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Sheridan O’Brien

1928 - 2026

Sheridan, Also known as Shamus to his mates, was born in Port Kembla, NSW on the 26th of August 1928. From a young age he was exposed to the open sea, and during the Second World War watched his father leave to serve in the Merchant Navy. This proximity to sea life led to Sheridan seeking a career at sea, and towards the end of the war he was bought by a recruitment poster into the Royal Australian Navy.

He enlisted at the age of 19 in November 1947, and underwent his initial training at HMAS Cerberus. He took to the navy well, and maintaining a steady record of good conduct he rose to be a Leading Seaman by mid 1952. Later that year, he was on leave with his wife and child when he ran into a shipmate of his. This fellow sailor informed Sheridan that upon his return to the base the following Monday, his ship the HMAS Culgoa would be preparing to embark for the Korean War.

Saying his goodbyes, Sheridan and the crew of Culgoa departed in early 1953 and set sail for Japan. After refuel, the ship moved into a patrol route around Korea. Sheridan worked with depth charges as part of the anti-submarine team. The ship would remain on patrol, mostly looking for small enemy crafts and submarines trying to sneak past the UN blockade, then after two weeks would return to Japan for refuel and resupply before repeating it all over again.  Occasionally, Culgoa got some extra fun in the form of providing naval gunfire support on ground targets as well, though the ship itself was never fired upon. It was during this time of patrolling that Sheridan received the nickname “Shamus”, recalling later “All O’Brien’s were known as ‘Shamus’ in the Navy. There were about three that I knew of on my ship.”

In late July, the armistice came into effect, and the Culgoa continued to patrol but slowly became less needed. By November, it had completed its tour of duty and returned to Australia. Post Korea, Sheridan remained in the navy, and eventually rose to the rank of Petty Officer. During his later career, he was posted to numerous ships seeing service in Malaya and even witnessed one of the Atomic Bomb test by the British. He discharged from the navy in August 1968 after over 20 year’s service.

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