Pen Set in Oak from Dunkirk Little Ship Peggotty (Nayland)
DLS Peggotty
Peggotty's (previously named Nayland) claim to fame is that she took part in the Dunkirk evacuation, code-named Operation Dynamo, which took place between 26 May and 4 June 1940.
On 28th May Nayland starting take troops from the beaches out to the larger ships standing off-shore. As each of these ships filled up with troops they departed and returned to Dover. When all the ships had gone Nayland and the other small vessels starting transferring troops to the Anti-Aircraft Cruiser HMS Calcutta, which had been stationed off-shore giving much needed anti-aircraft cover to the small ships, time and time again beating off attacks from enemy bombers.
By 1900hrs on 29th May 1940 there were no more ships standing by to take on troops so the Nayland took the troops she carried directly back to Ramsgate. On 30th May she returned to Dunkirk and continued to ferry troops from the beaches to the larger ships.
Records show that the Nayland (Peggotty) went on to disembark a further 28 troops at Ramsgate at dawn on 2nd June and again at 0740 and 1120, so she must have been ferrying them from off-lying ships to Ramsgate harbour. During the hours of darkness she returned to Dunkirk where in addition to being attacked from the air the Little Ships were in range of the enemy shore guns and were under orders to only operate off the Dunkirk beaches at night,
On 3rd June 1940 Nayland returned to Ramsgate carrying a further 55 troops. She had rescued a total of 83 troops direct from Dunkirk to Ramsgate and hundreds, if not thousands by transferring them from the shore to the larger ships.
In July 1940 she was transferred to auxiliary patrol duties at Ramsgate and later she became a dispatch boat at Sheerness. She continued to serve the Navy until 17th July 1945. After the war her name was changed to Peggotty and she eventually went into private ownership.
The Nayland was originally built by Perkins in Whitstable in 1937 as a pilot boat.
Pens #913 and #914 were turned on 21st November 2017 at Seabrook on the Grand Union Canal.
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