Remembering Today - OS RD Thompson & D.Bell, RNCVR

[RCN]

In remembrance of Ordinary Seaman Robert Dick THOMPSON, & Ordinary Seaman David BELL, Overseas Division, R.N.C.V.R. Killed at sea on 18 June, 1917.

Today, Nov 11, 2013 I would like to remember these two young Canadians who gave their lives during the Great War.

I hold the medals & various other items for Robert Dick Thompson in my collection & have had them for many years. Altho I do not hold the awards of David Bell, I mention him as he & Robert Dick served together during their brief careers & were killed together on 17 July 1917.

Here is their story::

Robert Dick Thompson was born in Brockett Brae, Lesmahagow, Lanarkshire, Scotland on 15 June 1895.
He was the youngest of 10 children (6 sons, 4 daughters) born to James & Agnes. He came to Canada circa 1912 to live with his eldest brother who had earlier emigrated to Canada & lived at Birrell Ave, Lynn Creek PO, North Vancouver. Presumably he came to Canada to find a better life, perhaps at his older brother’s invitation. Robert Dick was subsequently employed as a teamster & farmer in the North Vancouver area.

On 6 Nov 1916 he signed on the R.N.C.V.R.{Overseas Division} for service on board H.M.S. Shearwater, then in Vancouver. Why he entered the navy I have no idea, he had no prior experience at sea & was a teamster by trade. Another BC boy, David Bell, from Kamploops, signed on on 11 Nov – it is possible they may have known each other or perhaps got to know each other during the initial training period. As it turned out it was to be a fateful decision for both of them.

Robert Dick was 5’61/2” in height, with brown hair & grey eyes. He claimed no prior experience at sea. He could both read & write & signed his name quite clearly. His eyesight was 20/20, his hearing, heart & lungs were all considered healthy & his physical development was rated as good by the examining physician.

He was entered on the books of H.M.C.S. Niobe on 10 Nov & in company with David Bell proceeded overseas to England shortly afterwards. How much prior training they received in Niobe is unknown. They arrived in the UK on 24 Nov & were drafted to HMS Victory for assignment to the Auxiliary Patrol. This was a normal draft for overseas RNCVR ratings.
Their ship was to be H.M.T. Borneo, a trawler of 1906, one of many hired by the RN for coastal minesweeping off the eastern coastal waters of UK. Most of the trawlers were to be employed as minesweepers & Borneo was one of these trawlers fitted out as a minesweeper. She also carried a 6 pounder deck gun. Both Bell & Thompson served together on Borneo, the only two RNCVR’s on board, & presumably received whatever training required in minesweeping on board her. Borneo was employed in the Newhaven area. On Feb 1, 1917 Borneo rescued an aircraft that had crashed in the channel after its engines had failed & towed the aircraft to Portland. However most of Borneo’s duty involved minesweeping & searching for U boats. Minesweeping was a very hazardous task during the Great War & was fraught with risks. Minesweeping was a dangerous occupation & the chance of a ship striking a mine was very good. The mines were laid by German submarines, & one of these, UC17, was responsible for the sinking of HMT Borneo when she struck a mine off Beachy Head & sank with loss of all 11 hands on 18 June 1917. Only two bodies were subsequently recovered, those being both Bell & Thompson, the two Canadians in the crew.

Bell & Thompson had 7 months & 12 days service when they were killed. Both were subsequently buried in Newhaven cemetery beneath a huge monument dedicated to members of the Auxiliary patrol who have no known grave but the sea. The names of HMT Borneo’s crew are engraved on the plinth & both David Bell & Dick Thompson’s names are engraved on either side of the base of the monument.

For his service in the Great War Thompson was awarded the British War & Victory medals. They were both sent on 25 June 1923 to his sister Margaret Muir Fraser at Acme Cottage, Budhill, Shettleston, Glasgow. Thompson’s Memorial plaque & scroll were also sent to her on the following day. His mother Agnes would not have received her Mother’s Cross prior to her death on 18 May 1919 as the cross was not authorized by the Canadian gov’t until 24 Sep 1919. I expect it might have been sent to Agnes’ address as the Canadian authorities would not have known she was deceased. Altho the cross is shown as being sent, there is no date of despatch for the cross on his service record.
It could have been sent, possibly also to Margaret, around the same time as the plaque & medals.
Robert Dick’s father James died on 17 June 1921.

David Bell’s mother would have subsequently received his War medals, Memorial plaque & Mother’s cross. In 1919 she was living in Guelph ON.


I have attached a few shots of the Newhaven Memorial dedicated to members of the Auxiliary patrol who gave their lives in the Great War. Both Bell & Thompson are buried beneath this memorial.

Bryan

[RCN]

Photo of Robert Dick Thompson, RNCVR

[RCN]

Medals, Memorial plaque, & Mother's Cross awarded to the family of R.D. Thompson.

[Wingnut]

Very nice! Thanks for sharing.