One of the most beautiful and heartfelt tributes to bravery and sacrifice will once again be a part of the traditions of Buxton and Ocracoke. On May 11 and 12 the British Royal Navy, the Royal Canadian Legion and United States Coast Guard will lay wreaths at the graves of British sailors who gave their lives to protect the American shipping along the North Carolina coast from German submarines.
On May 11, 1942 U-boat 588 torpedoed the British armed trawler HMT Bedfordshire, killing all 37 crew members. Four of those sailor’s bodies washed ashore on Ocracoke Island and the villagers took it upon themselves to give the sailors a proper burial. A British flag flies at all times above the cemetery designating that small plot of land as forever England.
It may be that the one of the two bodies that washed ashore in Buxton were also part of the crew of the HMT Bedfordshire, although that sailor’s name may never be known. The Buxton site also honors the sacrifice of the British seamen.
The other seaman is Fourth Engineer Officer Michael Cairns of the British armed tanker San Delfino torpedoed and sunk on April 10, 1942 by U-203. Cairns and 27 of his shipmates died in that attack.
The ceremony had been on hold for three years because of COVID restrictions, but it has returned this year.
The Buxton British Cemetery is just off Lighthouse Road along a trail leading into Buxton Woods.
The Ocracoke Cemetery is located at 234 British Cemetery Road.
Both ceremonies will take place at 11 a.m.
The Outer Banks has a rich and vibrant history that is in many ways the history of our nation. Take some time to explore this wonder by the sea from Corolla to Hatteras Village, there is a Brindley Beach Vacations home that is right for you.