George Sellors

Memorial: Thornbury & District Museum: 6th Maritime Regiment Memorial

Regiment: 6th Maritime Regiment

Medals: 1939–45 Star, War Medal 1939–1945

Rank and number: Lance Bombardier

Parents: George and Mary Ann Elizabeth Sellors

Marital status: Married

Home address: 10 Swallow Street, Manchester

Pre-war occupation: Plumber's Labourer

Date of birth: 29/07/1906

Place of birth: Manchester

Date of death: 14/09/1942

Buried/Commemorated at: Died at sea and commemorated on Chatham Naval Memorial and the Maritime Memorial Thornbury

Age: 36

Further information:

George was born and raised in Manchester. He was the eldest of three children with a younger sister and brother. He married Florence McGowan in 1931. His father was a plumber and both he and his brother were also working in the plumbing trade in 1939.

George was serving aboard the British Steam Tanker ‘Empire Oil’ which was a straggler from convoy ON-127, on route from Milford Haven to New York carrying a cargo of ballast. At 21.10 hours on 10 September 1942, U-boat U-659 fired 2 torpedoes at the ship and stopped it south west of Iceland. The following day a 2nd U-boat sank the drifting vessel and 2 crew members and one gunner died. Of the 50 survivors 26 were picked up by one ship and landed safely at St John's Canada and 24 were rescued by the destroyer HMS Ottawa. Sadly, on the 14th September the destroyer was torpedoed and sunk by U-boat U-91 and twelve crew members and four gunners, including George, from the Empire Oil were amongst the casualties.

George's surname is Sellors (not Sellers) and he died on 14th September 1942 (not 10th).

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/2147.html