Family & Friends

Crew Member	Contact	Relationship	Information
W Smith	Bill Smith	Grandson	My grandad Walter Smith served on HMS Speedwell as a engineer officer between 3/4/1940 and 1/10/1943, I would really like to find pictures of the crew and a model of Speedwell
Jimmy Green	Ron Greenwood	Son	My Dad, Jimmy Green, was in charge of the wireless department on HMS Speedwell from November 1941 to March 1945. I have a web site about his Navy career at: http://homepage.ntlworld.com/ron6a/navy/hms%20cumberland-speedwell-musketeer-ww2-wwII.htm
J S Lee	Andrew Lee	Grandson	According to 'Seedie's Roll' held in the Royal Naval Museum's library and at the Naval Historical Branch (both in Portsmouth Naval Base), your grandfather (AB John Stewart Lee C/J110593) was gazetted for the award of the BEM on 16 May 1941 for the salvage of MV Atheltemplar 2/3 Mar 1941 while serving in the Halcyon Class minesweeper HMS Speedwell. He was invested on 28 Oct 1941. (Info sent to Andrew Lee by MCDOA)
H T M Brown	Richard Brown	Son	I have just found your web pages on HMS Speedwell. My Dad served on the ship during the war so it was very interesting to find so much information. I would be very pleased if you could add my Dad to the crew list, his details are as follows: Henry Thomas Meek Brown born 1911 died 1965 Rank Sickberth Attendant Joined the ship 22/5/1942 Left the ship 14/2/1946 Mentioned in Dispatches 8^th June 1944 (ref AFO 3248/44) Unfortunately he died when I was quite young so I never really had the chance to talk to him about his war service, he did however leave a photo album of pictures and other memorabilia from his war service. I have put these on my own web site if you want to look at them. The link is www.richardandterri.org.uk If there are any pictures on there that you would like copies of please let me know. I don’t know if dad took the pictures himself because I noticed that some of the pictures are identical to those that appear in Cyril Green’s war diary. Perhaps they shared pictures around with their shipmates? [Richard sent several photo's which are now on the site]
C Alvis	Alan Lawrence	Grandson	I am writing to you in response to your request for information on former crew members of H.M.S. Speedwell. I believe that my maternal grandfather, Claude Alvis, served on this ship in the latter part of the war. Unfortunately, he died in 1971 but my mother is currently researching our family tree as a retirement project and can remember his description of seeing many bodies floating past the ship. Having checked the dates of his service, I suspect that this was on or around D-Day, although I have no way of confirming this. I know my grandfather was cremated and his ashes were scattered on the Lawn of Remembrance at the City of London cemetery in East Ham where,20 years later, we performed the same sad task with the ashes of his widow, Emily.
C Carson	Alan Carson	Son	I write with regard to my father, Charles Carson who served on the Speedwell during WW2. My father was born in 1925, and was called up into Naval Service sometime between 1941 and 1943, and he was posted to the Speedwell. My father is terminally ill now, but when I visit him in the hospice, he likes to chat about his navy days. When called up he lived in Glasgow (125 Norfolk Street) and he was the second brother to join the service (his brother was Jim, now deceased). Before I read your web page, my father had told me the story of the U boat, which your page states took place in 1941, hence my belief that he may have been called up earlier than his 18th birthday. He may of course simply had heard the story from others after he joined. He definitely remembers the running aground incident in Sept 1943, and tells me that the Commander freed the ship by ordering the ranks to jump up and down in a unified fashion, and on a particular area of the ship. My father ultimately finished his naval service on HMS Farndale, which was posted to the far east after the end of the war in Europe. I do not know what his rank was, but when I told him of your web-site, it gave him so much pleasure, and I thank you for that.
Ray Gladwish	Dave Gladwish	Son	My father, Ray Gladwish, served on the "HMS Speedwell" during ww2 as an Able Seaman. I will try to find out his service number and the dates of joining & demob from him to add to your records. He has, in the past, talked a little about N.Atlantic trips to Iceland & Russia. I'll see if he's will to share a few more of his memories before they're lost to all. Aug 2007