I Discovered My Grandfather’s Cousin Was Lost in a WWI Naval Disaster

Until fairly recently, I had never heard the name William Obiah Oldham. He was my grandfather’s first cousin — someone I should have at least known of — but he was never mentioned by my dad or my grandfather. It was only through MyHeritage that I discovered his story.

William was just 18 years old when he died in 1917, serving as an Ordinary Seaman on HMS Vanguard. I’d never heard about him or what happened. My grandfather was 17 at the time, so they likely knew each other growing up and my grandfather was probably aware of what happened. Perhaps he didn’t speak of it because it had happened so long ago. My dad was born in 1924, several years after William’s death, and he never said a word about him either. My dad passed away in July 2000 and my grandfather in July 1976, so I’ll never know for sure if they knew.

But thanks to MyHeritage, now I know.

Record Matches for Bridget’s tree identifying military records of William Obiah Oldham

A tragedy at sea

On July 9, 1917, HMS Vanguard exploded while anchored at Scapa Flow in the Orkney Islands, off the northern coast of Scotland. The explosion killed 843 men. Only two survived. William was among those lost. He was barely more than a boy when his life was cut short in an instant.

A postcard of HMS Vanguard created by an unknown artist c. 1915

When I first learned what had happened to him, I was both shocked and deeply saddened. So many like him died so young in the service of their country, and in William’s case, in such a terrible way.

The HMS Vanguard Memorial at the Royal Naval Cemetery at Lyness, on the Isle of Hoy in Orkney, Scotland, where many of the victims are buried

His name is inscribed on the Chatham Naval Memorial in Kent, England — the place where sailors lost at sea with no known grave are honored. The area where the ship sank is regarded as a war grave, so no diving is allowed there.

“Oldham W. O.” listed among the names of other sailors lost at sea

The threads I never knew existed

William’s was the first and only name I found in my paternal family tree linked to a wartime death. I’d checked the lists of those killed during the Sheffield Blitz of December 1940, but none of my family appeared there. As far as I know, no one else in the family perished in WWI or WWII.

Still, what I’ve discovered through MyHeritage has been remarkable. It’s introduced me to names going back to the early 17th century, with family spread out beyond Sheffield and South Yorkshire — many within about a 30-mile radius of the city. I’ve even learned about cousins I didn’t know existed. I messaged a couple of them, but haven’t heard much back.

One strange discovery was that during the 1980s, I lived in a flat very close to where William’s parents lived after his death. I had no idea at the time.

Fragments of the past

MyHeritage helped me unearth other pieces of my family’s story, too. There was an old photograph taken sometime in the 1930s of a shop owned by a James Oldham that was later damaged during a WWII bombing. I can only assume he was another cousin of my grandfather’s. It would be too much of a coincidence otherwise, especially given the shop’s location in an area where Oldhams had lived for generations.

It’s amazing — and a little sad — that I’ve learned more about my family through the internet than I ever did from the people themselves.

Stories carried forward

It’s been 25 years now since my dad passed away. I wish I could have shared William’s story with him — or with my brother, who sadly died of cancer on Easter Sunday in 2020. I never had the chance to tell him. But I’ve told a cousin, and I carry William’s story with me now.

The internet — and MyHeritage in particular — has helped me find pieces of a puzzle I didn’t know was missing. I never expected to connect so deeply with a name I hadn’t heard for most of my life. It’s important that people like William are remembered along with what happened to them, and MyHeritage is a great site for that. I may not have known him or of him, but I am proud to say I am related to him and that we had a hero in the family.

Many thanks to Bridget for sharing her incredible story with us. If you have also made an amazing discovery with MyHeritage, we’d love to hear about it! Please send it to us via this form or email it to us at stories@myheritage.com.

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Source: My Heritage