GIBSON-STANLEY

LOST  AT  SEA

The SS HERMIS (Formerly SS ADA) was a 5,234 ton merchant cargo ship built in 1919 and originally registered under the Panamanian flag.  The ship was seized by the U.S. on November 1, 1941, in the port of New Orleans under Public Law #101 and assigned on May 12, 1942, to be operated by Lykes Bros. SS Company.  On June 6, 1942, HERMIS was sailing in the Gulf of Mexico with almost 5,000 tons of general cargo enroute from New Orleans to Aruba with planned stops in Tampa, Panama City and La Guaira, Venezuela.   HERMIS was unarmed and sailing alone.

 When nearing Key West, Florida, at about 9:15pm, HERMIS was torpedoed by German submarine U-158 when it was struck on the port side just forward of the bridge.  A few minutes later a second torpedo hit on the port side at #3 hatch.  After the attack HERMIS continued circling at about 8 knots because the engines could not be stopped due to the deck valve being broken.  U-158 then surfaced and shelled the ship, setting her on fire.  Although HERMIS continued to float for at least 12-hours with the stern out of the water, she ultimately sank. 

There were 47 crewmembers aboard HERMIS at the time of the attack.  Ultimately 46 of them reached safety when they were picked up by the U.S. Army transport USAT TOLOA and taken to Kingston, Jamaica.  Twelve crewmembers were injured during the attack and only one of the crew, Stanley Gibson, a Coal Passer, was killed during the attack.  Historical records report that Gibson was born in 1923, his home was St. Louis, Missouri, but no additional information concerning him has survived.

Submitted by CDR Roy A. Mosteller, USNR (Ret)