There was a poignant coming together for three lots of families who made long journeys from different areas of the country to be in Bridlington and Grimsby.
They were gathering to honour the 21 people who died on board the original Yorkshire Belle pleasure boat and the Grimsby trawler Othello.
Eighty-five years ago, on April 11, 1941, the two vessels were sunk in a mine explosion in the Humber with no survivors. Now the book, Mined in the Humber, by Bridlington author and historian Richard M. Jones, tells the full story of the tragedy.
It highlights the people who were on board these ships, taken up from their civilian trades to serve their country. The Yorkshire Belle had only first been launched in 1938 for her pleasure boat duties; the Othello trawler had previously served in the First World War.
Richard said: “After a great turnout at Bridlington library to hear me talk about the book and give the history of the vessels, it was then on to the memorial garden to watch the relatives of Chief Petty Officer Ernest Edworthy and Acting Petty Officer Ernest Johnson lay wreathes at the Yorkshire Belle memorial as a minute’s silence was held. At the exact same time, the relatives of Assistant Cook Donald Blair were doing the same thing at the Grimsby dock memorial to the Othello.
“With a large gathering in Bridlington, which included the local Sea Cadets of TS Pathfinder, RNLI, the current crew of the second Yorkshire Belle – built in 1947 and still sailing from Bridlington today – and the local veterans’ groups, as well as a gathering of the Royal Naval Club of Grimsby and Cleethorpes at their dockside, this anniversary was not only a grand turnout but it did the people proud to know that those who died that day are not forgotten.”
The picture gallery below from the Bridlington commemoration comes courtesy of Ian Ellis.
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