Service Record: James Bowen

[milford_lass]

i have just found the service record for my Great Uncle James Bowen who was a petty officer aboard Conqueror when she was at the battle of Jutland, If i post the record on here would someone be able to explain to me what is what please

thank you
shirl

[qprdave]

Shirl.
Yes you can scan it here. There will be someone who can explain it to you

Dave

[milford_lass]

thank you Dave

[milford_lass]

i have tried to post it here but failed

[milford_lass]

here it is

[qprdave]

Here is a description of ships and shore establishments that he served on
Impregnable and Defiance seems to have been hulks (Old ships that were used for training/Accommodatuon/Stores)

HMS Vivid - Devonport (now HMS Drake)

HMS Impregnable - Was a training establishment started at Devonport in 1862, and active until 1929

HMS Donegal was a Monmouth-class armoured cruiser of the British Royal Navy. She was built by Fairfield Shipbuilding & Engineering Co Ltd of Govan and launched on 4 September 1902. She served in the First World War with most of her sisters, and survived to be sold for scrap on 1 July 1920. She was initially sold to S. Castle, of Plymouth, but later resold to Granton S. Breaking Co.

HMS Hannibal was a Majestic class predreadnought battleship and the sixth ship to bear the name HMS Hannibal.
HMS Hannibal was laid down at Pembroke Dock on 1 May 1894 and launched on 28 April 1896. She was transferred to Portsmouth for completion, which was delayed by labor problems. She was completed in April 1898
While in commissioned reserve at Portsmouth, Hannibal suffered two significant mishaps. On 19 August 1909 she struck a reef in Babbacombe Bay, damaging her bottom. On 29 October 1909 she collided with torpedo boat HMS TB 105, suffering no damage herself but badly damaging the torpedo boat. She underwent a refit at Devonport from November 1911 to March 1912.

HMS Commonwealth, was a King Edward VII-class battleship of the British Royal Navy. Like all ships of the class (apart from HMS King Edward VII) she was named after an important part of the British Empire, namely the Commonwealth of Australia.
Under a fleet reorganization on 24 March 1909, the Channel Fleet became the 2nd Division, Home Fleet, and Commonwealth became a Home Fleet unit in that division. She underwent a refit at Devonport from October 1910 to June 1911.


HMS Colossus was the nameship of her class of dreadnought battleships.

She was launched 9 April 1910 and commissioned in 1911. Although very similar to Neptune she was not part of Neptune's class as Colossus and her sister-ship, Hercules, had greater armour. She joined the 2nd Battle Squadron of the Home Fleet.

When the First World War began in August 1914 Colossus became the flagship of the 1st Battle Squadron. While commanded by Captain Dudley Pound she fought with distinction at the Battle of Jutland in 1916 while acting as the flagship of Rear-Admiral Ernest Gaunt. During the battle, Colossus took two hits which caused minor damage and five casualties. When the war came to a close, Colossus became a training ship until 1920 when, under the terms of the Washington Naval Treaty, she was stricken and eventually broken up in 1928. Her sister-ship was scrapped in 1921.

HMS Conqueror was an Orion class battleship of the Royal Navy. She served in the 2nd Battle Squadron of the Grand Fleet in World War I, and fought at the battle of Jutland, 31 May 1916, suffering no damage.
As a result of the Washington Naval Convention she was decommissioned in 1921 and sold for scrap.

HMS Defiance was the Royal Navy's torpedo school, established in 1884

HMS Concord was a C-class light cruiser of the Royal Navy. She was part of the Centaur group of the C-class of cruisers.
She was built by Vickers Limited and laid down in February 1915, launched on 1 April 1916 and commissioned into the Navy in December 1916. The Ottoman Empire had ordered a pair of scout cruisers in 1914. When the First World War started, construction was halted. A considerable amount of material had already been prepared, and much of this was used in the construction of HMS Concord, and her sister HMS Centaur.

Upon being commissioned into the Navy, Concord was assigned to the 5th Light Cruiser Flotilla, which operated with the Harwich Force to defend the Eastern approaches to the English Channel. She survived the war, and considered obsolete, was sold for scrapping. She arrived at the yards of Metal Industries, of Rosyth, on 16 September 1935 to be broken up.

HMS Monarch was an Orion-class battleship of the Royal Navy. She served in the 2nd Battle Squadron of the Grand Fleet in World War I, and fought at the battle of Jutland, 31 May 1916, suffering no damage.
As a result of the Washington Naval Convention she was decommissioned in 1921 and was used as an experimental and target ship. She was sunk by Revenge in 1925.

HMS Dauntless was a Danae-class light cruiser of the Royal Navy. She was launched from the yards of Palmers Shipbuilding and Iron Company on 10 April 1918 and commissioned on 22 November, 1918.

[milford_lass]

Dave Thank You So Much For Working On This For Me I Hope I Didnt Spoil Your Supper


Kind Regards
Shirl

P.s. Hms Hannibal As You Said Was Laid Down In Pembroke Which Is Pembroke Dock The Royal Ship Yard, James Had To Have Watched The Ships In The Haven As A Child And Thats How He Chose His Profession As Before You Saw He Was A Collier. How Chuffed He Must Have Been When He Was Posted Petty Officer Aboard The Conqueror, My Great Grandad Was Only A Farm Labourer He Must Have Been Pleased As Punch. Thank You So Much Once Again A Milford_lass

[qprdave]

Living in Texas. I won't be having my supper for another 5 or 6 hrs.

Not only must he have been pleased. But proud. And his whole family must have been proud as well. So, I am sure are you.

Dave

[qprdave]

Have you seen this website, Shirl?

http://www.pembrokedock.org/h_dockyard_2.htm

[milford_lass]

yes dave thank you i found this the other day, but i need help with part of his record

[milford_lass]

52218


thank you

[milford_lass]

can someone please explain the remarks thank you

[qprdave]

When a man goes through for promotion, It is not necessarily just sitting down and taking a written exam. It could take Weeks/Months to be passed for the next grade.

For a start you have to be Educationally fit. If you haven't got the education qualifications then you would go along to the Education Officer who will commence classes for anyone wanting to join. Once you have passed, you can almost forget that part of promotion.

Next would be the Professional side. For the Seamen it would be things like Boatwork, Anchorwork, et.c.

Once it is felt that you know enough the man will go in front of a Board and be examined orally and practically. As each of these are passed, it will be entered in his service Docs. i.e. "Passed Educationally for Petty officer" or "Passed Prof. for Petty Officer and so on. The numbers alongside would be the actual part that he passed

Once all the test have been completed, the man has to sit back and wait for his name to reach the top of the promotion list.

The waiting list for each department varies. Obviously, in wartime, promotions may be rapid due to casualties or deaths.

I hope that this helps

[milford_lass]

WOW thanks dave, he was only a collier before he joined the navy thats how i reckon he got his ankle scar, thank you for your time on this am so pleased your here.

shirl

[qprdave]

I notice, with his Character he started off with V.G. then V.G. Satisfactory. This is the normal one that nearly everyone gets if you just do your job and keep your head down and your nose clean. It dips in 1913 to V.G. Moderate. He might have got into a bit of trouble during that year!!!! But he gets over it and ends up during the last 5 or 6 years as V.G. Superior. You have to do your job over and above what is expected of you to get that. It would be interesting to know what happened in 1913!!

[milford_lass]

none of his siblings are alive now dave but am on the trail of his child am sure he had more in diff base's,

[qprdave]

Are you inferring that all sailor have children in every port, Shirl?????????????

[milford_lass]

some did as u know dave.......... my uncle was in diff ports MARRIED :P

[milford_lass]

Here Dave Bt Of Info On The Conqueror
52298

[qprdave]

I'm not sure if your interested in pics of the ships that he was on. But here they are

[milford_lass]

thanks dave found these soon after u kindly gave me the write up on them

[milford_lass]

dave see next to my name i got the badge of petty officer :o) how cool is that

i have been googling and googling trying to find one were wud i find one please

[milford_lass]

these are CONQUERORS GUNS


52308

[alanbenn]

Shirl, here's a photo of Petty Officer badge for you.

Regards
Alan

[milford_lass]

aww thanks Alan, i want to put it on my uncles page on my family tree.

thanks again
shirl

[qprdave]

Shirl
You mentioned that he might have got the scar on the ankle from his collier days. Where the marks are listed it is the third down. above the entry are tattos that are referred to as anchors. I am guessing that he got the anchor tatoos whilst in the navy. Also the entry about the scar on the ankle is in different handwriting so I would think that it was entered lated. Hence the injury might have occured whilst serving in the navy.

It looks as if he was in hospital on the 2-10-25.

[milford_lass]

he maybe had a bad gash there dave, i just presumed the colliery because of the coal trucks, thanks for that

[granson]

i have just found the service record for my Graet Uncle James Bowen who was a petty officer aboard Conqueror when she was at the battle of jutland, could if i post the record on here would someone be able to explain to me what is what please

thank you
shirl

Hi Milford Lass,

My Grandfather James Crumlish Stoker 1st Class 1894-1919 perhaps crossed paths with your Great Uncle James Bowen when they both Joined HMS Hannibal on the 15th Dec 1910 & HMS Colossus on 8th August 1911.

I will attach his Service Records on another thread.

Hope its of interest,

Regards

Michael

[qprdave]

Michael
I'm afraid that Milford Lass hasn't come back to us for 11 months. Hopefully she will return and see your post

qprdave

[milgord_lass]

I Have Found My Great Uncle James Bowen's Death, He Was A Petty Officer, On His Service Record It States The Last Ship Was Vivid 1 That He Served On, Yet On The Naval Casualty List For Friday 2nd Of October 1925 (the Day He Died) It States He Was On The Battleship Barham, Can Someone Please If Possible Explain How He Was On Two Ships, I Know He Died Of A Illness, Can Someone Advise Me Of Were The Ship Had Been, I Have Found The Barham On The Naval Ships Page On The Net, Or Cud He Have Died In A Naval Hospital

Thank You

[Dreadnought]

Hi Milgord_Lass,

I have moved your post to this section of the Forum which is specifically set up for enquiries regarding relatives, friends and Service Records.

Alternatively, you could have posted in this existing thread about HMS Barham.

http://www.worldnavalships.com/forums/showthread.php?t=5060&highlight=Barham

If you are not completely comfortable with the esarch facility, there is some guidance here:

http://www.worldnavalships.com/forums/showthread.php?t=7499

Regards

[jbryce1437]

Hello milgord lass and welcome to the Forum. If you could post his service certificate on this thread it would be a great help. It is often possible to identify something in a record which escapes the attention of someone not familiar with the contents.
Do you know where he died as HMS Barham appears to have been at Malta at the end of October 1925?

Jim

[milgord_lass]

thank you dreadnought

mr bryce if you pm me your email address i will send you the service record

thank you

shirl

[milgord_lass]

my uncle james bowens service record

[stontamar]

I Have Found My Great Uncle James Bowen's Death, He Was A Petty Officer, On His Service Record It States The Last Ship Was Vivid 1 That He Served On, Yet On The Naval Casualty List For Friday 2nd Of October 1925 (the Day He Died) It States He Was On The Battleship Barham, Can Someone Please If Possible Explain How He Was On Two Ships, I Know He Died Of A Illness, Can Someone Advise Me Of Were The Ship Had Been, I Have Found The Barham On The Naval Ships Page On The Net, Or Cud He Have Died In A Naval Hospital

Thank You

Interestingly the reference work 'Royal Navy Roll of Honour Between the Wars 1919-1939 (Don Kindell) records the name of the casualty as BOWER James, Petty Officer, J572, Barham, 2 October 1925. Presume this data base is where the connection to BARHAM originated?

From the the copy of the service record you have posted on the Forum it is possible that there are errors than need to be corrected and I therefore hope that you do not mind if I pass this to Don for review.

I have no idea where the connection to barham originated from and it would certainly appear that James Bowen died ashore quite possibly while in the Royal Naval Hospital Stonehouse. Unfortunately I cannot read the full DD inscription so the location may be wrong.

Don is a member of this forum and hopefully he will pick up this thread, if not you could always approach him through the 'Private Message' facility provided by the Forum.

Regards

stontamar

[kin47]

Hello

Thank you for bringing this to my attention.

From the Admiralty Ratings Death Ledger, Bowen died on 2 October 1925 in battleship BARHAM from Uraemia.

Usually, these can be explained from being out of service and the ship listed was the last ship he served in and acquired the injury or illness (a ROYAL OAK casualty - sunk in 1939, man died post war). However, this is not the case. His last ship was DAUNTLESS. Apparently, he was sick enough to be transferred ashore to VIVID to hospital.

My only explanation is somewhere in transcription an error occured. The Ledgers are handwritten, so the opportunity is there.

All best

don

[jbryce1437]

James Bowen Royal Navy Service Record
Date of Birth: 29th September 1891
Place of Birth: Steynton, Pembroke
Trade: Collier
Joined: 29th September 1909
Date and Period of C.S. Engagement: 29th September 1909 – 12 Years from age 18 (although he joined in 1908)
29th September 1921 to complete (22 years service for pension)
BasePort: Devonport

Ship/Rating/Period of Service/Remarks

Impregnable – Boy 2nd Class – 26th February 1908 until 31st May 1908 – DSQ - No longer borne for pay, having been in hospital or sick quarters for the full period for which pay is authorised, ie between 1st June 1908 and 16th June 1908
Impregnable – Boy 2nd Class – 17th June 1908 until 14th March 1909
Impregnable – Boy 1st Class – 15th March 1909 until 5th May 1909
Donegal – Boy 1st Class – 6th May 1909 until 15th September 1909
Vivid I – Boy 1st Class – 16th September 1909 until 21st September 1909
Hannibal – Boy 1st Class – 22nd September 1909 until 28th September 1909 (then promoted on 18th birthday)
Hannibal – Ordinary Seaman – 29th September 1909 until 1st October 1909
Commonwealth – Ordinary Seaman – 2nd October 1909 until 2nd December 1910 (then promoted)
Commonwealth – Able Seaman – 3rd December 1910 until 7th December 1910
Vivid I – Able Seaman – 8th December 1910 until 14th December 1910
Hannibal – Able Seaman – 15th December 1910 until 4th June 1911
Vivid I – Able Seaman – 5th June 1911 until 7th August 1911
Colossus – Able Seaman – 8th August 1911 until 23rd September 1912
Vivid I – Able Seaman – 24th September 1912 until 24th February 1913
Conqueror – Able Seaman – 25th February 1913 until 4th August 1912 (then promoted)
Conqueror – Leading Seaman – 5th August 1912 until 28th November 1917 (then promoted)
Conqueror – Petty Officer – 29th November 1917 until 20th June 1919
Vivid I – Petty Officer – 21st June 1919 until 5th August 1919
Defiance – Petty Officer 6th August 1919 until 25th August 1919
Vivid I – Petty Officer – 26th August 1919 until 10th September 1919
Concord – Petty Officer – 11th September 1919 until 1st August 1921
Monarch – Petty Officer – 2nd August 1921 until 15th August 1921
Vivid I – Petty Officer – 16th August 1921 until 30th August 1923
Dauntless – Petty Officer – 31st August 1923 until 4th August 1925
Vivid I – Petty Officer – 5th August 1925 until 2nd October 1925 – D.D. (Discharged Dead) 2nd October 1925 in Haslar Hospital from Uraemia (Uraemia - accumulation in the blood of constituents normally eliminated in the urine that produces a severe toxic condition and usually occurs in severe kidney disease)

His Sub Rating is marked as S.S. - Not sure if this is short for Seaman Signalman and I believe Vivid I was the signalling school attached to HMS Vivid at Devonport.
In relation to his death, Vivid I was at Devonport and Haslar was at Gosport yet his record states that he died in Haslar while at Vivid I, so assume his transfer between the two was not recorded exactly, or he may actually have been in Stonehouse Hospital and transferred to Haslar?

Jim

[milgord_lass]

Thank You So Much For All Your Help With Mr Great Uncle, I Saw The Name Bower Also On The Naval Casualty Listings, My Great Nanny Tho Not Very Rich In Pocket Was Able To Go To His Grave In Plymouth Here Is Her Photo With Great Aunt Rachel, You Have Helped Me So Much Bless You Xx.

[milgord_lass]

GREAT UNCLE JAMES BOWEN

[jbryce1437]

Hello Shirl, many thanks for posting the photos, James Bowen looked a fine man.

Jim

[milgord_lass]

yes jim its always nice to put a name to a picture, my family dont know i have been a picture of him yet but his two nieces one being my mother and his nephew will get a surprise at christmas

thanks all once again Diolch yn Fawr