Eric Treeves Champness was born on Friday, 22nd August 1890 at Liverpool, to Edward (a Surveyor at Lloyds Bank) and Ada Evelyn. He had two brothers, Edward Leslie, [Student of Naval Architecture and Apprentice at SwanHunters, Wallsend], and Norman Creswick, and the family kept a servant, Phyllis Brading.

in 1891 he is residing at 1 Marine Terrace, Portsmouth. Before attending North Eastern County School (Now Barnard Castle School), he was educated at Hartlepool Grammar School, Glasgow High School and Newcastle Modern School. He went on to study at Armstrong College (1908-1911), gaining a BSc. in Engineering in June 1911, before working for Wallsend Slipway Engineering Co.

Eric began his appointment on 1st October 1915 and was posted to HMS Queen Mary on 29th October 1915.

Eric was killed on 31st May 1916 aged 26 years old in the Battle of Jutland aboard HMS Queen Mary. At 4.25 p.m., HMS Queen Mary was hit by a combined salvo from two German battlecruisers, sinking her with the loss of 1266 men.

Eric Treeve Champness is remembered at Hartlepool on H115.08, in theN.E. Coast Institute notes, in Durham on D47.151, in Newcastle on NUT063 in Wallsend on W7.23 and in Barnard Castle on B135.04 and B135.20 and on our List of Ships’ crews

Universities at War
The CWGC entry for Engineer Sub-Lieutenant Champness