Name
George Smith
25 Feb1886
Conflict
First World War
Date of Death / Age
02/03/1918
Rank, Service Number & Service Details
1st Class Petty Officer
307246
Royal Navy
H.M. Submarine. H5
Awards: Service Medals/Honour Awards
1914 /15 Star, British War and Victory medals
Cemetery/Memorial: Name/Reference/Country
PORTSMOUTH NAVAL MEMORIAL
29
United Kingdom
Headstone Inscription
NA
UK & Other Memorials
Letchworth Town Memorial, Church of St Nicholas Memorial, Norton, Church of St Nicholas Lychgate, Norton, WW1 Naval Memorial, Chatham, Kent, Maritime Museum, Anglesey
Pre War
On the 1891 Census the family of parents, Charles (born 1870), John (born 1871), Elizabeth (born 1876), William (born 1878), Frederick (born 1878)Alice (born 1882), Emily (born 1884), George, Nellie (born 1888), Ethel (born 1890) were living at Norton Village, Herts.
On the 1901 Census the family of parents, George (horse keeper on farm), Nellie and Ethel were living at Norton Village.
George enlisted in the Royal Navy on 30 Aug 1904 for a period of 12 years as a Stoker 2nd Class, he progress to Stoker 1st Class 16 Feb 1906 and Leading Stoker on 2 Apr 1914 after serving on numerous ships and service in the Far East (China and East Indies on the 1911 Census.
Wartime Service
At the outbreak of the Great War George was serving on HMS Dolphin, a Submarine Depot ship, and was posted into Submarine C35 on 17 Sep 1914 and to HMS Thames (Depot Ship) in Mar 1916 with a promotion to Petty Officer Stoker and taking an extension to his Service. A number of other postings to Depot Ships followed and on 1 Jul 1917 he was posted to the Submarine H5.
H5 left for a patrol on 28 Feb 1918 from Southern Ireland carrying a complement 28 including a United States Officer (US Navy submarines also carried out patrols in this area).
A Signal was received at Headquarters that “SS Rutherglen has rammed a submarine at 20.30hrs. on the 2nd March within position Lat. 53 4’ N, Long. 4 40’ W. The submarine was crossing bow at considerable speed. After collision cries were heard and men seen in the water, also there was a strong smell of petrol vapour. Forepeak of “Rutherglen” is flooded”.
George was among the crew of H5, none of whom were recovered, and his loss was recorded as 2 Mar 1918. He is remembered on the Chatham Naval Memorial, Kent and on a Plaque to the H5 in the Holyhead Maritime Museum, Anglesey, Wales.
Reported in Citizen as in submarine C35.
Additional Information
PLEASE NOTE: The information given here assumes that the report of George serving on the submarine H5 is correct. He is included in service at Norton for those fallen, reported in Citizen died at sea.
Acknowledgments
Neil Cooper
Dan Hill, Ellen Barnes, Jonty Wild
