“A slightly distant starboard bow view of the passenger tender Greetings (1914) alongside Berth 48 in Southampton docks, Hampshire. The steam tug Sloyne (1928) is berthed inboard of the Greetings and outboard of S.R. Floating Crane No. 1 (1923). A single funneled passenger liner is at Berth 49 and a 3 funneled liner is in dry dock No. 6. The Southampton Floating Dock (1924) is moored off the Town Quay on the left. The photographer is on board a cruise ship in the River Test looking north.”
ALAN DUMELOW – Top contributor
Amazing aerial photo of SEVEN Union Castle ships at Southampton (taken from a BBC Review, December 1970). Even has my old office and the staff canteen on the right.
In the foreground, berthed three abreast, are the ‘fruit-boats’ “Riebeck Castle” (on the quay) “Roxburgh Castle” and “Richmond Castle” (outboard), with “Rowallan Castle” and “Rustenburgh Castle” astern – all awaiting the start of the South African fruit season – with “Good Hope Castle” at the back, and the big “WC” outbound. Image courtesy of bandcstaffregister.com.
Ships and Family
The photo is of the Paddle Steamer (PS) Gracie Fields, she was built by Thornycroft in Woolston for the Southampton, Isle of Wight and South of England Royal Mail Steam Packet Company Limited (Red Funnel). She launched on the 8th of April 1936, so she was still quite new when my Granduncle (Nan’s brother) ‘George Edward Crocker’ worked on her as a steward.
The ship worked as an excursion steamer on the Southampton to Isle of Wight route, and what glorious days in the 1930’s for my kin that worked aboard as she left Southampton’s Royal Pier in those warm summer months.
The much loved British actress and film star Gracie Fields was invited to launch the ship in Woolston, Gracie herself charted the Paddle steamer to take orphans from Bournemouth to Brighton to see one of her shows, chances are that George Crocker was working aboard on that trip.
Those peaceful summer days in Southampton would soon be shattered as Mr Hitler waged war in Europe.
In 1939, PS Gracie Fields was commandeered by the Royal Navy to serve as a minesweeper, my kin George Crocker who normally worked on her as steward was put ashore and temporarily given the position of a plumbers mate in a shipyard.
George never got to serve folk aboard the Gracie Fields again, as the ship was one of the many small ships that rescued our soldiers at Dunkirk, after saving 250 brave souls on her first run, her second run was only partly successful, with hundreds more aboard the Gracie Fields rudder was damaged by a bomb. Thankfully all aboard were saved by HMS Pangbourne, but under tow the Southampton paddle steamer foundered and sank on the 30th of May 1940. The real Gracie Fields entertained our troops during WW2.
‘George Edward Crocker’ was born in Southampton in 1913, in 1936 he married Elsie Ada Downer in our home town of Southampton, in 1937 their son Melvin George Crocker was born in Southampton, Melvin was two years old when the Gracie Fields launched in Woolston, the couple’s 2nd son Raymond Crocker was born in Southampton in 1939 just as the Navy took over the Gracie Fields.
Olympic
After leaving New York for the last time on 5th April 1935 Olympic returned to Southampton and was laid up, nobody knew it then but her career had come to an end. She would spend almost half an year there abandoned, this caused her paintwork to slowly deteriorate with rust stains starting to become apparent. Her appearance was in sharp contrast to what it had been in 1933 when she was completely repainted and overhauled and was described as “looking like new”. Finally after almost half a year of inactivity she was sold for scrap and departed Southampton on the 11th of October to Jarrow in order to be broken up.
Dockers at Southampton were busy unloading a valuable cargo from the 85, 000 ton liner Queen Elizabeth, which arrived from New York. 500 t of linseed was needed for sewing on 11, 000 acres of recently flooded fenlands, and linseed is the most suitable crop. The Ministry of Food pointed out that the seed must be here by the beginning of May so the Cunard White Star owners gave this cargo top priority in place of the ships normal luxury luggage.
Picture shows: the sacks of linseed are unloaded from the Queen Elizabeth at Southampton ready to be transported to their destination.
2 May 1947
