Bernard Patrick Norton was born at Patrick Street, Athlone, County Westmeath, Ireland, on the 6th March 1871, the youngest child of James and Elizabeth Norton (née Irwin). He was one of a family of eight, and had six sisters and a brother.
His father, James, was described as a ‘car driver’, and he accidentally drowned in the River Shannon in Athlone on the 8th February 1871 – four weeks before Bernard was born.
As far as in known, all of Bernard’s siblings moved out of the family home, leaving him to reside with his widowed mother at Scotch Parade, Athlone, until her death in 1901. At this time, he was working as a weaver in the local woollen industry.
By 1901, his older brother, Thomas, was working as a dock labourer in Liverpool, Lancashire, England, and is likely that after their mother’s death, there was nothing to keep Bernard in Athlone, so he joined his brother in Liverpool. Many of his other siblings were also residing in the Liverpool area by this time.
He became a professional merchant seaman and had made many trips across the Atlantic on the Lusitania, bringing back many presents for his large family. He signed on as a fireman in the Engineering Department for what proved to be her very last voyage, at Liverpool, on the 13th April 1915, at a monthly rate of pay of £6-10s.-0d. (£6.50p.). At that time, he gave his home address as The David Lewis Hostel, Liverpool, although he was then living at his brother’s home at 60, Byles Street, Dingle, Liverpool. He also stated that he had been born in Garston, Liverpool, and was aged 38 years. Neither of these latter two facts tally either, with information given to the Imperial War Graves Commission by relatives, after his death and to Graham Maddocks in 1998.
He joined the ship on the morning of the 17th April 1915, before she left the River Mersey for the last time and he was killed nearly three weeks later, when she was sunk. At that time, there was a balance of wages of £4-14s.-0d. (£4.70p.), owing to him.
His body was not recovered and identified afterwards and as a result he is commemorated on the Mercantile Marine Memorial at Tower Hill, London. He was aged 44 years.
Some time in the 1920’s, the family received £11 compensation, apparently from the German government.
Register of Births, Marriages and Deaths, 1901 Census of Ireland, Cunard Records, Commonwealth War Graves Commission, PRO BT 100/345, PRO BT 334, PRO BT 351/1/105435, Deaths at Sea 1871 – 1968, Graham Maddocks, Florence Robinson, Geoff Whitfield, Michael Poirier, Jim Kalafus, Cliff Barry, Paul Latimer, Norman Gray.
Copyright © Peter Kelly.
Revised & Updated – 27th January 2025.