Welcome to the Hawke Division Web page. For those of you who were there, you know what it's all about. For our other visitors, a brief explanation is in order.

In January 1962, some 70 artificer apprentices joined HMS Caledonia (Rosyth, Fife), having spent the first 16 months of their training at HMS Fisgard (Torpoint, Cornwall). The group comprised 42 Engine Room Apprentices, 14 Ordnance Apprentices and 14 Shipwright Apprentices. In addition to the Royal Navy contingent, our group included 3 Ghanaians who came up with us from HMS Fisgard and 4 New Zealanders who joined us directly at HMS Caledonia. In all, we were to spend 28 months (7 terms) learning the finer points of our respective trades. During this period, we lost a few of our number (mostly for medical, school and factory reasons) to the class behind, although we gained a similar number from the class ahead.

Our average age was 16-18 years, and this brief period was perhaps one of the most formative we were to experience. In a sense, we matured together from adolescents into young men, and shared innumerable experiences in our entry into adult life. During this time, many friendships were formed, some of which have continued to the present day.

In April 1964, our training ended and finally, we were to join the Navy! The ERA apps went to HMS Venus for four months' sea training, and then joined the fleet. The OA apps went to HMS Eastbourne and HMS Scarborough for four months' sea training, and then to HMS Excellent and HMS Vernon for an additional eight months' training. The Shipwright apps simply went off to sea!

Since leaving Caledonia in 1964, many of us have not met again. Some spent long productive careers in the Navy, some left after their first engagement, and some simply left! The goal of this Web site is to try to rekindle the friendships that were formed during that brief period, and tell each other what we've been up to for the past 40 years. Gil Pickles has been our driving force, and to date has organized three reunions and managed to reunite some 30% of us. Our goal now is to increase this number with a 40th anniversary reunion in 2004.

Gil has done a tremendous job in tracking down some 40 of the original 70, but there remain an elusive few (listed below) who seem to have disappeared without trace. If anyone knows their whereabouts, or can point us in the right direction (e-mail, phone number, address, someone else who might know), please click the Contact button below. Thank you!

G. Aboagye-Boye, G. Avery, R. Beal, G.C. Burr, T. Corbet, A.R. Crampton, R.W. Cuthbert, P.A. Davies, P. Doamekpor, P. Elson, S. Fairlamb, D. Gilham, J.A. Hill, M.J. Hogan, R. Hudson, R. Kingsnorth, A.M. MacBride, J.W. Morgan, A. Morris, F. Quarcoo, M.J. Quick, R. Richards, A.F. Sinclair and C. Springle