Finding information on my great grandfather Andrew Scollay

[Alison Owen]

Hi,
My mum and I are researching our family tree and have hit a mystery. My great grandfather served as a merchant seaman but we can’t find much information about his time there. His name was Andrew Scollay, born in Shetland in 1874. We found a crew list from 1900 when he was an AB aboard a ship called Ortona, stating a medical discharge off the ship whilst in Sydney. However, we know he continued to serve with the merchant navy until 1918 as we then found a discharge paper and pension card. They are quite vague with details, but at this point he was a first mate and had been on the Prince George and the Prince Rupert. I spoke to my grandad to see what he remembered, at 98 he couldn’t remember a lot, but he stated that he was a commodore. I can’t find him on any WW1 documentation or roll calls.

I was expecting there to be more information such as crew lists or something but We’ve hit a blank. What I’d love is a link to finding out more about the merchant navy in WW1 and pre war, and also if anyone can tell me where to look for more information? We are planning a trip to Kew in the new year, but again we aren’t really sure what we are looking for once we get there so that we can make the most from our trip. All advice on this is greatly appreciated.

[Doc Vernon]

	Andrew
Last name	Scollay
Event year	1918
Birth year	1874
Birth place	Yell
Birth county/country	Shetland
Birth date	12 Dec 1874
Discharge number	12719
Identity certificate number	465883
Card type	CR10
Archive	The National Archives
Series	BT350
Date range	1918-1921
Record set	Britain, Merchant Seamen, 1918-1941
Category	Education & work
Subcategory	Merchant Navy & Maritime
Collections from	Great Britain, UK None

[Doc Vernon]

Capture 22.jpg

Capture crs2.jpg

Capture Ortona.JPG
Capture Ortona 1.JPG

Seems to be a Ship Number on the First Pic however I cannot find any that match in my listings.


ORTONA (later ARCADIAN) Reg No 110613 | The National Archives Don't know if this helps at all ??

[Alison Owen]

Yeah I agree. I find lots of numbers that look like they should be traceable to a ship or a record but they all draw a blank. Thank you so much for looking.

Could you advise what type of records I should be looking for when I go the the national archives? I’d love my trip to be productive with some answers.

[Doc Vernon]

Various dates and Crew Lists for Ship Ortona Official Number 110613

Official Nos: 110591, 110592, 110594, 110595, 110601, 110606, 110608, 110611, 110613,... | The National Archives 1916

Official Nos: 110595, 110599, 110601, 110604, 110606, 110608, 110611, 110613, 110614,... | The National Archives 1911

Official Nos: 110592, 110594, 110595, 110601, 110604, 110613, 110614, 110619, 110638,... | The National Archives 1917

Official Nos: 110588, 110601, 110604, 110606, 110608, 110611, 110613, 110620, 110622,... | The National Archives 1914

Official Nos: 110587, 110588, 110589, 110590, 110592, 110593, 110594, 110598, 110599,... | The National Archives 1898


May assist ??? All these you should keep a record of and use at the National Archives.
Also just ask them when you get there where and what to look for they are most helpful.

Take as much information as you can Reference Numbers Ships ,places of Birth Marriages etc it all will help there!

[Alison Owen]

Thank you. I’ve also found this recently. I’m confused that he went from 1st mate to 3rd mate

E971F130-CC98-4E76-906F-994495EAB7C3.jpg

[Brenda Shackleton]

Hello Alison,

I've looked up the Crew Lists from 1915 - which were transcribed a few years ago. There are several 'Scollays' listed and all originate from Shetland. The only one who ties up with your gt grandfather's age is M.F.SCOLLAY as Second Mate (aged 40) on St. Ninian Maybe a relative!

How could he go from 1st to 3rd Mate ? Easy. It was the only position available on that voyage. In the 1930s during the Great Depression there were many Masters who served at lower ranks. If the job was there; you took it.

Kew,. Decide what you want to look at and inform Kew by email. BEFORE you go. They will have your documents ready and so you won't be hanging around. It's a very busy place and you don't want to waste time. I've been searching for a post about Kew that I did several years ago with this information and can't find it............ So as far as I can remember. You will need identification (Passsport, or document with photo) Kew will hold your records in the Reading Room for (I think ) 7 days so if you don't manage to get there the first day that you intended , then all is not lost !

Book a desk. Some have cameras with a direct link to your email or just take camera/phone piccies.

You are so fortunate to have a photo of your gt.grandfather. I have nothing of my g/father and keep hoping that something is going to turn up , eventually.
Nicholas Hartley 29-3-1867 born Waterford Dis.# 891698. Drowned June 1918

Perhaps we should have a Thread on how to negotiate Kew !!
Regards
Brenda

[Alison Owen]

Thank you so much for replying.

Kew seems so huge, I definitely want to prepare so I make the most of my trip there.

I’ve never seen a picture of him before, that’s what I love about searching for relatives, you open a record or a file and all of a sudden there Face is staring back at you! He looks so much like my uncle and also a bit like my brother which is amazing.

I’ll keep an eye out for your grandfathers name in my research.

Regards
Ali

[Doc Vernon]

Thank you. I’ve also found this recently. I’m confused that he went from 1st mate to 3rd mate

E971F130-CC98-4E76-906F-994495EAB7C3.jpg

That is yet another step in your search good one! Where if I may ask did you get that from??
Thanks

[Alison Owen]

It was on Fold 3 which are the military records linked to ancestry.com
What makes it so interesting as well is in the 1939 records he is listed as ‘incapacitated’ which makes me wonder if he ended up going blind. I know I’m lucky to have found out what I have but somehow I still want to know more!