| ESCANABA (June 13, 1943)
The U.S.C.G. Escanaba (WPG-77), was a 1,005 ton Algonquin Class U.S. Coast Guard gunboat escorting convoy GS-24 from Narsarssuak, Greenland, to Sydney, Nova Scotia, Canada, was sunk at 5.10am. The 165ft ship exploded and sank in just over three minutes taking 101 members of her crew with her. All died in the explosion or from hypothermia in the 39 degree cold water. Only 2 men survived the sinking, picked up by the tug Raritan some minutes later. A year earlier, on June 15, 1942 the Eacanaba had rescued twenty-two men from the SS Cherokee and on February 3, 1943, rescued 132 survivors from the SS Dorchester. It is not known what sunk the Escanaba, mine or torpedo. German sources records no U-boat attacks at that time. In its home port, Grand Haven, Michigan, the community raised enough money to build another vessel bearing the name Escanaba. A memorial service is held every year to honour the ship and its gallant crew.
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On weald of Kent I watched once more
Again I heard that grumbling roar
Of fighter planes; yet none were near
And all around the sky was clear
Borne on the wind a whisper came
'Though men grow old, they stay the same'
And then I knew, unseen to eye
The ageless Few were sweeping by
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