Thomas Ledene was born in Limerick, County Limerick, Ireland, between 1855 and 1860. He was a widower, having been married to Margaret Ledene, who died in Liverpool in 1897.
Nothing is known about his family or life except that in 1910, he was convicted of rape in Liverpool and sentenced to twelve months imprisonment.
He was a career seaman and served as an able seaman in the Deck Department on board the Lusitania and was killed when she was sunk.
His body was not recovered and identified afterwards and as a consequence, he is commemorated on the Mercantile Marine War Memorial at Tower Hill, London. He was aged 50 years.
The name Ledene only appears in the Cunard Records and the records of the Commonwealth War Graves Commission and is not a surname known to Ireland. It is more likely that his surname was Ledane or Liddane, which are common surnames in the County Limerick area
of Ireland, but it has proved impossible to definitively trace this man due to the absence of other evidence.
1891 Census of England, 1901 Census of England, Liverpool Crew Lists 1861 – 1919, Cunard Records, Commonwealth War Graves Commission, UK Calendar of Prisoners 1868 – 1929, PRO BT 334, Deaths at Sea 1871 – 1968, Graham Maddocks, Geoff Whitfield, Michael Poirier, Jim Kalafus, Cliff Barry, Paul Latimer, Norman Gray.
Copyright © Peter Kelly.
Revised & Updated – 29th February 2024.