Looking for info on a Royal Mail captain...

[jananthony]

Greetings everyone,

As a researcher trying to attain more information about an old Royal Mail Lines captain, I figured it wouldn't hurt to ask here, just in case anyone might know of good places or sources to look. The captain in question was JW Carr, who served in both WWI and WWII as a member of the Royal Navy, was a Royal Mail Lines captain and ferried repatriating prisoners of war out of Odessa in 1945 aboard the Highland Princess. I believe his full name might have been John Waite Carr.

Any suggestions would be most appreciated. Many thanks.

[Doc Vernon]

Hello
Do you have a Birth Year for him and Place of Birth please!
This will help to try and help you
Cheers

Ship Highland Princess 161859 Off Number 1945 Crew List and Logs here when Archive Reopens.

https://discovery.nationalarchives.g...ls/r/C11079645

Reference:	BT 381/3473
Description:	161829; 161833; 161838; 161841; 161859; 161861; 161863; 161866; 161877; 161884
Date:	1945 Jan 01 - 1945 Dec 31
Held by:	The National Archives, Kew
Legal status:	Public Record(s)
Closure status:	Open Document, Open Description

[Doc Vernon]

This is the Movement Card for the Highland Princess in 1945 I see Odessa as such, Istanbul etc Must have been the Ferry between Istanbul, Turkey ,Ukraine ,Odessa ? Just of interest ?

Odessa etc.jpg

Cheers

Movements 1945 H Princess.jpg

[jananthony]

Hi Doc, thank you for the reply. He was born in Whitby Yorkshire in 1888 and died in 1971 in Kingston on Thames.

The Highland Princess also stopped in Port Said on that trip from Odessa.

[Doc Vernon]

Looks like John Waite Carr
Cheers

Carr J W.jpg

Carr J W 2.jpg

Carr J W 3.jpg

Carr J W 4.jpg

Ship Orduna 135539 Changed later to Ormeda

Ship 124094 Esperanza De Larringa

Ship 143220 War Pelican Then Severn ( 4 )

Ship 144694 Parthia Then Hesperides

Ship 143667 Oropesa


Of interest to you perhaps?

Royal Mail Line / Royal Mail Steam Packet Company

NB I find no record at all for any Service in the Royal Navy ? This is strange as if he was in the Service there would be some record of him in my Findings???
Will keep looking.

Any other inf on his RN Service ???? Rank ?? Years he was in from to ??
Thanks

[jananthony]

Doc, this is fantastic, thank you so much for it. I'm sending you a private message, if that's ok...

[Doc Vernon]

Yes no problem will await P Message
Cheers

[Doc Vernon]

I may look into that Book you mentioned in PM it is available at the National Library Of Australia
I will see if i can get it ??
Cheers

https://trove.nla.gov.au/work/186877...ion=NBD4497330

[Doc Vernon]

Besides the info i have sent to you in PM his Service Number was 1797514 Royal Atillery.
He was Transferred to Hamps Regt in May of 1945 Seems ?
Cheers

Croft E C.JPG

[Michael Hargreave Mawson]

John Waite Carr was born in Whitby, Yorkshire, on 12th November, 1888, the son of a grocer. He joined the Merchant Navy as an apprentice on 7th July, 1905, and was allocated the Dis A No 571131. He earned his Certificate of Competency as Second Mate (No. 041467) on 30th July, 1909; that of First Mate, 25th November, 1910; Master, 15th March, 1913; and Extra Master, 28th June, 1913. At the end of WWI his application for the BWM and MMWM were made via the Royal Mail Line. In 1921-23 he was Second Officer of their SS Orduna. On 8th October, 1940, he was Master of their SS Natia when she was sunk by the raider Thor. Carr was taken prisoner. He reached Europe safely, and was interned at Marlag und Milag Nord until repatriation as part of a prisoner exchange in September, 1943. He was subsequently appointed Master of the Royal Mail Lines SS Highland Princess, and was sailing the North Atlantic as early as February, 1944. He took the Highland Princess to Australia and New Zealand in June, 1944, returning home via Aden and Suez. The following year he sailed to Malta, and thence to Odessa, via Chennakale and Istanbul, repatriating Russian troops. In January, 1946, as Master of the Almanzora he was detailed to take Dutch repatriates to Amsterdam, where the ship was met by Princess Juliana. By 1953 he had retired, and took a pleasure trip from London to Lisbon, on the Highland Princess. He died in Surrey on 26th January, 1971.