John Henry Evans – Royal Navy

Stoker 1st Class John Henry Evans – Royal Navy

Early Life and Family Background

John Henry Evans was born in 1891, at Llansamlet, Swansea, the son of William Rees Evans and Mary Hannah Evans.

1891 Census

At the time of the 1891 Census, the young family were living at Birchgrove, Swansea. William, aged 26, worked as a coal miner, while Mary, aged 23, managed the home. Their children were Margaret H., aged 1, and the infant John Henry, only two months old.

1901 Census

A decade later, the 1901 Census shows the Evans family living at 1 Gordon Terrace, Dulais Upper, St Cattwg, Neath. William, now 36, was employed as a Collier underground – Hewer, and Mary Anna, aged 34, continued to run the household. Their children had grown in number: Margaret Anna (11), John Henry (10), Mary Ann (7), Elizabeth (6), Rees David (3), and Daniel Thomas, a baby of three months. Also present in the home were three boarders—John Davies (30), William Davies (23), and Robert Thomas (32)—reflecting the common practice of miners’ families taking in lodgers to supplement household income.

1911 Census

By the 1911 Census, the family had moved again, this time to Church Street, Cwmgorse G.C.G., Pontardawe. William, aged 47, remained a Coal Miner Hewer, and Mary, aged 43, continued her domestic duties. Only one child was still living at home: John Henry, aged 16, who had followed his father into the mines and was working as a Coal Miner Hewer. Also present was a visitor, Jane Thomas, aged 25.

Royal Navy Records 

Service in the Royal Navy

John Henry Evans enlisted in the Royal Navy in 1908, beginning his service aboard H.M.S. Vivid, the shore establishment at Devonport used for training stokers and engine-room personnel. He initially served as a Stoker 2nd Class, later rising to Stoker 1st Class, a role demanding physical strength, endurance, and technical skill in the heat and confinement of a ship’s boiler rooms.

His naval records—fortunately preserved—show that he continued to serve aboard Vivid throughout his career. However, by March 1916, John was invalided out of the Navy, his health having deteriorated during service. He was suffering from tuberculosis, a disease that struck many stokers due to the extreme working conditions, poor ventilation, and constant exposure to heat, coal dust, and physical strain.

John Henry Evans
Anion Baptist Cemetery, Birchgrove credit - findagrave

Death and Burial

John Henry Evans died on 2 April 1916, at the Royal Navy Hospital, Plymouth, aged 25. His death came only weeks after being discharged from service, marking the end of a short but dedicated naval career. His body was brought home to Swansea, where he was laid to rest at Anion Baptist Cemetery, Birchgrove, returning him to the community where he had been born and raised.