Plaque du HMCS Oakville

History
The Battle of the Atlantic (September 1939 – May 1945) 
The Second World War began when Nazi Germany invaded Poland. Britain, France, and Canada were quick to declare war, but the enemy was strong and well equipped. By the fall of 1941 things looked very dark for the Allies; Germany had defeated France and was now attacking Britain. Canada and America sent vital supplies to Britain, which could only be transported by sea – something that Germany was determined to stop by using U-boats (submarines). 

The “Battle of the Atlantic” was the fight that pitted supply convoys against the German Navy. The Royal Canadian Navy (RCN) played a vital role in this battle and relied heavily on a new kind of warship: the Flower-Class Corvette. Small, lightly armed and fast, corvettes were excellent submarine hunters and perfect for escorting convoys. One of the most famous corvettes of the Second World War was named after the Town of Oakville.

HMCS Oakville Christening Ceremony (November 5, 1941) 
HMCS (K178) Oakville was built in Port Arthur, Ontario, and launched on June 21, 1941. On November 5, 12 local school children, representing each school in the district, were chosen to travel to Toronto to board the ship for its journey to the Town of Oakville. Joining them were the Hon. Angus L. Macdonald, Minister of National Defence for Naval Affairs, and Rear-Admiral Percy W. Nelles, Chief of Naval Staff. At 2 p.m. the ship arrived and dropped anchor offshore near this spot. Thousands of spectators in Lakeside Park cheered for the ship and crew while the mayor, Dr. Franklin Murray Deans, welcomed the commanding officer and dignitaries. 

Battle with U94 (August 28, 1942)
HMCS Oakville was escorting convoy TAW-15 (Trinidad, Aruba, Battle with U94 (August 28, 1942) Key West) in the Caribbean when she attacked, captured, and sunk U-boat U94. In the early morning of August 28, 1942, a plane that was escorting the convoy spotted a surfaced U-boat. It immediately dived, dropping depth charges that alerted HMCS Oakville to the danger. U94 was trying to submerge and escape, but not before Oakville launched five depth charges. The force of the 300-pound explosives damaged U94 enough that the submarine could not fully submerge.

A two-man boarding party from HMCS Oakville, made up of Sub-Lieutenant Harold Lawrence and Stoker Petty Officer Arthur Powell, leapt aboard U94. Armed only with pistols they captured the U-boat, killing two of its crew and taking the rest prisoner. Lawrence bravely entered the sinking submarine to look for codes, but was forced to abandon his efforts, narrowly escaping as the submarine sunk beneath the waves. 

After U94 
The crew of HMCS Oakville was recognized for its bravery with four medals and six citations. After the battle the ship went to Galveston, Texas to be refitted. Although she had a few more encounters with the enemy, she did not sink another U-boat. At the end of the war HMCS Oakville was sold to the Venezuelan Navy, and was renamed Patria. In 1959 she was decommissioned for the last time. Lieutenant Governor Lincoln Alexander dedicated a stone cairn here in Tannery Park to honour the officers and crew of HMCS Oakville in 1989.

Did You Know?
HMCS stands for “His/Her Majesty’s Canadian Ship.”

The christening ceremony was one of largest public spectacles in the Town of Oakville’s history and one of the largest christening ceremonies of a Canadian warship during the Second World War.

HMCS Oakville is one of just over 30 Canadian warships to have sunk a U-boat in the Second World War.

Information courtesy of Sean E. Livingston, author of “Oakville’s Flower: The History of HMCS Oakville”

Learn more about the history of Oakville Harbour at oakvillehistory.org.

TOWN OF OAKVILLE