Resources & Contacts for researching the Battle of the Atlantic "On Escort Duty" painted by Harold Beament. The purpose of this page is to collect together in one place useful resources and contacts to help those trying to find out more about the Battle of the Atlantic. The focus is on the U-boat campaign against allied merchant shipping. It is particularly designed to help those seeking to find out more about individuals, often relatives, who died during the war in the Atlantic. If you know of additional resources which could be added to this page please do not hesitate to contact me. Museums and Archives Much information about all aspects of the Second World War, including the war at sea, is held at the Public Records Office in London. Amongst the UK Government archives held are Admiralty documents relating to convoys, ship losses, anti-submarine operations and survivors' accounts. Written enquiries should be sent to: Public Records Office, Ruskin Avenue, Kew, Richmond, Surrey, TW9 4DU United Kingdom Tel: UK 0181-876-3444 Tel: Intl.+44 -1-81-876-3444 Information on merchant shipping is also held at the Registry Of Shipping And Seamen at Llanishen. Some of this information, in particular Merchant Navy log books, is being transferred to the Public Records Office. The RSS can be contacted at: Department Of Transport, Registry Of Shipping And Seamen, Anchor House, Cheviot Close, Llanishen, Cardiff, South Wales CF4 5JA. United Kingdom Tel: UK 01222-747333 Tel: Intl. +44-1-222-747333 The German Government's military archives (Bundesarchiv - Militärarchiv) is worth contacting if you would like more information on U-boat operations, the career histories of U-boat commanders, and for copies of extracts of U-boat logs (Kriegstagesbuche). The address is Bundesarchiv, Abteilung VI -- Militärarchiv, Wiesentalstraße 10, 79115 Freiburg, Germany Tel.: (0761) 478 170 Fax: (0761) 478-1781 The U-Boot-Archiv, based in Cuxhaven, Germany is perhaps the most comprehensive single source of information about the U-boats. The Archiv will carry out research for a fee. More details can be found at the U-Boot-Archiv page provided at U-boat net. The address of the Archiv is: U-Boot-Archiv, Bahnhofstrasse 57, 27478 Cuxhaven, Germany The Debts of Honour search facility at the Commonwealth War Graves Commission's web-site provides personal and service details and places of commemoration (in 150 countries) for the 1.7 million members of the Commonwealth forces who died in WW1 and WW2, together with details on the 60,000 civilian casualties of WW2. An invaluable resource. A number of museums hold extensive archives and photograph collections. I have found the following particularly helpful: Bristol Industrial Museum, Prince's Wharf, Prince Street, Bristol BS1 4RN United Kingdom Merseyside Maritime Museum, Pier Head, Liverpool, L3 1DW United Kingdom National Maritime Museum, Romney Road, Greenwich, London SE10 United Kingdom Lloyd's Marine Collection, Guildhall Library, Aldermanbury, London EC2P 2EJ United Kingdom Tel: UK 0171-606-3030 Tel: Intl. +44-1-71-606-3030 [not for photos, but very helpful on general info] Internet Resources Highly recommended is U-boat net, the definitive web resource about the German U-boat forces and much else besides. It is worth using the site's search facility if you are interested in a particular u-boat, ship or convoy. The Maritime History mailing list MARHST is subscribed to by over 450 marine history enthusiasts with a large amount of knowledge between them. Posting an enquiry to the group may well lead to a host of useful leads. More info on the list can be found at the MARHST web-site. To subscribe to the list send a message to LISTSERV@Post.Queensu.ca with the first line of the message saying SUBSCRIBE MARHST-L [Your Name]. My own links page lists many other useful web-sites. Bookstores, Magazines, Photograph dealers etc. The Battle of the Atlantic Bookstore is a useful starting point for books about the U-boat camapign and associated matters. I had a great response from having an enquiry printed in the help wanted section of Sea Breezes magazine. The magazine can be ordered from the web-site of Mannin Media. The address of the magazine is : Sea Breezes, Units 28-30, Spring Valley Industrial Estate, Braddan, Isle of Man IM2 2QS United Kingdom Large collections of Merchant and Royal Navy ship photographs are held by the following dealers: John & Marion Clarkson, 18, Franklands, Longton, Preston PR4 5PD United Kingdom Adrian Vicary, 8, Jetty Street, Cromer, Norfolk NR27 9HF United Kingdom