John Flynn was born in Ireland in 1878. He was married to Mary Flynn and the family home was at 83a, Glasthule Road, Kingstown, Dublin.
His sister, Annie, was married to Walter Kubak, a gardener in Westhampton Beach, Suffolk County, New York, and he was a cousin of William J. Flynn, who was the chief of the United States Secret Service from 1912 until 1917.
He was a clerk by profession and had been visiting his sister in New York, in early 1915.
When he decided to return home, he booked as a third class passenger on the
Lusitania from New York to Liverpool and joined her before she left the North River for the last time, on 1st May 1915.
He never saw his native home again, however, for he was killed one week later, when the liner was torpedoed and sunk. As his body was never recovered from the sea and identified, after the sinking, he has no known grave. He was aged 37 years.
After his death, his widow applied for financial help from The Lusitania Relief Fund, administered by The Lord Mayor of Liverpool, and on 24th July 1915, she was awarded an immediate £2-0s-0d to be paid at the rate of £0-10s-0d for four weeks, and then £0-7s-6d., (6½p.) per week, for a further three months. This award was continued indefinitely, and there is evidence to suggest that the couple had one child as records indicate that the child was also awarded the sum of £0-2s-6d. per week.
Cunard Records, Liverpool Record Office, Brooklyn Times Union, PRO 22/71, UniLiv D92/2/11, Deaths at Sea 1871 – 1968, Graham Maddocks, Geoff Whitfield, Michael Poirier, Jim Kalafus, Cliff Barry, Paul Latimer, Norman Gray.
Copyright © Peter Kelly.