Orkney Image Library

I remember delivering coal onboard Barneath, i only hope they sent the gangway to the breakers with it, as it was pretty ropey you might say.

I spent most of my Naval career in "Bar" class boats on both the east and west coasts of Scotland and the Med and enjoyed every single minute of the hard graft and cameraderie of the life on "the boom"

I was an ERA4 on Barneath 1953/54 as part of my National Service. She worked from Rosyth, Scapa, Aultbea and Campbelltown during my time. The Chief Tiffy was Bill Platt.

Allan, your date on this one must be wrong, it would have been 1957-58 that she came to the salvage work, I was one of the crew that went to Rosyth to bring her up, but we had to come back without her as she had been mothballed and the seacocks were plated over, so couldn't steam her up . She was towed to Rinnigal and we removed the seacock valves and spent about 24hours drilling inch holes from the inside, every hole as the drill went through was plugged with a wooden plug by a diver, when enough holes were drilled the valve was reassembled and the diver removed all the plugs from the holes and hey presto we were ready to raise steam..

Your quite right 1950 would be too early for her I remember fishing for sillocks off Rinninal pier in the early fifties and there was no Nundy then. The old man got a job on the Barneath and we moved from Orphir back to crystal wells beside Rinnigal pier- I think that would have been 1957-1958 and he had her just a short time before that. I can still mind some o the names of the guys that worked there in the early days. Fellows like Tam the engineer Jimmy Craigie fireman, Jimmy Chalmers. and George and Jimmy Hamilton and Big Robbie Norquoy from Flotta who used to splice them enormous wires with ease.Dont know who you are but please get in touch I would like to hear your yarns about the days of Nundy Marine Metals.

comment on 3rd july was by me, didn't notice no name left....

After studying the picture, I notice the huge condenser on the pier, this was out of the Vanguard, weighed about 19 tons and all non ferrous, it had been blown clean out of the ship and lay completely clear of the wreck .We accidently fouled a mooring wire on it while mooring over the wreck, Nundy was raging about the time lost getting moored, he sent a diver down to clear the fouled wire and found it fouled on the condenser, we sent down a lifting tackle and had it up and headed back to rinnigal, Nundy beaming, fouled wire forgotten about.

This picture was taken approx 1960.

We googled this boat and all of this information came up. My dad Jimmy wheeler was absolutely thrilled. He was a morse code signal man on the Barneath in 1946/47.

How can we find out the name of the captain at that time? Thank you.Beverley Pearce

[Over to you, boys...]

I found an entry in my mums diaries that the Barneath was in Stonehaven harbour during the week before the Coronation in 1953. I was on it (can't remember - too young!) for a look round she says.

My father (Walter (Wally) Holloway)served on the Barneath during WW2. I am not sure if this was in the Orkneys or in the Med towards the end of the war. Anyone out there serve with him?

As part of Nat. Service I served on Barneath 1955/56 until she payed off in the Feb in Rosyth. It was one hell of an experience. After 6 months stoking we had hands like a kangaroo's backside.We were stationed in Aultbea maintaining anti sub.nets before coaling ship in Ullapool then a "speed trial" to get round Pentland Firth to Scapa Flow then down to Rosyth. Little entertainment But! a great time.