Ship Trace,

[DeepSea]

Again VJ Day 15th August 1945 no arrivals at the port of Swansea. Have done a search five days either side of VJ Day for arrivals and attached are the ships named.

Port-Data-VJ-Day.jpg

[DeepSea]

Getting more confusing by the minute!!!

Just a case if elimination. Hugh and I are quite used to this, but can you tell us what source you used to trace his CRS-10 file. You may have mentioned it in a previous thread, but because of the ammount of research I do I may have overlooked it.

[Jim Brady]

Hi Billy,it was Lee Richards.He did get me a few odds and ends,pay off slips,time at HMS Gordon,ID Card etc but he did say that the CRS-10 could not be traced.
For some reason i am beginning to sway for the Beaconstreet.
Regards.
Jim.

[DeepSea]

Jim,

We seem to be going around in circles here. Looking through some older threads on your Brothers sea service, Hugh got a contact, who checked at Kew and found no CRS-10 service file, but Hugh did give you his COMNO pouch details, which would give info on the ship he was on in 1944 involved in the Normandy Campaign.

http://discovery.nationalarchives.go...s?uri=C9205530

If you obtained this file you would get the dates he served on this ship and then be able obtain the Crew Agreements to at least work back over from 1944 for the previous ships he served on as Crew Agreements listed previous ship served on.

[Hugh]

Billy,

Roger G. was going to take a look for me but had to change his plans at short notice - it is on his to do list next time he visits Kew.
Roger also stated that it is the Kew staff who now check for the records rather than the person doing the visit so we have to take the staff's word for it. This is another security enhancement to avoid fraud as we know from previous.

Regards
Hugh

[Jim Brady]

Bill/Hugh, I have a copy of his pay off slip for the Empire Newton (Special Ops) signed on 14/4/ 44 signed off 9/8/44.
Regards.
Jim.B.

[DeepSea]

Hugh mentions our friend Roger G. who is "the" man for Kew and if he can't access the file because of security reasons, I am sure he will be extremely specific on what he wants them to look up.

You can obtain a copy of the Empire Newton's 1944 Crew Agreements from Kew held under her Official No. 169006 at the following link. Please make sure you ask for the Crew Agreements for April 1944 when he signed on as these files run from Jan/Dec of any given year.

http://discovery.nationalarchives.go...?uri=C11070596

[Hugh]

Everything Billy says is spot on.

It can be seen now, I hope, why this method is the last resort. The CRS 10 would have most of what you need in one file apart from 1940 and 3 months of 1939.

Getting the 1944 crew agreement for 'EMPIRE NEWTON' will then need to be followed by getting the crew agreement for the ship mentioned on that agreement as his previous ship and going all the way back to when he joined his first war-time ship. A lot of ships will mean a lot of files to be ordered from Kew.

If all this is getting to be a bit of a bind it may just be worth a punt on my advice on #27 and 28 of this link: http://www.merchant-navy.net/forum/r...-newton-3.html - I have seen success using this method before but it would confirm for sure there was no CRS 10 and who knows they may use the crew agreement method to find out what you need to know. It would have to be your brother that applied though as it's his data you are asking about. I am sure Roger G will look when he next goes to Kew but I am not sure when that will be.

I am sure we would all like to see your brother get his due entitlement Jim - it's the very least his country owes him.

Regards
Hugh

[Jim Brady]

He did training at HMS Gordon finished there Oct 1943.
Empire Flaming 19/4/44 28/4/44. Birkenhead to Oban she was given the number 306 blockade ship.Signed on Glasgow Pool sent to Hull Empire Newton.
Empire Newton 6/5/44 (14/4/44) 9/8/44. some of the dates on these two ships appear to clash.
From leaving HMS Gordon to Empire Flamingo could've been on Mauretania.
I will ring him tomorrow for more details.What is realy required is the tanker name from 1945.
Regards.
Jim.B.

[Jim Brady]

Deep Sea & Hugh,I think i will start with the ship the Dominion Monarch as i know my brother was on that just after the war,maybe Sept 45.What should i apply to Kew for and how.Thanks in anticipation.
Regards.
Jim.B.