Evan Dare Baker – Mercantile Marine, S.S. Henley

Third Engineer Evan Dare Baker – Mercantile Marine, S.S. Henley

Early Life and Family Background

Evan Dare Baker was born in 1899 in Swansea, the only son of Thomas Dare Baker and Joan Caradock Thomas, who were married in 1896 at Abergavenny, Monmouthshire.

1901 Census

The 1901 Census records the Baker family living at 40 Swansea Street, Swansea. Thomas, aged 26 and born in Haverfordwest, was employed on the railways, while his wife Joan, also aged 26 and born in Newport, cared for their young family. They had two children: Evan, aged 2, and Elsie, aged 6 months.

1911 Census

By the time of the 1911 Census, the family had moved to 8 Jones Terrace, Swansea. Thomas, now 37, was working as a timekeeper, and Joan, aged 34, continued as homemaker. Their children were Evan, aged 12; Bessie, aged 7; and Joan, aged 3. Their first daughter, Elsie, had sadly passed away during the previous decade.

Service in the First World War

As a young man, Evan Dare Baker joined the Mercantile Marine during the First World War, serving as Third Engineer aboard the S.S. Henley.

The S.S. Henley

The S.S. Henley was a British steam cargo vessel, built in 1894 by A. Stephen & Sons Ltd. of Glasgow for the Britain Steamship Company, managed by Watts, Watts & Co. The ship was part of Britain’s vast merchant fleet, transporting essential goods and fuel to support the Allied war effort.

In April 1918, the Henley was sailing from Barry, Wales, to St Nazaire, France, with a cargo of coal—an indispensable resource for powering naval and transport operations. On 10 April 1918, while off the south-west coast of England, about 25 nautical miles south-west of The Lizard, Cornwall, the Henley was torpedoed without warning by the German submarine UB-109, commanded by Kurt Ramien. The attack caused the vessel to sink rapidly, resulting in the loss of at least six crew members, including Third Engineer Evan Dare Baker.

The Henley’s destruction exemplified the peril faced by merchant seamen during Germany’s campaign of unrestricted submarine warfare, which targeted ships carrying supplies vital to Britain’s survival.

The German Submarine UB-109

The UB-109 was a Type UB III submarine built by Blohm & Voss in Hamburg and commissioned into the Imperial German Navy in December 1917 under the command of Kapitänleutnant Kurt Ramien. Armed with ten torpedoes and an 8.8 cm deck gun, and crewed by around 34 men, it operated as part of the Flanders Flotilla during 1918. In a short but deadly career, UB-109 sank seven merchant ships, totalling more than 14,000 tons.

On 10^th April 1918, UB-109 torpedoed and sank the S.S. Henley off the coast of Cornwall, killing Evan Dare Baker and several of his crewmates. Later that year, on 29 August 1918, the submarine itself was destroyed after striking a mine in the Dover Barrage, with the loss of all hands. Decades later, its wreck was identified on the seabed of the English Channel—a silent testament to the destructive power of submarine warfare during the Great War.

Loss at Sea and Commemoration

S.S. Henley
Tower Hill Memorial, London
credit - Benjidog Historical Research Resources:
The Merchant Navy Memorial 

Evan Dare Baker lost his life in the attack on 10^th April 1918, aged just 19. Like many in the Mercantile Marine, he was a civilian serving in dangerous conditions, contributing to the war effort at great personal risk.

His name is commemorated on the Tower Hill Memorial, London, which honours the men and women of the Merchant Navy and Fishing Fleets who died at sea during the First World War and have no known grave but the ocean.

Legacy

Evan Dare Baker was a young man from Swansea who faced hardship from an early age yet went on to serve his country with dedication during the First World War. As Third Engineer aboard the S.S. Henley, he carried out vital but perilous work, helping to sustain Britain’s war effort through maritime service. His death in 1918 stands as a testament to the courage and sacrifice of the countless ordinary seamen whose lives were lost in the cause of freedom.