SAN SALVADOR (2)

About

Completed 1950 as "SAN SALVADOR" for Eagle Oil. 1961 scrapped Hendrik Ido Ambacht.

IMO number
1184336
Call sign
GKPL
Construction number
445
Tonnage
10.802 ton
Beam
21m
Length overall
160m
Year of construction
1950
Year of renaming/broken up
1961
Service for Shell
1950 to 1961
Cargo
Class
Flag state
Home port
Manager
Shipyard
Status
Photo(s)

Comments

Sailors

Name Job Period Details
John Hall catering boy/galley boy 1951 to 1952
Arthur R. Geake cadet 1951 to 1953
Brian Long radio officer 1955 to 1956 trainee radio officer (sparky!) was a long tng session!!
Ian F. Boon chief officer 1956
Malcolm W. Dent deck apprentice 1957 to 1958 first trip deck apprentice, joined in liverpool and home 13 months later !
Alan Charlesworth senior deck apprentice 1957 to 1958
Joe Williams pantryboy 1957 to 1958
Stephen Barrow pantryboy 1959 to 1960

Anecdotes

Date Visitor Anecdote
12/17/2012 - 13:39 Stephen Barrow

I joined the san salvador feb 1959 at cammell lairds dry dock.It looks like the ship had a history of engine trouble!.we sailed for cardon in south america but broke down,after drifting for acouple of days the enginners started engines.we were told to stand by mid-ships life boats in case engine blows. we managed to limp into Trinidad (port of spain)for boiler repairs,we were there approx 4or5 weeks,I had my 16th birthday there and was sorry to leave,it was an exiting time for me. We left for home,and repairs at scotsun docks {scotland}.we went back to tramping round south america,and north america and was allowed leave to visit family in Boston. I often think of the happy times on the San Salvador,as this was my first ship. We paid off in Falmouth, Cornwall,and was told the ship was being laid up in the back water,River Fal,up to last year (2011} still looking for info,now thanks to my laptop i find it was the river black water, in essex. Most of crew were from Liverpool, a great bunch .I remember most faces,and a few names.

04/27/2011 - 15:48 Malcolm W. Dent

I joined the ship at Liverpool (Cammell Lairds dry dock). We sailed to Mamonal, Venezuela or Colombia and tramped around a fair bit after that. Had boiler problems and were heading back to the UK. but about half way home we broke down completely and were towed into the Azores (Flores) by the San Fernando for repairs, which for the apprentices was the best part of the whole trip.I got home after 13 months but one thing was for sure in Eagle Oil it didn't take many trips to get my seatime in for 2nd mates.

12/03/2010 - 22:51 John Hall

joined the San Salvador on Tyneside in 1952 was told she was doing a quicky to Curacao and back 6 t0 8 weeks. We finally limped back a year and 3 months later.She had alot of engineering problems with the boilers. But for more than a year we went up and down the South American east coast.The highlight of the trip was when we were told we were going to salvage a brokendown Shell tanker the "Lampania" off the coast of Brazil and tow her to Curacao.we were counting our salvage money in thousands !!!!! till we were told that Shell had taken over Eagle Oil a couple of months previous and it was just a simple tow job. We got a extra months wages as a bonus !!!! The engineering problems must have got worse i see she was scrapped only ten years old.

06/03/2009 - 21:53 Brian Long

The call sign for San Salvador was GKPL; it was equipped with Marconi radio equipment. I served on this ship 1955-56 as T/RO with RO Des Meighan (God bless, old stock if yer still about). Our Captain was "Sammy" Mays - a great skipper! Ah well - pure nostalgia.