Sydney Joseph Durand was born in West Derby, Liverpool, Lancashire, England, on the 29th October 1896, the son of Oscar Francis and Matilda Mary Ann Durand (née Hosier). Sydney was one of 16 children, although by 1911, only 7 were surviving. The Durand family resided for many years at Mozart St., Liverpool, but by 1915, they were residing at 33. Longfellow St., Liverpool.
Oscar Durand was a general labourer, but also fell afoul of the law as he was in a prison in Liverpool on the night when the 1911 English Census was taken, and records reveal
that it was not his first time as he had a number of criminal convictions. Mary Ann Durand was a glass and chia mender, and Sydney helped his mother with her work which she conducted from her home.
On the 12th April 1915, despite the pleas of his mother, Sydney Durand engaged as a scullery man in the Stewards' Department on board the Lusitania at Liverpool at a monthly rate of pay of £3-15s.-0d. (£3.75p). He joined the vessel at her berth at Liverpool Pier Head on the morning of the 17th April 1915; in time for what would become her last ever voyage out of the River Mersey. He was only eighteen years old at the time, and it was his first time going to sea.
What Sydney thought of life as a merchant seaman is unknown, but he certainly was serving in the same capacity on the return voyage when the Lusitania departed from New York harbour on Saturday, 1st May. When the great liner was sunk on the 7th May, while off the Old Head of Kinsale in southern Ireland, Sydney Durand was listed as being one of the 1,198 casualties.
His body was never recovered and identified afterwards and as a consequence, he is commemorated on the Mercantile Marine Memorial at Tower Hill, London.
On hearing the news that the Lusitania had been sunk by a German submarine, riots occurred in Liverpool and many other cities and towns in the United Kingdom. Durand family folklore states that Sydney Durand’s sisters took part in the riots in Liverpool, where they attacked businesses owned by Germans. One story states that his sister, Rose, discharged a shotgun through the window of a pork butcher shop owned by a German national.
Within a short time of the tragedy, Sydney’s father, Oscar Durand, presented himself at a Recruiting Office to enlist in the King’s Liverpool Regiment, who were also known as the ‘Liverpool Pals’. He gave his name as Oscar Duffy, and stated that he was aged 40 years, when in fact he was aged 56 years! After a month of basic training, he was deemed to be not likely to become an efficient soldier, but rather than being discharged, he was classified as a ‘Class B’ soldier and transferred to the army reserve. By being placed on the reserve list, it appears likely that he was able to convince the authorities that he was sixteen years younger than he actually was!
The records of the Commonwealth War Graves Commission recorded Sydney Durand as Sydney Dewrance; however, following correspondence from Graham Maddocks in the 1990’s, they amended their records to record his correct name. His name is still recorded as Dewrance on the Mercantile Marine Memorial at Tower Hill, London, but it is likely it will be amended if the panel containing his name is ever updated.
Register of Births, Marriages and Deaths, Liverpool England Catholic Baptisms 1741 – 1919, 1901 Census of England, 1911 Census of England, Cunard Records, Commonwealth War Graves Commission, PRO BT 334, Deaths at Sea 1871 – 1968, Graham Maddocks, Jane Elder, Geoff Whitfield, Michael Poirier, Jim Kalafus, Cliff Barry, Paul Latimer, Norman Gray.
Copyright © Peter Kelly.
Revised & Updated – 28th March 2023.