Stanley Lascelles Critchison was born in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, on the 26th May 1887, the son of Josiah and Mary Clulow Critchison (née Ryding). His parents had been born in Yorkshire, England, but had immigrated to Australia in the 1880’s. Stanley had an older brother, named Arthur.
The family did not remain in Australia for long, however; as his father died in Sheffield in 1890, indicating that the family had returned to England prior to then. His mother ran a restaurant in Sheffield to support herself and her family, and Stanley trained and qualified as an electrician.
In April 1911, Stanley travelled to Hamilton, Ontario, Canada, but returned home in November of the same year.
In 1913, Stanley married Lillian Ethel Hayes in Sheffield, and shortly after their wedding, they immigrated to Canada and settled in Hamilton, Ontario, where their only child, a boy named Bernard was born in January 1914.
In the spring of 1915, the family decided to return to Great Britain and settle back there, possibly because of the war, and as a consequence, Stanley Critchison booked second cabin passage for the three of them on board the
Lusitania, which was due to leave New York on the morning of 1st May 1915.
Leaving Hamilton by rail at the end of April, the trio arrived at the Cunard berth at Pier 54 in New York harbour on 1st May, in time to board the vessel for her delayed sailing in the early afternoon - the last time that she would ever leave that port!
Just six days later, on the afternoon of 7th May, with the Lusitania within sight of the coast of southern Ireland and only hours away from her Liverpool destination, the family was virtually wiped out after the vessel was torpedoed and sunk. From the three of them, only Stanley Critchison survived to return to England, his wife and son both perished.
Stanley Critchison was rescued from the sea by Royal Naval Patrol Boat H.M.S.
Heron, and he was landed at Kinsale, a small fishing village around the headland from where the
Lusitania sank, with ten other survivors and five dead bodies. From there he was taken to Queenstown where he made a vain search through the mortuaries and hospitals, looking in vain for his loved ones. Eventually, he managed to get to England and to 29, Gilston Road, Kensington, Middlesex, which must have been the home of relatives.
Whilst in Queenstown, he gave an account of his experiences to a reporter of
The Cork Examiner, which was later published in that newspaper. It said: -
Some time before the terrible explosion, he had gone below to pack up as they had been instructed to have everything in readiness by nine o'clock. When the terrible crash came, he rushed on deck to find his wife and child whom he had left sitting there. He went all round the decks, but failed to find them, and then he moved to the starboard side of the boat. "She was going down quickly and soon I was standing on her while her decks were practically awash," said Mr. Critchison.
"I jumped to get away from her, but no sooner had I touched the water than the boat sucked me under. I rose again but was brought under a second time. I rose to the surface once more, and was just alongside an upturned life-boat, which I caught on to".
Continuing, he said that altogether there were ten persons on the life-boat, six of whom were women. They were not long there when two of those women died, and some time later on, the other four women were picked up by another life-boat, the men remaining there until taken off by one of the tugs.
No sign of his wife and child was ever seen again and as a result, neither has a known grave.
Stanley Critchison enlisted in the Royal Engineers and served for the duration of the War, ending his service with the rank of Corporal.
On the 5th April 1920, he married Mary Elizabeth Smith in Sheffield, and the couple had two children – Stanley Bryan, born in 1921, and Arthur Frederick, born in 1922. Stanley ran a newsagents and stationary shop in Sheffield for the remainder of his working life.
Both of Stanley’s sons enlisted in the Royal Air Force during the Second World War, and whereas Arthur survived the War, his brother, Bryan, serving as a Pilot Officer, was killed on the 10th July 1942, when his Wellington aircraft crashed into the sea off the Frisian Islands while on a mine laying mission. There were no survivors from the incident.
Stanley Critchison and his wife, Mary, retired to 22. Marldon Cross Hill, Marldon, Devon, where Stanley died on the 4th January 1959, aged 71 years. He left his estate of £1,649-12s.-10d (£1,649.64½p) to his widow.
Register of Births, Marriages and Deaths, Victoria Australia Birth Index 1837 – 1917, 1901 Census of England & Wales, 1939 Register, Canadian Passenger Lists 1865 – 1935, UK Outgoing Passenger Lists 189- - 1960, UK Incoming Passenger Lists 1878 – 1960, New York Passenger Lists 1820 – 1957, Probate Records, Cork Examiner, Cunard Records, PRO BT 100/345, UniLiv D92/2/231, Deaths at Sea 1871 – 1968, Graham Maddocks, Geoff Whitfield, Michael Poirier, Jim Kalafus, Cliff Barry, Paul Latimer, Norman Gray.
Copyright © Peter Kelly.