Oral History Recording with John Devlin
Digital sound recording in two parts
Subject: Merchant Navy; Catering Department: mess room boy, steward
OHY/6/93/1 - 1.6 GB; 01:39:24
OHY/6/93/2 - 1.6 GB; 01:39:30
John Devlin was born in 1892 in Liverpool. His father was an engineer at sea and his mother was a schoolteacher. There is an interesting social history of Liverpool at this time, with a focus on poverty, religion and children being sent to the Canadian mid-west. He also talks about training ships in the Mersey: Akbar, which he describes as a kind of Borstal, Conway for officers and Indefatigable for orphans.
Devlin left school at 14 to do an engineering apprenticeship ashore but ultimately went to sea in the Catering Department; he specifically mentions sailing as a mess room boy and as a steward. He wanted to be an engineer but he couldn’t afford the 7-year apprenticeship. He says there were few opportunities at the time and he had dreams of seeing the world.
His first ship was a cattle ship with the Warren Line, where he worked as a messroom boy. He also worked in the Allen Line carrying migrants and there is a particularly interesting section on the conditions for emigrants below decks. Devlin describes 900 people crammed into cargo holds with poor food and sanitation and only one doctor. He also refers to crew members jumping ship in America. The situation below deck is compared to the First Class Accommodation.
Devlin was particularly interested in politics and was given the nickname ‘Jo Devlin’ for his interest in socialism. Much of his interview is concerned with conditions of seafarers, the differences between lines and the role and impact of unions. He compares the treatment of seafarers to prisoners explaining that they were similarly denied the vote when at sea, denied their liberty and treated as servants of the ship owners. He draws particular attention to the fact that if a seafarer was ill or injured and hospitalised, his pay was immediately stopped. He is candid on the major divisions between officers and crew and his personal hostility towards captains who expected to be treated like God. Unemployment and the threat of punishment were, he says, tools to keep men in line.
Though there is little detail given, it seems he served in the army in the First World War and took part in the campaign at Gallipoli.
Administrative / biographical background
Oral history with John Devlin conducted by Campbell McMurray
Subject: Merchant Navy; Catering Department: mess room boy, steward
OHY/6/93/1 - 1.6 GB; 01:39:24
OHY/6/93/2 - 1.6 GB; 01:39:30
John Devlin was born in 1892 in Liverpool. His father was an engineer at sea and his mother was a schoolteacher. There is an interesting social history of Liverpool at this time, with a focus on poverty, religion and children being sent to the Canadian mid-west. He also talks about training ships in the Mersey: Akbar, which he describes as a kind of Borstal, Conway for officers and Indefatigable for orphans.
Devlin left school at 14 to do an engineering apprenticeship ashore but ultimately went to sea in the Catering Department; he specifically mentions sailing as a mess room boy and as a steward. He wanted to be an engineer but he couldn’t afford the 7-year apprenticeship. He says there were few opportunities at the time and he had dreams of seeing the world.
His first ship was a cattle ship with the Warren Line, where he worked as a messroom boy. He also worked in the Allen Line carrying migrants and there is a particularly interesting section on the conditions for emigrants below decks. Devlin describes 900 people crammed into cargo holds with poor food and sanitation and only one doctor. He also refers to crew members jumping ship in America. The situation below deck is compared to the First Class Accommodation.
Devlin was particularly interested in politics and was given the nickname ‘Jo Devlin’ for his interest in socialism. Much of his interview is concerned with conditions of seafarers, the differences between lines and the role and impact of unions. He compares the treatment of seafarers to prisoners explaining that they were similarly denied the vote when at sea, denied their liberty and treated as servants of the ship owners. He draws particular attention to the fact that if a seafarer was ill or injured and hospitalised, his pay was immediately stopped. He is candid on the major divisions between officers and crew and his personal hostility towards captains who expected to be treated like God. Unemployment and the threat of punishment were, he says, tools to keep men in line.
Though there is little detail given, it seems he served in the army in the First World War and took part in the campaign at Gallipoli.
Administrative / biographical background
Oral history with John Devlin conducted by Campbell McMurray
Record details
| Item reference: | OHY/6/93 |
|---|---|
| Level: | FILE |
| Date made: | 1970 - 1980 |
| Creator: | Devlin, John; McMurray, Campbell |
| Credit: | National Maritime Museum, Greenwich, London |
Hierarchy
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