Dates: 1943 - 1944
H.M.S. Montserrat (K586)
Ex - USS Hornby PF-82
Built by: Walsch-Kaiser Co., Inc. (Providence, Rhode Island, U.S.A.)
Laid down: 28th August 1943
Launched: 27th September 1943
Commissioned: 31st August 1944
Fate: Returned to the United States Navy on 11th June 1946 and sold for scrap 30th November 1947 to the John J. Duane Co. of Quincy, MA
H.M.S. Montserrat (K586) was a Colony Class frigate displacing 1,318 tons but built originally as a Tacoma Class Patrol Frigate: (MC Type T. S2-S2-AQ1)
Originally she was authorised as a Patrol Gunboat, PG-190; Redesignated a Patrol Frigate, PF-82, 15 April 1943; Laid down under a Maritime Commission contract at Welsh-Kaiser Co., Inc., Providence RI; Named Hornby; Assigned to the Royal Navy under the Lend-Lease Program; Renamed Montserrat and launched 27th September 1943; Transferred to the Royal Navy and commissioned H.M.S.Montserrat (K 586), 31st August 1944; Returned to U.S. custody 11th June 1946; Returned to the Maritime Commission for disposal; Sold for scrap 30th November 1947 to the John J. Duane Co. of Quincy, MA.
Specifications: Displacement 1,190 t.; Length, 303’ 11"(oa); Bean 37’ 6"; Draft 13’ 8"; Speed 20kts; Complement 190; Armament three 3"/50 dual purpose gun mounts, two twin 40mm gun mounts, nine 20mm guns, one Hedgehog depth charge projector; eight Y-gun depth charge projectors, two depth charge racks; Propulsion two boilers, two triple expansion reciprocating steam engines, two shafts.
Commanding Officers:
T/A/Lt.Cdr. W.P. Page, RNR
18th February 1944 – 7th April 1945
A/Lt.Cdr. Francis Arthur John Downer, DSC, RNR
7th April 1945 – 9th July 1945
Cdr. N.D. Watts-Russell, RN (retired)
9th July 1945 – still in command in October 1945 according to the Navy List
A note on Colony Class Frigates
The design Colony class frigate was based on that of the Tacoma class frigates used by the United States Navy (some sources state that these vessels were identical). That design was itself an adaptation of the Royal Navy River class frigate, with modifications made mainly to use materials and parts more readily available in the United States. For example, American 3-inch guns were used as the main surface armament in the Tacoma and Colony class frigates instead of the British 4-inch guns of the River class.
They were mass-produced to mercantile standards to enable their speedy construction in shipyards that did not normally build warships. Post-war, all were returned to the U.S. by the end of 1946 and most scrapped during 1947, as they were considered obsolescent even before the end of the war.
Below is a list showing the fate of all Colony class Frigates with the date returned to the US (unless otherwise stated). All scrapped 1947, unless stated.
H.M.S. Anguilla (K500): 31 May, 1946; scrapped 1949
H.M.S. Antigua (K501): 2 May, 1946
H.M.S. Ascension (K502): 31 May, 1946.
H.M.S. Bahamas (K503): 11 June, 1946.
H.M.S. Barbados (K504): 11 June, 1946.
H.M.S. Caicos (K505): 12 December 1945; sold to Argentina as Santisima Trinidad later Comodoro Augusto Lasserre, sold 1970 or 1971
H.M.S. Cayman (K506): 23 April, 1946
H.M.S. Dominica (K507): 23 April, 1946
H.M.S. Labuan (K584), (ex-H.M.S. Gold Coast): 18 May, 1948
H.M.S. Montserrat (K586): 11 June, 1946
H.M.S. Nyasaland (K587): 15 April, 1946
H.M.S. Papua (K588): 13 May, 1946; sold to Egypt and scuttled as a blockship in the Suez Canal, 1956
H.M.S. Perim (K593), (ex-H.M.S. Sierra Leone): 22 May 1946
H.M.S. Pitcairn (K589): 11 June, 1946
H.M.S. Sarawak (K591): 22 May 1946
H.M.S. Seychelles (K592): June 1946
H.M.S. Somaliland (K594): 22 May 1946
H.M.S. St Helena (K590): 8 April, 1946
H.M.S. Tobago (K585), (ex-H.M.S. Hong Kong): 13 May, 1946; sold to Egypt and scuttled as a blockship in the Suez Canal, 1956
H.M.S. Tortola (K595): 22 May, 1946
H.M.S. Zanzibar (K596): 31 May 1946
