Knowledge base

Merchant Navy Seamen Records 1835-1941

The National Archives has provided findmypast.co.uk with this helpful set of frequently asked questions relating to the Merchant Navy Seamen records.

About the Merchant Navy Seamen records

The records covered are:

• Register of Masters and Seamen 1835-1857 (Series BT112-116 & BT120 (index BT119))
• Register of Seamen (Indexes) 1918-1941 (Series BT348, 349, & BT350)

The National Archives is working in partnership with findmypast.co.uk to digitise and provide these fully searchable records online as part of the Licensed Internet Associateship programme. Findmypast.co.uk has already successfully completed the digitisation of the Passenger lists leaving UK 1890-1960 (BT27), Chelsea Pensioner British Army Service Records (WO96 & 97) and the 1911 census

When can I see the content online?

Both sets of records are fully available online. For the first time, these fascinating series are fully searchable by name, further opening up what are already well-used resources at The National Archives, and giving easy access over the internet.

These records have been digitised from surrogate copies either in microfilm or microfiche.

What can I expect to find in the 20th century records: BT348, 349 and 350?

Fascinatingly, many of the 20th century records include portrait photographs of the sailors, as well as personal details and summaries of the voyages they served on. The people included are of many nationalities and women's service records are included.

As nearly a third of UK families have an ancestor who served as a merchant seaman, these series of records are of huge importance to the nation's heritage and history. Findmypast.co.uk has created indexes and transcriptions to enable members of the public to search the records online easily and download images of the original documents.

BT348 – Registry of Shipping and Seamen: Register of Seamen, Central Index, Numerical Series (CR2)

This series contains a digitised copy of the CR2 Central Index cards to the register of seamen which was kept by the Registrar General of Shipping and Seaman. The CR2 cards were started in 1913 and continued until 1941. Readers should note that cards dating from 1913 to 1921 were destroyed in 1969 for unknown reasons.

Each card typically gives the following information: discharge A number; certificate of company number; name of seaman; year and place of birth; rank or rating; name and official number of ship and date of engagement of service. Frequently, on the reverse of the card, a list of the vessels on which the crewman served can be found.

CR2 cards formed part of the Central Index Register which initially comprised three separate card indexes: CR1 cards, completed when a certificate of discharge was issued; CR2 cards were completed for all merchant seaman when an engagement on ship service was initiated; and a third special index (CR10 index cards) created by order of the Defence of the Realm Act 1918.

Index cards are arranged numerically by discharge A numbers. A small quantity of cards, which did not have a discharge A number, have been arranged alphabetically by surname.

BT349 Registry of Shipping and Seamen: Register of Seamen, Central Index, Alphabetical Series (CR1)

This series contains a digitised copy of the CR1 Central Index cards to the register of Seamen which was kept by the Registrar General of Shipping and Seaman. The CR1 cards were started in 1913 and continued until 1941. Readers should note that cards dating from 1913 to 1921 were destroyed in 1969 for unknown reasons.

Each card typically gives the following information: surname, forename, birth year and place of birth, discharge A number; rating, RV2 number (origin unknown), certificate grade and number, PR number (origin unknown), health insurance number, unemployment insurance number, height, colour of eyes and hair, complexion, distinguishing marks.

CR cards formed part of the Central Index Register and were completed for all merchant seaman when applying for a discharge 'A' certificate or a replacement certificate.

There is a small supplementary series of cards, also alphabetically organised covering surnames beginning with the letters BLA to PR.

BT350 Registry of Shipping and Seamen: Register of Seamen, Special Index, Alphabetical Series (CR10)

This series contains a digitised copy of the CR10 Central Index cards to the Register of Seamen which was kept by the Registrar General of Shipping and Seaman.

Each card typically gives the following information: discharge A number; certificate of company number; name of seaman; year and place of birth; rank or rating; name and official number of ship and date of engagement of service.

This series was a special index created by order of the Defence of the Realm Act 1918. The origins and purpose of this index is unknown.

For further information about these series, please consult the online research guide for Merchant Seamen 1913-1972

Why hasn't BT364 been digitised too?

BT364 consists of records extracted from the other three series; however, it does differ from them in that it contains details of service after 1941, sometimes up to 1972.

BT364 could, therefore, potentially contain information that would be covered by the Data Protection Act, such as National Insurance numbers. This information, when it features in later records, e.g., BT372 Seamen's Pouches, is redacted. It was decided, for this reason, that BT364 would not be digitised.

What can I expect to find in the 19th century records: BT112, BT113, BT114, BT115, BT116, BT119 & BT120?

BT112 – Registry of Shipping and Seamen: Register of Seamen, Series II 1835-1844

The entries for seamen in the Registers of Seamen Series II (BT112) give details of the voyages undertaken. These entries were made in a shorthand fashion which is only partly understood. When trying to interpret these entries the researcher should bear in mind that the clerks were trying to record details of the filing of crew lists at the end of one or a series of voyages, during which the individual had been on the relevant ship.

The form of the entry was different for a Home Trade or a Foreign Trade voyage. The registers are of two types and the entries in the earlier registers (Part 1 1835-1840) look slightly different in layout to those from the later period (Part 2 1842-1844).

Home Trade Voyages

These entries record a half year (January to June or July to December) of service during which the seaman was engaged on a particular ship in the home trade. During that period the ship may have been on several voyages, and he may have been engaged for some or all of the period. The crew lists were required to be filed within 42 days of the end of June or December.

Foreign Trade Voyages

These entries record a single voyage during which the seaman was engaged on a particular ship. The crew lists were required to be filed within 24 or 48 hours of the ship returning to a UK port.

Please note that BT119 is NOT being digitised as it is the index to BT112 and has been used to check the completeness and accuracy of BT112 only. No images or data from BT119 series are being published online.

For further information about this series it is strongly advised to consult the online research guide for Registers of Seamen Series II 1835-1844

BT113 & BT115 – Registry of Shipping and Seamen: Register of Seamen's Tickets & Alphabetical Register of Masters 1845-1854

The entries for individuals in the Registers of Seamen's Tickets (BT113), and in the Alphabetical Register of Masters (BT115), often give details of the voyages which he undertook. These entries were made in a shorthand fashion which is only partly understood.

When trying to interpret these entries the researcher should bear in mind that the clerks were trying to record details of the filing of the various schedules (crew lists), required by the Merchant Shipping acts, at the start and end of one or a series of voyages during which the individual had been on the relevant ship. The form of the entry was different for a Home Trade or a Foreign Trade voyage.

Home Trade Voyages

These entries record a half year (January to June or July to December) of service during which the seaman was engaged on a particular ship in the home trade. During that period the ship may have been on several voyages, and he may have been engaged for some or all of the period. The crew lists were required to be filed within 42 days of the end of June or December.

Foreign Trade Voyages

These entries record a single voyage during which the seaman was engaged on a particular ship. The crew lists were required to be filed within 24 or 48 hours of the ship leaving or returning to a UK port.

An entry for a Foreign Trade voyage might be in two parts: that for leaving the UK is under 'Out', and that for returning to the UK is under 'Home'. The seaman may leave the UK on one ship and return on another. The ship may depart in one year and return in the next.

In 1845, at the same time as compiling a register of seamen's tickets, the Registrar General of Shipping and Seamen started to compile an Alphabetical Register of Masters BT115. This, like the various seamen's registers, was compiled from the filed crew lists.

For further information about these two series it is strongly advised to consult the online research guide for Interpreting voyage details of merchant seamen in registers of seamen's tickets and alphabetical registers of masters

BT114 – Registry of Shipping and Seamen: Alphabetical Index to Registers of Seamen's Tickets 1845-1854

BT114 is the alphabetical index to Registers of Seamen's Tickets 1845-1854 found in BT113, but the series does also include seamen not found in BT114 for those with Register Ticket Numbers greater than 546,000.

For further information about this series it is strongly advised to consult the online research guide for Merchant Seamen Registers 1835-1857

BT116 – Registry of Shipping and Seamen: Register of Seamen, Series III 1853-1857

This is the third register and was registered in surname sequence. The ticket system was unpopular with seamen and difficult to enforce and was, therefore, abolished in October 1853. A new register was started, listing seamen alphabetically – Register of Seamen, Series III (BT116) – giving their ages, places of birth and details of voyages (ship's name, date and port of departure), together with any existing ticket numbers.

BT120 – Registry of Shipping and Seamen: Register of Seamen, Series I 1835-1836

This is the first register, Register of Seamen Series I (BT120) and consists of five volumes, in which the entries for seamen are arranged alphabetically.

The first column of a record contains the number of the seaman's entry, which corresponds to that found from the index BT119 and subsequently used in the Register of Seamen Series II, Part 1. The second column gives the surname then their forename, the third: the seaman's age (not always accurate), the fourth: his/her place of birth, the fifth: their role on the vessel, the sixth: the ship's name and port of registry with date of registration, and the seventh: 'How disposed of', sometimes shows a note of why the seamen left the vessel or where he/she went.

For further information about this series it is strongly advised to consult the online research guide for Merchant Seamen Registers 1835-1857

Why is there a 62 year gap between the existence of records of Merchant Seamen from 1858 to 1917?

It is very difficult to find information about a particular merchant seaman between those dates. This is because registration of seamen stopped between 1857 and 1913, and the entries for 1913 to 1917 have not survived. If you know the name of the ship you might be able to find the person on a crew list.

See a full list of TNA records on findmypast.co.uk

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