Military service
Burial/memorial information
Son of Patrick Joseph O'Dea and Ellen Hannon of Newfoundland. First marriage with Annie Alice McDade of Newfoundland, father of a daughter, Alice Irene O'Dea, and adoptive father of Annie's two children, Mary Frances and Gerald Roberts. Second marriage with Anna Maria Roberts of Norris Arm, Newfoundland. Father of two children, including Shirley Margaret O'Dea.
On 11 June 1941, the Havtor was sailing unescorted and on ballast from Reykjavik, Iceland, to Pictou, Nova Scotia, when she was torpedoed at 8:51 pm by U-79, killing 14 of the 20 men on board. On the 12th, at 0 h 33 am, the submarine bombarded the Havtor and sank her, in position 63°35'N/28°05'W.
In the Books of Remembrance
Commemorated on:
Page 203 of the Merchant Navy Book of Remembrance.
Request this page
Download this page
HALIFAX MEMORIAL Nova Scotia, Canada
The HALIFAX MEMORIAL in Nova Scotia's capital, erected in Point Pleasant Park, is one of the few tangible reminders of the men who died at sea. Twenty-four ships were lost by the Royal Canadian Navy in the Second World War and nearly 2,000 members of the RCN lost their lives.
This Memorial was erected by the Commonwealth War Graves Commission and was unveiled in November 1967 with naval ceremony by H.P. MacKeen, Lieutenant-Governor of Nova Scotia, in the presence of R. Teillet, then Minister of Veterans Affairs.
The monument is a great granite Cross of Sacrifice over 12 metres high, clearly visible to all ships approaching Halifax. The cross is mounted on a large podium bearing 23 bronze panels upon which are inscribed the names of over 3,000 Canadian men and women who were buried at sea.
The dedicatory inscription, in French and English, reads as follows:
1918-1945
IN THE HONOUR OF
THE MEN AND WOMEN
OF THE NAVY
ARMY AND MERCHANT NAVY
OF CANADA
WHOSE NAMES
ARE INSCRIBED HERE
THEIR GRAVES ARE UNKNOWN
BUT THEIR MEMORY
SHALL ENDURE.
On June 19, 2003, the Government of Canada designated September 3rd of each year as a day to acknowledge the contribution of Merchant Navy Veterans.
For more information, visit Commonwealth War Graves Commission.
The Poppy Design is a trademark of The Royal Canadian Legion (Dominion Command) and is used with permission. Click here to learn more about the poppy.
Did we miss something?
Contribute information to this commemorative page
Do you have photographs, information or a correction relating to this individual’s virtual memorial? Learn more about the CVWM and the information we collect.