Hi Hana,
Great that you've seen my reply. Samuel Browne OBE is indeed my grandfather. He earned the OBE during the Second World War. His ship was sunk by a U-Boat in the Atlantic, he was then adrift in a life raft for some days. The ship (owned by Fyffes) was called the 'Aracataca'.
I hadn't known that your great-grandfather had earlier sailed with Samuel. Very interesting, especially as it was in the Verbena. I have an old painting of the ship (see the attached scan), and also a photograph of the crew. I don't know if John Hill Browne is among them. Maybe if you have a photo of him (I'd love to see it if you do!) you can compare. The crew photo comes from an excellent book called 'Islandmagee Seafarers - The Distinctive Maritime Heritage of East Antrim' by William Blair and Alicia St Leger, published by the Mid-Antrim Museums Service in 2005. It has a lot of information and photos of the Browne seafarers.
The unmarried aunts (Aggy and Liz) lived their entire lives at 'Bayview'. Right to the end it did not have electricity or running water. I think I remember they had a well at the back of the house. The house does still exist, in Town Lane, Islandmagee. I do have a photo of it, which I will find for you. Sally married quite late in life, to another famous Islandmagee sea captain, Alexander 'Minorca' Kane, and left 'Bayview', although she continued to live in Islandmagee.
I will let my uncle (Norman Browne) know that you've been in touch. He fondly remembers travelling to Bayview during the war to meet Jack Browne, who was on leave from the Australian Air Force. That is the only time they met.
It would be wonderful to hear more from you too!
David
Thanks for the advice Helena, much appreciated!