Other deck crew members

[Ana Florencia Pinton]

In the website I also found under the Deck crew members the following:

- 1 Lamp Trimmer
- 1 Master
- 1 Storekeeper
- 2 Window Cleaners
- 2 Mess Stewards

My guesses are that the Mess Stewards were responsible for the Officer's Mess, the Officer's Smoking Room, and the Officer's and Marconi Operator's cabins. Would that be right? I spotted their cabin opposite the one of the Telegraph Operators. Would they eat in with the other stewards?

The Storekeeper maybe would work in the Carpenter's Shop?

What windows would the Window Cleaners clean?? The ones in the public areas, like the Saloons etc? Where they accommodated with the other Seamen?

I have no idea what were the tasks of the Lamp Trimmer and the Master.

 

[Bob Godfrey]

The ship's Master is the Captain. The Lamp Trimmer was responsible for maintaining and controlling the use of all the electric and oil lamps mounted outside the superstructure or used by the deck crew (including those intended for the lifeboats), and particularly for ensuring that no stray light would interfere with the night vision of the officers on watch. The Storekeeper looked after and issued all equipment and materials needed by the deck crew. Both were experienced seamen, and needed to be if their jobs were to be done properly. They shared a cabin on the starboard side of the bow on C deck. On the opposite side was another cabin for '2 deck men', who I think were probably the window cleaners. They would have been responsible for all the accessible windows and ports in the superstructure, with the Bridge being particularly important. Though part of the deck crew, they were not seamen. There were four mess stewards in the Deck Department. One served the Captain and another the Officers, and it was presumably those two who were berthed near the officer's cabins. The other two would have served in the seamens' mess on C deck. The cabin mentioned above (for '2 deck men') was adjacent to the mess so it might have been occupied by the stewards rather than the window cleaners. Can't say I've ever given it any thought! Unlike the crew who worked on deck or in the engine and boiler rooms the stewards and kitchen staff were provided with nowhere special to eat - in spare moments they grabbed whatever was available in the nearest kitchen or pantry area and generally ate it standing up. Not very comfortable, but those who worked from the 1st and 2nd Class kitchen would have eaten more and better than they did at home!

 

[Ana Florencia Pinton]

The ship's Master is the Captain.

I'm laughing so hard at myself, I don't know how could I have missed that. Sorry!

There were four mess stewards in the Deck Department.

In the website's list there are 2 Mess Stewards in the Deck crew and 4 Mess Stewards + 2 Firemen Messmen in the Engine crew. So I thought it would have made sense if those two stewards of the deck had occupied the cabin in the Officers' area. BUT I just found out (as I kept reading the forum) that there was the Captain's personal steward (a Mr Paintin from the Victualling crew). So I wouldn't know where to place this guy in the "scheme" of things...* I'm sorry, I realize I'm going crazy over little details but I'm really interested in "how life on-board" would have been for all of the crew members (I'm sure you already realized that from the number and type of questions raised by me hehe).

* It just came to my mind that maybe his personal steward (being that he was from the Victualling department) was intended as a steward only during meals... Like a personal waiter at a restaurant. This way, he would sleep in the general room assigned for the other stewards (having no need to be close to the captain during all the day, like the two mess stewards of the Deck department). Yay, this could be the solution!

Oh and thank you so much for taking the time to reply with such great detail!! Seriously!!

 

[Bob Godfrey]

The Captain's personal steward and the Deck Officer's steward were part of the Deck Department (not Victualling) and you can be almost certain that they occupied the cabin you mentioned close to the Officer's quarters. And Paintin wasn't just a waiter - looking after the Captain was his full-time job, more like a valet. The only thing I'm not sure about is where the other two (the stewards for the seamens' Mess) were berthed.

I'm happy to be able to help with information - it's nice to find some interest in my store of trivia! I've posted more this last weekend than over the last six months, and hopefully at least some of the facts are correct!

 

[Ana Florencia Pinton]

In the website the Personal Steward is listed under Victualling. I don't know how accurate that listing is, then. That's why I thought that he only assisted the captain during meals, while the other two would assist him and the officers all day long.

interest in my store of trivia! I've posted more this last weekend than over the last six months, and hopefully at least some of the facts are correct!

I couldn't live without trivia!! And I think that in the thread about majority you confessed to someone that you were making all these things up... So... Not so sure about anything being correct

 

[Bob Godfrey]

Ah, that was a joke of course! My first posting in that thread was entirely serious and accurate. But if you read on you'll find the thread developed into a long-running comedy routine!

 

[Ana Florencia Pinton]

Yes I know I was only teasing you, but I thought that thread was funny!

 

[Matteo Eyre]

I am aware of Paintin as i recall i had asked you about him before but who was the Officer's steward??
I have searched through the victualling crew and no one i can see is listed to have done this job, i do know though that whoever he was he died in the disaster as i have completed allocation documents for each lifeboat but there are so many, mainly engine crew, who had no idea as to their boat of rescue
Cheers
Matteo

 

[Bob Godfrey]

You won't find him in the victualing crew - he was Deck Department. His name was Charles Andrews. And he was a survivor, in boat 16. Unusually, he did know his boat station!

 

[Matteo Eyre]

Is he the Charles Edward Andrews listed in the victualing section of this site as a 2nd class assistant saloon steward?? Was it unusual for stewards to know their assigned boat station?? Also was it unusual for them to have an assigned boat??
Cheers Bob
Matteo

 

[Bob Godfrey]

There was only one Charles Andrews. He does appear in the crew particulars as a 2nd class steward, but as a witness at the American Inquiry he described himself as "officers' steward". Likewise James Paintin, who is listed in the particulars along with the 1st Class stewards, served as the Captain's personal steward.

All the crew had lifeboat assignments, and these were posted in various locations so that all would have a chance to see them. Some took the time to read the lists and note down their assignment, others didn't bother

 

[Matteo Eyre]

The only C Andrews aboard was Charles Edward Andrews was it not? Could he have served as both? surely if all the crew had had assigned lifeboats there would have been no room for passengers. Had for example a steward turned up whilst loading his assigned boat would he have had to ask permission to board or could he have just boarded?? Also is there anywhere where these assigned lifeboat list are?
Copies of course.
Cheers Bob
Matteo

 

[Bob Godfrey]

The lifeboat assignment lists would have been put together on the ship and posted there, so their survival is very doubtful. Certainly there would have been far too many assigned to each boat to take them all at one sitting. The boats were intended to operate a ferry service to a rescue vessel, with a handful of the assigned crew in each 'run'. Officers would have controlled entry to each boat, so being 'assigned' didn't mean you just jumped in.

Officers' Steward was a full time job, not a bit of extra duty for a saloon waiter.

 

[Matteo Eyre]

I can't imagine a piece of paper surviving in the Atlantic either, oh of course, why didn't i think of them being assigned to them at different times, seems basic, now i didn't know that i though you could just board, could Moody have just jumped in though??
I can't imagine him swapping jobs or telling an Officer to wait whilst he served a 2nd class family dinner,
Just wondering, in the film A Night To Remember Lightoller hands his coat to a man he calls "Blake" and asks him to put in in his (LIghtoller's) cabin, could this man have been Andrews as i know that some names were changed
Cheers Bob
Matteo

 

[Bob Godfrey]

A junior officer would not decide on his own initiative to board a boat if a senior were present. Otherwise he might well do so - as Harold Lowe seems to to have done.

The character you mention in ANTR appears in the script simply as 'steward', and I doubt that the screenwriter gave it any more thought than that. If the scene were real Lightoller too would probably have addressed him as "Steward". As Lowe testified: "You must understand that when we are on shipboard we do not call men, so and so, by their names ... if we want a quartermaster we do not say Bright, or whatever his name is; we say Quartermaster."