Why did you go to Sea?

[albertliss1935]

I think the sea must be in my blood my father and grandfather where both mariners and I have recently researched my faimily tree going back to 1860 and foud my great grandfather was from prussia he arrived in Liverpool on a sailing ship and married one of the local judies I am now retired and living in Southport I came to live here to be near the sea and take a walk down the beach most days and can just about see the ships going in and out of Liverpool.
Just for a laugh I tell people that all my family where sea fearers and we are are a very unlucky faimily as my grandfather got ship wrecked and was the picked up by the Titanic

[Ivan Cloherty]

I think the sea must be in my blood ------- picked up by the Titanic

Think the sea was in my blood, my great grandfather was a sailing ship skipper, my father was at sea, but my introduction to ships was in WWII, we hadn't seen dad for two years and mother wangled a pass for us to board dad's ship in the river Humber, we were living in the Yorkshire Dales after being bombed out of home three times in various parts of the country so always on the move. The train journey to Hull was also an adventure

The moment I stepped onto the deck of that ship I was smitten and nothing but ships occupied my mind from that day forward, I still love them even if they don't have the individuality of the 50's and 60's ships, you could ascertain what company a ship belonged to even if she was hull down on the horizon by the shape and rake of her funnel. the rake of her masts and shape of the cross trees, and I'm talking cargo ships here, not ocean liners as they were always easily identifiable. Companies, even the trampers had a pride in their ships and wanted them to be recognised, nowadays I don't think recognition is important they all look the same -boxes!

My father tried to advise me not to make the sea my career, I'm glad he didn't succeed as they are times I remember with fondess and they certainly made you grow up and be tolerant and how to improvise and use what was to hand. Nowadays they dash off to B & Q because a screw is the wrong shape.

Regards

Ivan

[Graham Payne]

Wouldn't go to school at 13 and 1/2 years of age so they sent me to a Juviniel Court, I was given a "Fit Person Order" which meant 3 weeks in a remand centre then to the "Hollies" a childrens home in Sidcup. The only way out of there was to the " TS Indefatigable" a sea training school in North Wales, bad choice, 18 months of pure Bull****, the teachers as such would be more suited to working in "Dartmoor Prison". I left in March '63 joined my first ship Oronsay, the old AB,s taught me more on my first trip than the previous 18 months (a real lesson in living and living with others), hence today I'm a respectful adult. I had the best time of my life as a single man at sea, but then got married to a lovely girl and my life has gone up and up, STILL GOING UP. Happy Days to you all.

[Louis the Amigo]

Hi shipmates, looking at all the post on this subject, I dont think you ever leave the sea its part of you many like myself have family history going back many years, its was a way of life for many familys like the army

[ginge]

the reason i went to sea was because tommy steel was my pop idol and after watching the tommy steel story in my local cinema my mind was made up.

[john sutton]

I wanted to go to sea from a young age and during ww2 I was in dr barnados and at age 11 went to watts naval school which was part of barnados.
at fifteen the school captain informed me that I was due to go to hms ganges to start my naval career but I would have to sign on for 12 years.
Even at 15 I wasnt into signing contracts(never signed one on the pool)so I was shipped of to the capetown castle and thats how it all started
john sutton

[Captain Kong]

the reason i went to sea was because tommy steel was my pop idol and after watching the tommy steel story in my local cinema my mind was made up. Ginge,
+
Hi Ginge I saw that film when I was leave in 1954, I was a hairy sailor by then and me and my mate Fred had had a few bevies and went to the cinema to wait for opening time again.
We were laughing out loud at the story line, everyone staring at us, wondering why.
He was working in the galley on a Liner and then it showed outside a T2 Tanker and back into the liners galley again.
With a few bevies down it seemed funny. no one else would have noticed.
Cheers
Brian.

[Stan Carter]

I suppose it was due to all my friends coming home with new clothes, jeans, bomber jackets and such. at sixteen I decided to apply to go to the Vindi. My father a ww1 vet, had no problem with me going, but tried to get me to join the royal and learn a ttrade. not what a sixteen year old wants to hear. anyway away I went and enjoyed five years until stomach problems forced me ashore... Would not have traded that experience for anything, far more rewarding than doing the two years national service, wwhich i managed to wangle out of due to my condition.

[Kenneth Kenny]

My Dad,went to sea all his life from the age of forteen,he passed away in 1954 my mam,said why don't you join the Merchant Navy,I was working in the Tannery,three brothers in the Army,I said to me mam good idea,went down to the pool,Shipping Fed.in Liverpool.Took me dad's Discharge Book got a form to fill in took months,went the T.S.Vindicatrix.Best years of my Life Five and Half,then got married,still happy.Brother Alex done two years in the Army,went he came out said to me I think I will join the merchant navy,done over Forty One Years deep sea,went to see him today,said the best year's of his life alway's going on Cruiser's love's ships.Ken.

[leratty]

Like most I was always wanting to go to sea for 'the sense of purported adventure' (: Guess as Father was at sea during the war had an influence or was it just in your genes as still retain a connection to the sea via sailing? + the type of books I read & a burning desire to see all the different places-people of the world, travel etc. On saying that though in my last year at school I realised I wanted to also go to university & was lucky to be accepted into London with a scholarship. They were kind enough to give me a time line to go to sea so I went to sea as an apprentice initially, unfortunately I found it was due to line worse than boarding school & some of the rituals or crap you had to put up with were in a word archaic even Victorian. Still wished to see the world & spend some time at sea so went on deck tramping for four years. I never regretted it, met some great people, made some still in place firm friends all over the world. Those times were just terrific for a young blade finding his way in life even with a escape door awaiting to better ones self educationally. Sadly in the early-mid 60's only a blind Freddy would not have seen the British MN was a dying elephant what with the methodology of shipping changing at a rapid rapid rate which most UK Co's would not or could not see + the behaviour of dockers/wharfe's around the world which had a large say in the bringing in of containerisation which was for the MN the end of the old days & sadly for the type of ships we all loved.
Going to sea in the end was to my benefit in more ways than one as had been accepted for law at university & being at sea had time to realise law was not for me, so instead did mining & civil engineering. The former of course took off in mid'-late 60's & still is huge around the world making for a wonderful career opportunities with all the travel anyone could want & amazing salary-conditions in the main allowing you to live all around the world where you chose too. After almost thirty years went into business on my own, again never regretted it as being at sea taught me how to get on with people & gave me the discipline-desire to do well at whatever I took on + retain a sense of adventure as well as of humour for life's travails of which there are many as we all learnt.
Going to sea in that period even if it was the end of an era was a wonderful experience I would never have wanted to miss & shall always be appreciative of the great mentors, along with times I had.
Richard