A SHIP sponsored by the people of Wrexham in 1940 has been remembered for the part it played in the Second World War.

A service of remembrance and thanksgiving was held for the crew of HMS Veteran, which was torpedoed during the war.

The service was a personal triumph for John Lawton, of Pentre Maelor, who has worked for 20 years to see the destroyer and its crew recognised for their work and sacrifice.

The service was held at The Old Royal Naval College in Greenwich and attended by the former mayor of Wrexham, Cllr Aled Roberts, and Wrexham Museum senior archeolo-gist Steve Grenter.

It was also an occasion to remember American surgeon lieutenant Francis Mason Hayes who served on the ship and was lost when she went down on September 26, 1942, in the mid Atlantic. Mason Hayes was one of several American officers who volunteered to serve in the Royal Navy between 1939-41 before the United States entered the war.

His name has now been added to those of 21 fellow officers on a plaque set in the floor of the Painted Hall of the college.

HMS Veteran was launched in 1919 and was re-commissioned in 1939.

Based in Plymouth she escorted convoys in the North Atlantic and the English Channel.

She was later based in Liverpool and was involved in the Norwegian campaign, before moving onto Harwich as part of a flotilla of eight destroyers on anti-invasion duties.

On September 21, 1942 a convoy of eight Great Lakes' steamers headed for Britain to report for war duty, escorted by HMS Veteran and another destroyer.

Four days later two of the steamers were sunk by U-boats west of Ireland and the Veteran picked up 78 survivors. The following morning she was hit by two torpedoes and was never heard from again. A search was ordered but no survivors were found.

John Lawton, who gave a talk about the destroyer at Wrexham Museum shortly before the service, said: 'It has taken me 20 years of hard research to finally get HMS Veteran and her crew recognised. I have had little or no help from the British establishment - most of the research has been from leads supplied by the American department of the Navy and the German U-boat Museum at Cuxhaven.

'The day started with a service in the chapel of The Old Royal Naval College, attended by the Second Sea Lord, representatives from the Canadian and American Embassies, the Lord Lieutenant, Members of Parliament and retired Royal Naval officers.

He added: 'The 250 guests included the last living member of the crew of HMS Veteran, Lieutenant Jack Stokes, who left the ship before she departed for Canada.

'The service was followed by the commemoration of the stone plaque in the Painted Hall and a champagne reception. It was a very emotional day.'