In 1986 a WW1 anti-submarine trawler deck gun was caught in the nets of the 'Pioneer' fishing boat about 7 miles off Scarborough, towards Bempton.
Skipper, Jimmy Whitlow, called in the help of two other fishing boats and it was towed back to the harbour. In shallow water, Sub-Aqua Club divers Gordon Wadsworth, Joyce Town and Neil Horsley joined with Chris Robinson, Roland Wood, Bob Sewell and Mick Bayes to haul the gun onto the West Pier. The gun bears the George V emblem so was made between 1910 and 1936. The gun also bears the marks 'QF Hkss 6pr, serial number 3398'. This identifies it as a quick firing Hotchkiss 6lb deck gun used on trawlers for anti-submarine protection whilst they were mine sweeping or on patrol. During WW1 the military requisitioned many trawlers for this purpose, sadly with the loss of quite a few of them. German U-boats were attacking fishing vessels to try and starve our nation into submission. The mounting of the gun bears the stamp ' Stephenson & Co, Darlington 1916'.
To find out more about the Hotchkiss gun click here. They were manufactured by the Elswick Ordnance Company in Newcastle Upon Tyne between 1885 and 1919 and had a range of 4000 yards firing at 25 rounds per minute. It has a 90 inch barrel firing a 40 calibre shell. The gun weighs 8cwt.
Images courtesy of Scarborough Sub Aqua Club and James Corrigan
In 2024 the gun was put on display in the old boat yard on Sandside
