New Member ex Palm Line and Manchester Liners
Thank you for welcoming me to the site. I have often thought were where all those old mates now who gave me their patience and time when I was junior. When I hit on the site I immediately saw in the window Ibadan Palm / Chris Roberts. I thought, well, after all this time a name I remeber very well. Many thanks to the site administators it looks well set up. I will now go about seeing if I can locate ships , names and dates
Palm Line Adventurers 1961-1967
Hi Russ,
I have just joined the site and I am having a little dificulty navigating around , but there again I was never a navigator. Your name I feel as though I know but a picture or an occasion would help. I joined Palm Line in 1961 and my first voyage was on the Bamenda Palm from Liverpool to Port Harcourt . The Chief Enginner was George Brand , Second Engineer Derrick Malone, Dick Burns ( the mighty Irish man) I stayed with the Bamenda for two years and saw many faces who became people whom I respect to this day, Russel Davidson, Vic Nelson. Jack Barclay ( elec) and many other which I will recall and write down
I then joined the Ilesha Palm and stayed with here for a few years. I did the odd voyage in the Matadi palm to the coast. I did a couple of years on the releif squad once I sorted out how to wangle that work from Mr Hayes in Liver Buildings and my last voyage was on the Kano Palm when she left Tilbury on way to Colombo via Poland. The voyage was interupted by the war in the middle east in which a number of ships got caught up in the canal.
I would never change those years in Palm Line and the guys were all brilliant. One face not to be forgotten was the shoreside electrician Alec Robb a wonderful character. Quite recently I met a Mr Bowers whose uncle was Brian Bowers ( Ilesha ). Brian has recently gone over the bar.
And we have not yet even started on the G.... Men if you ken what I mean in these days when a spade is not a spade. Lots of fun down the coast and I still know where the daughter of the Port Harcout Palm Line Manager lives
Palm Line Adventurers 61-67
Ref post #25
Hi Neil,
Welcome to the best site on the web!! It won't take you long to find your way around it.
Your note brings back some great memories, I remember George Brand, special memories of Russell Davidson, I sailed with him on the Ibadan. Dry docked in South Shields at Middle Dock for 4 weeks. As he had the same Christian name as me he was Russ and I was Russ Russ! Joan my wife, joined me at the start of one trip (she stayed on Newcastle to Tilbury), Russ banged on the bulkhead and shouted “your turn for the f******n beers” then remembered that Joan was there, I will never forget the look on Russ’s face when he came into my cabin to apologise to Joan. I now live not far from Russ’s local, and hoped I might bump into him, sadly he crossed the bar about 3 years ago. While you are on the website, have a look on the gallery find the photos I’ve posted "under onboard, people and places", you might see someone you know. Your name seems to ring a bell, but right now I can’t place you. As you say Neil, a photo works wonders. A few names I recall that may prompt a few memories, Norman Moat (Sen Elec), my best mate, friends for over 45 years. He stayed with Palm Line for 27 years, (crossed the bar 13th November 2007. Chris Roberts, Bob Beadle, Bob Metcalfe (crossed the bar last year), Bill Fisher, Capt Frankie Imaz, to name but a few. I also remember Brian Bowers, we brought the ex BP Tanker the Makeni Palm round from Immingham to Liverpool in January1965. I think it was the longest 4 days of my sea going career, what a "B" of a ship that was. Still happy days, I wouldn't change it one little bit.
Hope you enjoy the site.
Regards
Russ Kennedy ;)