On the outbreak of the 1939-1945 war between the United Kingdom and Germany (3 September 1939), British-registered merchant ship masters were sent radio messages instructing them to open the sealed envelope which had been deposited in ships' safes as much as a year previously. Read tagging guidelines. Germany turned submarines, battleships, aircraft and mines on Britains supply lines, while British and American shipyards worked tirelessly to replace those ships that were sunk. On being examined by the ship's surgeon life was found to be extinct. How do I find out where my uncle was stationed during his stint in the Navy? We also found evidence after 1943 of his return to the Army, promotion to Captain and his service in India, near Karachi. Awarded for service between 10 June 1940 and 12 May 1943, serving in the Mediterranean. Woodman here relates the Merchant Navy's colourful history and brings to life the day-to-day experiences of the seamen. All Web: UK, World War II Medals Issued to Merchant Seamen, 1939-1945 results for ae. The Crew List Index Project (CLIP) offers a searchable index of ships by official number. At 5.10 p.m. he was assigned A.R.P. Art . Contents Part Two 11. In general Second World War Royal Naval Reserve officers' records and post 1950 records are held by CN Pers (Commodore Naval Personnel). Back to Search Results Veterans History Project Service Summary: War or Conflict: World War, 1939-1945 Branch of Service: Merchant Marine Unit of Service: SS George W. Lively; SS George Sters; SS James Hyram Walker; SS War Bonnet Location of Service: Atlantic; Pacific; Normandy, France; Okinawa Island (Ryukyu Islands); Guam (Mariana Islands) Highest Rank: Active Boatswain In the eleven months on the ship Dad had spent three months in Liverpool. The cards are of different colours depending on the type of qualification: Consult registers and renewals of certificates of competency ofmasters andmates in BT 317; masters, mates and engineers in BT 318; just engineersin BT 320 (1913-1935) (in process of transfer from National Maritime Museum under references RSS/ENG/5-6); and fishing officers in BT 396. If you don't have an account please register. From the mid-18th century, masters or owners of most British-registered merchant ships were required to keep a record of their crew before the ship left port. Object category. On 13th December the weather reached gale force which repeated the heavy rolling and misery in the troopdecks experienced on the first leg of the voyage. Records of Royal Naval Reserve ratings in service between 1914 -1955 are available online atwww.nationalarchives.gov.uk/records/royal-naval-reserve-service-records.htm. The registers follow a similar format to Registers of Seamen Tickets in BT 113. I have a record of him being on HMS Leonian in 1941/2 from a list of people he wanted to write telegrams to from the ship. : s.n., between 1939 and 1940) AWM call number: 387.5071094 M554; Online. Description. - Merchant Navy during the Second World War -. "The World's largest shipping company". The Miramar ship index can be useful for obtaining this information. We do not provide copies of online records please download to view, Visit us in Kew to see original documents or view online records for free, Consider paying for (These were originally described as 'Asian seamen' but that is misleading. You might also find information about an officer by searching the records of ordinary merchant seamen. the intended destination, details of the cargo expected to be collected at the next port of call, the initials of the clerk making the entry and the date it was made, vessels requisitioned for military service. v3.0, the Lloyd Lists which are available at the Guildhall Library or the, record of voyages (certificates up to 1888 only) dates are for when the records were filed and are not arrival dates sometimes records were filed after a series of voyages, date of death (certificates after 1888 only and only sometimes), date, number and place of issue of the masters certificate obtained, any other special qualification, including the steam certificate from 1874, name and number (taken from the Mercantile Navy Lists) of each ship (date of engagement and discharge as master or mate and the destination of each voyage), any special awards (for example, war service), pasted-in summaries of the qualifications and service from 1851 of masters who were still active in 1869, green for skippers and mates of fishing boats. Visit the Crew List Index Project (CLIP) website, which has information about merchant seamen on British registered ships from 1861 to 1913. AncestryDNA Activate a Kit ; AncestryDNA Learning Hub ; What's Included in Your Results . He may have been in the Devon or Dorset Regiment. Results 1-2 of 2 View Record Name . Research guidance for records relating to World War 2. Help us improve catalogue descriptions by adding tags. Search and download ( charges apply) records of World War Two Medals issued to Merchant Seamen (BT 395). Results 1-9 of 9 View Record Name Birth Date; View Record. At 05.55 all the boats but one had cleared the ship, by which time the foredeck was completely submerged and the water almost up to the level of the promenade deck. Help us improve catalogue descriptions by adding tags. Nortraship. There have been times when I've thought about the few months of kindness and friendliness shown by Frau Wilmbrock and her family in the village of Kirch, where I and fellow Stalag X-B prisoner Jock Reid worked their farm. James Wafer S.S. Samaria (d.14th May 1943). Also some happy times with the Indian Army who were great allies and enjoyed partying English style, as a relief from the war time battles. I hope to also take a digital diary when it is finished to the Arctic Convoy Museum at Loch Ewe. Tragically, 30,248 merchant seamen lost their lives during World War Two, a death rate proportionally higher than in any of the armed forces. Awarded for service in the Burma Campaign between 11 December 1941 and 2 September 1945. AB. These records have only been held at the Registrar General of Shipping and Seamen. You can also search: the Commonwealth War Graves Commission website. Merchant Navy 1939-1945. Most of the masters and mates were from West Wales. The official records state the purser took possession of his discharge book, his I.D. USA.gov, The U.S. National Archives and Records Administration I think the tag '' should be removed from: Subscribe now for regular news, updates and priority booking for events, All content is available under the Open Government Licence v3.0, except where otherwise stated, BT - Records of the Board of Trade and of successor and related bodies, Division within BT - Records of the Registrar General of Shipping and Seamen and successor, Merchant shipping movement cards 1939-1945, Merchant Navy ships' records: movement cards 1939-1945, Merchant Navy ships' records: registration of merchant ships, About our I remember him telling me about runs to Malta and how soldiers shouldn't have been on ships. Most of the prisoners, including myself, were sent from Drancy to concentration camps. From things he had said prior to his death, the family believe that the story could actually be based on himself and those he served with. Photographs CAPTAIN CHARLES FRYATT Merchant mariners or merchant seamen are assigned to vessels that primarily transport cargo and passengers during peacetime. The British Merchant Navy fleet was the largest in the world in 1939 and around 185,000 men served in it during the Second World War. By 08.20 both escorts were proceeding at 6 knots towing Anselms empty boats, but as speed increased to 13 knots these gradually broke away and were lost. The official record of these two mens' deaths falls so short of telling the whole story. The Guildhall Library does not hold crew lists. If you have a general question please post it on our Facebook page. For example, MacDonald will not appear under the letter M but under D. In 1939 the Admiralty instructed the Board of Trade, for reasons of. The convoy was originally supposed to sail at the end of October 1942 as WS 13 but its designation was changed to WS 12Z (a lucky omen?). Once you have obtained a certificate number from the index in BT 127, consult the table below for the respective record series reference: Certificate numbers with a letter(s) prefix NWS were issued in the colonies. Unfortunately, all their hard work diverting troops and stores came to nothing because Singapore fell into Japanese hands. Much of the information would have come from the Royal Navy. The swell was of considerable height and the ships became almost unmanageable and steering had to be assisted by engines. The book's structure follows the chronological evolution of geographical opinions and retains a geohistorical narrative. The names on this list have been submitted by relatives, friends, neighbours and others who wish to remember them, if you have any names to add or any recollections or photos of those listed, Index record for Merchant, Leslie Arthur in the World War II Index to Allied Airmen Roll of Honour, 1939-1945 from Ancestry.com, historical military records. These entries do not simply record a single voyage, but a half year (January to June or July to December) during which the seaman was engaged on a particular ship. This was simply a record of the. Subscribe now for regular news, updates and priority booking for events.Sign up, All content is available under the Open Government Licence To find out about a seamans entitlement, contact the Registrar General of Shipping and Seamen. Wafer it states "he failed to re-join ship" and for M. Towers it reads "died as result of accident". Brian Roy Clarke SS Sithonia, Sea. *Estimated delivery dates - opens in a new window or tab include seller's handling time, origin ZIP Code, destination ZIP Code and time of acceptance and will depend on shipping service selected and receipt of cleared payment. But by the time its recommendations were implemented in 1994, the 15-year- old deckboys would have been in their mid-60s, while a seaman of 50 when the war ended would have been 100. 1939-1950. The qualifying service period for the Atlantic Star could only begin after the 1939-1945 Star had been earned by six months service. Within the Returns of Births and Deaths of Passengers 1939-1963 there are for 1939-1945 also records of deaths of soldiers on hospital and troopships, but it is necessary to know the name of the ship. The ship turned out to be a disguised German raider. You do not have to fill in all fields to search. . Unfortunately, many cards contain a lot of abbreviations and there is no known key for them. Records include photos, honours, service files and death records. They were first recorded on board vessels in port from 1851 (1861 for Scotland) and from 1861 measures were taken to record mariners at sea. At 8 am on December 7, the Japanese submarine I-26 torpedoed SS Cynthia Olson, manned by mariners and transporting lumber for the Army from Tacoma, Washington to Honolulu.All aboard perished, making these merchant mariners among the earliest American casualties of the war. Want to find out more about your relative's service? The date commemorates the sinking of the first British merchant ship in 1939, just hours after Britain declared war on Germany. The cards are presented in alphabetical order by ship's name. If a seaman is not listed, it may be because they have not claimed their medal entitlement. George Smith died later of his injuries. Members Featured Photos by AJ Hawker Tankers-At Sea or in Rivers 2468 photos 4219 comments by AJ Hawker Cargo Ships---Engines midships 2392 photos 4199 comments by Russ Kennedy Tugs-Icebreaker & Research & Supply 955 photos 1720 comments by Gary L Tankers-At Sea or in Rivers 2468 photos We'd like to use additional cookies to remember your settings and understand how you use our services. In the longest campaign of the war, the British merchant fleet, with its naval escorts, struggled to bring food, fuel, equipment and raw materials from America and elsewhere across the Atlantic,. Histories of the United States Merchant Marine from 1900 to 2000 Histories of the United States Merchant Marine in World War II (1939 - 1945) World War II Instruction Manuals for Mariners United States Government Reports on the Merchant Marine in World War II Histories of the United States Merchant Marine in the Korean War (1950 - 1953) At Halifax she embarked American troops to Reykjavik in Iceland and arrived back on 17th October a total journey time of three months. 3rd Radio Off. This number made up around one third of the entire global merchant fleet at the time, with many of the seamen coming from all over the Empire, including India, Hong Kong and West Africa. They sailed up the Irish Sea to join with the Clyde portion to form convoy WS 9B. Domestic and Foreign Policy (1945-1958) 17. Merchant Navy Day. . Leonard Chapman Royal Fusiliers, We are also getting his diaries scanned as a book by the National Archives which we hope will serve as a fantastic record of a day in the life of a soldier on the convoys, both as a diary and also reflections and impressions which are very creative and moving. When they reached Aden on 15th August the convoy was disbanded. Consult series BT 128 for details. Merchant ship movement card (catalogue reference: BT 389). Captain Elliott concluded that Anselm was abandoned without panic or unnecessary confusion. This is the story of my Grandad, James Wafer and his best friend and shipmate Matty Towers. We'd like to use additional cookies to remember your settings and understand how you use our services. Instead, these details were recorded on movements cards held and maintained at the Registrar General of Shipping and Seamen. We place some essential cookies on your device to make this website work. Many merchant seamen came from parts of the British Empire, such as India, Hong Kong and west African countries. For quick pointersTuesday to Saturday Ships & Convoys. The National Maritime Museum holds the registers (see below). Below is the last movement card for the SS Athenia. These cards have been selected as they reflect the economic, social and demographic condition of the UK, as documented by the state's dealings with individuals, communities and organisations outside its own formal boundaries (2.2.2.1 of PRO's acquisition policy). This collection of records, BT 395, lists the medals awarded to merchant seamen for their service in the Second World War (1939-1945), with the exception of the Arctic Star. Thomas Coakley examined the body and states no violence was used in his death but his body was badly damaged, due to it being trapped for days under the lock gates of the dock. British seamen who served under the T124X agreement; British seamen who served under the T124T agreement; Non-British seamen who served under the T124X agreement. Look at the websites of other archives and organisations which hold agreements and crew lists, including the Maritime History Archive in Newfoundland, the National Maritime Museum, the National Records of Scotland, the National Archives of Ireland, and local archives.