SS Waratah
The Captain's Table
Dinner - 7 July 1909
The weather report issued for South Australia had been overcast skies with
rain, squally winds between NW and SW, but strong along the coast and rough
seas.
That Wednesday, in a ghostly drizzle as the tug guided the SS Waratah
from the wharf, no-one on board would have had the slightest notion of their
impending doom that awaited them further into their voyage. But for now, this night, under the glow of low lighting whilst
passengers enjoyed the orchestra and elegant flow of ballroom dancing, would be
a time for gaiety, private conversations in hushed tones and romantic
interludes.
The SS Waratah had a
lavishly decorated and handsomely appointed dining room and being invited to the
Captain’s Table involved a high degree of formality. Sure-footed stewards passed between the
tables, serving deliciously-prepared meals with the finest wines, brandies and
ports which were welcomed by the guests.
As was the
tradition and standard practice for the senior officers on the ship, each would
host a table of their own in the ship’s main dining room. Tonight, Chief Officer Owen and Ship’s Surgeon, Dr Howard Fulford, would entertain
selected guests, whilst Chief Engineer George William Hodder would join the
distinguished guests at the Captain’s Table.
Comfortably seated
at the table this evening with Captain Ilbery were,
Mrs
Agnes Grant (Gosse) Hay and her daughter Helen (Dolly) Gosse Hay
Lieutenant
Colonel Percival John Browne and his niece Miss K Lees
Solicitor
John Ebsworth
Mr
Claude Sawyer
George Richardson,
Superintendent of the Geelong Harbour Trust and Miss Lascelles whose father was
a Geelong Harbour Trust Commissioner
Niel
Walter Black
For these
passengers to have been included in this exclusive coterie was an honour and
conversation would centre on the most recent passengers boarding that day and
their homes left behind to travel to England for both business and
pleasure. All very normal and
entertaining for the occasion, but there was the underlying unease amongst
other passengers of the Waratah’s design
with her high promenade deck, instability due to the design and slow righting
movements of the ship.
20 days to
disaster and no-one was any the wiser…
 |
| Captain J E Ilbery |
 |
| Mrs Agnes Grant (Gosse) Hay |
 |
| Helen (Dolly) Gosse Hay |
 |
| John Ebsworth, Solicitor |
 |
| Claude Sawyer |
 |
| Chief Engineer George William Hodder |
Guest post by Suzanne-Jo Leff
Patterson
July 2013
Acknowledgements to Peter Ilbery and Family
Hay Family
Ebsworth
Family
Jean
Gaisford for the photograph of Chief Engineer Hodder and given by kind permission of Roberta Baker nee
Barnes, daughter of Roberta Hodder and granddaughter of George William Hodder; Jean Gaisford for the
photograph of Helen Gosse Hay
3 comments:
Hi,
Do you have a reference for the Claude Sawyer photo on this page? I see this photo of Claude everywhere where the Waratah is written about but nobody can tell me where this photo came from. Perhaps it isn't him at all?
Cheers,
David Vernon
You are wrong. It is definitely Sawyer. I have the full article. Will check the date etc on Trove where it appeared in newspaper at the time.
I note you have asked this question on several forums/blogs online.
Is the above photo of the dinner placement, is that the same exact kind of china, silverware, cups, and glasses that would have been utilized on the Waratah?
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