HMAS CASTLEMAINE VOLUNTEERS
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SHIP'S HISTORY
HMAS CASTLEMAINE was one of sixty Australian Minesweepers (Corvettes) built in Australia during WW2. The first 20 were manned by the RAN but 'owned' by the RN, 36 were RAN and 4 went to the Royal Indian Navy.
CASTLEMAINE was built at Williamstown, Victoria and commissioned in June 1942. She served mainly as an escort vessel in waters around the eastern and northern coast of Australia, with short deployments to the Indian Ocean and South China Sea.
In December 1942, she had been evacuating personnel from Timor with her sister ship, HMAS ARMIDALE, shortly before that ship was attacked and sunk by Japanese aircraft. During that action, Teddy Sheean died, but his bravery is commemorated in the Collins Class Submarine, HMAS SHEEAN, the only RAN major warship named for a sailor.
Between August and October 1945 CASTLEMAINE was engaged in minesweeping around Hong Kong and after steaming 117,000 miles on war service, paid off at Melbourne in December 1945.
HMAS CASTLEMAINE, NOW MAINTAINED AS A MUSEUM SHIP, IS OPEN FOR INSPECTION EACH WEEKEND, AND MOST PUBLIC HOLIDAYS, usually between 10am and 4 pm.
Location GEM PIER.WILLIAMSTOWN VIC.
Volunteers are required for weekend rosters, and/or for weekly maintenance on Tuesdays.
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THE 'OFFICIAL' WEBSITE IS AT www.hmascastlemaine.com.
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THIS 'VOLUNTEER' SITE IS EXPERIMENTAL ONLY AND CONSISTS MAINLY OF LINKS TO OTHER SITES INCLUDING WIKIPEDIA. THE MOTIVATION WAS AN ATTEMPT TO ANSWER THE DIVERSE QUESTIONS POSED BY SHIP'S VISITORS, AND TO PROVIDE LEADS FOR FURTHER ENQUIRY.
Attempts have been made to seek copyright clearance from relevant site owners. Any apparent breaches of copyright, suggestions and/or criticisms of any nature, might please be directed to Pat Gavan on dongano@mc2.vicnet.net.au
THERE IS NO CONNECTION WITH THE MARITIME TRUST OF AUSTRALIA OR THE REPRESENTATIVE OF ANY ORGANISATION.
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HMAS Castlemaine (1942) - Historic ship World War 2
Type: Australian Minesweeper (Bathurst Class)
Displacement: 650 tons Length: 186 feet Beam: 31 feet Draft: 8 feet 3 inches (mean)
Laid down: 17 February 1941 Launched: 7 August 1941 (Mrs R G Menzies) Commissioned: 17 June 1942
Builders: Melbourne Harbour Trust Commissioners, Williamstown
Armament:
1 x 4-inch gun
2 x MG 0.5 inch guns
3 x Oerlikons (one Bofor was later fitted aft in lieu of an Oerlikon)
Ammunition:
282 4-inch shells
Approx. 2,500 rounds for each small gun
30 normal and 20 heavy-duty depth charges
Boilers: 2 x Yarrow Admiralty 3 drum, oil fired
Engines: 2 x triple expansion steam engines developing 1800 I.H.P.
Speed: 15 knots (maximum)
Radius: In excess of 4000 miles at 10 knots
Compliment: 70
Cost: £250,000
HMAS Castlemaine was one of sixty Australian minesweepers (popularly named corvettes) built during World War 2 in Australian shipyards. Twenty were built on Admiralty order but commissioned in and manned by the Royal Australian Navy (RAN). Thirty-six were built for the RAN and four for the Royal Indian Navy. All 56 RAN ships were named after Australian country cities and towns. HMAS Castlemaine is the last one afloat.
Following commissioning at Melbourne, HMAS Castlemaine proceeded to Sydney for working-up exercises, after which she began operational service escorting convoys between Sydney and Melbourne. On the night of 11 August 1942, collision with a Manly ferry in Sydney Harbour put her in dockyard hands for seven days.
On 26 August 1942, she departed Sydney for Darwin, but was diverted to escort convoys between Townsville and Port Moresby.
On 29 September 1942, HMAS Castlemaine departed Port Moresby for Darwin arriving on 5 October to begin a short period of escorting vessels from Darwin to the vicinity of Cape Wessel. On 6 November with a Dutch army officer and four war correspondents on board, she proceeded to Betano (Timor) where, after embarking soldiers and refugees during the night of 7/8 November, returned safely to Darwin at daylight on 8 November.
Later in November it was decided to relieve the Australian 2/2nd Independent Company, then operating as a guerrilla force in Timor. It was proposed to use HMA Ships Armidale, (another corvette), Castlemaine and Kuru (a former Northern Territory patrol vessel requisitioned as a naval tender) to run into Betano Bay on the night of 30 November/1 December, land 50 Dutch troops and withdraw 190 troops as well as some 150 Portuguese refugees. On the night of 4/5 December, a second run was planned to withdraw the 2/2nd Independent Company.
HMAS Kuru sailed from Darwin at 2230 hours on 28 November for Betano, scheduled to arrive about two hours before the two corvettes, land stores and embark refugees for transfer to Castlemaine on her arrival and then to tranship and land troops from the Armidale. After this, Kuru was to pick up some sick and wounded Dutch troops and take them out to the waiting Armidale, before returning to pick up her own passengers for the return trip to Darwin.
The corvettes sailed from Darwin at 0142 hours on 29 November. At 0915 hours they were attacked by a single aircraft, but suffered no damage. They were subjected to two further air attacks, each time by five bombers, but again escaped unharmed, reaching Betano safely at 0330 hours on 1 December 1942. HMAS Kuru had arrived Betano at 1145 hours (30 November) and embarked 77 refugees and one Australian soldier. Unaware of the delay caused by the air attacks on the corvettes, Kuru’s commander, Lieut. J A Grant, RANR, sailed for Darwin at about 2000 hours.
Realising that it was far too late to proceed with the operation, Lt Cmdr P J Sullivan (Senior Officer) in HMAS Castlemaine, having assured himself that the Kuru was not still at Betano, sailed south at best speed. HMAS Kuru was met soon after dawn, some 70 miles south of the Timor coast and her passengers were transferred to Castlemaine, it having been decided to send Armidale and Kuru back to Betano to complete the operation under cover of darkness. The operation was cancelled when Japanese cruisers were reported 60 miles south west of Betano. Kuru reached Darwin on 3 December but HMAS Armidale was lost by air attack on 1 December.
After parting company HMAS Castlemaine set out first to search for survivors from a missing RAAF Beaufighter some 150 miles south east of Betano, and thence to Darwin where she arrived on 2 December to resume escort duty on the Darwin-Thursday Island route. On 15 December and the following day, her convoy bound westward from Cape Wessel to Darwin was attacked by aircraft. SS Period sustained a direct hit killing four and wounding six members of her crew. This, and two further attacks on the convoy, were repulsed by HMAS Castlemaine's brisk anti-aircraft fire. The convoy reached Darwin without further incident.
On 2 January, 1943, HMAS Castlemaine paid her second visit to New Guinea, reaching Port Moresby as escort to the troopship Van Heemskerk. She returned to Darwin on 9 January and until the end of June 1943 was engaged in escorting merchant shipping between Darwin, Thursday Island and Whyndam, Western Australia.
On 20 July 1943 she returned to Sydney after an absence of 327 days, an almost unbroken seagoing service. Refit kept the corvette in dockyard hands until the end of August.
From departuring Sydney on 27 August 1943, HMAS Castlemaine was engaged escorting convoys between Sydney and Brisbane until 12 November 1943. On 28 November she proceeded to Townsville having been allocated escort duty in the North Eastern Area between North Queensland ports and New Guinea. She was thus engaged until March 1944 when transferred to the control of the Naval Officer-in-Charge, New Guinea.
In the New Guinea theatre, the corvette was kept busy on escort duties,and in carrying stores, mail and troops. She visited Milne Bay, Langemak, Manus, Madang, Hollandia, Lae, Saidor, Finschafen and New Britain. It was uneventful but arduous service with almost no respite. On 11 June 1944 she departed Milne Bay for Adelaide to refit.
On 2 August 1944 Castlemaine departed Adelaide for Fremantle en route to Darwin and after calling at Onslow arrived in Darwin on 20 August. She had thus, since commissioning, circumnavigated the mainland of Australia. At Darwin she was allocated to a survey unit engaged mainly on charting the Scott Reef-Browse Island area.
Apart from a visit to Fremantle (24 February to 22 March 1945) HMAS Castlemaine continued to operate as a survey vessel based in Darwin until 16 August 1945. She then proceeded to Morotai and thence to Subic Bay,in the Phillipines. On 29 August, Castlemaine arrived at Hong Kong, and until mid September was engaged on patrol and escort duty in the cleared channel. Then, she engaged in the mine clearance operations in the Hong Kong area with the 21st and 22nd Minesweeping Flotillas, until 3 October,1945.
With the cessation of hostilities HMAS Castlemaine sailed via Morotai and Thursday Island, arriving Melbourne on 16 November 1945.
She paid off on 16 December having steamed 117,000 miles during 13,000 hours under way on war service.
Along with other corvettes and 'River' class frigates, HMAS Castlemaine was part of the Reserve Fleet swinging at anchor at Corio Bay, Geelong. From here they were periodically y towed to Williamstown Dockyard for dry-docking and maintenance, then returned to Geelong.
HMAS Castlemaine as a static training ship.
In 1955 HMAS Castlemaine was allocated to Flinders Naval Depot, (HMAS Cerberus) for use as a stationary training ship for engine-room personnel. To prepare for this role she was towed from Geelong to Williamstown dockyard for a complete engine overhaul with all other non essential equipment, such as guns, radar, radio, asdic, boats, minesweeping gear and deck fittings being removed. The crew's mess was gutted in preparation for the engine room artificer's work. A steaming crew joined the ship for the voyage to Cerberus in Westernport Bay and to the wharf beside the Seamanship School that was to become her home for the next 15 years. After arriving at her new berth in 1956 HMAS Castlemaine was firmly secured to the wharf as a training ship for engine-room mechanics and shipwrights. The boilers were flashed and the engines and propellers turned slowly. The ships decks were stripped bare and little rigging remained. The shipwrights flaked out the anchor cables on the wharf as part of their training. The former mess deck was turned into a workshop and the minesweeping store into a classroom for the recruits. Later the small arms magazine was converted to a damage control compartment, which was flooded through water-boxes that had various size holes and splits in them. The damage control parties had to enter the compartment and plug the holes as the water poured in, along with smoke bombs and lights going out. With the building of a new engineering school at HMAS Cerberus, Castlemaine's role as a training ship was reduced, especially as new training methods and technology were introduced. Parts of the engines and boilers were relocated to the classrooms as models. During 1967 a proposal to convert her to a Tank Cleaning Vessel, similar to HMAS Colac in Sydney, was assessed. The idea was abandoned, and she remained at HMAS Cerberus, rusting away. In 1969 the HMAS Castlemaine was declared for disposal by the government. As the ship was now immobile her only future appeared to be the breaker's yard. Finally the Castlemaine was offered for "Sale by Tender as Lies", with tenders closing on the 24th June 1971.
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