. Using the sickbay as a personal dark room, he developed his black-and-white photos and posted them on the ship’s bulletin board. The crew could then place their orders and he would provide copies for a small price. Fortunately, he remained with Trentonian for its entire length of service. His original photographs were lost with the ship, but the many copies he produced for his shipmates have survived, giving Trentonian a rich and unprecedented pictorial history.[40]
Top Left: Lt. William B. Kinsman, RCNVR, Executive Officer of Trentonian (Photo courtesy of the Family of Maurice Campbell); Top Right: Lt. Donald Dodds (Photo Courtesy of the Family of Maurice Campbell); Bottom Left: Warrant Engineer Hamilton Francis Hindle, RCN (Photo courtesy of the Family of Maurice Campbell); Bottom Centre: Chief Petty Officer Thomas Raymond Roberts, Trentonian’s Coxswain (Photo credit: SBA A. Singleton, courtesy of Bruce Keir); Bottom Right: Sick Bay Attendant Allen Singleton (Photo courtesy of Walter Gregory).
The Kingston Whig-Standard reported on the final days of construction of the ship, “Gifts, which have been donated by the citizens of Trenton, were placed aboard HMCS Trentonian which is being built at the plant of the Kingston Shipbuilding Company. The naval vessel which was christened by the wife of the Mayor of Trenton and which was sponsored by that town will shortly join the Royal Canadian Navy.”
The article went on to state, “The Whig-Standard was told this morning the corvette, one of the most modern type now being built for the United Nations, has been accepted by the Department of Naval Affairs, Ottawa after passing its tests. A few minor changes will be made before the ship leaves for an eastern Canadian port.”[41]
Trentonian just prior to commissioning into the Royal Canadian Navy on December 1, 1943.
Photo courtesy Directorate of Naval History and Heritage.
On December 1, 1943, at 1300, with a small ceremony the white ensign was raised for the first time on Trentonian’s gaff, just behind the funnel. RCN Hull number CN443 was commissioned into the Royal Canadian Navy as His Majesty’s Canadian Ship Trentonian.[42] Once again a delegation from Trenton was on hand to participate in the commissioning. The citizens of Trenton were now able to step aboard their new ship and inspect it for themselves.
The Trentonians of the city were abl
e to meet the Trentonians of the ship, and at the service the crew were made honourary citizens of the city of Trenton. Each crew member was given a cloth badge from the city to commemorate the occasion and the shared name. The crew spent time giving detailed tours of the ship to the delegation. With Trentonian sailing soon for the east coast, this was the last time for the people of Trenton to see their ship.
Three citizens of Trenton pose with Lt. Harrison (rear left), Lt. Kinsman (rear centre), and Warrant Officer Hindle, on board Trentonian following the commissioning ceremony.
Photo courtesy of the Quinte West Public Library, Hazel Farley Collection.
2: A Voyage to the Sea
The ship’s Company have found the “comforts” the people of Trenton have sent us of tremendous help in improving the living conditions in our ship.
— Lt. W.B. Kinsman, RCNVR, executive officer HMCS Trentonian
Shortly after the commissioning ceremony, Trentonian prepared to leave Kingston. The crew had two days to bring in provisions, supplies, spare parts, and all the stores the ship would need.
The piano, too large to fit through the hatch, was disassembled and brought into the ship, then reassembled in the seamen’s mess and secured. Stoker Bruce Keir, from Scarborough, Ontario, remembered many hours playing on the piano, “no one really knew how to play well, but we tried anyways.”[1]
Although Trentonian was now commissioned and accepted by the Royal Canadian Navy, it was not fully complete. Still to be installed was the after pom-pom gun, search light, asdic (sonar), and other smaller projects. Work on the ship would continue in Quebec and later, on the East Coast.
HMCS Trentonian at Montreal after commissioning.
Photo courtesy of Gary McGregor.
Finally, at 1145 on December 3, Trentonian slipped its lines and left Kingston and the Great Lakes with the white ensign flying.[2] The ship entered the St. Lawrence River after passing through the Thousand Islands, making its way to the first port of call in Montreal.
On the afternoon of December 6, Trentonian arrived in Montreal where it would remain for three days. On arrival, more of the crew joined the ship after being transferred from the manning pool at the Naval Reserve Unit, Hochelaga.
One of the sailors to join the ship was Stoker Sydney Coates, RCNVR, from Carbon, Alberta. He had quit school to join the navy in 1942 after finishing eleventh grade. He enlisted in Calgary, but the navy could not take him until the next class. Coates went to work in Fort St. John driving a gravel truck for the Alaska Highway. After an accident left his truck stranded, he returned to Calgary and had three weeks basic training at the local Naval Reserve Unit, Tecumseh, before being sent to Halifax to train as a stoker. Three months later Coates was assigned to the corvette Baddeck. He was reassigned to Cornwallis for training when Baddeck went for refit. On completion of his training he was sent to Montreal to await his assignment on the frigate Valleyfield, which was still under construction.
The sailors assigned to the manning pool were required to attend morning parades to see if their ship was ready; if their name was called, they reported to the ship. If their name was not called they were free until the next day. Coates reported faithfully for weeks, awaiting news that Valleyfield was ready. One morning, he met an old friend from home and the two sailors went into Montreal and enjoyed the city. They missed morning divisions the next day and, when they did show up, the military police were looking for Coates. Missing the division had caused Coates to be reported as Absent Without Leave (AWOL); Valleyfield had been ready and his name called.
Coates was placed in the cells for seven days. He described the routine of being in detention as waking at 0600, cleaning his cell, polishing his uniform (including the soles of his boots), and shining the garbage can until he could see himself in it. A breakfast consisting of toast and coffee followed. The morning was spent being inspected, and then he was given a rifle and a backpack full of sand and had to march and drill until noon. Lunch was soup and bread. The afternoon was filled with running and exercise. The day ended with a supper of meat, potatoes, and vegetables at 1800 followed by lights out at 1930.[3] On his return to the manning pool, Coates was reassigned to Trentonian.
Trentonian departed Montreal for the short trip down the St. Lawrence River to Quebec City on December 9 and arrived there the next day. In Quebec City more crew joined the ship, bringing its compliment to eighty-eight.
Lieutenant Harrison spent the next few days forming the men into a ship’s company with training exercises and evolutions in the river. They spent a great amount of time leaving the dock only to come back and secure the ship again. How well a skipper and crew can perform this evolution is the first impression the rest of the fleet, and especially the brass, have of a ship.
While more equipment was fitted into the ship, Harrison’s cabin was unuseable, as workmen were running ductwork and wiring through it. He was forced to spend nights ashore.
On December 11, Harrison wrote his first letter to Trenton. Fortunately, he kept very close contact with his ship’s namesake town through Miss Hazel Farley. Miss Farley donated the entire collection to the Trenton Public Library. His first letter is as follows:
Many thanks for the snap which I received yesterday. My wife is [removed by censor] now and she is very pleased with it, so you see yours was a happy thought. We have arrived here after many vicissitudes and headaches and the sooner we get into more open water the better I’ll like it.
The ship doesn’t look much better than when you saw it but we have more than half the crew here now. I am enclosing the list you asked for, giving the names of all on board at present. Will send a supplemental list when our compliment is complete.
We expect to be here until about the 20th Dec. so you could send the afghans to above address. After leaving here the address will be c/o F.M.O. Halifax.[4]
The St. Lawrence River frozen over while Trentonian is in Quebec City.
Photo credit: A. Singleton, courtesy of Jack Harold.
Due to lessons learned from predecessors sailing the North Atlantic during winter, a new type of insulation was used in Trentonian’s construction. The interior bulkheads and deck heads were covered in a layer of insulation to keep the crew warm. When the typical December Quebec City weather began, temperature plummeted. With the bitter cold outside the crew became very cold in the mess decks despite the new insulation. The men could see their breath and frost formed on the portholes. The crew wore several layers of clothes to sleep, but as the temperature became colder outside, the mess deck could not be kept warm. One morning, when icicles formed on the deck heads, the crew threatened to walk off the ship.
Harrison notified the engineers ashore and the ship’s heating system was inspected. They found the blower fans for the heaters had been installed backwards; instead of blowing stale air out of the mess decks, bitterly cold air was being sucked in. The problem was quickly remedied and the crew spent their first warm night playing cards and writing letters home.[5]
Repairs to the ship and training of the ship’s company continued, some of the men were able to visit family in the area; others were able to go ashore to enjoy the sights of Quebec City.
Not all of the large gifts from Trenton had arrived in Kingston before Trentonian departed. Two large crates consisting of toasters, hotplates, and electric irons had required special documentation and permission due to their weight. The paperwork began on December 15 and cited, “This is a gift from the Trenton Corvette Committee to the crew of HMCS Trentonian.”[6] With Trentonian no longer in Kingston, the crates would first be shipped to the RCN and the navy would forward them to wherever the ship was located.
The first of the care parcels from Trenton arrived in the form of afghans for the officers bunks. Harrison was able to send another letter to Miss Farley on December 17:
Your letter and parcel with afghans arrived yesterday. Many thanks for both. Some of the men, have, I hear, already received letters from their pen-pals. They appear to be deligh
ted with them so I hope the friendship by correspondence lasts. Sailors are notoriously bad correspondents but some of them make up for the others. I hope to send you a list of the remainder of the crew next Monday or Tuesday.
You asked about quilts. I am sure they would be useful, but a limited amount, as there are only nine bunks in the ship. The Officers supply their own sheets, pillowcases, and counterpanes and I imagine they have not got around to getting very much in that line as yet. As for your other questions socks and mitts are always acceptable, little pictures that they can stick up to improve the scenery and a very urgent need at the moment — ashtrays. However we don’t really want to trespass on your generosity except for the little things that perhaps could be easily got hold of.
Things are still hectic here, still wet paint around and ends of wires. We have also got the dismal news that we will spend Xmas at sea so that won’t be so hot in more senses than one. It couldn’t be very much colder than it is here at any rate. However, we will have quite a time finishing off when we get there so the above address should find us for a few weeks more.
I am still living on shore not having my cabin finished yet. They have decided to run a lot more wires and a ventilating shaft right through it.
Well, I fancy I have to go out in the cold again so won’t put it off any longer.[7]
On December 22, 1943, Lt. Harrison received his sailing orders from the Naval Officer in Charge (NOIC,) Quebec. He was to sail to Halifax the next day with the corvette Norsyd and the tug boat, HMCTug Norton.
White Ensign Flying Page 3