Indefatigable Figurehead refurbishment 2014: The condition of King Billy has been one of great concern for many years. Therefore unless we the IOBA intervened it would deteriorate further.  As for ownership of ‘King Billy’, the Merseyside Maritime Museum – Liverpool (MMM) have full rights over ownership as the IOBA gifted King Billy to them in 1998.

Inde Figure Head 1930 aboard Phaeton in the Mersey.

HRH visit 1964.

Indefatigable Figurehead as most of OBs will remember him.

IOBA Committee handover King Billy to MMM 1998.

King Billy until work started September 2016.

Agreed at the 2014 AGM, the IOBA commissioned ‘Richard Hunter, Figurehead Historian’ to carry out a full report on the condition of King Billy. A full inspection was carried out by Richard on 11^th November 2014, with the IOBA in attendance. We received the full written report on 20^th November, which concluded urgent restoration was needed to reverse the decline.  So members of the IOBA set the ball rolling for any forthcoming sponsors, including the MMM.  The cost of the report was £160 as agreed at the 2014 AGM.

The report concluded that full restoration would cost £2,500 made up of two payments of 50%. Full details are within the report and is available on request from Steve Humphries (available to fully paid members of the IOBA).

On the 13^th May 2015 the ‘Curator of Maritime History and Technology (MMM)’ reported that the MMM was unable to allocate any funds from the current or next years financial year towards the ’King Billy Figurehead restoration project. The Museum stated that the figurehead was in a stable condition, but obviously in need of work, therefore the decision of the IOBA was whether to wait to see if the museum could allocate funds from future budgets, or whether the IOBA felt the work needed to be undertaken, meaning the full cost being met by IOBA.’

The Museum spent some time looking at grants but alas none fitted this type of object or which the MMM is eligible to apply for.

Indefatigable Figurehead refurbishment 2015: Richard Hunter planned to work on King Billy towards late summer 2015, then the Museum had been instructed that our monies had to go direct via them rather straight to Richard Hunter, and so the money £2.5k was given to the MMM.  All funds we donated to the MMM remained ring-fenced for this project, and the ‘Curator‘ continued to liaise with Richard.

Indefatigable Figurehead refurbishment 2016: Work on the figurehead first phase started on 5th September, and a Photo Diary will be updated here with;

Refurbisment Phase One

    

 

 

 

We would like to personally thank all those members of the IOBA for the incredible generosity for raising £2.500 needed for the project, and £1,000 from an IOBA member who wishes to remain anonymous.  Our thanks also goes to Richard Hunter, Figurehead Historian and Ben Whittaker – Curator of Maritime History and Technology. 

See the project yourself at;

Merseyside Maritime Museum, Albert Dock, Liverpool. L3 4AQ  / Tel: 0151 478 4401

http://www.liverpoolmuseums.org.uk/maritime/index.aspx

 ©www.indeoba.com 2016

IOBA attends Merchant Navy Day 2016 – Liverpool

IOBA members present; Mrs P A Brown MBE MStJ JP DL MNM : Hon IOBA Member, Revd Canon. (Bob) Evans : Hon IOBA Member, Martyn Hunt 82/85 IOBA Vice Chairman, Tom Keyes 63/64: IOBA Treasurer & Membership, Pat Moran: Hon IOBA Member, John Farrell 49/50, Russell Jones 55/56, John & Val Aspinall 59/60 & Steve Humphries 75/76: IOBA General Secretary & Archives.

Merchant Navy Service and parade from Church of Our Lady and Saint Nicholas to the Pier Head memorial, Liverpool.

The annual National Merchant Navy Day celebrations took place in Liverpool on Sunday 4th September.

A service took place at Liverpool Parish Church in Chapel Street and was followed by a short march to the Pier Head memorials, where wreaths were laid.

Among the civic dignitaries attending was the Lord Mayor of Liverpool , Cllr Roz Gladden.

Merchant Navy Day is the annual celebration of the British Merchant Navy, with the memorial service held for the 36,000 seafarers who died at sea in the Second World War.

The service was attended by diplomatic representatives of Britain’s allies during the war, who paid homage to their own considerable losses of merchant seafarers serving in British ships.

Wreaths were laid by, among others, the Indefatigable Old Boys Association (IOBA), Merchant Navy veterans, High Commissioners and naval attaches from many countries linked with the Port of Liverpool, including the Canadian Navy.

 ©www.indeoba.com 2016

The late Spencer Bell (1958) former Chairman of the IOBA.

We have just received a message from Wendy Bell about The Carnegie Trust Hero Award, which Spencer has been awarded.

Spencer will be honoured on the 17th July 2015 at Metropolitan Police Sports Ground, Aldenham Road, Bushey, Hertfordshire WD23 2TR.  Timmings TBC.

Wendy has asked if we can muster numbers from the IOBA for the presentation, *we need numbers by the beginning of June.

Please contact: Martyn Hunt 82/85 (IOBA Vice Chairman) martyn269@yahoo.co.uk

Would be great to see as many there to help celebrate this amazing mans life!

A great honour to a great man.

More information about it can be found at: www.carnegiehero.org.uk

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It is with great sadness that I inform you of the tragic death of Spencer Bell (1958) former Chairman of the IOBA.

Some of you may have heard of the terrible accident on the M1 in the Watford area on Friday 30st January 2014.  Spencer was that Good Samaritan who stopped his car and ran to the aid of the individual who jumped off of a bridge onto the carriageway below. In carrying out this brave act, Spencer was unfortunately struck by a car and killed. Such was the mark of the man, he put his own life at risk to try and save that of another.

I have written to Wendy to pass on our sincerest condolences and of course to offer our support to her during this dreadful time.

I would ask that you all pray for Spencer and Wendy and I will update you all via these means and the website in the next day or so.

Yours ever

Bill O’Leary Chairman IOBA

 

Child Growth: The Long View

http://www.sussex.ac.uk/childgrowth/index

Training Ships

Based on the extensive records from two training ships, the Exmouth based in London (1876-1925) and the Indefatigable based in Liverpool (1865-1995).

• The Boys’ Record Books and Admission and Discharge Register of the training ship Exmouth, held at the London Metropolitan Archives, contain 14,000 boys.
• The Cadet Records for the training ship Indefatigable, held at the Maritime Archives and Library (MAL) in Liverpool, contain 10,450 boys.

Both training ships were founded to prepare working class and pauper boys for careers in the Navy or the merchant marine, but unlike the earlier Marine Society data, there do not appear to have been minimum height requirements for boys entering the ships. The boys generally entered the ships at age 10 to 14 and were discharged by the age of 15 to 18. Critically, their height and weight were recorded at entry onto and at discharge from the ship, providing a longitudinal measure of their growth. In addition, the ships’ records were incredibly consistent over the 50-150 year period.