John Walter Love
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: William Henry and Ada Elizabeth Love
Home address: 6 Golf Road, Deal, Kent
Pre-war occupation: Green Keeper
Date of birth: 16/12/1922
Date of death: 21/12/1942
Buried/Commemorated at: Died at sea and commemorated Plymouth Naval Memorial Devon and the Maritime Memorial Thornbury
Age: 20
Further information:
In 1939 John was living with his parents and working as a green keeper on the nearby golf course. His father was working as a wholesale fish merchant.
On the day of his death, John was serving aboard the British Steam Merchant Montreal City, which was an unescorted straggler from convoy ON-152, on route from Milford Haven to New York, carrying 1800 tons of general cargo, including china clay. At 03.56 hours on 21 Dec 1942 the vessel was hit by one torpedo from U-boat U-591 about 600 miles east-northeast of St. John’s, Newfoundland. The crew abandoned ship in 3 lifeboats and the U-boat used a further torpedo to sink the vessel. The survivors were never seen again: the master, 32 crew members and seven gunners, including John were lost. John was initially reported as missing which was changed to presumed killed 15 months later.
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/2527.html