Merchant seaman history

[Wendy Wright]

Can anyone tell me who I can approach or were I can find information on my great grandfather, I have the ships he was a Stoker on and a couple of her seamans numbers ?
Thanks, Wendy

[Keith at Tregenna]

Hi Wendy, we can do our best here. Would need as much information as you can give, especially full name, date of birth, place of birth, death if occurred and any official MN number etc. The more info the better. Would you have his discharge book? It would have been a kind of maritime small passport and would hold a lot of details, it would help. Certain many on board here will help, it is also helpful for you to reply and liaise with those searching for best results and keep the post active by reply / update etc. Will await your response and try to help. Regards and welcome. Keith.

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[Doc Vernon]

Hello Wendy
As stated above Post need more info and what sort of Info are you actually looking for!
Cheers

Welcome to the site!

[Des Taff Jenkins]

Hi Wendy.
Welcome to the site, plenty of posts to read;from people who were helped by the researchers on site. Post the names of the ships you Granddad was on, there may be someone here who sailed with him.
Cheers Des

[Wendy Wright]

Hi all and thank you all for the speedy response.
Not sure if I said granddad or great grandad ? Well it is my great grandad so sadly no one will be alive.
I am trying to trace family history and therefore have little information on my grandad except he was born approximately 1866, unfortunately unsure where ?
His name is Thomas Murphy, 72 Dalrymple street, Liverpool.
We have found him on the Lucania age 28 years on 29.01.1896, his address then was Claudia street. We couldn't find his number until he was recorded on the Camania 03.07.1897 he had moved to58 Gordon street and his number was recorded as 2736P age29 years, he went between these two ships he I believe was on the New York run regularly.
There was also mention of him being on the Saxonia and Ivernia, there was another number mentioned 1440Q.
It states he was a Stoker / Marine Fireman.
I only wish I had his passport, but sadly I don't this is about all the information I have. (Other than the dates he sailed etc)
Sadly as I say I am unsure when he died and I am unable to confirm his date of death, all the info I have suggests it may be between 1911 and 1920.
Again, thank you all for the response to date and I am hoping you can assist,
Thanks
Wendy

[Keith at Tregenna]

No promises on results but promise to try. Certainly we will point you in the right direction. Please keep looking and joining in. Things can take an age or happen fast. Fingers crossed for you. K.

- - - Updated - - -

Can anyone tell me who I can approach or were I can find information on my great grandfather, I have the ships he was a Stoker on and a couple of her seamans numbers ?
Thanks, Wendy

RE: Not sure if I said granddad or great grandad ? Well it is my great grandad

k.

[Doc Vernon]

Hello Wendy
Another hard one I feel but with help from the best here I am sure at some stage you will get there!
Hugh I am sure will come up with something as he is the Master at this!
So just hang in there!
In the meantime I am not very sure on this Again Hugh will confirm or blow me up LOL)
The Lucania Official Number is 102105 and here is a Link to the NA that hold Crew Agreements for that Ship at the time you mention,so may be a help???

Official No: 102105 | The National Archives

Before you start (Notes from the Archives Wendy)

Please note that the record copying process takes approximately 24 working days from start to finish. This is due to the high volume of requests that we receive each day.

There are two separate fees as part of the service:
1. the cost of a page check (£8.24)
2. the cost of making copies of a record, if it is possible to do so


Requesting a page check

Send us detailed information about what you would like copied, and we will carry out a page check to determine whether it is possible to make a copy. A page check involves a member of staff collecting the relevant record from our repositories, looking for the information you’ve specified and assessing the record’s suitability for copying. The page check costs £8.24 and is non-refundable. This covers the cost of the service and is agreed by the Treasury.

Cannot find a name Camania is it possibly Carmania?? ON 95406 Crew lists of this Ship held at NA

Official Nos: 95331, 95334, 95336, 95339, 95340, 95353, 95357, 95359, 95373, 95378,... | The National Archives

[Doc Vernon]

This may be his Medal Record Wendy but will have pay per View ! From "Find My Past"

Murphy First name Thomas Born 1866 Died — Event — Record set British Merchant Navy, First World War Medal Cards 1914-1925

[gray_marian]

#5, Hi Wendy the Thomas Murphy below is listed as an a Trimmer and an AB rather than Stoker/Fireman. Members here would have to confirm whether these positions are feasible.

From Ancestry:

Name: Thomas Murphy
Age: 27
Birth Year: abt 1866
Birth Place: Liverpool
Event Date: 1893
Port of Registry: Liverpool, Lancashire, England
Ship Name: Volta
Official Number: 98668
Reference Number: 387CRE/845 Listed as Trimmer

Name: Thomas Murphy
Record Type: Crew
Age: 29
Birth Year: abt 1866
Birth Place: Liverpool, England
Vessel Name: Marlborough
Vessel Type: Ship
Voyage Departure Date: 19 Aug 1895
Voyage Departure Port: Runcorn, England
Voyage Arrival Date: 15 Apr 1896
Voyage Arrival Port: Liverpool, England
Vessel Registration Number: W863026
Vessel Registration Place: Windsor, Nova Scotia
Year Vessel Constructed: 1863
Date Joined Present Ship: 24 Aug 1895
Place Joined Present Ship: Runcorn, England
Crew Number: 6
Literacy: Signed with an 'X'
Completed What Signed On To Do?: No
Discharge Date: 19 Oct 1895
Discharge Place: Hantsport, Hant's, Nova Scotia, Canada
Discharge: Discharged with mutual consent
Company From Last Ship: 0
Capacity (Rank): Able-bodied Seaman
Payment Type (Time): By the month
Wage: 215
Wage Currency: Sterling
Cash Advance: 215
Cash Advance Currency: Sterling

Name: Thomas Murphy
Age: 34
Birth Year: abt 1868
Birth Place: Liverpool
Event Date: 17 Dec 1902
Port of Registry: Liverpool, Lancashire, England
Ship Name: Saxonia
Official Number: 110648
Reference Number: 387CRE/754 "No of Certificate if any/No of Reserve Commision/or RV2 if any 1440Q/94"


Name: Thomas Murphy
Age: 32
Birth Year: abt 1870
Birth Place: Liverpool
Event Date: 1902
Port of Registry: Liverpool, Lancashire, England
Ship Name: Ivernia
Official Number: 110643
Reference Number: 387CRE/451 Again, "No of Certificate if any/No of Reserve Commision/or RV2 if any 2736P/94

Name: Thomas Murphy
Age: 32
Birth Year: abt 1870
Birth Place: Liverpool
Event Date: 1902
Port of Registry: Liverpool, Lancashire, England
Ship Name: Majestic
Official Number: 97763
Reference Number: 387CRE/557

Numerous trips on the above ships

Name: Thomas Murphy
Age: 26
Birth Year: 1866
Birth Place: Bhead
Event Date: 1892
Port of Registry: Liverpool, Lancashire, England
Ship Name: Liguria
Official Number: 69367
Reference Number: 387CRE/520

Name: Thomas Murphy
Age: 29
Birth Year: abt 1868
Birth Place: Bhead
Event Date: 1897
Port of Registry: Liverpool, Lancashire, England
Ship Name: St Tudno
Official Number: 97861
Reference Number: 387CRE/738

Name: Thomas Murphy
Arrival Date: 21 May 1886
Age: 20
Gender: Male
Port of Departure: Liverpool, England
Ship route: Liverpool-Queenstown-NY
Port of Arrival: New York, United States
Ship Name: City of Berlin
Ship built: 1875
Shipping line: Inman Line
Ship tonnage: 5,491 tons; 488' x 44'
Ship description: 3 masts, 1 funnel

Wendy there are way too many images of ships to list for T.Murphy here as they don't state position on board but suffice to say I have never came across so many for the one man before

Was there a wife/partner's name at any point? If you can supply his parents/sibling/children's names then I can check for family trees which usually provide photographs/certificates or host of other info. There are 12 T.Murphy deaths listed in your time frame, two in Liverpool itself which I'll send by private message if you wish.
Liverpool

1911 Census
Name: Thomas Murphy
Age in 1911: 44
Estimated birth year: abt 1867
Relation to Head: Boarder
Gender: Male
Birth Place: Liverpool
Street address: 33 Wilbraham St
Marital Status: Single
Occupation: Marine Fireman
Registration District Number: 453
Sub-registration district: Scotland
ED, institution, or vessel: 16
Piece: 22132
Household Members:
Name Age
Margaret O Connell 57
Mary Jane Murphy 72
Thomas Murphy 44
Mary Cook 50

[Doc Vernon]

A trimmer was a sort of Stoker Marian. (a trimmer was, in effect, a sort of stoker in the Merchant Navy).
the job of the trimmers being to bring coal from the bunkers to the stoke holds, an activity which would obviously have had some effect on the trim of the ship
And an AB is just an Able Seaman
Cheers