On the Portsmouth Naval Memorial, Hampshire is the name of PO/X 3487 Marine James Alexander Palmer serving on H.M.S. Hood, with the Royal Marines who died 24/05/1941.

The son of Joseph Lambert Palmer and Esther Palmer, of Washington, Co. Durham.

In Washington Cemetery is a family headstone which reads:-

In loving memory of
Left hand side
Our dear parents
Esther Palmer
died 24th Dec. 1957
aged 75 years

Joseph Palmer
died 1st Dec. 1962
aged 80 years

Their dear
grand daughter
Margaret Palmer
died 31st Jan. 1938
aged 1 years

Right hand side
Our dear sister
Emily N. Palmer
died 19th Jan. 1936
aged 21 years

our dear brother
James Alexander
Palmer
killed in action
1941
aged 19 years

He was the son of Joseph Lambert Palmer [born 7th June 1882], and Esther [nee Newman, born 3rd March 1882], Palmer, of Washington, Co. Durham.

James ‘Alex’, as he was known, was born on the 7th July 1921 the son of Joseph and Esther Palmer, of 27 Grassmere Terrace, Washington Station, County Durham. One of three children. Irene Bloxsom , born 19th October 1918, who was working on Admiralty Work and Joseph C. born 8th January 1925, worked as an Iron Moulder.

James worked as a grocery messenger boy at Riddles Stores before volunteering for the Marines in 1938.

James was assigned to the Hood after completing his training. He was among the men from Hood who participated in Operation ‘Primrose,’ the effort to defend Norway from Germany.

James Alexander Palmer is remembered at Washington on W96.01 and in our List of Ships’ Crews.