What do these dates mean

[Guest]

What do these dates mean on this Merchant Navy Seaman Discharge, thanksJohn Gallacher.jpg

[Christine in Herts]

Those look like ships' registered numbers - perhaps the names were a bit long, and might have been duplicated, anyway, so the numbers are unique to each ship.

Christine

[Guest]

thanks Christine for your help

[Christine in Herts]

This looks promisingly useful as a starting point: http://www.crewlist.org.uk/data/vesselsnum.php

Christine

[Guest]

thats amazing thanks Christine

[Sue1]

Val, I have recently come across a relative who died at sea (merchant navy) and was buried at sea - place of death was in numbers - it was latitude and longitude apparently ..................no idea if that is what you have here - probably not but thought it might be position of vessel on the dates quoted?

[grumpy]

Because ships names can be duplicated thus with a potential to cause confusion, every ship is given a unique registration number which she holds forever.

In the above instance these numbers indicate the ship that the person was signed on as part of the crew.

Christine's earlier explanation is correct.

[Guest]

thats quite sad Sue when you think about it :(, thanks Grumpy , I was so pleased to find this record and see what he looked like, seems all his Brothers and his Father had the same profession.

[Uncle John]

Val, I have recently come across a relative who died at sea (merchant navy) and was buried at sea - place of death was in numbers - it was latitude and longitude apparently ..................no idea if that is what you have here - probably not but thought it might be position of vessel on the dates quoted?

I have only two deaths at sea, which is amazing for a seafaring family. One is in the GRO Marine Deaths and the other one was too early to be recorded. There's one other, who died when his coaster was on the River Elbe. That's in the GRO Overseas Deaths.

[Guest]

I cannot find their fathers death so wondered if maybe he died at sea ??