Isle Of Man Ferries

My great grandfather George Kirkbride apparently worked as a fireman on
the Empress Queen which was an Isle Of Man ferry (Liverpool-Douglas) as
I understand things. Is there any way of confirming this? Are there

ecunningham...

cunningham responded:

any records of ships crews?

He was listed as "Fireman" on his marriage certificate (1897) but was
not on the 1901 census (therefore presumably at sea?) - at least not
where his wife was living. I was told that later on he worked for the
White Star Line but no idea what ship(s). I am also led to believe
that he was born in N Ireland (c 1868-1870) but cannot confirm this.

Ken Gibb...

ARE NOT the "ships"
1. on the high Seas.
2. In foreign ports at the end of Census records ???

Ken

ecunningham...

John: Was he still alive in 1920? There is a George Kirkbride in the
Ellis Island manifests on the West Grama from Naples. He signed on as
a fireman in New York in September 1920 and is 49. Always good to
check manifests. Laws changed in early 20th century and crew had to be
listed. Did he have a tattoo on his right arm?

ecunningham...

John asked:

ecunningham@att.net

JohnB...

That's fascinating! Where do you get hold of such lists?

ecunningham...

are four listed from 1900-1924. December 1920 is West Grama and there
is another one in 1919 on the Mauritania. All have passport or
certificate numbers which could assist in defining if one is yours.
The 1919 one says he was born in Liverpool and is living at the
Sailor's Mission in Southampton. Enjoy.
ecunningham@att.net

JohnB...

Many thanks for your leads. I look forward to having the time to
follow them up!

George died before I was born but I don't know exactly when. In fact I
know precious little about him. If he had a tattoo, no one mentioned
it :-)

I just searched the web for West Grama and find that it was a single-screw freighter
which also served with the US Navy. It ended its days as a breakwater
for a Normandy beachhead after being sunk in 1944. Why my
g-grandfather would serve on a US-registered ship I don't know. Did
these freighters pick up crew anywhere? Can someone point me at some
info on the life of a merchant navy fireman in the early 20th century?

Ken Gibb...

Ken & Jill Gibb, gibb@westnet.com.au
Mordialloc,
Vic. Australia.