Neil Rutherford
Encyclopedia
Lt Cmdr Neil Rutherford, DSC
. Born 15 May 1922, died 24 September 1976. Cremated North Wales. He saw active service in the Second World War
and in Korea
. In 1958 he served with the Underwater Weapons Material Dept. He committed suicide in Penmaenmawr
, Wales
after murdering four people at a hotel.
He was son of Neil Perry Rutherford and after his father's death, Neil took over the family firm as head of A. Rutherford and Co, until it was liquidated in the 1960s. By April 1975, he was working as a gardener/handyman at the Red Gables Hotel, Penmaenmawr, North Wales.
Married 7 August 1948 Joan Margery Colville-Hyde. Divorced 2 May 1972.
, Wales 24 September 1976. He was clutching a gun. Also killed by gunshot wounds were the hotel owner, Mrs Linda Simcox (52); ex merchant seaman Johnny Green (55); an antique dealer from Texas; Mrs Simcox's daughter, Lorna (24); and her husband, Alastair McIntyre (55). The hotel was ablaze when the police arrived.
Distinguished Service Cross (United Kingdom)
The Distinguished Service Cross is the third level military decoration awarded to officers, and other ranks, of the British Armed Forces, Royal Fleet Auxiliary and British Merchant Navy and formerly also to officers of other Commonwealth countries.The DSC, which may be awarded posthumously, is...
. Born 15 May 1922, died 24 September 1976. Cremated North Wales. He saw active service in the Second World War
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
and in Korea
Korean War
The Korean War was a conventional war between South Korea, supported by the United Nations, and North Korea, supported by the People's Republic of China , with military material aid from the Soviet Union...
. In 1958 he served with the Underwater Weapons Material Dept. He committed suicide in Penmaenmawr
Penmaenmawr
PenmaenmawrConwyPenmaenmawr is a town in the parish of Dwygyfylchi, in Conwy County Borough, Wales. The population was 3857 in 2001. It is a quarrying town, though the latter is no longer a major employer, on the North Wales coast between Conwy and Llanfairfechan.The town was bypassed by the A55...
, Wales
Wales
Wales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain, bordered by England to its east and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It has a population of three million, and a total area of 20,779 km²...
after murdering four people at a hotel.
Naval career
- Midshipman 01.01.1940
- Sub Lieutenant 01.11.1941
- Lieutenant 01.06.1943
- Lieutenant Commander 01.06.1951 (General List 01.01.1957) (retired 05.01.1959)
- DSC 10.07.1945 6 war patrols (3 East Indies, 3 Southwest Pacific)
- DSC 29.06.1951 Korea
Naval service
- Education: RN College (01.1936-12.1939)
- 01.01.1940 - 01.1941 HMS Glasgow (cruiser)
- 01.1941 - 05.1941 HMS HeroHMS Hero (H99)HMS Hero was an H-class destroyer built for the Royal Navy in the mid-1930s. During the Spanish Civil War of 1936–1939 the ship enforced the arms blockade imposed by Britain and France on both sides as part of the Mediterranean Fleet...
(destroyer) - 05.1941 - 07.1941 HMS ValiantHMS Valiant (1863)HMS Valiant was the second ship of the armoured frigates ordered by the Royal Navy in 1861. Her builders went bankrupt shortly after she was laid down, which significantly delayed her completion. After being launched in 1863, she waited a further five years to receive her guns due to supply issues...
(battleship) - 07.1941? - 09.1941? passage home SS Empress of Asia
- 09.1941 - 03.1942 Sub-Lieutenant's courses
- 03.1942 - 05.1942 submarine training course
- 20.05.1942 - 02.1943 HMS TunaHMS Tuna (N94)HMS Tuna was a T-class submarine of the Royal Navy. She was laid down by Scotts, Greenock and launched on the 10 May 1940. She was equipped with German built engines, and spent her service career in World War II in western European waters, in both the North Sea and off the western coast of France...
which was involved in Operation FranktonOperation FranktonOperation Frankton was a commando raid on shipping in the German occupied French port of Bordeaux in the Bay of Biscay during the Second World War. The raid was carried out by a small unit of Royal Marines known as the Royal Marines Boom Patrol Detachment , part of Combined Operations.The plan was... - 02.1943 - 07.1943 HMS P 556 (submarine)
- 05.07.1943 - 01.1946 Commanding Officer HMS SpitefulHMS Spiteful (P227)HMS Spiteful was a S-class submarine of the British Royal Navy.-Commander:Her pennant number was originally P77...
patrolling the Pacific sinking Japanese shipping. - 08.02.1946 - 08.1946 HMS DolphinHMS Dolphin shore-establishmentThe seventeenth Royal Navy 'ship' to be named HMS Dolphin was the RN shore establishment sited at Fort Blockhouse in Gosport. Dolphin was the home of the Royal Navy Submarine Service from 1904 to 1999, and location of the Royal Navy Submarine School....
a shore-establishment depot for submarines. Part of Submarine Reserve Group K. - 08.1946 - 09.1946 HMS StygianHMS Stygian (P249)HMS Stygian was a S-class submarine of the British Royal Navy, and the only ship so far to bear the name. The ship is listed as being a member of the fourth group, although she had the external stern torpedo tube fitted as in the third group.After an eventful career in the Pacific during the...
(submarine) - 10.1946 - 11.1946 HMS RaneeHMS Ranee (D03)The USS Niantic , was a US escort aircraft carrier, that served in the Royal Navy as HMS Ranee .Niantic, originally given the designation AVG-46, was redesignated as ACV-46 on 20 August 1942. She was laid down by the Seattle-Tacoma Shipbuilding Corporation of Tacoma, Washington on 5 January 1943;...
(Woolworth carrier) - 01.1947 - 01.1948 specialist Torpedo & Anti-Submarine (TAS) course HMS VernonHMS Vernon (shore establishment)HMS Vernon was a shore establishment or 'stone frigate' of the Royal Navy. Vernon was established on 26 April 1876 as the Royal Navy's Torpedo Branch and operated until 1 April 1996, when the various elements comprising the establishment were split up and moved to different commands.-Foundation...
- 01.1948 - 09.1949 HMS DefianceHMS Andromeda (1897)HMS Andromeda was a ship of the Diadem-class of protected cruiser in the Royal Navy. She was built at Pembroke Dockyard and launched on 5 January 1898. In 1913 she was converted to a training ship and renamed Powerful II on 23 September 1913...
a torpedo school. - 09.1949 - 11.1949 passage to Far East [SS Devonshire]
- 11.1949 - 04.1952? HMS Black SwanHMS Black Swan (L57)HMS Black Swan , named after the Black Swan, was the name ship of the Black Swan-class of sloops of the British Royal Navy. This class was admired for its sea-going qualities...
(sloop) which was involved in the Yangtze Incident on 20 April 1949 (Korea; possibly POW)) - 30.04.1952 - (05.1953) staff TAS, HMS MontclareHMS Montclare (F85)Montclare was a passenger ship built by the John Brown and Company on Clydebank for the Canadian Pacific Steamship Company, Montreal. It was later purchased by the Royal Navy during World War II.- RMS Montclare :...
a Submarine Depot Ship and based at Rothesay with the 3rd Submarine flotilla. - 05.1953 - 05.07.1954 Commander-in-chief, The Nore
- 05.07.1954 - (01.1956) staff, Flag Officer Commanding Reserve Fleet HMS CleopatraHMS Cleopatra (33)HMS Cleopatra was a Dido-class cruiser of the Royal Navy. She was built by R. and W. Hawthorn, Leslie and Company, Limited , with the keel being laid down on 5 January 1939...
- (1958) Underwater Weapons Material Department (Bath), Admiralty HMS PresidentHMS President (1918)HMS President, formerly HMS Saxifrage is an of the Royal Navy, completed in 1918. The vessel was built at the shipyard of Lobnitz & Company, Renfrew, Scotland as Yard Number 827....
Family life
Commander Rutherford retired from the navy 5 January 1959.He was son of Neil Perry Rutherford and after his father's death, Neil took over the family firm as head of A. Rutherford and Co, until it was liquidated in the 1960s. By April 1975, he was working as a gardener/handyman at the Red Gables Hotel, Penmaenmawr, North Wales.
Married 7 August 1948 Joan Margery Colville-Hyde. Divorced 2 May 1972.
Death
Rutherford died at Red Gables Hotel, PenmaenmawrPenmaenmawr
PenmaenmawrConwyPenmaenmawr is a town in the parish of Dwygyfylchi, in Conwy County Borough, Wales. The population was 3857 in 2001. It is a quarrying town, though the latter is no longer a major employer, on the North Wales coast between Conwy and Llanfairfechan.The town was bypassed by the A55...
, Wales 24 September 1976. He was clutching a gun. Also killed by gunshot wounds were the hotel owner, Mrs Linda Simcox (52); ex merchant seaman Johnny Green (55); an antique dealer from Texas; Mrs Simcox's daughter, Lorna (24); and her husband, Alastair McIntyre (55). The hotel was ablaze when the police arrived.