Tag Archives: trawler St Romanus
Hull tower blocks named in honour of trawler campaigner women
Three tower blocks in Hull have been renamed in honour of women who fought for new safety laws after a slew of fishing tragedies in the 1960s. Dubbed the Headscarf Revolutionaries, Yvonne Blenkinsop, Lillian Bilocca, Christine Jensen and Mary Denness changed the fishing industry for good. They took action after a triple trawler tragedy in 1968 which saw the loss of three Hull trawlers and 58 crew. Name plaques on the Porter Street flats were unveiled on Friday. The women’s campaign started when 58 fishermen lost their lives in three separate trawler sinkings in the space of less than a month in 1968. The trawlers – St Romanus, Kingston Peridot and Ross Cleveland – all sank in quick succession, and only one man survived. Photos, >click to read< 08:50
The hungover fisherman who narrowly escaped Triple Trawler Tragedy
As the 55th anniversary of the Triple Trawler Tragedy comes around this year, the 58 men who perished during the series of three disasters are remembered. Seafarers on the St Romanus, Kingston Peridot, and Ross Cleveland sadly died in the winter of 1968 between January 11 and February 5, when each of the three trawlers sank. Only one survivor- Harry Eddom – made it out of the Ross Cleveland shipwreck in the freezing Icelandic conditions and was miraculously found and saved. However, there was also another fisherman that was meant to be on that trawler, but a bad hangover prevented him from getting up on time. Walter Longden, known as Walla, visited the memorial to pay respect to his lost friends and shared how it could have also been his name on the plaque. >click to read< 08:08
Hull’s fishing community unites to remember victims of the Triple Trawler Tragedy
The fishing community gathered together on the corner of Hessle Road and Boulevard to mark the 55th anniversary of the St Romanus trawler sinking. The terrible incident in 1968 that claimed the lives of 20 men was the first in a series of three disasters at sea, known as the Triple Trawler Tragedy. Every year, former fishermen, headscarf revolutionaries and family members of the deceased gather to remember the 58 men who lost their lives on the St Romanus, Kingston Peridot and Ross Cleveland. The memorial service was an emotional one, with many mourning the loss of old colleagues and school friends. The 20 victims’ names were read out before a minute’s silence. Photos>click to read< 18:39
Lillian Bilocca: Plaque for woman who revolutionised safety at sea
A plaque has been unveiled for a woman who helped revolutionise safety at sea and is credited with saving many lives. The memorial has been placed on the wall at the former home of Lillian Bilocca, in Coltman Street, Hull. Led by Big Lil, as she was known, a group of four redoubtable women pressed for law changes after a 1968 trawler disaster. The disaster in 1968 saw 58 men perish after three Hull vessels were lost. In the face of strong opposition Bilocca, Christine Jensen, Mary Denness and Yvonne Blenkinsop, the four women later dubbed the “Headscarf Revolutionaries”, are estimated to have saved thousands of lives through their safety campaign. >click to read< 22:04
Looking Back: Life on board the Hull Trawler Ross Orion
We look back through a collection of images taken on board a Hull trawler named Ross Orion. They were taken just months before the horrific triple trawler tragedy that claimed the lives of 58 crew members on three other vessels. A photographer captured life on board another Hull trawler less than a year before the disasters. The Ross Orion set sail for Greenland from Hull’s docks and the photos were snapped on 15 July 1967 just off the coast. 11 photos, >click to read< 07:52
Families gather to remember Hull’s lost fishermen in memorial service for 1968 trawler tragedy
Three trawlers from the city sank within four weeks of one other. A total of 58 men lost their lives, leaving a scar on the city which is still being felt more than fifty years later. An annual Lost Trawlermen’s Day service is carried out on Hessle Road, where most of the fishing community lived during the time of the accidents. On the 18th of January, the St Romanus failed to return to Hull. All 20 crew members were lost at sea. On the 26th of January, the second trawler, the Kingston Peridot, was lost, along with its 20 men. On the 4th of February, the third trawler, Ross Cleveland was lost at sea, with 18 members of crew. One man, Harry Eddom, survived. video, >click to read< 20:23
Triple trawler tragedy: The Hull fishermen who never came home
In the space of less than a month at the start of 1968, 58 fishermen based in the English port of Hull lost their lives in three separate trawler sinkings. Thanks to the efforts of a group of determined women, the deaths would change the industry, with the ripples spreading from the Arctic Sea to the steps of Downing Street. – “I am going over. We are laying over. Help me. I’m going over,” skipper Phil Gay pleaded in a final, desperate message from the Ross Cleveland, which sank while sheltering from a storm in an inlet near Isafjordur in Iceland on 4 February. The Ross Cleveland was the third vessel to sink, in what became known as the triple trawler tragedy. >click to read< 21:14
