HMS Captain 1870         

 

Information and Memories from Descendants (cont)
 

Up John Collier Peter Baldwin T G Beenham John Bremner Thomas Butcher C W Dyer J Ellis George Fisher Wilfred Glanville John Gribble Albert Grover George Habens Walter Hedger Robert Herd John Hermitage Tom W Ivey Thomas Kernan RJ Magawley William May Robert Mayne Francis Merryman GH Payne Edmund Powell Alfred Ripley Anthony Spiller Arthur Tregaskiss John Walker

 

Descendants’ Memories –  J Ellis

I believe I am a direct descendant of Gunners Mate James (or John) Ellis, one of the survivors of the disaster. He would have been my great-grandfather.

When I was very young, about 15 years old, I read almost anything I could find on Royal Naval History. I knew my grandfather was a submariner, and I had an uncle who was a Commander in the Fleet Air Arm. I also knew that my father John Ellis was sent to a naval school but hated it so much he left and joined the army, thus ending years of naval tradition in the family.

At that time I found a library book called HMS Captain and read it with interest. I then came to the picture plates and found a group  picture of the survivors. I looked hard at Arthur Ellis and saw my father starting back at me, with the exception of a full beard. There was no doubt of the family resemblance.

I questioned my dad about it and he told me that he remembers an old grey-haired man telling tales of the sea, that at the time of his survival of HMS Captain he was about 29 yrs of age, and that he (according to the family) never went to sea again.

 I do not know any more of the sinking of the ship. I managed to obtain a copy of the book HMS Captain and have given it to my father, who is still very much alive and bright of mind.

In the book I read he was listed as James. But I now note that under John Lewis Walker (see Descendant’s Memory for John Lewis Walker) he is spoken of as John. That has given the first clue as when he died as 1925.

 Mike Ellis – great grandson

 


The disaster of HMS Captain first came to my attention when I started researching my mothers family history.  In the collection of family letters was a newspaper clipping announcing the death of Mum's great uncle James Ellis.  This related the tragedy of HMS Captain naming James Ellis as one of the last survivors.

Trying to find out more led me to this website which was in its early stages.  I continued to research from a family perspective & returned to the HMS Captain website two years later.  Mike Ellis, a grandson of James had contributed an article.  I was then able to make contact with Mike who is a second cousin once removed from my mother.

Eileen - great-great-niece

(see also Survivors)