In this snowy scene from the winter of 1944-1945, an anti-submarine trawler (centre left) and three minesweepers crowd against a dock in the harbour at St. John's, Newfoundland.

The trawler is likely HMS Cailiff, which Britain's Royal Navy transferred to the Royal Canadian Navy in 1942. The minesweeper to its left may be HMCS Drummondville, Gananoque, or Medicine Hat. Although Newfoundland was not yet part of Canada, St. John's, with its spectacular natural harbour and strategic location on the east coast, was an important base for Canadian and other Allied warships and merchant ships.

George Metcalf Archival Collection
CWM 20000224-008_2