Reginald Purse was born in Peckham, London, Surrey, England, on the 8th August 1883, the son of Henry and Elizabeth Purse (née Rowell). The family home was at 52. Clayton Road, Peckham, Reginald being the younger of two children, his sister, Lucy, being sixteen years older than him. His father was an engineer, who died in 1887, when Reginald was aged just four years.
Reginald became an artist, and in February 1909, he had crossed the Atlantic Ocean, sailing from Southampton
board the Teutonic. His destination was Chicago, Illinois.
He returned to England in late 1909, and in the summer of 1910, he married Gertrude Alice ‘Gertie’ Purse, and on the 3rd August, they boarded the Majestic at Southampton and on disembarking in New York City, they made their way to Omaha, Nebraska, where Reginald had secured employment as an artist and illustrator with Baker Brothers Engraving Company.
By 1911, the couple had moved to Chattanooga, Tennessee, where Reginald was employed by the Purse Printing Company, at East 10th Street in the city. The owner of the company, Mr. R.P. Purse, was not related to Reginald, but immediately hired him when he applied for the position with the company. Reginald and Gertie Purse resided at 502, Georgia Avenue, Chattanooga.
In the spring of 1915, Gertie Purse persuaded her husband to accompany her back to London to see her family as she was homesick, and consequently, he booked second cabin passage with the Cunard line to sail from New York to Liverpool. Thus, on the morning of 1st May 1915, he and his wife arrived at the Cunard berth at Pier 54 in New York and boarded the Lusitania in time for her scheduled 10 o’clock departure.
The liner’s departure for Liverpool was then delayed until the early afternoon, to take on board passengers, cargo and some crew from the Anchor Liner Cameronia, which had been taken up by the British Admiralty for war work as a troop ship. Then, six days later, on the afternoon of 7th May, she was torpedoed twelve miles off the coast of southern Ireland by the German submarine U-20, and sank two miles nearer to the shore. At that stage of her voyage, she was only 250 miles from her home port.
Both Reginald Purse and his wife were killed as a result of this action and as neither of their bodies was ever recovered and identified afterwards, neither has a known grave. Reginald Purse was aged 31 years at the time.
On 30th April 1917, nearly two years after his death, probate of his estate was granted to his father-in-law, Mr. Richard Hunt, who was a packing case manager. His effects in England amounted to £110-15s-4d., (£110.77p.).
Reginald Purse also made a Will in the week before he left Chattanooga, fearing that both he and his wife would not survive the voyage to England. His estate was divided between his mother, his now married sister and her daughter, and his wife’s family. This estate was also administered by his father-in-law.
Register of Births, Marriages and Deaths, London England Church of England Births and Baptisms 1813 – 1920, 1891 Census of England & Wales, 1901 Census of England & Wales, New York Passenger Lists 1820 – 1957, UK Outward Passenger Lists 1890 – 1960, Cunard Records, 1911 Omaha City Directory, 1912 Chattanooga City Directory, Tennessee U.S. Wills and Probate Records 1779 – 2008, Chattanooga News, Chattanooga Daily Times, Probate Records, PRO BT 100/345, Deaths at Sea 1871 – 1968, Graham Maddocks, Geoff Whitfield, Michael Poirier, Jim Kalafus, Cliff Barry, Paul Latimer, Norman Gray.
Copyright © Peter Kelly.