1943 — Dec 11, collier Suffolk founders in heavy gale off Montauk Point, NY –all 42-43

–43 AAMR. U.S. Ships Sunk or Damaged on Eastcoast of U.S… 2010.
–37 crew
— 6 armed guard
–42 Berg. Wreck Valley Vol. II: A Record of Shipwrecks off Long Island’s South Shore… 1990, p.151.
–36 crew
— 6 Navy armed guard

Narrative Information

American Merchant Marine at War:
“Date Ship Type Cause Result Location Deaths
“12/11/43 Suffolk Freighter Foundered Sunk Eastcoast Crew 37; AG 6.”

Berg: “The Suffolk was a coal coiler, built in 1911 by New York Ship Building, Camden, New Jersey. She was owned by Sprag Steamship Co. located in Boston. She was 366 feet long, had a 50 foot beam and displaced 4,607 gross tons.

“On December 11, 1943, while en route from Norfolk to Boston with a cargo of coal, she was caught in a northeast gale. The steel hulled coiler couldn’t take the pounding and went down, taking all 36 crew and six Navy armed guards with her.” (pp. 149-150)

U.S. Navy Memorial: “Suffolk
“Saturday, December 11, 1943
“Lost in Storm off Montauk Point
“The Freighter SS Suffolk was lost with all hands when she foundered and sank in a Northeaster while en route from Norfolk, Virginia to Boston. The last report from the ship stated that she was foundering in a heavy gale. Twenty days later, USS Reeve (DE-156) picked-up a raft with the bodies of a crewman and a Navy gunner. It was determined that the men had died of exposure just two days earlier.”

Sources

American Merchant Marine at War. U.S. Ships Sunk or Damaged on Eastcoast of U.S. and Gulf of Mexico During World War II. Eastcoast of U.S. (175 ships). 12-22-2010. Webpage accessed 4-11-2021 at: http://www.usmm.org/eastgulf.html

Berg, Daniel. Wreck Valley Vol. II: A Record of Shipwrecks off Long Island’s South Shore and New Jersey. Wahoo Edition. East Rockaway, NY: Aqua Explorers, Inc. 1990.

The United States Navy Memorial. Suffolk. Accessed 4-22-2021 at: http://navylog.navymemorial.org/suffolk