H. Lewis – Merchant Navy, S.S. Kolchis

Fireman H. Lewis – Merchant Navy, S.S. Kolchis

Lack of Surviving Personal Records

Sadly, there are occasions where only an initial has been preserved in the surviving wartime documentation. This is the case with H. Lewis, for whom no further identifying information has been traced. Neither his full name, age, birthplace, nor family circumstances are recorded, and his story survives only through the brief entries preserved in the Merchant Navy registers.

Merchant Navy Service

H. Lewis served with the Merchant Navy, holding the rank of Fireman, one of the demanding engine‑room roles responsible for maintaining the ship’s boilers and ensuring the continuous operation of the vessel’s machinery. His presence aboard the M.V. Kolchis places him among the many merchant seafarers who continued to sail through dangerous waters during the early years of the Second World War.

The S.S. Kolchis

S.S. Kolchis
credit - wrecksite

The S.S. Kolchis was a Greek cargo steamer of 2,219 tons, built in 1909. She had previously sailed under the name Waldinge until being renamed in 1938. On 23 November 1940, the Kolchis was on passage from Sorel to Sydney (Nova Scotia) and onward to Belfast and Cardiff, carrying a cargo of grain. During this voyage she went missing, disappearing without sending a distress signal and leaving no survivors or wreckage to confirm her fate. Importantly, she was not torpedoed by German submarine U‑123, a claim once suspected but later disproven.

Final Voyage and Loss of the Ship

H. Lewis
Tower Hill Memorial
credit - Benjidog Histroical Research Resources.
The Merchant Navy Memorial

The disappearance of the Kolchis remains unexplained. Winter storms, heavy seas, and the vulnerability of older cargo steamers may have contributed to her sudden loss, but no definitive cause has ever been established. The ship simply vanished with all hands, including Fireman H. Lewis, whose identity remains incomplete but whose service is nonetheless recorded and honoured.

Commemoration

With no known grave but the sea, Fireman H. Lewis is commemorated on the Tower Hill Memorial, London. Though the details of his life remain lost, his name endures among those of thousands of Merchant Navy personnel who gave their lives during the Second World War, ensuring that his service and sacrifice are not forgotten.