Halifax Disaster +"HMS Curaca" 1917

[gumleaves]

Hi All

This site  is  new to me  so here goes.

I have a relative  who was in the Merchant Navy and was killed while standing on the bow of the ship the " HMS Curaca " in Halifax Harbour on 6th Dec 1917 during the massive explosion. His name was Richard  L Pickering-born in Sydney Australia in 1885 but living at Beaumont Street Liverpool Lancashire  when killed,so I am trying to find out  more about him. Where could I find the records for this ship and his record of work .

 He was a second officer  so would that mean he would have been in the service for some time?
I have read a lot about the disaster and have some results from the Archives in Nova Scotia  but would love to find out more about him.
Can anyone point me in the right direction please  ?

[gortonboy]

you have probably seen this before,,but thought it might help with background for other people who may try to help

http://www.halifaxexplosion.org/intro.html

[IMBER]

Just to point out that HMS denotes a Royal Navy ship but the ship in question was actually a merchant vessel.

[gumleaves]

Hi from Down Under

Thankyou for the 2 replies  below . I appreciate your input and will correct the  namimg of the "Curaca"

The ship was loading horses for Europe, it seems.  Maybe to be used  for the troops over there?

[seaweed]

Strange one.
CURACA by all accounts was all but destroyed in the explosion. However the only vessel with this name who could fit the bill seems to have been broken up in Osaka in 1934.
Do you know if she was re floated?
To find out about your relatives sea service you need to know if this is the correct vessel.

[seaweed]

OK. A search of the web came up with this
http://www.helensburgh-heritage.co.uk/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=264&Itemid=194
The London-registered 403 feet long Curaca, built in 1912, was later raised, repaired, and put back into service under the same name. She was transferred to Panamanian registry in 1922 but had the same owners until 1931 when she was sold to the Curaca Shipping Corporation, the Argonaut SS Line, in Panama. In 1934 she was scrapped at Osaka, Japan.
So we now know we have the correct vessel.

As there were no central records of merchant seamen kept between 1857 and 1919 you would first of all need to look at the logbook and crew agreement for the dates in question. You can order a copy of the logbook from UK archives though it can be expensive.
http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/catalogue/displaycataloguedetails.asp?CATID=2352695&CATLN=6&Highlight=%2C135178&accessmethod=0

Search via CURACA's official number 135178


Your best bet (probably cheaper) is to try and obtain both her logbook and Crew agreement from MUN
http://www.mun.ca/mha/holdings/viewcombinedcrews.php?Official_No=135178

Hopefully this should give you some starter information about your man.

[gumleaves]

 Thanks for that Seaweed

The cheaper address is where I will start  -cost being the important factor at times.
The information I had on Richard   came from the" Halifax Disaster Remembrance Book" on the Nova Scotia Archive site
I cannot seem to be able to add the web address  but if anyone is interested just go to the above.

[Pickerings]

Dear Gumleaves
We know that Richard Lionel Pickering was the grandson of James Pickering (born 1836 Leamington UK) and Winifred Taaffe (born 1837 in Sydney Harbour)
Have you found any more since this post earlier this year?
My cousin and I are doing a little research.
Pickerings

[Pickerings]

Richard Lionel Pickering is also an ancestor of mine.  I see that you have him living in UK at some point before the Halifax disaster.  I didn't know that.
What other info do you have please.
There are photos on Ancestry of the memorial to those who died. Also a photo of the SS Curaca.