The Man from Tregantle, Torpoint, Cornwall.

[Simon Owens]

Hello Everybody, many thanks for letting me join. I have perhaps an odd post to share with you, but an important one I believe. On the 22nd January 1982 a body was found at Trethill Cliff, Tregantle, nr Torpoint, Cornwall. To this day we have not been able to identify this man. It looks like he may have been there for about 4 years before he was discovered. He had a 1978 copy of the Sun Newspaper with him and some mid to late 1970's coinage. He had a passport with him but his identity to date has not been able to be found from it. The passport was too damaged. He also had a damaged Merchant Seamans Discharge book with him, also damaged and no identity to date has been able to be gleaned from it. At this moment in time I am not sure if the two documents still exist. I am making enquiries about this.

I enclose an article I have written about The man from Tregantle, also a video.

And why am I posting this here? We are trying to gently see if we can identfy the man. Family and friends even after 40 years may still be looking for him.

Did you have a friend/relative that seemed to disappear mid to late 1970's and was a merchant seamen?

Thank you for reading this. Any relative information gratefully received.

https://buymeacoffee.com/m25roundabo...l-good-meeting

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yh0xrcmu0Pk

[James Curry]

The Penlee lifeboat/Union Star disaster was 19th December 1981, I note the date you mention as 22nd January 1982.

All hands were lost, and only four bodies eventually found. The same was true of the Union Star. This loss of life hit Mousehole very hard as, in one fell swoop, a large chunk of its men was wiped out.

Sixteen lives had been lost, including all eight Union Star passengers and the full crew of the Solomon Browne. The wreckage of the Union Star as it was discovered upon first light the following day.

Perhaps The Man from Tregantle, Torpoint, Cornwall may well have been one of these poor souls?

[Simon Owens]

James, thank you very much for this information. The coroners report listed cause of death-natural, and not drowning, (but that doesn't mean to say that he didn't survive a shipwreck). His body was found on the top of a cliff in a farmers field. What you mention is not an impossibility though. Many of these cases are very hard to fathom out because there are potentially so many scenarios. He could have survived the wreck, got to land, lost his memory etc etc. I will for sure keep this option open, and talk to others about what you have said. Many many thanks. (But then there is the Sun newspaper he had with him from 1978, so that presumably should have put him on the cliff top well before the disaster in 1981-but your information is still useful, and we can work with it. The coroner believed he had been there for at least four years. There are 15 unidentified bodies listed in the Devon and Cornwall Constabulary area dating from 1968-2020, 13 of the bodies found at sea or on a beach).

https://buymeacoffee.com/m25roundabo...ery-revelation

[j.sabourn]

Am surprised identifications could not be provided by police forensics from seamans book his NHI number alone would provide that.However if you are a police officer you would be aware of that . With todays forensics hope you find more ,best of luck, searchers can go much further back today ,even to remains found BC. JS

[Des Taff Jenkins]

Hi Simon.
One thing that stood out for me was the fact that he had his seaman's discharge book on him, this would mean that he hadn't come of any disaster unless as a passenger, as once you sign on a ship and are at sea your book was in the Captains safe until payoff.
Des

[j.sabourn]

As regards forensics they would if had the body be able to ascertain what part of the world he came from, whether occidental, or oriental Unfortuanetley not accidental, African or Anglo Saxon. Arab or Jew more than likely for obvious reasons. JS

[happy daze john in oz]

Theer must have been sone DnA available from him.
He could well have been on the ship wreck and made his way ashore to the cliff top.
Some very odd events happen with shipwrecks.

[Simon Owens]

Thank you very much for all for your replies and information. I am not a police officer no, but I recently had a meeting with a former police officer who was at the scene of the original discovery in 1982 and subsequently spent nearly a year trying to identify the gentleman. There was no DNA taken, didn't happen back then. The gentleman had been there a while and all remained was his skeleton, so no fingerprints either. His discharge book had been destroyed with time and no details could be gleaned from it. There was a date of issue on the passport, which was extensively investigated at the time, pre computer records and all investigations were done to and fro with the use of the Royal Mail postal system. As we all know, forensics and technology have advanced hugely. If the documents have been kept, or copies of them, or if we can find the exact date of issue of the passport, (because it was embossed and legible at the time)...we do have quite a good chance of finding the gentleman's name. I have sent several messages to Devon and Cornwall police over the past months. No replies yet. But I am not giving up. I am taking it gently, listening to my intuition more than or as well as my head. Thank you very much for all the information. It is very useful. I shall keep you All updated. (ps. If we can get both documents, even copies, then as you say, forensics may well be able see through the damage done to them.

[Des Taff Jenkins]

Hi Simon
During the war a 12 year old schoolgirl was raped and shot in a woods near us, they recovered the gun but that was it. Around thirty years later a Swansea policeman who had kept the girls clothing in a police evidence room just in case. , around thirty years later sent it for new DNA testing and they found some DNA, it matched a man again never caught, who had murdered a little girl in Kent. I don\t know if it is still on the net, but it was called the "Penllegear Murder."Worth a look.
Des

[Simon Owens]

This is great information Des, about the discharge book. Many thanks.