George Llewellyn Garnham - Royal Naval Reserve, H.M. Trawler Benton Castle

Deck Hand George Llewellyn Garnham - Royal Naval Reserve, H.M. Trawler Benton Castle

Birth and Early Life

George Llewellyn Garnham was born in 1892 at Hakin, Pembrokeshire, the son of Edgar Garnham and Minnie Matilda Atkinson.

1901 Census

The only census in which George is recorded is that of 1901, when the family were residing at 44 St. Anne’s Road, Hakin. His father, Edgar Garnham (34), born in Kent, was employed as a fisherman, while his Yorkshire-born wife Matilda (35) managed the household. Their children were: Matilda (15); Sarah E. (13); John E. (12); George L. (9); Joseph S. (8); and Lillian L. (4).

Army Registers of Soldiers’ Effects

The Army Registers of Soldiers’ Effects record that in April 1915, a Lance Bombardier Garnham of the Royal Field Artillery was discharged, having enlisted the previous November. This is believed to relate to George before his transfer to naval service.

Naval Service

George subsequently joined the Royal Naval Reserve, serving as a Deck Hand aboard H.M. Trawler Benton Castle. Requisitioned fishing trawlers such as Benton Castle were employed on dangerous patrol and minesweeping duties around Britain’s coasts during the First World War, operating in heavily mined waters with little protection.

Loss of H.M. Trawler Benton Castle

On 10^th November 1916, Benton Castle was sunk off Dartmouth after striking a mine laid by the German submarine UC-17. The explosion resulted in the deaths of ten crew members, including George Llewellyn Garnham.

Commemoration

George Llewellyn Garnham 
Plymouth Naval Memorial, Plymouth
credit - findagrave

George Llewellyn Garnham lost his life on 10 November 1916. With no known grave, he is commemorated on the Plymouth Naval Memorial, which honours sailors of the Royal Navy and Royal Naval Reserve who died at sea during the First World War.

By the time of the 1921 Census, his father Edgar Garnham was recorded as residing at 22 Canterbury Road, Swansea.