HMCS Sackville

HMCS Sackville
Halifax N.S., 2001 
HMCS SACKVILLE
1941
HMCS Sackville is a Flower Class corvette commissioned by the Royal Canadian Navy and launched on 15 May 1941 in Saint John, New Brunswick. She served as an escort for trans-Atlantic convoys during the Second World War and as such participated in the Battle of the Atlantic. All Canadian corvettes of this class were named after Canadian towns and K181 was named for Sackville, N.B. The Mayor of Sackville, Norman Hesler, and all members of the Town Council were present at the launch, and the Town supported the ship and her crew throughout the war.
After the War HMCS Sackville was converted into a marine research vessel and served in this capacity until 1982. The majority of corvettes were scrapped after the war. When two other remaining corvettes were wrecked by Hurricane David in 1979 the Sackville became the only surviving vessel of its class. In 1983 she was acquired by the Canadian Naval Memorial Trust and restored to her 1944 appearance. During the summer months she is moored at the Halifax, N.S. waterfront and serves as the Canadian Naval Memorial.

In 1988 she was designated as a National Historic Site of Canada.

Plans are underway to provide a permanent land-based berth for the Sackville on the Halifax waterfront where it would become the centre of a new Canadian Naval memorial and museum.
In 1998 HMCS Sackville was featured on a Canadian 45 cent postage stamp as part of a Naval Vessels series.

 

Photo: The White Fence, #46, May 2010

 

 The Town of Sackville continues its connection with HMCS Sackville and in 2010 inaugurated a Memorial Garden within the Town’s Memorial Park which includes a plaque commemorating the Town’s connection with the vessel (see below).

Left: Sackville native Commodore Andrew Smith presents a framed image of the HMCS Sackville to Mayor Pat Estabrooks and the people of the town of Sackville on May 15th, 2010, during the Sackville celebration of the Canadian Navy Centennial.
This garden is named in honour of HMCS Sackville, a corvette that had a distinguished career during the Second World War. She was launched on May 15, 1941 in St. John, New Brunswick and was christened by Mrs. J.E.W.Oland in the presence of Mayor Norman Hesler and the entire town council of Sackville, which supported the ship and her crews during the Second World War.

Over 269 corvettes were built and launched (most of them in Canada) between 1939 and 1944 but HMCS Sackville is the sole survivor. She is berthed in Halifax, Nova Scotia where she proudly serves as the official Canadian Naval Memorial reminding the people of Canada of the sacrifices made by the ships’ crews in the Battle of the Atlantic. The Town continues to support the ship, which is open to the public, in its role as a National Memorial.

Dedicated on May 15, 2010,
in recognition of the national celebration
of the Canadian Naval Centennial.

The Town of Sackville
The Canadian Naval Memorial Trust
Sackville Garden Club.
Historical plaque in Town of Sackville’s Memorial Garden, 32-34 Bridge Street, Sackville, N.B..

 
Official web site: Canada’s Naval Memorial: HMCS Sackville.

Wikepedia article “HMCS Sackville (K181)”.

Milner, Marc, HMCS SACKVILLE 1941-1985 (Halifax, N.S.: Canadian Naval Memorial Trust, 1998).

Tower, Katie, “Proposal aims to reestablish town’s connection with HMCS Sackville,” Sackville Tribune-Post 14 December 2005.

“For Navy Veterans and the Love of Rhodies,” The White Fence, 46, May 2010.

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