Certificate of Continuous Discharge query

[Paul Manos]

Hi Paul
All very possible as you write,and one has to look at all Avenues to try at least to solve this one!
I think very similar thoughts to yours and who knows there may be a clue somewhere to this Puzzle.
I will when i can try and delve futher into the Ships you gave and dates etc,at least its a start.
Another thing that puzzles me (Mind you its not uncommon) is that i cannot find a trace of him in the National Archives or in fact online at places like FMP ,and others??

Do you have any other pieces of his Discharge Book at all? His Number may be of help??

As for Stowaways well Paul,that wasnt too uncommon ,but as you say he may well have later in the Voyage told the Crew!

So for now all we can do is carry on and see if anything else may come to light!
Cheers

Hi Doc
I'm posting another two pages from my great-uncle's Certificate booklet: the cover and the first inside page. Just in case his seaman's number isn't readable (the cover is faded), the number appearing on it is #481369.

Also, I'm posting the cover of the NAA file which covers his application for naturalisation. I'm not surprised you couldn't find a reference: his name was misspelt (a very common issue for officialdom with foreign names back in those days). I've already paid for the digitisation of this file so reading it online or downloading it should be straight forward.

I don't recognise the acronym FMP: what does that refer to, pls?

Thanks again to you and everyone for all the help; I'm learning a lot.

[Doc Vernon]

Find My Past Site
A good Geneaology site
Cheers

That Number has no Prefix i notice ,but as it is an old one possibly why as most Books even older ones had the Letter R in front of the Number. Later changed to UK.

Funny still cannot find the Reference anywhere but still you have the Book ??
Cheers

Possibly held at Southampton Archives in the Oroginal Files of that Era.

[happy daze john in oz]

Hiding stowaways for the duration of the voyage, may not be so far fetched.

I recall a winger on the Windsor who claimed he stowed away on the Stirling Castle in Cape Town and was hidden from view by the catering crew until Southampton.

He then joined up.

Is it true?
We only had his word for it, but it was possible in those days.

[Doc Vernon]

Yes John True!
I heard a few Stories like that in my time,and especially on the UCL there seemed to be many at the time!
I told a wee story about my late Brother some Years back , he did Stowaway at one time, and actually worked on the Ship as an Entertainments Officer, he was some brazen Lad in his days.
Yes that is a very true story, that i can vouch for.
He got nabbed halfway Mid Atlantic,though and was kept in the Brig till the Ship reached Southampton. He actually got away with it all too,just a good talking to and made to repay the fare for the one way trip, wasnt too much at the time .
Cheers


Life then was full of surprises!

[Ivan Cloherty]

That Number has no Prefix i notice ,but as it is an old one possibly why as most Books even older ones had the Letter R in front of the Number. Later changed to UK.
Cheers
.

Numbers didn't start until circa 1925, my fathers issued 1927 was R96096

[Brenda Shackleton]

Hello Ivan,
My Dad's Discharge book from 1922 is # 1071065
Brenda

[Ivan Cloherty]

Hello Ivan,
My Dad's Discharge book from 1922 is # 1071065
Brenda

Sorry what I meant to say was that the Pre-fix 'R' didn't start until circa 1925

Old age strikes again!

[Paul Manos]

Thanks to everyone who helped on this thread. I received from the Glamorgan Archives a copy of the Crew Agreement for my great-uncle's engagement on the Sir W.J.Lewis in 1907 and thought I'd share part of it with everyone.

The ship had a crew of 24: Master, 1st mate, 2nd mate, 2 Stewards, Cook, 6 Sailors, 3 Engineers, 8 Firemen, and one other (unreadable description). It set out from Cardiff on 14 August 1907, arriving at Spezia in Italy on the 25th of that month. There, at Spezia, one of the firemen deserted. The ship left Spezia on September 9 for Odessa in the Black Sea. En route, at Constantinople, on September 16, my great uncle was hired as a fireman, presumably to replace the seaman who had deserted.

That was the beginning of his time working on British ships.

The page from the Crew Agreement shows his name as the last one engaged. Interestingly, for the purposes of tracking his maritime history, it records that he was previously engaged on a ship registered in Hamburg called the "Marguerite" or such, but I can't confidently decipher the ship's name.