Merchant Marines - Family History & Genealogy Message Board

Re: Merchant Marines--Prior to WW2

moonpie71 — 2013-06-05 23:30:36Z

This board doesn't get a whole lot of traffic, but feel free to post your questions - you never know where the answers are hiding!

Merchant Marines--Prior to WW2

shebbear — 2013-06-02 17:54:20Z

Would this board be an appropriate place to ask questions about men who were employed as able-bodied seamen, mates, quartermasters, etc. on ships from the U.S. and other countries from the 1890s to the 1930s? We are new to this particular topic (but not new to genealogical research). We have lots of questions, but want to make sure that this is the appropriate place to ask them. If not, any other suggested boards would be much appreciated. Thanks.

Re: Merchant Mariner Jack HOFFMAN

LFAYET — 2013-05-30 20:36:52Z

Thank you for your reply;
I have actually contacted W.V. with my quiry.They will NOT give out any information if you can not prove that you are direct family ubnfortunatley.

Re: Merchant Mariner Jack HOFFMAN

ycaso77 — 2013-05-30 19:32:06Z

For individuals who served in the U.S. Merchant Marine, the United States Coast Guard was and is responsible for issuing merchant mariner documentation ("seaman's papers" or "Z cards") and officers' licenses. Merchant Marine personnel records (other than those killed during World War II, see below) are available through the following address:

U.S. Coast Guard National Maritime Center
Mariner Information (NMC-4)
ATTN: Correspondence Section
100 Forbes Drive
Martinsburg, WV 25404
Telephone: (304) 433-3400

The merchant mariner veteran or survivor should submit as much identifying information as possible including name, date of birth, copy of death certificate if deceased, Social Security number, address, and Z or service number.

Re: 1904 "Continuous Certificate of Discharge" -- info please!

mloncaric13 — 2013-05-27 19:05:42Z

Hi Nancy --

You have given me a wealth of information; I am grateful. It does sound pretty definite that the crew lists (or, rather, the lists Karl Emil would have been on) for those ships are not in existence. The links for the usual exports of the places he voyaged to gives me a picture of what his ship might have carried -- thanks for that.

While I may never find details specific to him, the information you have passed along does create a general picture of what he probably did on board, what his ship probably carried, a good sense of his experience at that time.

A few years ago, I did find a crew list record for a Karl Emil Hjelte (the one you probably saw), leaving from Hull, I believe, to NY. This could well be him, BUT the date is wrong (1901 -- a gap of 2+ years where he is unaccounted for, so to speak, in New York), this K E Hjelte is from Sodermanlands and "my" Karl is from Ostergotland, and this K E Hjelte is listed with his "Bror Eric" and "my" Karl did not have a brother Eric. Well, it's something I had put aside, but will now pursue a bit more closely, now that I have the understanding that he was in the UK Merchant Marines (I did not know that prior).

I really value all the work and effort you have put in to help me, Nancy: thank you! If I run into any more questions, I may call on you!

Oh, because you've sort of entered his life, even if only academically, I thought I would attach a photo of Karl Emil, one that he apparently had taken in Calcutta (which had always confused us -- before we knew about his Merchant Marine experience -- we thought it was some kind of "costume portrait" he had done in Stockholm, you know, those photos that have the sitter in a "Paris" or "Old West" or whatever setting. We couldn't understand how it could REALLY be from Calcutta...and now we know it was indeed!)

Thank you again, Nancy.

Re: 1904 "Continuous Certificate of Discharge" -- info please!

moonpie71 — 2013-05-27 14:47:22Z

Hi Meredith,

I looked up the ships at "UK Records: Crew lists at Record Offices" (http://www.crewlist.org.uk/data/sourcesRO.php) and here are the search results:

Crew Lists in British Institutions:
SS Glenfruin 119134: None
SS Verbena 102726: None
SS Corby 115220: 1914-1924 only

Maritime History Archive:
SS Glenfruin 119134: None
SS Verbena 102726: None
SS Corby 115220: 1908-1913 only

Misc, gathered around the web:

This is a book from 1906 that discusses shipping from Cardiff:
http://goo.gl/Y1XEH

This is a book from 1904 that discusses general exports from Rio:
http://goo.gl/dgD4k

Calcutta's main exports were minerals (iron ore and coal) - they were the world's top supplier - as well as TONS of tea and coffee.

Sadly, the SS Glenfruin, carrying iron ore, was sunk by a German U-Boat on 29 Jan 1918 off the coast of Ireland, and the crew of 32 had no survivors. The link will take you to a site with details and a wreck map: http://www.wrecksite.eu/wreck.aspx?37301

I did find various mentions in online newspapers, but they were mostly Speaking Reports: When a ship makes contact with another ship and reports its location, it was reported to the shipping office and occasionally printed in the local papers (i.e., "Br str [British Steamer] Glenfruin at [longitude, latitude]. Reported strong wind from the NE may delay arrival.") but I couldn't find any mentions from 1904-1905.

I stumbled across this article, called "An Ocean Liner's Crew - Working on a Steamship in 1906" that you may enjoy: http://www.gjenvick.com/SteamshipArticles/SteamshipCrew/1906...

I'm sure you've already checked the crew lists available on Ancestry and have seen the available records on Karl Emil Hjelte - I did see one of them.

I hope that SOME of this is new information! Let me know if I can provide any further assistance - good luck!

Nancy

Re: 1904 "Continuous Certificate of Discharge" -- info please!

mloncaric13 — 2013-05-26 18:43:02Z

Hi Nancy --

It's so nice to have a "conversation" about this! And thank you for sharing your own US records experience (and a sample of the documents themselves). I often do a lot of foreign (well, foreign to me) research (Swedish, Polish, Hungarian) and am sadly not very up-to-date with US or UK records, how and where to find them, etc.

Thanks for offering to do a quick look-up of the ships my great-grandfather sailed on. I have a few database/genealogical website subscriptions (besides Ancestry, they are mainly European), but not to the ones you mentioned. I have done a little research on the actual vessels and may know more than I think I know, if that makes sense. I don't have that material in front of me, but I will compile it and, as you wisely suggest, post a query on these message boards.

In the meantime, I do have his Discharge book right here:

Karl Emil Hjelte was on the SS Glenfruin (#119134 built 1904) out of Calcutta (how he got there, I have no idea) on August 23, 1904; discharge date November 4, 1904 at Barry, UK. Description of voyage: Cape H.

Then he was on the SS Verbena (#102726 built 1895) out of Barry, UK on November 15, 1904; discharge date January 28, 1905 at Cardiff, UK. Description of voyage: Black Sea.

Finally, he was on the SS Corby (#115220 built 1901) out of Barry, UK on January 31, 1905; discharge date May 28, 1905 at Barry, UK. Description of voyage: Rio and USA.

And that's it. He was only in for a short time, perhaps enough to raise some money to start his life in the US. Sometime in July 1905, he departed from Hull, England and landed in Philadelphia -- so ended his Merchant Marine career.

The only other material in the book is a report of character; he was marked "Very Good" in ability and character for all 3 voyages.

I also plan to take your advice re: inquiring anyway about locating his records/contract/documents, even though it seems a fair number are missing or lost or destroyed. There is an email address in one of the links you sent yesterday; I will gather up all I know and give it a shot.

Thank you again for helping me investigate this further; I appreciate it very much. Your information and advice are so useful to me.

Take care --
Meredith

Re: 1904 "Continuous Certificate of Discharge" -- info please!

moonpie71 — 2013-05-26 15:53:11Z

Meredith,

This was my experience with US records: I had a stack of Discharge Certificates (example attached, from the SS Texaco Oklahoma). It shows where travel began and ended, but it doesn't show every stop along the way. Based on the dates, I requested Ship Movement Cards with the names of the ships and the dates my father was on board. (Example attached - same dates highlighted.) Although the Discharge Certificate indicates the place of shipment [outbound] and the place of discharge [inbound] as New York City, you'll see the Ship Movement card shows the trip was from NYC to Aruba to NYC.

While the records MAY be lost, I would definitely suggest that you make inquiries.

Also, please post (or send me a message containing) the ship names and dates of travel. I may be able to find corresponding information in the Genealogy Bank or Fold3 newspaper archives (papers frequently listed arrivals and departures, and even cargo, during peacetime).

I also found this link for Finding Seafarers on Crew Lists: http://www.crewlist.org.uk/findingoncrewlists.html (for British-registered vessels).

Hope this helps!

Nancy

Re: 1904 "Continuous Certificate of Discharge" -- info please!

mloncaric13 — 2013-05-25 23:57:26Z

Hi Nancy --

Thank you so much for your input and information! I really appreciate it. My mom remembers her grandfather, Karl Hjelte, the Merchant Marine I am researching, as a quiet, reserved man, who rarely spoke about himself -- so, naturally, the later generation (me) has no stories to go on. Just this little Discharge book...

I did find out, since posting the original message, that the records during the time period my great-grandfather was a seaman are lost (some are partially complete). It seems sadly unlikely that I will be able to find his original contract, documents, etc. But I am glad to have the links you provided so I can get more background on what he did.

I know he went to Rio and to Calcutta. I have no idea what the ship picked up...You think I could find out details like that with the ship names (which I do have)? I will give it a shot. I know he was a fireman on at least one voyage (which makes sense, in a way, as he probably barely spoke English but was a strong young man, used to farm labor).

Onward! Thanks again for responding and being so helpful. After he left the Merchant Marines in 1905, he went to America and married his Stockholm sweetheart, and started a family. His days of voyages to places like Calcutta were over, so it would be nice to relive what he may have experienced.

Take care --
Meredith

Re: 1904 "Continuous Certificate of Discharge" -- info please!

moonpie71 — 2013-05-25 13:36:22Z

Here's the definition from a UK site:

"This document contains personal information and a record of each voyage undertaken. The certificate acted as both a passport and a reference. The captain of a ship would record the name of the ship, the dates of the voyage and the ability and conduct of the seaman on that voyage." (From Memorynet: http://www.twmuseums.org.uk/memorynet/)

Below is a link to a Google Book called "Sessional Papers, Volume 77" By Great Britain. Parliament. House of Commons.

http://goo.gl/CqP7Q (It should take you directly to page 67 of the book.)

This link will take you to the Registry of Shipping and Seamen: http://www.dft.gov.uk/mca/mcga07-home/workingatsea/mcga-trai... - at the bottom of the page, under the Historical Information heading, click the link for details of their historical records - it opens as a Word document but explains where certain documents are stored and how to make a request.

My dad was a US Merchant Marine in World War II, so I don't really have any suggestions in your case. I hope the links help! My dad took several trips to South America, and they were usually to pick up crude oil and bring it to a US refinery; however, I've seen a few that also exported "exotic" fruit like bananas. If you have the names of the ships, please post them - sometimes you have better luck searching the ships than searching the crew!

Happy Searching,

Nancy

1904 "Continuous Certificate of Discharge" -- info please!

mloncaric13 — 2013-05-12 16:13:59Z

Hi --

We have recently unearthed my great-grandfather's "Continuous Certificate of Discharge" -- a little book with a Board of Trade emblem and his record number stamped on it. Inside -- along with many other rules and details -- it says to return to the Registrar General of Shipping and Seamen, Carlisle Place, Westminster, London, SW.

My great-grandfather, Carl Emil Hjelte, was Swedish: born there and lived there until he immigrated to America in 1905. Or so we thought...

This book records 3 journeys he made on 3 different ships during the 1904-1905 time frame: to Cape Hatteras, to the Black Sea, and to Rio (and the USA, on this trip). The dates and places of discharge are all centered around Cardiff or Barry. There are a few more details (ship names, captains' names, Carl Emil's jobs, etc.).

Can anyone tell me what this is? How would he have hooked up to a UK Merchant Marine while living in Stockholm? What was being in the Merchant Marine all about? Is this how he could've earned his passage to America? And is there anywhere that I can do further research about Carl Emil Hjelte, specifically, and his time in the Merchant Marine?

This is a big surprise to the family! I am very excited to learn more about what it all means. I am grateful for any information or suggestions for further investigation.

Thank you!

Merchant Mariner Jack HOFFMAN

LFAYET — 2013-04-30 16:46:52Z

Looking for information concerning Jack HOFFMAN Merchant Marine
born abt.1925-1930 Later lived in Washington Heights NY.City,Or worked there.His father was German and his maternal family was Puerto Rican.

Re: My Father Was Supposedly a US Merchant Marine during WWII

moonpie71 — 2013-04-24 00:39:18Z

My dad was also a US Merchant Marine in WW2, aboard oil tankers in South America and Africa. I sent a request for his military records to the following address:

Commanding Officer
USCG-National Maritime Center (NMC-421)
ATTN: Correspondence Section
100 Forbes Dr.
Martinsburg, WV 25404

I also submitted a request through vetrecs.archives.gov and I received information from both agencies. (This was about three years ago; I don't know if budget cuts still make it possible.)

Here are a couple of other very helpful sites:

Merchant Marine Service Records including Voyage Discharges from U.S. Coast Guard:
http://www.usmm.org/contact.html#contact3
(The whole USMM site is great!)

Convoy Web (The Website for Merchant Ships during WW2)
http://www.convoyweb.org.uk/

Happy searching!

Nancy

Re: My Father Was Supposedly a US Merchant Marine during WWII

Lycanman — 2013-04-20 19:43:55Z

Not home now but will post the address sometime today!!

Re: My Father Was Supposedly a US Merchant Marine during WWII

terter54 — 2013-04-20 16:52:19Z

Thank you for letting me know about your positive results.
I'll try do to the same.
Do you by chance, still have the address you sent your request to?
I'd like to cover all the bases.

Re: My Father Was Supposedly a US Merchant Marine during WWII

WilliamHowell0187 — 2013-04-20 13:17:22Z

My father was in the Merchant Marines in 1943 and was in the North Atlantic. I had very little information other that a few photos of him in uniform. With very little info, I was able to go through the DOD and the Merchant Marine Academy and get information and confirm his enlistment. He was 15 at the time.

My Father Was Supposedly a US Merchant Marine during WWII

terter54 — 2013-04-19 03:46:05Z

However he never supplied any details.
No Ship names, no sail dates, no cremates, nada.

About the only thing I do know, is he had a scar on the back of his left calf.
He told us that it was from a bullet wound he received while on a voyage. He said he was luckier than most.

I would like to verify if he did serve. Maybe find out on which vessel(s) he served on and get some other info too.

Re: WWI Merchant Ship Actaeon

bethlehem2009 — 2013-01-07 21:03:31Z

I am researching William Adamson Ansell and he was on this ship as an "engineer". I have his medal roll card which gives me the proof that he was aboard.
Could you please if possible send me what you have to lynn.mace@timace.co.uk
Kind Regards,
Lynn Mace

Re: Decipher Merchant Seaman Discharge Certificate...help!

halpark — 2012-11-28 00:42:27Z

The No and Grade of B.T.Certificate simply means the Number and grade of his qualification as issued by the Board of Trade. He qualified as a 2nd Mate in April 1914, Certificate No. 008409, but was obviously sailing as a 3rd Mate at this particular time. I do not know what the other number stands for but it clearly says NHS Insurance Number which I would have taken as being his National Health Serice number. The NHS only came into force in July 1948 so if you are sure it is earlier than that it must be something else. There is nothing on the document to indicate which ship it was but you might find it worth looking at "theshipslist".

Decipher Merchant Seaman Discharge Certificate...help!

Jess311 — 2012-11-24 15:41:25Z

I have just stumbled across my great grandfathers discharge certificate from the Merchant Navy and have been trying to find meaning in the information provided with little luck.

I'd like to know what the 'No and Grade of BT Certificate' means (as well as what is written there), and also the ship he worked on, where it went, its purpose etc - I know this information is provided next to the photograpgh as '115813' March 1920. I have searched Miramar ship records which has provided the name of the ship though not much else.

I have attached the image...any help greatly appreciated!

Re: Merchant Navy Records 1850s. Can anyone help to descipher please?

halpark — 2012-11-19 22:45:48Z

Try "Theshipslist" and the Register of Seamen and Shipping.

Re: Port of Duluth

moonpie71 — 2012-10-13 14:33:48Z

Can you provide any additional details, such as year/place of birth, parent names, etc.? Robert Lloyd is a (surprisingly) common name, even when I only search Minnesota.

If you'd rather not post details, you can email them to me at administrativeprojects[[AT]]gmail//do\\tcom (trying to prevent spam) with Robert Lloyd in the subject line and I'll see if anything comes up.

Happy searching!
Nancy

Port of Duluth

Johnson_Lynn — 2012-10-08 20:51:31Z

I am looking for Robert Lloyd who was in the Merchant Marines back in 1938. He was in Duluth for a short time. My family wonders if he survived the coming war, and where he may have trained.

Re: JORGENSEN Kaj - Born 9 November 1907 DENMARK Mother: Anna Father:Hjalmar

jojensagain — 2012-08-19 05:45:45Z

Found a passenger list that showed that he was born in Marstal, so looked in the parish records...
They are available online at Arkiversonline. You have to browse, and some of the images are better than others, but they have the parish records for most of Denmark from the 1700's through the mid 1900s (and it's free) In Marstal's case they have records from 1698 through 1950.

I did find a couple other tidbits for you:

Ingeborg Kirstine Godtfredsen was born in Marstal parish Jan 7 1864 - parents Mads Godtfredsen and Ane Kirstine Erikson

Hans Rasmussen Haagensen was born Mar 15 1858 - parents Johan Peder Haagensen and Sidsel Kirstine Rasmussen

Frederik Hansen Jorgensen was born Jan 3 1835 - parents Johan Christian Jorgensen and Dorthea Sophie Hansen

(There were 2 Ellen Marie Christensen's born in Marstal at about the right time and I haven't had time to look for her marriage record yet. Hopefully that will tell me which is the correct one)

J Murphy

Re: JORGENSEN Kaj - Born 9 November 1907 DENMARK Mother: Anna Father:Hjalmar

santijorgensen — 2012-08-19 04:14:01Z

Thank you so much, for your help, may I ask how you got this information :)

Re: JORGENSEN Kaj - Born 9 November 1907 DENMARK Mother: Anna Father:Hjalmar

jojensagain — 2012-08-19 03:58:22Z

Maybe this will help?
Hjalmar Frederik Jorgensen, son of Frederik Hansen Jorgensen and Ellen Marie Kristensen, born 31 Dec 1879
wed
Anne Katrine Haagensen, daughter of Hans Rasmussen Haagensen and Ingeborg Kirstine Godtfredsen, born 27 March 1883
on Sept 3 1901 n Marstal Kirke, Svendborg Amt, Denmark

They had:
Frederik Hjalmar Jorgensen. b. Jan 17 1904
Ejnar Jorgensen, b. May 17 1905
Hans Jorgensen, b. July 7 1906 (perhaps died young? I didn't find him listed with his mother and brothers on the 1930 census)
Kaj Jorgensen, b. Nov 9 1907
Hans Ingvard Jorgensen, b. June 4 1909
(all born in Marstal parish, Svendborg)

J Murphy

Texaco Tankers, WW2 Merchant Marine-Post 1 of 4

moonpie71 — 2012-08-18 20:30:04Z

I received ship records from my dad's time as an employee of The Texas Company (now Texaco) in 1944 and 1945 on board the following vessels:

SS Colorado
SS Georgia
SS Indiana
SS Mississippi
SS Oklahoma

Note - These are not US Navy ships, which would be "USS" instead of "SS". These are oil tankers.

I extracted the other names listed and have compiled them in one list, just in case they may help another researcher.

Since Ancestry won't allow me to post PDFs on the board, I saved these as image files. I'm sorry to take up four message threads, but my post crashed when I tried to attach all of them to one post. Post 1 of 4 begins with surnames alphabetically listed, and it continues on to post 2, 3 and 4.

If you find one of your relatives listed, please post a reply with their name, and I'll send over what I have. For the most part, it's just crew lists and a few voyage details, but I'll share what I can.

Hope it helps!
Nancy

Texaco Tankers, WW2 Merchant Marine-Post 2 of 4

moonpie71 — 2012-08-18 20:29:16Z

Texaco Tankers, WW2 Merchant Marine-Post 3 of 4

moonpie71 — 2012-08-18 20:28:18Z

Texaco Tankers, WW2 Merchant Marine-Post 4 of 4

moonpie71 — 2012-08-18 20:26:58Z

I received ship records from my dad's time as a merchant marine employed by The Texas Company (now Texaco) in 1944 and 1945 on board the following vessels:

SS Colorado
SS Georgia
SS Indiana
SS Mississippi
SS Oklahoma

Note - These are not US Navy ships, which would be "USS" instead of "SS". These are oil tankers.

I extracted the other names listed and have compiled them in one list, just in case they may help another researcher.

Since Ancestry won't allow me to post PDFs on the board, I saved these as image files. I'm sorry to take up four message threads, but my post crashed when I tried to attach all of them to one post. Post 1 of 4 begins with surnames alphabetically listed, and it continues on to post 2, 3 and 4.

If you find one of your relatives listed, please post a reply with their name, and I'll send over what I have. For the most part, it's just crew lists and a few voyage details, but I'll share what I can.

Hope it helps!
Nancy

Re: merchant marine

ycaso77 — 2012-08-18 13:56:39Z

For any records on Merchant Marine members, you'll have to request information from the following location where records are held by the Coast Guard-

Include Name, Date of Birth, copy of Death Certificate if deceased, Social Security number, Address, and Z or Service number.

Commanding Officer
USCG-National Maritime Center (NMC-421)
ATTN: Correspondence Section
100 Forbes Drive
Martinsburg, WV 25404

Re: merchant marine

boonkidd — 2012-08-18 11:29:11Z

American, first joined in Pittsburgh, Pa.around 1940. Then was based out of West Coast, Ca./ Wa. state, with the Navy, I Think. Thank you for your reply, Bonnie

Re: merchant marine

JeffH01 — 2012-08-17 19:28:39Z

What nationality was he and what country's Merchant Service did he serve with?

merchant marine

boonkidd — 2012-08-14 18:26:36Z

Looking for info on Robeet Lee Kidd, seaman in abt. 1940 thru 1943. Thank You, Bonnie

MarineLives - Call for Volunteers

MarineLives — 2012-07-25 05:00:02Z

Are you a keen local historian or genealogist with good palaeography skills?

Would you like to put those skills to use and deepen your knowledge of mid-C17th marine (and London) life?

The MarineLives project team is recruiting volunteer project associates to work on the collaborative transcription, linkage and enrichment of High Court of Admiralty primary manuscripts, 1650-1669.

The end product will be a publicly and freely available online academic edition.

The project is a public/academic initiative, and is being conducted with the support of The National Archives, Kew. The team will work collaboratively on high quality digital images for a complete volume of the court's records, selected from the period 1650-1669.

Please contact the project team http://www.marinelives.org/Contact_Us.html), if you would like further information, or access the project website (www.marinelives.org. You can also follow us on Twitter (collaborate@marinelivesorg)

Re: Merchant Navy Records 1850s. Can anyone help to descipher please?

oneluckiangel1 — 2012-07-14 15:53:02Z

Thank you Nancy!!

Re: Merchant Navy Records 1850s. Can anyone help to descipher please?

moonpie71 — 2012-07-14 14:11:49Z

I did some searching but, unfortunately, didn't find a lot of useful information.

Here's a link to a few photographs of ships:
http://www.cbrnp.com/RNP/Flower/GALLERY/postwar_Italian.htm

And this is the Italian Navy (Regia Marina Italiana)
http://www.regiamarina.net/detail_text.asp?nid=9&lid=1
On the left side of the screen, click History, and then you'll see a link for Merchant Marine. It opens to the Introduction page, and you'll have to use the drop-down at the top of page to navigate.

Good luck!
Nancy

There doesn't appear to be a lot of information online, but maybe you can check some of the references on the Italian Navy Wikipedia page: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Italian_Navy

Re: Merchant Navy Records 1850s. Can anyone help to descipher please?

oneluckiangel1 — 2012-07-14 08:09:03Z

would any of those links have info pertaining to Italian Merchant Marines? If not would either of you know how to find them? Thanks.

Re: Merchant Marine Records

oneluckiangel1 — 2012-07-14 08:00:45Z

Anyone know how to find Merchant Marine records from other countries other than US? looking for merchant marine records for my great grandfather from Italy. would appreciate any help.

Re: Looking for Log Books and Crew names of Clydesdale and Oniedia of 1880 to 1890

oneluckiangel1 — 2012-07-14 07:56:57Z

my great grandfather was a member of the italian merchant marines in the late 1800's. anyone know how i can find his records and what ship he might have been on?

you can reply here or oneluckiangel@hotmail.com. Please put Ancestry Request in the subject line.

JORGENSEN Kaj - Born 9 November 1907 DENMARK Mother: Anna Father:Hjalmar

santijorgensen — 2012-06-27 04:20:52Z

Searching for information on my grandfather Kaj Jorgensen his siblings and his parents. Kaj was Born on 9 November 1907 in Denmark and left Denmark at an early ages (late teens)as far as I am aware to work on the ships and eventually was a Merchant Seaman. He arrived In Australia(unsure of dates) married Myrtle Pearce and had two children Shirley and Kay Jorgensen.

I am struggling to find any information, the only document I have and his family have in Australia, is a copy of his seaman certificate. I have searched Archives, Ancestory, Veterans etc and I am not able to pinpoint any further details.

His siblings: Fredrick, Ejnar & Hans
Father: Hjalmar Jorgensen
Mother: Anna Jorgensen

Unfortunately the only documentation I have is his Seaman Certificate. United States Department of Commerce port of New York August 2 1943, serial number Z 272 332 D 1

He passed away in Tasmania, Australia 1979 as a Veteran(Australia and American).

If you can help in anyway please let me know :)

Re: Charles Thomas Corden

CAROL_STETSON — 2012-06-23 01:26:02Z

He had about 7 kids. One named Ray. Who had a son named Ray.

Re: Merchant Navy Records 1850s. Can anyone help to descipher please?

moonpie71 — 2012-06-17 16:45:04Z

Found this link too:

HIMALAYA: An iron fullrigged ship built in 1863 by Pile, Hay & Co.:
http://www.bruzelius.info/Nautica/Ships/Merchant/Sail/H/Hima...

Also, could the ship Tasmania be the Great Tasmania? I have a subscription to Genealogy Bank (newspaper archive) and found a few results for the Great Tasmania. If you have more information, please email me at administrativeprojects [at] gmail [dot] [com] and I'll see what I can find.

Nancy

Re: Merchant Navy Records 1850s. Can anyone help to descipher please?

geebrooks9 — 2012-06-17 16:33:16Z

Hi Nancy, thank you very much. I am very grateful.
Best Wishes, Sara.

Re: Merchant Navy Records 1850s. Can anyone help to descipher please?

moonpie71 — 2012-06-17 16:20:03Z

This is a link to the UK National Archives page for records of a merchant seaman serving up to 1857:

http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/records/looking-for-perso...

In addition, this link directs to the same site, for merchant seamen serving up to 1857, Further Research:

http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/records/research-guides/m...

The numbers, I believe, correspond to an index of merchant seamen, and the Further Research link will explain in detail.

Good luck in your search!
Nancy

Merchant Navy Records 1850s. Can anyone help to descipher please?

geebrooks9 — 2012-06-17 13:59:13Z

Hi, I have some records that belonged to my great grandfather Charles william Davis who was born in Camberwell in 1832
I can't understand what the numbers mean and I wondered if anyone has had experience with this type of thing?
Also is there somewhere I can find out where he went on these voyages?
I think the names of the ships are The Himalaya and the Tasmania.
Any help would be great.
Thank you.

Re: Merchant Marine's

moonpie71 — 2012-06-09 18:33:18Z

Hi Robin,

I sent you a private message.

Everyone has their secrets (and lies) that end up as oral history; I have PLENTY of shady characters in my tree, but separating fact from fiction is one of the more fascinating (and exasperating) reasons to research!

I found an obituary for Raymond Charles Forster in St. Cloud, Florida - is this yours? The private message has my email address.

Nancy

Re: Merchant Marine's

robinziebert — 2012-06-09 16:15:21Z

Oh Moonpie, Im so frustrated. I would swear the man had some kind of secret. I have done so many searches it makes my head spin. It's strange because I was all caught up in family tree stuff very young, and thankfully have names and dates back to Germany....that said, there are things that reportedly my Grandfather didn't even know or at least wouldn't admit he knew....his father committed suicide (told my uncle it didn't happen, but we have confirmed in all ways....sad...maybe he really wasn't told) and his family was sent off to various members to be raised. He passed in 1989. I remember him having these blue tattoos on the inside of each forearm...think one was a pine tree and other involved anchor. But I can't find a thing regarding military service (he was born in 1903) or even he and my grandmother on census and so forth....it's really more than strange. I've got him and his siblings with his mom right after his dad's death(although she is using some last name I can't find anywhere) and on my uncle and mom's birth certificate....but it's like a black hole in between 1910 and 1932....His name was Raymond Charles Forster (some of family spelled it Foster). If you have any ideas I'd be appreciative! :-) Thank you for your energy in responding already..

Re: Charles Johnson - Merchant Seaman

ElizabethKA51 — 2012-06-02 22:30:01Z

Hello,
Thank you for your reply. I have already started research at the NA via the online Seaman Pouches. I've narrowed each search down to a time span and then a specific area. I'm still hopeful that someone will recognise the Giffin Street address from my posting. It really is all I have to go on, so confirmation on any Merchant Seaman record would be wonderful!
Many thanks once again, your help is greatly appreciated.
Kind regards,
Elizabeth

Re: Merchant Marine Records

jlvia33 — 2012-05-30 17:33:31Z

YOU MAY BE ABLE TO FIND THAT INFORMATION, LOOK AT THIS LINK, THERE IS INFO ON HOW TO TRACE HIS SERVICE. GOOD LUCK!

http://www.usmm.org/contact.html