‘That
ship will be a coffin for somebody,’ W Sharpe, able seaman, was told when seeking
employment on SS Waratah in April 1909. Nothing better offering, he took his
chances, shipping on her for a voyage to Australia Ushant
he noticed the vessel would roll to leeward, stop, continue the roll and
recover. That was unusual in any ship.
The prediction came true
only two months later: Waratah would indeed became a coffin for over 200 souls
in July 1909.
Their memorials are
scattered worldwide, showing how their deaths impacted on numerous and diverse
families. If you can add a photograph of a relevant memorial inscription – or are
a descendant of one of those who travelled on the Waratah - you are welcome to
contact me via the blog comment form. Some inscriptions are shown below:
Browne
Memorial Inscription at Buckland Filleigh,
'To the Glory of God and in
loving memory of Col Percival Browne CB of
Fifehead Magdalen, Dorset , born July 27 1862.
Third son of William James Browne of Buckland Filleigh Esq. Lost in the S.S.
Waratah July 26 1909.'
[Photos by Gail Dixon-Smith]
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Brass plaque at Buckland Filleigh Click on pic to zoom
Ebsworth
Memorial Inscription at Bridgnorth,
‘Also of John, eldest son
of the above, who was lost on the Waratah July 1909 aged 52 years: Until the Day
Break and the Shadows Flee Away’
[Photo courtesy of Denise Roberts.]
http://waratahrevisited.blogspot.com/2014/04/waratah-colonel-percival-john-browne.html
Memorial
Plaque,
This
tablet is dedicated as a tribute of affection and sorrow by his college
comrades to the memory of Howard Cecil Fulford a resident student of this
college from 1900 to 1905. He won high distinctions throughout his university
course graduated with first class honours in medicine and was appointed
resident physician of the
"Be
ye therefore ready for in such an hour as ye think not the Son of Man
cometh."
Centenary Memorial Plaque, Queenscliffe Maritime Museum, Victoria, Australia
P&O was asked to make the above donation because the direct result of the loss of Waratah and the press publicity with searches and Court Inquiry, was that the Blue Anchor Line lost its reputation
[Photo courtesy of
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The following announcement refers
to Able Seaman T Newman of the Waratah: from The Times 18 December 1909: NEWMAN
Lost in the SS Waratah, Thomas, eldest son of the late Richard & Mary
Newman, formerly of Devon, England, late of the Civil Service, Tasmania,
grandson of the late John Feneran of Kinsale, Ireland, and nephew of the late
Revd. T H Newman, M.A. Cantab.
+++
Harris Archibald Gibbs
was an apprentice on the SS Waratah which was lost with all hands off the
east coast of South Africa on 27th/28th July 1909. He was born in Bognor late
1890/early 1891 and his parents were Harris Hornsby Gibbs (born in
Littlehampton) and his wife Ella (née Plucknett).
+++
Comment from a blog reader finally sums it all up:
The truly sad thing in all of this is lack of closure for families/descendants
of victims and for those who wished to make ship travel safer (learning from
mistakes). The truly marvellous thing is we have a mystery that is as solid
and unbreakable today as it was 100 years ago.
UPDATE Sept 2013:
VISIT A NEW BLOG AT www.waratahrevisited.blogspot.com
