Thomas James Silva was born in Savannah, Georgia, in the United States of America, on the 29th July 1888, the son of Plutarch and Mary Lucia Timayenis (née Silva). He had an older sister and a younger brother. His father was a book keeper and his mother a vocal teacher. His mother divorced his father when she discovered that he was already married with a family, and she brought up her family using her maiden name.
In 1900 his mother re-married, his step-father being William Harry Teasdale, a cotton broker, and on completing his education, Thomas also became a cotton broker.
On the 8th November 1909, he married Ethel Dekle in Gibb County, Georgia. His wife came from Thomasville, Georgia, and the couple had two children – Thomas, born in 1911, and Bettina, born in 1913. In early 1915, the family moved to Temple, Texas, where he was employed by Farrish & Company, cotton exporters..
In the spring of 1915, however, his business took him to Europe and despite the war there, or maybe because of it, he reserved a saloon passage on the May sailing of the Lusitania from New York to Liverpool. His ticket, (numbered 46159), was booked through William Ray & Co., of 43, Cotton Exchange, in New York. Having travelled from Texas to New York, he arrived at the Cunard berth at Pier 54 in the harbour there, in time for the liner’s 10 o’clock departure on 1st May 1915. Once on board, he was escorted to his accommodation, room D21, which was the personal responsibility of William McLeod who came from Birkenhead, on the opposite bank of the River Mersey from Liverpool. McLeod was an experienced employee of Cunard and had achieved the rank of Chief First Class Bedroom Steward, but was serving as an ordinary first class
bedroom steward on what was to become the liner’s final voyage.
The liner’s sailing was delayed until the afternoon to take on board passengers, crew and cargo from the Anchor Liner Cameronia, which had been requisitioned by the British Admiralty for service as a troop ship at the end of April. She finally left the port just after mid-day and just six days later, on the afternoon of 7th May, she was torpedoed and sunk by the German submarine U-20 off the southern Irish coast and only hours away from her Liverpool destination.
Thomas Silva was one of the many saloon passengers killed as a result of the sinking and as his body was never recovered and identified afterwards, he has no known grave. He was aged 26 years.
On 18th May 1915, the New York office of The Cunard Steam Ship Company cabled the office in Queenstown with the following enquiry: -
HAVE YOU ANY TRACE THOMAS J. SILVA. EACH ARM TATTOOED ABOVE ELBOW LEFT ARM BLUE RED BAND RIGHT ELKS HEAD.
Despite this description, no body bearing these markings was ever recovered.
Bedroom Steward William McLeod, who had looked after Thomas Silva in room D21, unfortunately shared his fate and never saw his Birkenhead home again!
Following his death, Thomas’ widow returned to her family in Thomasville, Georgia, and on 23rd April 1921, she married Dr. Frank A. Strobel, however, the couple divorced not long afterwards..
Ethel and her children filed a claim for compensation for Thomas’ death, which was decided by the Mixed Claims Commission. The Commission awarded Ethel the sum of $7,500.00, Thomas Jr. the sum of $9,000.00, and Bettina the sum of $10,000.00, in compensation.
Georgia U.S. Marriage Records from Select Counties 1828 – 1978, 1900 U.S. Federal Census, 1910 U.S. Federal Census, U.S. Passport Applications 1795 – 1925, Cunard Records, Mixed Claims Commission Docket No. 1330, PRO 22/71, PRO BT 100/345, UniLiv. PR13/6, Deaths at Sea 1871 – 1968, Graham Maddocks, Geoff Whitfield, Michael Poirier, Jim Kalafus, Cliff Barry, Paul Latimer, Norman Gray.
Copyright © Peter Kelly.