James Burke was born in Liverpool, Lancashire, England, on the 7th February 1896, the son of Thomas and Margaret Burke (née Forsy or Forsyth). Nothing is known of his family or early life, and it is likely his father died when he was very young.
He was married to Sarah Ellen Richardson, and they lived at 43, Clive Street, Liverpool. In fact, the couple married twice! The first ceremony being at St. Matthew’s Church, Toxteth Park, Liverpool, a Church of England ceremony, on the 1st June 1914, and then, on the 11th June 1914, they married in St. Malachy’s Roman Catholic Church, Beaufort Street, Toxteth Park.
James Burke signed on as a trimmer in the Engineering Department on board the Lusitania at Liverpool, on the 12th April 1915 for what would be the liner’s last ever voyage to America and reported for duty at 8 a.m. on the 17th April, the day she left the River Mersey. As a trimmer, his monthly rate of pay was £6-0s-0d. and upon engagement, he was given an advance on his pay of £1-0s-0d.
James Burke was killed when the great liner was sunk. He was aged 19 years.
His body was not recovered and identified afterwards and as a result, he is commemorated on the Mercantile Marine War Memorial at Tower Hill, London.
The Liverpool and London War Risks Insurance Association Limited granted a yearly pension to Sarah Burke to compensate her for the loss of her husband which amounted to £39-4s-10d. (£39.24p.) which was payable at the rate of £3-3s-9d. (£3.18½p.) per month.
Sarah Burke was expecting the couple’s first and only child at the time of his death, and their son, James, was born in late 1915 or early 1916. He followed in his father’s footsteps by joining the Mercantile Marine as a trimmer and on the 4th August 1942, he was killed when his ship, Empire Arnold, was sunk by the German submarine, U-155, off the coast of Trinidad in South America. The 10,000 tons of cargo on board included aircraft and tanks for the Allied war effort.
Register of Births, Marriages and Deaths, Liverpool England Catholic Baptisms 1741 – 1919, Liverpool England Catholic Marriages 1754 – 1933, Liverpool England Church of England Marriages and Banns 1754 – 1935, Cunard Records, Commonwealth War Graves Commission, UK Campaign Medals Awarded to World War I Merchant Seamen 1914 – 1925, PRO BT 334, PRO BT 351/1/18137, UniLiv. PR 13/24, Deaths at Sea 1871 – 1968, Graham Maddocks, Geoff Whitfield, Michael Poirier, Jim Kalafus, Cliff Barry, Paul Latimer, Norman Gray.
Copyright © Peter Kelly.
Revised & Updated – 27th December 2022.