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Thomas Welsby Clark
Thomas Welsby Clark was a sailor in the Royal Australian Navy (RAN), whose body was found on a life raft in the Indian Ocean, off Christmas Island, on 6 February 1942. Before his body was identified, he was widely believed to originate from the RAN cruiser , which sank off Western Australia in November 1941 after a battle with the German auxiliary cruiser . While 318 of 399 personnel survived, the crew of ''Sydney'' was lost with all 645 hands. He was identified on 19 November 2021 as Able Seaman Thomas Welsby Clark. Background Clark was born on 28 January 1920, in Brisbane. He enlisted in the Royal Australian Navy on 23 August 1940, and was trained as a submarine detector at HMAS ''Cerberus'' and HMAS ''St Giles''. Clark joined ''Sydney''s crew on 19 August 1941, and was promoted to Able Seaman several days later. He was newly engaged at the time of ''Sydneys sinking. His body was found on 6 February 1942. It is reported that an inquest was held on Christmas Island, soon ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
HMAS St Giles
HMAS ''St Giles'' (FY86) was a tugboat which was operated by the Royal Navy (RN), Royal Australian Navy (RAN) and the Australian shipping firms J. & A. Brown and the Waratah Tug and Salvage Company. She was built by Ferguson Shipbuilders, Glasgow for the RN in 1919, was sold to J. & A. Brown in 1925, transferred to the Waratah Tug and Salvage Co Pty Ltd in 1931 and was commissioned into the RAN between 1940 and 1942 and 1945 and 1946 before being scrapped in 1956. Operational history The ship was built for the RN as the Rescue/Saint class ocean tug ''St Giles''. She entered service in 1919 and was sold to J. & A. Brown, Newcastle in 1922. She was sold in 1931 to the Waratah Tug and Salvage Co Pty Ltd, Sydney. Following the outbreak of World War II, ''St Giles'' was requisitioned by the RAN in 1939. She was later converted to an auxiliary anti-submarine vessel and commissioned on 15 January 1940.Gill (1957), p. 452 She was decommissioned in May 1942. ''St Giles'' was recommissi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Unmarked Grave
An unmarked grave is one that lacks a marker, headstone, or nameplate indicating that a body is buried there. However, in cultures that mark burial sites, the phrase unmarked grave has taken on a metaphorical meaning. Metaphorical meaning As a figure of speech, a common meaning of the term "unmarked grave" is consignment to an ignominious end. A grave monument (or headstone) is a sign of respect or fondness, erected with the intention of commemorating and remembering a person. Criminals Conversely, a deliberately unmarked grave may signify disdain and contempt. The underlying intention of some unmarked graves may be to suggest that the person buried is not worthy of commemoration, and should therefore be completely ignored and forgotten, e.g., school shooters Seung-Hui Cho and Adam Lanza. Unmarked graves have long been used to bury executed criminals as an added degree of disgrace. Similarly, many 18th and 19th century prisons and mental asylums historically used numbered (but o ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Harbourmaster
A harbourmaster (or harbormaster, see spelling differences) is an official responsible for enforcing the regulations of a particular harbour or port, in order to ensure the safety of navigation, the security of the harbour and the correct operation of the port facilities. Responsibilities Harbourmasters are normally responsible for issuing local safety information sometimes known as notice to mariners. They may also oversee the maintenance and provision of navigational aids within the port, co-ordinate responses to emergencies, inspect vessels and oversee pilotage services. The harbourmaster may have legal power to detain, caution or even arrest persons committing an offence within the port or tidal range of the port's responsibilities. An example of this is the team of harbourmasters employed by the Port of London Authority who are empowered to undertake an enforcement role. Actions that a harbourmaster may investigate include criminal acts, immigration, customs and excise, m ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Decomposition
Decomposition or rot is the process by which dead organic substances are broken down into simpler organic or inorganic matter such as carbon dioxide, water, simple sugars and mineral salts. The process is a part of the nutrient cycle and is essential for recycling the finite matter that occupies physical space in the biosphere. Bodies of living organisms begin to decompose shortly after death. Animals, such as worms, also help decompose the organic materials. Organisms that do this are known as decomposers or detritivores. Although no two organisms decompose in the same way, they all undergo the same sequential stages of decomposition. The science which studies decomposition is generally referred to as ''taphonomy'' from the Greek word ''taphos'', meaning tomb. Decomposition can also be a gradual process for organisms that have extended periods of dormancy. One can differentiate abiotic decomposition from biotic decomposition (biodegradation). The former means "the degradation ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Caucasian Race
The Caucasian race (also Caucasoid or Europid, Europoid) is an obsolete racial classification of human beings based on a now-disproven theory of biological race. The ''Caucasian race'' was historically regarded as a biological taxon which, depending on which of the historical race classifications was being used, usually included ancient and modern populations from all or parts of Europe, Western Asia, Central Asia, South Asia, North Africa, and the Horn of Africa. First introduced in the 1780s by members of the Göttingen school of history, the term denoted one of three purported major races of humankind (those three being Caucasoid, Mongoloid, and Negroid). In biological anthropology, ''Caucasoid'' has been used as an umbrella term for phenotypically similar groups from these different regions, with a focus on skeletal anatomy, and especially cranial morphology, without regard to skin tone. Ancient and modern "Caucasoid" populations were thus not exclusively "white", but rang ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Flying Fish Cove
Flying Fish Cove ( zh, 飛魚灣, ms, Pantai Ikan Terbang) is the capital city and main settlement of Australia's Christmas Island. Although it was originally named after British survey-ship '' Flying-Fish'', many maps simply label it "The Settlement". It was the first British settlement on the island, established in 1888. About a third of the territory's total population of 1,600 lives in Flying Fish Cove, which lies near the north-eastern tip of the island. There is a small harbour which serves tourists with yachts. It is possible to carry out recreational diving at the settlement's beach. 19 January 1917. See page 24, article and photo Heritage The settlement is listed on the |
Carley Float
The Carley float (sometimes Carley raft) was a form of invertible liferaft designed by American inventor Horace Carley (1838–1918). Supplied mainly to warships, it saw widespread use in a number of navies during peacetime and both World Wars until superseded by more modern rigid or inflatable designs. Carley was awarded a patent in 1903 after establishing the Carley Life Float Company of Philadelphia. Description The Carley float was formed from a length of copper or steel tubing 12–20 inches (30–50 cm) in diameter bent into an oval ring. The ring was surrounded by a buoyant mass of kapok or cork, and then covered with a layer of canvas rendered waterproof via painting or doping. – ''Life Raft''. Horace S. Carley. (Filed May 14, 1902; Issued July 21, 1903.) The metal tube was divided into waterproof compartments with vertical baffles. The raft was thus rigid, and could remain buoyant, floating equally well with either side uppermost, even if the waterproo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pilot Boat
A pilot boat is a type of boat used to transport maritime pilots between land and the inbound or outbound ships that they are piloting. Pilot boats were once sailing boats that had to be fast because the first pilot to reach the incoming ship got the business. Today, pilot boats are scheduled by telephoning the ship agents/representatives prior to arrival. History Pilots and the work functions of the maritime pilot go back to Ancient Greece and Roman times, when incoming ships' captains employed locally experienced harbour captains, mainly local fishermen, to bring their vessels safely into port. Eventually, in light of the need to regulate the act of pilotage and ensure pilots had adequate insurance, the harbours themselves licensed pilots for each harbour. Although licensed by the harbour to operate within their jurisdiction, pilots were generally self-employed, meaning that they had to have quick transport to get them from the port to the incoming ships. As pilots were of ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Petty Officer
A petty officer (PO) is a non-commissioned officer in many navies and is given the NATO rank denotation OR-5 or OR-6. In many nations, they are typically equal to a sergeant in comparison to other military branches. Often they may be superior to a seaman, and subordinate to more senior non-commissioned officers, such as a chief petty officers. Petty officers are usually sailors that have served at least several years in their respective navies. Petty officers represent the junior and mid-grade non-commissioned officer ranks of many naval services, and are generally responsible for the day-to-day supervision of ranks junior to them. They may also serve as technical specialists within their rating (military occupation). Origin The modern petty officer dates back to the Age of Sail in the Royal Navy. Petty officers rank between naval officers (both commissioned and warrant) and most enlisted sailors. These were men with some claim to officer rank, sufficient to distinguish t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Non-commissioned Officer
A non-commissioned officer (NCO) is a military officer who has not pursued a commission. Non-commissioned officers usually earn their position of authority by promotion through the enlisted ranks. (Non-officers, which includes most or all enlisted personnel, are of lower rank than any officer.) In contrast, commissioned officers usually enter directly from a military academy, officer candidate school (OCS), or officer training school (OTS) after receiving a post-secondary degree. The NCO corps usually includes many grades of enlisted, corporal and sergeant; in some countries, warrant officers also carry out the duties of NCOs. The naval equivalent includes some or all grades of petty officer. There are different classes of non-commissioned officers, including junior (lower ranked) non-commissioned officers (JNCO) and senior/staff (higher ranked) non-commissioned officers (SNCO). Function The non-commissioned officer corps has been referred to as "the backbone" of the armed se ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Commissioned Officer
An officer is a person who holds a position of authority as a member of an armed force or uniformed service. Broadly speaking, "officer" means a commissioned officer, a non-commissioned officer, or a warrant officer. However, absent contextual qualification, the term typically refers only to a force's ''commissioned officers'', the more senior members who derive their authority from a commission from the head of state. Numbers The proportion of officers varies greatly. Commissioned officers typically make up between an eighth and a fifth of modern armed forces personnel. In 2013, officers were the senior 17% of the British armed forces, and the senior 13.7% of the French armed forces. In 2012, officers made up about 18% of the German armed forces, and about 17.2% of the United States armed forces. Historically, however, armed forces have generally had much lower proportions of officers. During the First World War, fewer than 5% of British soldiers were officers (partly ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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