Aug 30, 2025
Portrait of Unsinkable Sam by Georgina Shaw Baker (British, 1860–1951)
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Portrait of Unsinkable Sam by Georgina Shaw Baker (British, 1860–1951)
Unsinkable Sam
"Unsinkable Sam" was the nickname given to this cat, who was actually named Oscar. He started as a ship's cat aboard the Nazi ship Bismarck, which was sunk by the British ship HMS Cossack in 1941. The British crew found the cat floating on a board hours after the ship sank, took him aboard, and named him Oscar.
Later in the war, the Cossack sank after being hit by a torpedo, killing 159 crew members. Oscar survived again and was rescued along with the remaining crew, and given the nickname "Unsinkable Sam." His last service was aboard the HMS Ark Royal, an aircraft carrier that was ALSO torpedoed, this time by a Nazi U-boat. Oscar survived that attack as well, and afterward retired to Belfast, where he lived in a seaman's home. Oscar died in 1955, a full 14 years after the sinking of the Bismarck.
Tuesday is the dictionary challenge!
Today's word was: "sailor". After rumination, I decided to draw Unsinkable Sam, the sailor cat. If you don't know about him, I invite you to do research, it's an incredible story!
Here is the doodle:
See you all tomorow with the next drawing! Remember to love what you do and to love yourself.
June 24
Bismarck and his fur baby
The King of Caturday
This is Unsinkable Sam, aka Oscar, a cat that served with the Kriegsmarine (navy of Nazi Germany) and the Royal Navy (navy of the UK) during World War 2.
He was reported to have belonged to a sailor onboard the German battleship Bismarck.
On 18 May 1941, Bismarck was on its first mission when it was sunk by the Allies. Out of the 2,100 crew members, only 115 men and one cat survived.
The HMS Cossack scooped up the cat and gave him the name Oscar.
For the next few months, Oscar lived on the ship until it was hit by torpedoes from a German U-boat, which killed 159 crew members but not Oscar, who was brought to the shores of Gibraltar by the remaining survivors.
Oscar was soon transferred to the HMS Ark Royal, where he was given the name "Unsinkable Sam."
Ironically, the Ark Royal was heavily involved in the sinking of the Bismarck.
After a series of near misses, the ship had garnered a reputation for being a "lucky ship."
However, its luck would soon run out.
On 14 November 1941, the Ark Royal was torpedoed by a U-boat, causing it to roll over and sink.
Sam was found clinging to a piece of wood and was described as "angry, but quite unharmed."
The sinking of the Ark Royal ended Sam's career at sea, and he lived out his remaining years in Belfast with a seaman until 1955.