Gempton Sailing Trawlers

                                                                                   Brixham Sailing Trawlers

Brixham Sailing Trawlers were built in the late 1700's, through the 1800's into the early 1900's before the era of the motorised trawler took over. Lists of trawlers built have been compiled in recent years into 2 key databases:- Lanfear Brixham Sailing Trawler Database (online) and Mick Millers Book of Sailing Trawlers from 1784 to 1927 which used to be available through Brixham Heritage Museum but can now be viewed in Brixham library. Special thanks to Graham Parnell who provided additional information on some of the trawlers.

Early trawlers built in the area of Brixham/Dartmouth/Galmpton were registered with DH numbers until 1902, after which, trawlers were registered with BM numbers. Trawlers already registered with DH numbers were re-registered with BM numbers. Early records lacked details of unique registration numbers or yards where trawlers were built.

The list of trawlers owned or part owned by members of  the "Gempton" family  has been put together using all records available.

                                                                                                  Joseph Gempton

                                                       Albert Stooks Gempton - BM25 Gratitude & BM366 Florrie

                                      Courtesy of Brixham Heritage Museum -  Brixham in the Great War 

                                                                                                             1914 - 1918

GRATITUDE (DH 255 then BM25)

Official No.95371. Port number 14/1888 Built in 1888 by Messrs. Upham & Son at Brixham. Ketch rigged. Trawl fishing. Crew 3 men, 1 boy.

Length of keel 57 feet. Length 65.3 feet. Beam 17.95 feet. Depth of hold 8.9 feet.

Gross weight 48.53 tons. Nett 40.38 tons

Owner: Albert Stooks Gempton of Brixham, fisherman, 64 shares by £450 mortgage from John William Upham. Discharged 2nd. June, 1898.

Re-registered at Brixham 19th May 1902. Owner & skipper Albert Stooks Gempton, Ranscombe, Brixham.

Registry closed 11th. January, 1918. Ship sunk by enemy submarine (UC75) in the English Channel 4th. January, 1918. Certificate lost with vessel.

FLORRIE (BM 366 was R173)

Official No. 109118 Built by W A Gibbs at Galmpton in 1898. Port No 2/1918

Ketch rigged trawler. Length of keel 55 feet. Length 59.8 feet. Beam 16.5 feet.

Depth of hold 7.8 feet. Gross weight 35.86 tons Nett weight 24.76 tons.

Crew: three men, one boy.

First registered in Brixham 22/01/1918 to Albert Stoke Gempton, 3 Belle View Terrace,            

Furzeham, Brixham Owner & Skipper .

28/03/1918 Pollie Gempton, 3 Belle View Terrace, Brixham. Skipper Wm. J Gooch, then Alfred Perriam, Alf Pitman, George Youlden, Bart Thomas.

Registry closed 30 October 1935. No longer used for fishing.

ZEPHYR (DH 263 then BM50)

Official No. 95378. Post number 21/1888. Built in 1888 by S. Dewdney & Sons at Brixham. One deck. One mast. Cutter rigged. Square stern. Carvel built of wood. Trawl fishing. Crew 3 men.

Owner: George Fisher, Carter, 32 shares & Christopher Youlden, fisherman, 32 shares, both of Brixham. Later by means of £200 mortgage from George Fisher. Discharged 17th. May, 1900. Two Bills of Sale in respect of all 64 shares in favour of Willliam Moxey, junior, fisherman of Station Hill, Brixham.

Re-registered at Brixham 4th June 1902. Owner & skipper William Moxey, 5 Station hill, Brixham.

Bill of Sale, dated 11th. February, 1904 in favour of John Gempton, King Street, Brixham, fisherman.

Bill of Sale dated 16th. February, 1911 in favour of Robert Henry Kennar, Harbour Master of Brixham.

Certificate cancelled and Registry closed 16th. February, 1911. Ship sold for breaking up. 

Advice received from owner.

 "Sometimes a tragedy can be someone else's good fortune. My grandfather Jim Gempton ( J.H.Gempton) is listed in the Lanfear register as being one of the skippers on the BM21,Compeer. The first owner of the boat in July 1925 was John Kennar and he was married to Ellen Gempton, Jim's sister. William Mudge, who was one of the crew that drowned was the brother of Jim's wife ( my grandmother) Lydia Mudge. One of the few stories that I remember was him saying that he was due to go to sea on the Compeer but was sick ( I never heard of him being sick before) and had to stay at home. The rest, sadly, is history."                                      

                                                                                                               Extract from a document by Martin Smith of Brixham Heritage Museum

The 'Compeer' (BM 21) a 53 ton Ketch out of the J.W & A. Upham boat building yard in 1925.

March 1935, on a wednesday afternoon, the 'Compeer', skippered by Mr Eric Meyer, dropped her mooring keg and set out on a fishing voyage at the westbounds of the English Channel. Off Start Point the skipper Eric Meyer and William Lynn exchanged the casual greetings to Skipper T. Bowles of the fishing smack 'Auriel Lilian' whom had become becalmed. Although the Compeer had been fitted with full sails she had the advantage of having had retro fitted auxillary engines.

Shortly after midnight some six miles west of the Lizard a collision occurred between the oil engined cargo boat 'Vinemoor', of London, and the Compeer, the smack being sunk through the force of the impact. With this the news came that skipper Eric Meyer, the second hand William Lynn were missing along with a Mr William Mudge. Alfred Anstey being the sole surviver. The Dugdale family, owners of the smack, recieved the news at 4 o' clock that morning and Cranford Dugdale with his father and Mr Samuel Partridge, had the job of breaking the tragic news to the widows and families.

The news cast a gloom over Brixham as the Compeer was one of the very few crafts left in a very depleted industry. The Compeer was only ten years of age and was described as being one of the best vessels to come out of Brixham.

Mr Meyer, 38, lived in Cavern Road and leaves a widow and 4 children; Mr Mudge, 48, of Temperance Steps had a wife and 5 children; and Mr Lynn aged 36 of Station Hill, a wife and 4 children. Mr Alfred Anstey, who lived at Penn Lane, was the 4th member of the crew and was taken by the Vinemoor to dock at Southampton where he was met by members of the Dugdale family. Mr Anstey gave the following report;

" We left Brixham at 3 o' clock yesterday and got to the Lizard about mid-night on the way to the fishing ground. The weather from Brixham was fine, but afterwards we struck a patch of very foggy weather....Owing to the conditions the skipper came on deck and took charge. Our speed was considerably slowed down and I was sent forward to keep an extra lookout. My mates were both below at the time. I saw a light. I, at once, reported the matter to the skipper. It seemed rather close and we shouted to the other men to come on deck. The Vinemoor hit us nearly amidships on the starboard side and the force of the blow was such that the water swept along our deck and swept all 4 of us over the stern of the smack into the water. I am rather a powerful swimmer and I must have been swimming about for about half an hour. I saw my mates in the water but only for a few minutes. It was very calm at the time. The Vinemoor searched around for us and threw a lighted bouy which I was able to swim towards. They eventually launched a small boat and picked me up. They treated me with the greatest of kindness and I am much obliged" Mr Anstey is a married man with 8 children. 

                                                                                       Samuel Gempton - BM18 Annie

THISTLE (DH 323 then BM196)

Official No. 96468. Built  in 1891 by Samuel Dewdney at Brixham. Port no 7/1891

One deck. One mast. Cutter rigged, altered to two masts, ketch rigged, 7th. February, 1911. Square stern. Carvel built of wood. Trawl fishing.

Length of keel 47 feet. Length 54 feet. Breadth 13.5 feet.. Depth of hold 7.5 feet.

Gross weight 24 tons. Nett 18 tons. Crew 3 men.

Owner: John Kendrick Sanders, 16 Bay View Terrace, Brixham, fisherman. 64 shares.

Bill of Sale dated 27th. March. 1903 in favour of John Turner, Higher Street, Brixham, fisherman, by £140 “A” mortgage from John Dickers, fish salesman, of Brixham.

Re-registered at Brixham 28th March 1903 Owner & skipper John Turner, Higher Street, Brixham.

Discharged 26th. June, 1905. Bill of Sale dated 26th. June, 1905 in favour of George Pitman, Higher Street, Brixham, fisherman, by £200 “B” mortgage and interest at 6% from John Turner of Torquay, Baker.

Bill of Sale  under “B” mortgage dated 16th. January, 1911 in favour of John Gempton, fisherman of 49 King Street, Brixham.

Bill of Sale dated 26th. February, 1917 in favour of Mary Sarah Stibbs Gempton, 49 King Street, Brixham, wife of John Gempton, skipper.

Bill of Sale dated 19th. June, 1919 in favour of William Baker Locke of 49 King Street, Brixham, fisherman, owner & skipper.

Certificate cancelled and registry closed 22nd July1925. Vessel broken up.

Note :- William  Baker Locke was the son-in-law of John and Mary Gempton and was married to their daughter - Ethel Mary Gempton

                                                                       Samuel Gempton - Telegram 1864 - 1881

There seems to be some confusion with regards to the trawler Telegram - the original boat being built in 1861 by William Gibbs of Galmpton registered with the number 29523. It was owned by Samuel Gempton in 1864, but in an account from the Great Gale of 1866, it sank in Brixham Harbour in 1866 :-

The fishing smack Telegram belonging to Mr S. Gempton, of Brixham, while lying at her moorings was struck by another vessel breaking some of her stanchions causing her to make much water, and the crew of the former fearing the consequence got into their boats and into another vessel close by. The owner of the Telegram who was on shore at the time, hired a gig and went on board his vessel. He found that she had sustained serious damage by the collision and was fast sinking. He consequently lost no time in getting her towards the harbour. When about 20 fathoms from the pier head the owner, who has been at her helm up to this time, finding that she was sinking fast jumped into the sea. A few seconds afterward the Telegram sunk. Mr Gempton was gallantly brought on shore by John Lewis who went to his assistance in a gig. 

According to the above information, if the boat sank in 1866, it is shown again in 1872 owned by Samuel Gempton. Is it possible that  the boat was raised from the harbour and rebuilt?  The information below claims that the boat registered as 29523  Telegram was built  (rebuilt?) in Brixham in 1872 before being owned by the Parnell family in 1885. 

Information provided by Graham Parnell :-

Built at Brixham in 1872. Official number 29523

Registered 4th March 1885 Owners: William Yandell Parnell & George Parnell Snr.

Each took a mortgage of £60 with interest at 6% from Mary Collings & Varwell Collings, Ironmongers of Brixham. Joint mortgagees.

William Yandell Parnell of Brixham designated Managing Owner. Advice under his hand 4th March 1885.

10th October George Parnell took mortgage to secure sum due on current account with interest at 5% from Michael Humphrey Bartlett, both of Brixham, Rope Makers-Joint Mortgagees.

George Rowe of Harding Street, Tenby in the County of Pembroke, Fisherman, designated Managing Owner. Advice under his own hand received 11th October 1888.

Trawling from Dunmore East, Waterford, November 1900, vessel totally lost.

                                                                          James Henry Gempton 

A hand witten list , created by my  grandfather, has been sent to me by my cousin Tricia Fairbairn (nee Pollard) who lives with her family in Australia. The list shows all the sailing trawlers that my grandfather worked on from the age of 13 years until he was 42.  He and his older brother Jack,  would have left school at 12 years old before finding jobs in the  fishing industry as apprentices.  I have created a spreadsheet to show the names of the boats and in some cases a Certificate of Discharge , seen below, has been provided to confirm this information.