Photo : Peter Hoy
In South Shields (Harton) Cemetery is his Commonwealth War Grave Headstone.
He resided at 106 Fort Street, South Shields. Durham.
The S.S. Eros was a 1,122grt, defensively-armed British Merchant steamer. Owned by The Shipping Controller, managed by Fisher, Renwick & Co, Newcastle.
On the 17th August 1918, at 3.07pm, when on route southward, speed 6 knots from Tyne for Rouen, with a cargo of coal, she was torpedoed by a German U-Boat, when 2 miles NE by N from Filey Brig, Yorkshire, UB-113, captained by Oberleutnant zur See Ulrich Pilzecker. [born 9th October, 1889 Died, 15th September 1918, English Channel].
There were six minesweepers three miles to the south and the the sea was slight, weather clear.
Seven lives were lost including the Master, and at least three crew were also from South Shields.
"The lifeboats were all shattered by the explosion and the survivors were picked up out of the sea by the drifter SCOTT II. All the deck officers and a fireman were lost in the explosion or due to the rapid sinking of the ship. Nothing was seen of the submarine or the track of the approaching torpedo. No information of any value was obtained from the survivors who were all landed at Scarborough".
Source : Carl Racey, East Coast Shipwreck Research
The Scarborough Mercury 23/08/1918 reported the inquest into the losses.
U Boat Victims. Seven out of Twenty one. At an inquest on three seaman, held at a North Eastern port on Tuesday, the Coroner said they were the victims of a German submarine, which torpedoed their vessel. The vessel was laden with coal, voyaging from a British port to a foreign one. It was torpedoed and sunk about three o'clock on Saturday afternoon.
The crew consisted of twenty-one men, and four of them, including the captain, were killed outright by the discharge of the torpedo. The three on whom the inquest was held died in hospital after being landed. There were five injured men still in hospital. The remaining nine members of the crew had gone to their respective homes. The Coroner added that he deprecated very much the absurd reticence shown by the authorities with respect to military operations on land in France and Belgium a great many regiments and individuals had performed heroic acts, and should have the reward of their great deeds by being named, which was the custom among the Australians, Canadians, and Americans. Why not with us, he did not know. At the same time he strongly approved of reticence being observed with reference to the sinking of our merchant vessels by German submarines.
The names of the three deceased were Albert Kennedy (30), ships steward, 20 South Pine Street, Gateshead; [who is remembered at Gateshead on G39.029 and in G39.004 page 7], John Kemp Large Elliott, Chief Bosun, [who is remembered at South Shields at Every Name A Story entry], and Joseph Crispin, a coloured man, about 21, mess-room steward, 26, Clive-street, North Shields, [who is remembered at Tynemouth in T36.14 page 32].
A youth of sixteen, a member of the crew , stated he was asleep in his bunk when the vessel was torpedoed. He rushed up and jumped overboard and commenced to swim to a jolly boat, but the suction by the sinking of the vessel drew the boat down and he made for a raft, which he got on along with others. They were in the water about ten minutes when they were picked up by a patrol boat. The vessel was hit amidships and was practically cut in two.She sank in a couple of minutes. The patrol boat picked up all the survivors, who had scrambled on to the rafts, one of which was fore and one aft. Corroborative evidence was given and a verdict was returned that the death resulted from the act of an enemy submarine.
Lancelot Burn Marshall is remembered at South Shields on S86.143 and on our Ship Crew lists
