I discovered recently, while searching for references to the Lin(d)field name on the Internet1, that I share my surname with a ship, or at least I would do had the ship not been sunk! The vessel in question was a four-masted steel barque built in 1891 by Russell & Co., of Greenock in Scotland. She is shown as being 44.54 × 12.80 × 7.36 metres [277’5"×42’0"×24’2"] and having a tonnage of 2280 GRT and 2169 NRT. (presumably Gross – and Net Registered Tonnage?) She was rigged with double topsails and single topgallant sails and royal sails.
In December 1891 she was launched at the ship yard of Russell & Co., Greenock, for Shaw, Savill & Co., of Glasgow. The notes state that she was mostly used in the South American nitrate trade. The Captain is named as F.H. Hurburgh.
In December 1911 the ship was sold to A/S Skib Lindfield (H. Jeremiassen), of Porsgrund, Norway. She was assigned the Official Norwegian signal KFGW and the Captain was Carl Gustav Norberg.
The ship was evidently identified as a target by the German Navy in 1916, for on March 17 of that year, the Lindfield was sunk by the German submarine U 70 some 70 miles SW of Fastnet on a voyage from Portland, Oregon, to Queenstown with a cargo of wheat. The crew was brought into the submarine where they remained until March 21, when they were put on the Norwegian barque Silas, based in Grimstad.
1 The Maritime History Virtual Archives web site, updated 26 April 1997 by Lars.Bruzelius@udac.se http://pc-78-120.udac.se:8001/www/nautica/Ships/fourmast_ships/lindfield(1891).html