Second Officer
John William COOPER
Mercantile Marine
Died: 20th October 1918 - Age: 26

Commemorated:

    

Awards & Titles:

 

Early Life :

The majority of this legend is courtesy of Geoff Cuthill of the Province of West Lancashire, to whom the project is grateful.

According to a transcribed copy of the baptismal registers of Guisborough Primitive Methodist Church, covering the Redcar area, John William Cooper is recorded as born 25 November 1891, and baptised 1 December 1891. His parents are Isaac and Susannah Cooper (nee Verrill), and other records show them as marrying on 9 May 1882 at Whitby. Isaac was a Master Mariner who had been born on 11 November 1855 at Robin Hood Bay, Whitby.

The 1901 census shows the family address as 35 Queen Street, Coatham, Guisborough, North Riding of Yorkshire. His mother is age 38, and John is 9, with 6 female siblings, Eliza 17, Sarah 15, Alice 13, Nellie 11, Jane 7 and Maud 4. The admission book for Sir William Turner’s National School at Coatham show John attending in 1905. It has his birthdate as 23 November 1891.

John would follow in his father’s footsteps becoming a seafarer obtaining his First mate Certificate on 11 January 1915 at West Hartlepool, born 23 November 1890, at Redcar, lodging at 37 Raby Street, West Hartlepool and giving his fathers address as 15 Grandville (not Granville)Terrace, Redcar, and. His description has him being of a ruddy complexion with dark hair and blue eyes standing at five foot ten inch in height. He has been a mariner for at least seven years, the last few on S.S. Conway of the Conner L R Line of West Hartlepool. (In 1917 the vessel was sold to the Furness Withy Line, and was torpedoed and sunk on 30 April 1918).

Service Life:

Campaigns:

Unit / Ship / Est.:  

Action : Natural Causes 

Natural causes is attributed those deaths due to causes that were not directly associated with the war. Included in this are wartime deaths resulting from, for example, theSpanish Influenza pandemic and its associated pneumonia problems and other attributions such as age and exhaustion. It also groups those who through Post Traumatic Stress committed suicide as a result of their experiences.

Detail :

On 18th February, 1915 John signs on as Mate aboard the Brantford, his previous ship shown as the Conway. The Brantford was built in 1910 at West Hartlepool and is operated by the Neptune Steam Navigation Company of Liverpool. The surviving crew list shows John serving on Brantford from 18 February to 20 September 1915, leaving the vessel at Leith. No other records have been located as yet to show John’s service up to his untimely death.

John was 26 years of age when he died and the index to Wills and probate for 1918 has Cooper, John William of 18 Granville Terrace, Redcar, Yorkshire died 28 October 1918 at Barry Dock, Glamorgan. Administration London 18 November to Isaac Cooper master mariner. Effects £408 12s. 1d. The local newspaper contains little detail, simply a family notice which has “ Cooper _ October 28, died at Cardiff (suddenly) John, eldest son of Captain and Mrs Cooper of 18 Granville Terrace, Redcar. Interred at Redcar Cemetery, leaving above address at 2.30 Saturday, November 2nd.”

No other reports have yet been located which would give more detail regarding his death.

The index to Wills and probate for 1929 has Cooper, Isaac, of 18 Granville Terrace, Redcar, Yorkshire, etc, effects to Susannah, widow.

Masonic :

TypeLodge Name and No.Province/District :
Mother : Neptune No. 1264 E.C.West Lancashire

Initiated
Passed
Raised
26th August 1916
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John William Cooper was initiated into Neptune Lodge No 1264 on 29 August 1916, his address given as 18 Granville Terrace, Redcar, Yorkshire, while the Grand Lodge returns have him as age 24, a 2nd Officer. There is no record as to John advancing any further within freemasonry.

Source :

The project globally acknowledges the following as sources of information for research across the whole database:

Additional Source:

Last Updated: 2021-02-27 09:06:57