Albert Henry Cadwallader – Mercantile Marine Reserve, S.S. Eleanor

Donkeyman Albert Henry Cadwallader – Mercantile Marine Reserve, S.S. Eleanor

Family Background and Early Life

Albert Henry Cadwallader was born in 1892 in Cardiff, the son of John Robert Cadwallader and Emily Hastings, who were married in 1889 at St Mary’s Church, Swansea.

1901 Census

At the time of the 1901 Census, the Cadwallader family were residing at 70 High Street, Swansea. Albert’s father, John Robert (35), born in Cheshire, was employed as a mariner, while his mother Emily (34), born in Cardiff, managed the household. Their children were Albert (9); Winifred (4); Elizabeth (3); and John (1). Also present in the household was Rose Hastings (22).

1911 Census

By the 1911 Census, the family had moved to 43 Llangyfelach Road, Swansea. John Robert Cadwallader, now 44, was working as a marine steward, and Emily, aged 43, continued to manage the household. Their children were Albert (20), employed as a refrigerating engineer; Winifred (14); Elizabeth (13); Herbert (11); Lucy (9); Clifford (8); and Emily (3).

Maritime Service and Death

Albert Henry Cadwallader later joined the Mercantile Marine Reserve, serving in the rank of Donkeyman, a role involving the operation and maintenance of a ship’s engines and auxiliary machinery.

During the First World War, Albert was serving aboard S.S. Eleanor. Eleanor was built by H. S. Edwards & Sons in 1888 for the Eleanor Steamship Company, and was employed during the war as a merchant vessel operating in waters heavily threatened by German submarines.

British Army and Navy Birth, Marriage and Death Records

South Wales Daily Post

On 12^th February 1918, S.S. Eleanor was torpedoed and sunk by a German submarine approximately nine miles west by south-half-south of St Catherine’s Point, off the Isle of Wight. The attack resulted in the loss of the captain and all 34 members of the crew, including Donkeyman Albert Henry Cadwallader. His death was reported in the South Wales Daily Post and is also recorded in the British Army and Navy Birth, Marriage and Death Records, which note that his exact place and date of birth were not known at the time of registration.

Commemoration

Albert Henry Cadwallader
Plymouth Naval Memorial, Plymouth
credit - findagrave

Albert Henry Cadwallader has no known grave, and his sacrifice is commemorated on the Plymouth Naval Memorial, which honours members of the Royal Navy and Mercantile Marine who lost their lives at sea during the First World War.