HMCS JAMES BAY

Her Majesty’s Canadian Ship JAMES BAY is one of twenty minesweepers of the “Bay” Class built in Canada for service in the Royal Canadian Navy.[1] The contract for her construction was let to Yarrows Limited of Esquimalt, British Columbia, on 15 November, 1950, and her keel was laid in Yarrows’ yard next to HMC Dockyard at Esquimalt on 16 August, 1951. The JAMES BAY was launched on 12 March, 1953, and she was commissioned on 3 May, 1954.

Built largely of wood and aluminum to reduce magnetic signature, these ships were designed to cope with the complexities of modern mine warfare. Their small tonnage, high speed and power, their light draught and the nature of the materials used in their construction and equipment, all contributed to their ability to sweep or neutralize not only the standard moored, contact mine, but also the acoustic, magnetic and pressure mines as well.

The hull design is largely based on that of the “Coniston” Class minesweepers of the Royal Navy which design in turn was the result of experience with motor minesweepers used during the Second World War. The lead-ship of the “Coniston” Class was accepted for service in 1953, the same year as the lead-ship of the Canadian “Bay” Class, HMCS GASPE.

The ships of the “Bay” Class displace 390 tons and, when fully manned and stored, 412 tons. Length overall is 152 feet with a 28-foot beam and at the stern these vessels draw 7½ feet of water. Two General Motors V-12 cylinder motors drive twin shafts, develop 2400 horse-power and give a maximum speed of 16 knots. At 11 knots they can steam 4500 nautical miles; fuel capacity is 52 tons of oil. Gun armament is a single 40 m.m. Bofors gun and each ship’s complement is three officers and thirty-five men.

The JAMES BAY is named for that large body of salt water at the southern end of Hudson Bay, though Victorians sometimes like to say it is in honour of the James Bay that once graced the inner reaches of Victoria harbour, but which is now filled in and is the site of the well known Empress Hotel of that city.

JAMES BAY whose shores are partly in Ontario and partly in Quebec is said to have been discovered in 1610 by Henry Hudson, that ill-starred explorer who was set adrift by mutineers and never heard of again. However, the name honours another explorer, Thomas James, who in the 70-ton vessel Mary sailed from Bristol in 1631 having been fitted out for trading purposes by merchants of that port. He and his crew wintered on Charlton Island and, though they suffered severely from cold and scurvy, they managed to preserve their ship and return to England the following summer.

The official badge of HMCS JAMES BAY pays tribute to those daring seamen of over three centuries ago. On a white field, a blue V-shaped device called a “pile”, represents a bay and this in turn displays a “lymphad”, an ancient single-masted vessel, bearing a red cross on its single squared sail. Extending upward from the mast-head is a golden sun in splendour with crossed lines suggesting the science of navigation. The blazon reads: “Argent, a pile Azure, in the base of which a lymphad with banner of the first, sail unfurled charged with a cross Gules and surmounting the mast a sun in splendour Or charged with two lines in cross Sable.”

The ship’s colours are white and blue and her motto is “The True North Strong and Free”. The name JAMES BAY is not entitled to battle honours, this ship never having served in war and there having been no former ships of this name in Her Majesty’s Fleets.

The launch of the JAMES BAY at Yarrows, Esquimalt, went off very smoothly on 12 March, 1953. The ship’s name was pronounced by her sponsor Mrs. Rogers, wife of Chief Petty Officer H. A. Rogers, RCN. The Flag Officer Pacific Coast, Rear-Admiral Hibbard, took advantage of the occasion to speak briefly to those assembled on matters of current defence policy.

Just over a year later, the 3rd of May, 1954, was a festive day at Esquimalt. Rear-Admiral Hibbard gave a large Command Dinner in the wardroom of HMCS NADEN, which was attended by a distinguished gathering of jurists, churchmen, educationalists, political leaders and officers of the armed forces. Prior to this function many of the dignitaries attended a gala occasion on the dockyard side across the harbour. With the band of HMCS NADEN providing lively airs and armed guards paraded by their own ships’ companies, HMC Ships COMOX and JAMES BAY were commissioned and immediately afterwards together formed the Second Canadian Minesweeping Squadron, with the Senior Officer in the COMOX. The JAMES BAY, hull designation MCB-152, was to spend the whole of her operational career, nearly ten years, in this squadron.[2]

A week later, ammunitioned and stored, the little squadron of two ships left the dockyard astern to get away on their own to a spot where there would be few distractions, the better to work up the ships’ companies and delve into the inner workings of the equipment carried in the ships. Bedwell Harbour was the training area. There and in more distant waters began a long, long series of training exercises designed to bring the minesweepers to the peak of efficiency.

Because the “Bay” Class minesweepers have a single, specialized function, minesweeping, it is only natural that the activities of the Second Minesweeping Squadron throughout the ten years of its life should develop into a fairly uniform annual pattern. Like all ships, periods of long refit came round regularly as did the shorter spells in harbour for self-maintenance. But because these ships are small they were often employed “showing the flag” in tiny out-of-the-way outports that had never or seldom seen a naval ship.

Like all ships there were constant changes of officers and men and this required a steady programme of exercises and practices to keep the Squadron in top form. The operational areas chosen for training reflect the differences in depths of water, tidal conditions, nature of sea-bottoms and coastal contours found along Canada’s west coast.

Most of the Squadron’s sea-training was done in four operational areas: the Southern Area working out of Esquimalt; the Middle Area, usually operating in the Gulf of Georgia from Patricia Bay; the Ocean Area, off the west coast of Vancouver Island; and the Northern Area based on Prince Rupert and the Queen Charlottes.

However, almost every year the Second Minesweeping Squadron steamed to more distant waters, away up to Juneau in Alaska and quite often down to San Diego in California. The forays into southern waters were usually to participate in large-scale operations of the Mine Force, U.S. Pacific Fleet. Similar though smaller exercises were conducted in the Oyster Bay area of Vancouver Island.

All was not work, though; every year there were guard-ship duties in connection with the sailing classic known as the “Swiftsure Race”. And every year “Navy Week” was celebrated at Esquimalt and Victoria. Every opportunity was grasped, too, to provide minesweeping training to the officers and men of the Naval Reserve and to convey Sea Cadets to sea from HMCS QUADRA at Comox.

For the JAMES BAY there was almost always a special highlight of the year. In 1954, the year of commissioning it was the British Empire Games at Vancouver and the visit of H.R.H. the Duke of Edinburgh. And in November the Squadron swept a channel down the Strait of Juan de Fuca ahead of the departing aircraft carrier, HMCS MAGNIFICENT.

In 1956, in April, Vancouver Island was circumnavigated, and in July JAMES BAY was Senior Officer of a squadron including a frigate that had the honour of conveying His Excellency the Governor-General, Mr. Vincent Massey, from Prince Rupert to the Queen Charlotte Islands and back, and from Squamish at the head of Howe Sound to Esquimalt.

Undoubtedly the big event of 1959 was the visit to Victoria in July of H.M. the Queen and H.R.H the Duke of Edinburgh. JAMES BAY had her place in the line of ships anchored off Beacon Hill where Her Majesty presented her colour to the First Battalion Princess Patricia’s Canadian Light Infantry, and for the illumination of the Fleet that evening. In October, the JAMES BAY had a part in diving operations which succeeded in the recovery of historic relics from the old wreck of a sailing ship in Sydney Inlet. In November, there was the cold weather minesweeping exercise with USN forces out from Kodiak, Alaska.

Early in 1964, sweeping changes in defence policy were made and, included in these, was the decision to discontinue active minesweeping as one of the defence of Canada measures for which the Royal Canadian Navy had up to this time been responsible. With a view to cutting down on operational expenses the government announced on 8 January, 1964, through the press, that as “minesweeping is not considered to be a high-priority task in relation to anti-submarine warfare”, all minesweepers on both coasts were to be quickly paid off.

HMCS JAMES BAY, together with the rest of the Second Canadian Minesweeping Squadron, was paid off into Reserve Fleet Category “C”, that is “cold”, completely destored and all machinery placed in a state of preservation. This event took place at Esquimalt on 28 February, 1964.

Naval Historical Section,
Naval Headquarters,
Ottawa, Ontario.
9 July, 1964.