William George Ellason Myers, always known as Ellason Myers, was born in Stratford, Ontario, Canada, on the 19th January 1899, the son of William Charles Leroy and Ella Melinda Myers (née Schmidt). He was an only child as his mother died the day after his birth.
His father was the superintendent of The Agencies Canadian Loan Company and when Ellason was still a boy; his father was given an appointment in Edinburgh, Scotland and then London, England. The family address in Edinburgh was 46, Charlotte Street and that in London was at 97, Graham Street, E6.
Ellason Myers was educated at Viewpark School, Edinburgh, where he was an active Boy Scout, being a member of The 5th City of Edinburgh Troop, based at Central Hall there, and then privately at Dalhousie Street School, before joining the naval training ship H.M.S. Conway as a cadet, in May 1914. His cadet number was 172.
In November 1914, his family returned to Stratford, Ontario, and Ellason officially left the training ship which was a former Royal Naval ‘wooden walled’ frigate, anchored at Rock Ferry on the River Mersey and counted the one-time poet laureate John Masefield amongst its former pupils.
By the time the family had arrived back home, however, the Great War had been raging for some five months and seeing no expectation of its early conclusion and no doubt wanting to complete his training to become involved, in April 1915, Myers re-enrolled at H.M.S. Conway. Thus, at the end of that month, he left Stratford by rail and travelled to New York, where, on the morning of 1st May, he joined the Lusitania as a second cabin passenger, before she left the Cunard berth at Pier 54 for the very last time. The liner’s sailing was then delayed until the afternoon as she had to embark passengers, crew and cargo from the Anchor Liner Cameronia, which had been requisitioned by the British Admiralty for war service as a troop ship, at the end of April.
Six days out of New York, on the afternoon of 7th May, the liner was torpedoed and sunk, by the German submarine U-20, within sight of the coast of southern Ireland. Ellason Myers was able to survive this action, however and having been rescued from the sea and landed at Queenstown, he was interviewed by a reporter from the local newspaper The Cork Examiner and stated: -
I had just come from my dinner and went up with two other boys to play a game of quoits on the upper deck. One of my companions happened to look at the sea in the distance when he saw a white streak coming towards us. He cried out “There is a torpedo coming,” and we watched it come until it struck the boat. There was an awful explosion and we rushed down to the boat deck, and just as we got to the bottom of the steps a huge quantity of wood splinters and dense masses of water was flying into the
air. The second torpedo struck the Lusitania four or five minutes after the first.
Ellason Myers, like a good many passengers was mistaken about this second torpedo. His account continued: -
I went down to get my life-belt and I think, took hold of a woman who was frenzied with excitement and helped her into a boat. I went further down and saw a boat that was nearly swamped. I climbed down a rope and into the boat. We got the boat nearly half empty of water and then a crowd of men came clawing round and nearly swamped us again.
There was a barrel of drinking water and we threw it into the sea. None of us had a knife but we eventually found a hatchet and cutting the ropes, got away from the vessel a bit. We did not get two hundred yards when the Lusitania sank, bows down first. There must have been hundreds of people sunk with the boat, and the cries were heartrending. Then we were pulling away, our boat nearly sank, and we had to pull for our lives and man the oars to prevent us from being taken in with the suction; lots of women and children went down.
Ellason Myers eventually got back to the River Mersey, from where, having completed his training on board H.M.S. Conway, in August 1916, he was appointed a temporary midshipman in the Royal Naval Reserve, and designated fit for active service. He served on board H.M.S. Andes, an armed auxiliary cruiser, for the most of the war.
After the war, he served on merchant vessels until 1925, when he emigrated to the United States of America, and settled in Houston, Texas. He found work as an x-ray technician in a hospital, and on the 11th March 1928, he married Consuela V Miller in Houston. The couple had no children, however, his wife had a least one child before they met one another and married.
By 1935, the family had moved to Austin, Texas, where Ellason worked at another hospital, and they family resided at 705. West Gibson Street, and later at 5507. Jim Hogg Avenue, Austin.
William George Ellason Myers died as a result of pulmonary tuberculosis at Brackenridge Hospital, Austin, Texas, on the 20th January 1947, the day after his 48th birthday. His remains were interred in Austin Memorial Park Cemetery, Austin.
Texas U.S. Select County Marriage Index 1837 – 1965, Texas U.S. Death Certificates 1903 – 1982, 1901 Census of Canada, 1911 Census of Canada, 1921 Census of Canada, 1930 U.S. Federal Census, 1940 U.S. Federal Census, Canadian Passenger Lists 1865 – 1935, New York Passenger Lists 1820 – 1957, Washington Passenger Lists 1882 – 1965, Cunard Records, H.M.S. Conway Archive, UK Navy Lists 1888 – 1970, U.S. World War II Draft Cards Young Men 1940 - 1947, Cork Examiner, Edinburgh Evening News, PRO ADM 340/100/39, PRO BT 100/345. Graham Maddocks, John Southwood, George Donnison, Geoff Whitfield, Michael Poirier, Jim Kalafus, Cliff Barry, Paul Latimer, Norman Gray.
Copyright © Peter Kelly.