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First World War, Haden Hill, James Browning, Lord Street, Madeira, Mercantile Marines, SS Calliope, Tower Hill
The son of James and Emma Browning, James was born in Birmingham in 1874. In 1898, he married Elizabeth Constable in Wolverhampton. In 1901, Elizabeth was living at 8 Haden Hill, Wolverhampton with a new-born (as yet unnamed) male baby, but there is no trace of James. The baby was later named Frederick Charlton. By 1911, Elizabeth was boarding at the house of George Thomas Galleymore at 175 Lord Street, Wolverhampton, and James was on board the Tunisian ship, just out of Glasgow, as he was serving with the Mercantile Marines.
James joined the Mercantile Marine as a First Mate. On 9 July 1917, the British steamer SS Calliope, on a voyage from Sevilla to Newport, Montreal, was sunk by a German submarine, some 150 miles north of Madeira, with all 27 hands. As James was lost at sea, he is remembered on the Memorial at Tower Hill.
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The research for this blog post was done by one of our remote volunteers, Jacky de Escofet.