https://www.threetowners.net/forum/

Hiya, my interest here is from my grandfather and granduncle who crewed and then skippered the ICI ships in the 30's and 40's. We have some great family stories from these times , such as run-ins with U boats , near mutinies, and photographs of sorts. The ships were Lady Dorothy, Gertrude cochrane and Anstruther. We have stories about crewmates like Bobby Bond, Monty MacFadyen, Lachlan Macdonald, and James Macdonald.

My own father is getting on, and I want to take him over to Hamburg to see where most of his fathers trips seemed to be, so I will be checking over there and try to link up with folk over there who may have known these ships. My father did write a book of his funny memoirs (as well as being a mad dentist in the gorbals), with a chapter on the Irvine 'Dynamite boats'. He did it for posterity - not for money (I don't think he even knows if he ever had any money from amazon !).
Search on amazon - 'Dunfillin - tales from the enamel face' (its not in Gaelic, just the odd poem)

Anyway - I will have a search on here for info , dig out the old photos, and plan my trip to Hamburg.

If anyone knew any of these folks - get in touch !

Welcome to threetowners, Fimac. I can't add anything of worth to the topic other than my grandfather was a stoker (donkeyman) on an ICI explosive transporting ship in Irvine according to the 1921 Scottish census which has just been released. Unsure at this stage if he was active in that position during WW2 - he died within the ICI complex in 1944 of natural causes.

Hiya Hughie,
I expect they worked together, i know my grandfather worked in various roles on most of those ships before retiring to be the coastguard up in Lismore, where we still have a family house. he then spent his retirement fishing for his supper and writing songs !

What was his name - we do have some diaries and notes from his time there. maybe we can find a link.

Hi Fimac,

Grandfather was James Kelly McCallum born in Quay Street Saltcoats in 1887.

Thanks. We will have a look.

Hi Fimac

My great uncle ` Edward Murray` on my fathers side of the family was chief engineer on the Lady Gertrude Cochrane.

I see Edward Murray and other local crew members mentioned in the following link: -

https://www.rmg.co.uk/collections/objec ... ect-648588

Yes Penny, I see him in the list, had a look through some family paperwork I have, he served on the ship as second engineer until October 1950 until he drowned in Milford Haven harbour while the boat was docked. Don`t know how he got in the water but I know through my father that he was unable to swim.

Hullo all, I see this thread and another similar one. My grandfather, Duncan Black from Lismore, was 2nd mate for a while, I have no idea how long, on Lady Gertrude Cochrane, and was the only one on board on the day of the 1921 census. Captain Campbell: was he the guy with the beret in Lismore in the 1960s?

Jim Scobbie

And my grandmother Effie from Benbecula was a boarder in Irvine, that day in the household of unmarried Elizabeth Todd (age 53 & 2 months), and her brother, unmarried David Todd (age 50 & 3 months), and a nephew Henry (age 20 & 8 months. Perhaps they were neighbours, and she was next door with no head in situ, the record is unclear… this was at 36 Harbour St, Dundonald, Fullerton.