Christopher Craig
Memorial: Thornbury & District Museum: 6th Maritime Regiment Memorial
Regiment: 6th Maritime Regiment
Medals: 1939–45 Star, War Medal 1939–1945
Rank and number: Gunner
Parents: Joseph and Mary Jane Craig
Home address: 2 Fleet Green, Lancaster
Date of birth: 1908
Date of death: 11/03/1943
Buried/Commemorated at: Died at sea and commemorated Plymouth Naval Memorial Devon and the Maritime Memorial Thornbury
Age: 35
Further information:
Christopher was the son of a manual worker and a middle child of 6 with 3 brothers and 2 sisters. He went to St Thomas Church School in Lancaster.
On the day of his death, Christopher was serving aboard the Norwegian Cargo ship Brant County which was sailing from Halifax Canada, as part of escorted convoy HX228, bound for Newport and Avonmouth. It was carrying a general cargo as well as 670 tons of explosives and a large amount of carbide. At 05.03 hours the ship was hit by a torpedo from U-boat U-86, which detonated in the cargo of carbide, immediately setting it on fire. The survivors abandoned ship in one lifeboat and when the lifeboat was 200 metres away, the fire reached the cargo of explosives and The Brant County disappeared into the North Atlantic in a huge explosion. Out of the 58 people on board 35 died including Christopher and the 23 survivors were picked up by another ship in the convoy and landed in Liverpool.
Christopher Craig (C not G which is incorrect on the Memorial)
By kind permission, this information is based on the following source(s):
This information has been provided by Sarah Hands, Volunteer Researcher for the South Gloucestershire War Memorials Web Site.
By kind permission, this information is based on the following source(s):
https://www.cwgc.org/
https://www.ancestry.co.uk/
https://www.findmypast.co.uk/
https://www.forces-war-records.co.uk/
https://uboat.net/allies/merchants/ship/2766.html