Thomas Edward Cottle – Merchant Navy, S.S. Mill Hill

Able Seaman Thomas Edward Cottle – Merchant Navy, S.S. Mill Hill

Early Life

Thomas Edward Cottle was born in 1904 in Mumbles, the son of Thomas and Sarah Cottle. Although he does not appear in surviving census records, his family roots lay firmly within the long‑established maritime communities of Swansea and the Gower coast.

Service in the Merchant Navy

Thomas later served with the Merchant Navy, working as an Able Seaman—a skilled deck rating responsible for navigation duties, lookout work, ship maintenance, and supporting the safe operation of the vessel. His recorded address was 49 Overland Road, Mumbles, placing him among the many seafarers from the area who contributed to Britain’s wartime maritime effort.

S.S. Mill Hill 
credit - wrecksite

He served aboard the S.S. Mill Hill, a British steam cargo ship operating during the early and perilous years of the Second World War, when German U‑boats posed a constant threat to Allied shipping.

Sinking of the S.S. Mill Hill – 30^th August 1940

The S.S. Mill Hill was a 4,318‑ton British steam cargo ship, built in 1930 by William Doxford & Sons Ltd., Sunderland. She had previously sailed under the names Gracechurch and Peebles before becoming Mill Hill in 1936, and at the time of her loss was operated by Counties Ship Management Co. Ltd., London.

On 30^th August 1940, the Mill Hill was part of Convoy HX‑66A, travelling from Boston and Halifax to Middlesbrough with a cargo of 6,755 tons of pig iron and steel. While crossing the North Atlantic, she was attacked by the German submarine U‑32. A torpedo struck the vessel at 58°48’N, 6°49’W, west of Scotland.

The explosion was devastating. The Mill Hill sank rapidly, and all 34 crew members were lost—there were no survivors. Her loss was one of many inflicted during the early phase of the Battle of the Atlantic, when U‑boats inflicted heavy casualties on Allied merchant shipping.

Among those who perished was Able Seaman Thomas Edward Cottle.

Death and Commemoration

Merchant Seamen Deaths

THomas Edward Cottle
Tower Hill Memorial, London
credit - Benjidog Historical Research Resources
The Merchant Navy Memorial 

According to the Merchant Seamen Deaths register, Thomas Edward Cottle lost his life on 30^th August 1940 in the sinking of the S.S. Mill Hill. As he has no known grave, his name is commemorated on the Tower Hill Memorial, London, which honours the thousands of Merchant Navy personnel who died at sea during both world wars