Liverpool & South West Lancashire FHS - Forum

I have a photo of my father taken in 1928, as a cabin boy. He is aged 16 and is leaning on the ship's rail in what appears to be a plain black uniform of trousers and tight fitting jacket. He is also wearing a fez like hat.
In the background is a four funnel liner (cf Titanic).

Is there any chance of identifying the shipping line from this black & white photo. It must have been taken in port somewhere due to the proximity of the liner in the background, but unfortunately, no other clues

Not a clue, but how about posting a photograph and see if anybody has any suggestions. Instructions how to here

BL
You refer to a fez-like hat. Could it be a pillbox style, drum-shaped with straight-up sides, rather than the inward slope of a fez? These were commonly worn by young messengers, ashore as well as at sea. Probably only seen in traditional versions of 'Cinderella' nowadays.

There was no uniform for the Merchant Navy as a whole, but companies operating passenger liners usually provided them for those in the public eye.

Unless there are company-crested buttons or badges visible on the uniform, I think it unlikely that you will be able to trace the shipowners, though the sight of a picture might yield more clues, as Mary says.

At that date the four-funnel liner might be the Mauretania, but there may be other options.
D

Hi Mary & daggers,

Just in case you're wondering why no photograh; my computer stack has gone down and the photo is on that hard drive.
I have yet to hook up my lap top to the scanner, etc.

However, I am hoping to get to Southport on Saturday and will take the original with me.

Daggers, the hat is more like a fez style rather than the straight sided and squatter, pill box used by "Buttons" and, if I remember rightly, telegram boys!!

Lovely to see you at Southport yesterday! It's great to put a face to a name.

My opinion is that the hat is shaped more like a fez, slightly narrower at the top than the bottom but possibly a tad taller than I would have expected, presumably his smart uniform is that of cabin boy, closely buttoned up right down the jacket.

Sadly there are no indications of names on the ships, the one behind has four funnels but there is no name to be seen.

Our Chairman offered the suggestion, based solely on the date, that she wondered if it might have been the White Star Line, perhaps a cruise ship?

I have no expertise in this area, but I did think it was a very smart uniform and could be for a cruise ship.

I've had a look at a photo of a relative who was on the Empress of Ireland (CPR ship) He was a a steward of some description I certainly have him as a pantry steward and various other references. Although his jacket is similar to the jacket worn by your man his hat is definitely a cap. The jacket is single breasted with a V neck and he is wearing a bow tie.

Your man's uniform looked a bit like a bell boy's uniform perhaps.

Nothing to do with your man but mine was of one of less than 500 survivors from when the Empress of Ireland collided and sank in the St lawrence Seaway in 1914. He joined the Army in December 1916 and was killed in Arras in April 1917.

He was the Engineer's steward. I imagine that was what he was at the time of the photo

Hi Hilary,

Thx for your comments.

I'll just have to put the topic on the back burner until something relevant comes by.

At least I have an early photo of my Dad.

One can't win all of the things all of the time; it would be too easy!!!