Harry King was born in Camberwell, London, England, on the 12th September 1890, the son of William Henry and Mary Jane King (née Whittle). The family home was at 58. Waterloo Street, Camberwell, for a number of years, and later at 60. Selbourne Road, Walthamstow, in North London. Both of his parents had been married, and widowed, before they got married in 1885, and both had children by their first marriages, therefore Harry had a number of half-siblings. His mother had previously been married to one George Holloway, so some of his half-siblings were named Holloway.
His father was a house painter, and on completion of his education, Harry worked as a warehouse man.
In November 1910, Harry and his brother, Alfred Walter, who was one year his junior, arrived in New York City on the St. Paul. Their final destination was the city of Chicago, Illinois, where their half-brother, Edwin G. Holloway, resided. By April 1915, Harry was living at 1445. Cleveland Avenue, Chicago, and was working as a clerk. By this time, he had also commenced his application to become a naturalized U.S. citizen.
In the spring of 1915, he had decided to return to England, but it is not known if he was returning for a holiday, or if he intended to “do his bit” for his country by enlisting in the British Army.
Consequently, he booked third class passage on what proved to be the final voyage of the Lusitania. He boarded the vessel on Saturday morning, 1st May, in time for her scheduled 10 o’clock departure. However, the sailing was delayed until after midday as some cargo, and a number of passengers and crew members of the Anchor Lines, S.S Cameronia, which had earlier been requisitioned by the British Admiralty to go in to service as a troop carrier, were transferred on board.
Six days later, when in sight of the Old Head of Kinsale, off the southern coast of Ireland, Harry King was killed when the vessel was sunk by a German torpedo fired from the submarine, U-20.
No trace of him was ever found, or if his remains were recovered, they were never identified.
Register of Births, Marriages and Deaths, 1891 Census of England & Wales, 1901 Census of England & Wales, 1911 Census of England & Wales, Illinois Federal Naturalization Records 1856 – 1991, New York Passenger Lists 1820 – 1957, Cunard Records, Deaths at Sea 1871 – 1968, Graham Maddocks, Geoff Whitfield, Michael Poirier, Jim Kalafus, Cliff Barry, Paul Latimer, Norman Gray.
Copyright © Peter Kelly.