Enquiry about c1840 merchant navy uniforms

[Fiona Karamanlidis]

chamberlain men james back right 1840s.jpg

Hi

I don't know anything about the merchant navy sorry!

I'm trying to find out some information about my Chamberlain ancestors.

Does anyone know what these uniforms represent?

The senior man in the photo is my 4th GG William James Chamberlain from Kent (b 1789).

The man at the rear right is my 3rd GG James Chamberlain who travelled to South Australia on the Cressy in 1847 as a sailor to pay his way.

Any info would be greatly appreciated.

[Keith at Tregenna]

Confirm:

William Chamberlain
United Kingdom, Merchant Navy Seamen Records

Name
William Chamberlain
Event Type
Military Service
Event Year Range
1845-1854
Event Place
United Kingdom
Birthplace
Kent
Birth Year
1789

Citing this Record
"United Kingdom, Merchant Navy Seamen Records, 1835-1941," database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:KC34-D79 : 10 December 2017), William Chamberlain, ; From "Merchant Navy Seamen1835-1941," database and images, findmypast (Trace your Family Tree Online | Genealogy & Ancestry from Findmypast | findmypast.com : n.d.); citing BT 112-116, 119-120, series BT113, The National Archives of the UK, Kew, Surrey.

[j.sabourn]

A bit belated but the photo displayed looks like a photo of a drunken sailors worse nightmare , and could represent what a Press gang of the day would look like. Regards JS

[Keith Adams]

I am surprised the personal information was found in Merchant Navy records. Anyway, the officer has a sword ! They all look and dress Royal Navy style. Also thought the word “Navy” was only added to Merchant in recognition of their WW1 exploits and service ?
Guess i had better get my study specs on and do some serious research !

[happy daze john in oz]

I do believe this is an early version of the
'The Village people'

[Ivan Cloherty]

Had it not been for the info in #2, my first thoughts would have been it looks like American rig