Sunday 15 July 2012

The Red Duster


Mercantile Marine War Medal designed by Harold Stabler.

Awarded to those who had made a voyage through a war zone or danger zone during the 1914-1918 war. Approximately 133,000 Mercantile Marine War Medals were awarded.

The green, red and white ribbon colours symbolise navigation lights and was worn with the green furthest from the shoulder.



SS Caithness - 3rd May 1917
Torpedoed by German submarine U-52
Kenneth Noel French - Apprentice - Age 17
Born at Ryhope.
Son of John Watson French & Mary Alice French (nee Moffatt) 33 Chatsworth St., Sunderland.

SS Lowmount - 7th May 1917
Hit a mine laid by German submarine UC-70 on route to Stockton from Bilbao with a cargo of iron ore.
5 lives lost.
James Callan - Fireman - Age 33
Son of John Callan & the late Elizabeth Callan, 2 Arras Lane, Sunderland.

Joseph Harrison - Mess Room Steward - Age 20
Son of Simon and Barbara Harrison, 17 Burleigh St., Sunderland.

SS Farnham - 19th May 1917
Torpedoed by German submarine UB-50 on route to the Clyde from Bizerta with a cargo of iron ore.
17 lives lost.
Alfred Andrew Dunn - Second Engineer - Age 26
Born Sunderland.
Son of Charlotte Jefferson (formerly Dunn) & the late Coulson Dunn, 16 Valley Mount, Harrogate.

Thomas Purdy Newton - First Engineer - Age 57
Born Sunderland.
Husband of Lillie Newton, 11 Sydenham Terrace, Sunderland.

Charles Stoddart Westerby - Master - Age 47
Husband of Ann Ingham Westerby, 4 Ettrick Grove, Sunderland.

SS England - 23rd May 1917
Sunk by the German submarine U-65.
3 lives lost
Thomas Bonner - Fourth Engineer - Age 58
Born at Sunderland.
Husband of Mary Bonner, 20 Warkworth Avenue, Whitley Bay.

SS Highbury - 31st May 1917
Sunk by the German submarine U-82 on route to Birkenhead from Antofagasta with a cargo of nitrate.
40 lives lost.
Alfred Henderson Atkinson - Second Engineer - Age 26
Born Sunderland.
Son of Joseph Atkinson & the late Esther Atkinson (nee Fowler) 101 Hendon Rd., Sunderland.

SS Mavisbrook - 17th May 1918
Torpedoed by German submarine UB-50 on route Malta from Cardiff with a cargo of coal. 18 lives lost.
Charles Ernest Harrison - Second Engineer - Age 33
Born at Houghton-le-Spring.
Son of A. J. Harrison, 6 Featherstone St., Roker, Sunderland.

SS Manchester Miller - 5th June 1917
Torpedoed by German submarine U-66 on route to Manchester from Philadelphia.
8 lives lost.
George Albert Victor Taylor - Second Engineer - Age 28
Born Sunderland.
Son of Rachael & the late George Taylor.
Husband of Isabella Taylor (nee Lawther) 3 Cairo St., Sunderland.

SS Corinthia - 10th June 1917

Albert Edward Cummings - Apprentice - Age 16

Son of James William & Mary Lizzie Cummings, 8 Beatrice St., Sunderland.


SS Dart - 14th June 1917
Torpedoed by German submarine UC-47 on route to Garston from Huelva with a cargo of pyrites.
4 lives lost.
Samuel Armstrong Thompson - Third Engineer - Age 52
Born Sunderland.
Son of the late Capt. Samuel Wm. John & Margaret Ann Thompson.
Husband of Hannah Thompson (nee James) 2 Athol Park, Sunderland.

SS Stanhope - 17th June 1917
Torpedoed by German submarine UB-31 on route to Dunkirk from Barrow.
James Taylor Ashworth - Third Engineer - Age 28
Born Hartlepool.
Husband of Elizabeth Ashworth (nee Bower) 70 Kitchener St., Sunderland.

Eli Trenchard - Steward - Age 31
Born Sunderland.
Son of Eli and Elizabeth Trenchard, 188 North St., South Bank, Yorks.


SS Guildhall - 25th June 1917
Torpedoed by German submarine U-62 on route to Cardiff from Valencia.
12 lives lost.
Oliver Gaudie Colvin - Third Engineer - Age 24
Born Sunderland.
Son of Robert Anderson Colvin & Amelia Colvin, 7 Ann St., Sunderland.

SS Twilight - 28th June 1917
Thomas Reed - Second Engineer - Age 51
Son of John Carter Reed & Lucinda Reed, of Sunderland.
Husband of Anne Emma Florence Reed, 51 Penhcoad St., Grange, Cardiff.
Buried Dunkirk Town Cemetery
Grave Ref: I. E. 8

SS Dulwich - 10th June 1917
Hit a mine laid by German submarine UB-12 on route to London from Seaham with a cargo of coal.
5 lives lost.
John Butters - Fireman - Age 57
Born Sunderland.
Son of the late Henry & Jane Butters.
Husband of Mary Butters (nee Smith) 51 Cambridge St., South Shields.

William Hutching - Able Seaman – Age 28
Born Sunderland.
Son of the late William & Jane Hutching.
Husband of Dorothy Middleton Hutching (nee Bickford) 81 Coleridge Avenue, South Shields.

SS Goathland - 4th July 1917
Torpedoed by German submarine U-84 on route to the Gulf of Mexico from St. Nazaire. 
21 lives lost.
James Mordey - Apprentice - Age 16
Born Sunderland.

SS Bellucia - 7th July 1917
Torpedoed by German submarine.
Robert Stanley Bell - Third Engineer - Age 26
Born Silksworth.
Son of James Bell, 6 Edith St., Dawdon.

SS Calliope - 09th July 1917
Ernest James Lambton - Third Engineer - Age 22
Born at Seaham Harbour.
Son of Priscilla and the late George Lambton.
Husband of Sarah Ellen Lambton (Nee Nurse) 1 Church Rd., Hetton-le-Hole.


SS Eloby - 19th July 1917
Torpedoed by German submarine U-38.
156 lives lost.
William Cunningham - Carpenter - Age 61
Born Sunderland.
Son of the late William Cunningham.
Husband of Ruth Isabella Cunningham (nee Howie) 1 Banning St., Birkenhead.

SS Ludgate - 26th July 1917
Hit a mine laid by German submarine UC-51 on route to Garston from Huelva with a cargo of iron ore.
24 lives lost.
William Sheel - Second Engineer - Age 32
Born Sunderland.
Husband of Priscilla Annie Sheel, 3 The Westlands, Sunderland.

Arthur Ernest Stephenson - First Mate - Age 36
Born Sunderland.
Husband of Hannah Stephenson, 38 Sydenham Terrace, Sunderland.


SS Okhla – 29th July 1917
Hit a mine.
6 lives lost.
John Lawrence Mavin - Third Engineer - Age 25
Born Sunderland.
Son of Emily Florence Mavin, 36 Glenthorne Rd., Hammersmith, London.

SS Belgian Prince - 31st July 1917
Torpedoed by German submarine U-55.
39 lives lost & the Sipper taken prisoner.
Ernest Cooper - Third Officer - Age 20
Born at Felling-on-Tyne.
Son of John Pearson Cooper & Elizabeth Jane Cooper, 23 Zion Terrace., Sunderland.

Thomas Judge - Second Engineer - Age 24
Born Hartlepool.
Son of Thomas & Jane Anne Judge (nee Shotton) 195 Cleveland Rd., Sunderland.

Commemorated on St. Gabriel’s 1914-18 Plaque

St. Gabriel’s Church, Chester Road, Sunderland.

Niel McDougall Morton - Chief Officer - Age 27
Born Durham.
Husband of Jane Morton, 15 Beechwood St, Sunderland.

SS Fremona - 31st July 1917
Torpedoed by German submarine UC-47 on route to St. Nazaire from Montreal with a cargo of grain, flour & timber.
George Anderson - First Mate - Age 38
Born Sunderland.
Husband of Mrs. Anderson, 3 Blackie Rd., Leith.

Archibald Virtue Snaith - Able Seaman - Age 37
Son of George Dawson Snaith & the late Sarah Snaith, 10 Rosedale St., Sunderland.

John William Stainburg - Cook - Age 28
Born Bishop Auckland.
Served under the name Stenburg
Son of William & Sarah M. Stainburg
Husband of Margaret Jane Stainburg (nee Buchanan) 9 Bell St., Millfield, Sunderland.

Charles Thompson - Able Seaman - Age 59
Born Copenhagen.
Son of the late John & Eleanor Thompson
Husband of Sarah Elizabeth Thompson, 2 South Durham St., Sunderland.

Henry Thompson - Fireman - Age 29
Son of Henry and Isabella Thompson, 14 Adelaide Row, Seaham Harbour.

SS Cairnstrath - 4th August 1917
Torpedoed by German submarine UC-71 on route to the Tyne from Bilbao with a cargo of iron ore.
22 lives lost.
William Spencer - Cook - Age 68
Born Sunderland.
Son of the late Henry & Jane Spencer
Husband of Frances Sophia Spencer (nee Richardson) 5 Clementina St., Hendon, Sunderland.

SS Zamora - 6th August 1917
Thomas Boxer - Fireman - Age 36
Born Sunderland.
Son of the late Joseph Henry & Margaret Boxer.
Husband of Sarah Eliza Boxer (nee Fearon) 1 Cross Place, East End, Sunderland.

SS Blagdon - 9th August 1917
Sunk by German submarine U-100.
12 lives lost.
Fred Vaughan White - Second Engineer - Age 34
Born Sunderland.
Husband of Alice Eleanor White, 34 Harrogate St., Sunderland.

SS Akassa - 13th August 1917
Torpedoed by German submarine UC-33 on route to West Africa from Liverpool.
7 lives lost.
T R Morrison - Second Engineer - Age 29
Born Sunderland.
Husband of M. A. Morrison, 57 Jacob St., Dingle, Liverpool.

SS Maston - 13th August 1917
Sunk by the Austrian submarine K.U.K. U-28 on rout to Taranto from Cardiff with a cargo of coal.  2 lives lost.
John Middleton Hudson - Fourth Engineer - Age 21
Born Sunderland.
Son of William Hudson & the late Isabella Ann Hudson, 18 Lucknow St., Sunderland.


SS Thames - 14th August 1917
Sunk by gunfire from German submarine UC-55 on route Fecamp from Middlesborough with a cargo of pig iron..
10 lives lost
John Charles Erskine - First Engineer - Age 34
Born Sunderland.
Husband of Louisa Erskine, 30 Eastfield St., Sunderland.

James Hunter - Fireman - Age 51
Born Sunderland.
Husband of Annie Hunter, 23 Maltings Rigg, Sunderland

T McDonald - Second Mate
Recorded in Newcastle Weekly Chronicle as resident of Sunderland.

William George Pescod - Fireman - Age 43
Born Shotton Colliery.
Son of the late Robert & Jane Pescod.
Recorded in Newcastle Weekly Chronicle as resident of Sunderland.

Samuel Wright - Second Mate - Age 42
Born Ireland.
Served under the name MacDonald
Son of the late Samuel and Charlotte Wright.
Husband of Honor Wright (nee Feeney) 10 Villiers St. Sunderland.

SS Rosario 18th August 1917
Torpedoed by German submarine UC-55 on route Troon from Huelva with a cargo of pig iron.  20 lives lost.
Joseph Herbert Cooper - First Engineer – Age 32
Born Seaham Harbour.
Son of Jane Hannah Henderson Cooper & the late John Cooper.
Husband of Jane Mason Cooper (nee Humphreys) 68 Angus St., Roath Park, Cardiff.

SS Edernian - 20th August 1917
Torpedoed by German submarine UB-10 on route to Dieppe from Middlesbrough with a cargo of steel.
Francis Bailey Frater - Mess Room Steward - Age 17
Served under the name Furness
Son of William Halden & Susan Birtley Frater, 7 Candlish Terrace, Seaham Harbour.


SS Marmion - 26th August 1917
Torpedoed by German submarine U-93 on route to Bordeaux from New York.
17 lives lost.
Henry Cooke - Second Engineer - Age 42
Born Sunderland.
Husband of Mrs. Cooke, 44 Ferndale Avenue, Wallsend-on-Tyne.

SS Vronwen - 29th August 1917
Sunk by German submarine on route to Port Said from Newcastle with a cargo of coal. 1 life lost.
Francis Divett - Able Seaman - Age 36
Son of Elizabeth Wickman (formerly Divett) & the late Thomas Divett, 37 Vine St., Sunderland.

SS Eastern Prince – 30th August 1917
Torpedoed by German submarine U-62 on route to London from Philadelphia.
5 lives lost.
Walter Reed - Third Mate - Age 21
Born Sunderland.

SS Treverbyn - 3rd September 1917
Hit a mine laid by German submarine U-75 on route to Manchester from Narvik with a cargo of iron ore.
27 lives lost
John William Anderson - Fireman - Age 49
Born Monkwearmouth.
Son of the late Robert & Elizabeth Anderson.
Husband of Elizabeth Anderson (nee Brown) 25 Roker Avenue, Sunderland.

SS Newholm - 8th September 1917
Torpedoed by German submarine UC-31 on route to Middlesbrough from Bilbao with a cargo of iron ore.
20 lives lost.
George Harrison - Cook - Age 35
Born Sunderland.
Son of George Harrison & the late Mamie Harrison.
Husband of Daisy May Harrison (nee Parkes) 17 Wolseley Terrace, Chester Rd., Sunderland.

SS Vienna - 11th September 1917
Torpedoed by German submarine U-49 on route to New York From Brest.
25 lives lost.
William Richards - Carpenter - Age 26
Son of John & Mary Ann Richards (nee Swift) Fordland Place, Sunderland.

MV Arabis – 16th September 1917
Torpedoed by German submarine.
Born Sunderland.
Son of Mrs. Helena Mowbray (nee Fleming) 2 Cambridge Terrace, Sunderland.

SS Boynton - 24th September 1917
Torpedoed by German submarine UC-47, on route to France from Manchester.
23 lives lost.
Herbert Clement Matthews - Third Engineer - Age 24
Born Brixham.
Son of Clement and Nellie Nanetta Matthews (nee Jago) 14 Northumberland St., Sunderland.

SS Clyde Brae – 3rd October 1917
Torpedoed by German submarine UB-41.
Robert Gibson - Second Mate – Age 29
Born Sunderland.
Husband of Norah Gibson, 29 Stockton St., Middlesbrough.

SS Poldown - 09th October 1917
Hit a mine laid by German submarine UC-51 on route to Boulogne from Penarth. 
18 lives lost.
J K Watson - Master
Recorded in the Newcastle Weekly Chronicle as resident of Roker,Sunderland.

SS Semantha - 14th October 1917
Sunk by the German submarine UC-74, 32 lives lost.
Richard Bird - Carpenter - Age 47
Born at Hetton-le-Hole.
Son of William Bird, and the late Elizabeth Ann Bird.
Husband of Hannah Bird (nee Cowie) 74A Caledon Rd., East Ham, Essex.