Thomas Williams was born in Ponkey, Rhos, Ruabon, Denbighshire, Wales, in 1864, the son of Mr. & Mrs. Thomas Williams. His father was a coal miner, and although it is not known how many siblings Thomas had, it is likely that all his male siblings worked in the coal mines, as did Thomas himself, when they came of age.
On the 13th February 1886, Thomas married Sarah (née Williams), and the couple had an two known children. Sarah’s widowed father and one of her brothers resided with Thomas and his family.
Sometime between 1901 and 1907, Thomas’ wife, Sarah, died and in the summer of 1907, he married Jane (née Williams). It is not known if Jane Williams was related to his first wife, but it is not thought they were sisters. In 1910, their daughter, Ceridwen, was born. The family home was at 1, Bryn Offa, Adwy’r Clawdd, Wrexham, Denbighshire. Jane Williams suffered from deafness and was unable to work.
Thomas Williams had been employed in The Plas Power Colliery at Coedpoeth, near Wrexham. He took an active part in local politics, being for many years a member of Bersham Parish Council and was also prominent in the Welch Baptist Church in the area where he lived.
Before the Great War, several members of his family had emigrated to Johnstown, Pennsylvania, in the United States of America, to work in the coal mines there, and in 1911, leaving his wife and children in Wrexham, he decided to join his relatives there - no doubt hoping to make his fortune!. While in Johnson, he resided at 318. Morrell
Place.
By the spring of 1915, however, he decided to return home to Wales - perhaps because by this time, his son, who had enlisted in The Royal Welsh Fusiliers on the outbreak of war, had been reported missing in action. Consequently, he wrote to his wife in April 1915, stating that he had originally intended to take passage home from New York on the Anchor liner Transylvania, but had decided to put off his plans stating: -
..... that he would come in two or three months when the sea was safer.
He must have changed his mind again, however, because on Monday 3rd May 1915, Mrs. Williams received a letter from him, posted in America, to say that he intended to join the Lusitania at New York on 1st May for his journey home and asking her to meet him at Liverpool when the liner arrived!
He did, in fact join the ship as a third class passenger on the morning of 1st May 1915 at her berth at Pier 54 in New York harbour and was on board her when she sailed out into the North River and made her way into the Atlantic Ocean, just after mid-day.
Six day later with the liner only hours away from her Liverpool destination, Thomas Williams was killed, after she was torpedoed and sunk. As his body was never recovered and identified afterwards, he has no known grave. He was aged 51 years, although his age on the passenger manifest was 45 years!
Probably at about the same time that the Lusitania was meeting her destiny off the coast of southern Ireland, Thomas Williams’ brother in-in-law was on his way to Wrexham to find out what time the liner was due to dock the following day. Local newspaper The Wrexham Advertiser for Saturday 15th May describes the tragic situation which unfolded after this: -
He returned with the staggering and tragic intelligence that the Lusitania had fallen a victim to a German submarine attack. The anxious relatives instituted every possible inquiry, and the following letter has been received by them from the Cunard Steamship (sic) Co., Ltd.: - “With reference to your enquiry from our agent at Wrexham, we have to advise you that the name Thomas Williams appears on the list of third-class passengers from New York on the Lusitania. We are sorry that we have no further news regarding him.”
Further correspondence received from America by other people in the district goes to prove that Mr. Williams did set sail on the ill-fated vessel. The list of survivors published on Monday contained the name of “Thomas J. Williams” but Mrs. Williams informed our representative that her husband had only the one Christian name. As no news had been received up to Thursday afternoon, there seems little doubt that he was among the number of the passengers who perished.
Nothing further was ever heard or seen of the Welch coal miner and on 12th November 1915, administration of his estate was granted jointly at St. Asaph, Flintshire, Wales, to Thomas Charles Griffiths, who was a builder and Joseph Wilcoxon, who was an assistant overseer. His effects amounted to £430-4s-3d., (£430.21p.).
In the summer of 1915, Jane Williams applied to The Lusitania Relief Fund, for
financial help. This fund had been set up immediately after the liner had gone down, by The Lord Mayor of Liverpool and other local business dignitaries to help second and third class passenger survivors and the relatives of those who had perished, who had come upon financial difficulties as a result of the sinking. It was thought at the time that the saloon passengers would not need financial help!
She was awarded a sum of £3-0s-0d, with further enquiries to be made as to her dependency on her late husband as it was stated that they were separated.
His missing son was eventually reported to be a prisoner of war in Germany, but it is not known if he survived the war or returned safely to his Wrexham home!
Register of Births, Marriages and Deaths, Denbighshire Wales Anglican Baptisms, Marriages and Burials 1556 – 1994, 1891 Census of England & Wales, 1901 Census of England & Wales, 1911 Census of England & Wales, Cunard Records, Liverpool Record Office, Wrexham Advertiser, Probate Records, PRO BT 100/345, UniLiv D92/2/167, Deaths at Sea 1871 – 1968, Graham Maddocks, Geoff Whitfield, Michael Poirier, Jim Kalafus, Cliff Barry, Paul Latimer, Norman Gray.
Copyright © Peter Kelly.