User:MarkLongford/sandbox

William Harry Coombs was born on 15 July 1893 in North London. At 14 he joined the training ship HMS Conway and passed out as a Gold Medallist in 1909. Initially Capt. Coombs served as a junior officer charting the Hooghly River in West Bengal and saw First World War service as an officer sailing between Calcutta and Sydney. Subsequently he became aware of welfare issues in the Merchant Navy and in 1921 returned to London to represent his fellow officers, Together with FH Church, a Lloyds Broker, they agreed to form the Navigators & General Insurance Company. This was incorporated on 1st March 1921 and is today based in Brighton, West Sussex. Navigators transacted very limited business protecting against the loss of officers’ professional certificates following an official enquiry into the loss of a ship, a collision or other accident. The Navigators office In London soon grew to become a lively meeting place similar to the origins of Lloyds where traders would meet in a London coffee house. Capt. Coombs set the insurance rates after researching records personally at the British Library. In the 1920’s there were three main bodies competing to represent Merchant seafarers. They fought each other aggressively to the satisfaction of the owners who adopted ‘Divide and conquer’ tactics. Navigators formed a fourth campaigning and welfare body. Underwriting surpluses were used to fund their work. Shipowners were strong and a strike by seamen in 1925 fell apart after failing to gain Union support. That year Capt Coombs published a book at his own expense and distributed it widely to highlight the plight of ‘The Nations Key Men’. This was a period of extreme frustration and in 1928 he formed The Officers (Merchant Navy) Federation linking together British and Commonwealth officers associations. Capt. Coombs studied and was called to the Bar in 1932 personally representing the Federation. The Watch Ashore (for wives, mothers and girlfriends) was formed on 20 February 1933 by Capt. Coombs's wife and others to support the campaign with with branches in all the major UK ports. The Federation and Watch Ashore gathered 12,000 signatures and, chartering a tug festooned in banners, petitioned Parliament to act. Reform remained slow until The Navigators and Engineering Officers Union was formed in 1935. Capt. Coombs was the Union's first General Secretary (serving until 1943). The Merchant Navy Officers Pension Fund was formed in 1937 offering long term security. Capt. Coombs was the first Chairman of the Trustees.

One of the last services Capt. Coombs made to seafarers was in 1965 when he pressed for the introduction of BBC weather forecasts for coastal waters. Capt. Coombs was awarded the CBE in recognition of his services to the Merchant Navy. Capt. Coombs died at sea on 23 June 1969 returning from a family visit to Australia. He lived in Diss, Norfolk, England

Sources Fiddlers Green (2009) Richard Woodman Annual Dog Watch -Shiplovers Society of Australia (1966) The Nations Key Men (1925) Capt WH Coombs The Navigators and the Merchant Navy (1957) Alan Villiers The Merchant Navy (1980) Ronald Hope Dennis Mossman, former Director (Head) of Navigators & General Richard Winter, former Manager and now Loss Adjuster The Watch Ashore for sharing their archive and personal recollections Andrew Linington, Director of Campaigns & Communications, Nautilus International Alfie Windsor, Historian, Old Conway Society The Manager and staff of Trinity House, London The London Times newspaper 24 June 1969  "Capt.WH Coombs   Crusading seaman"

Note to reviewer. This is my personal work. I gave a talk and this is on google if you search "Longford Coombs". I hope this satisfies with regards copyright. The obituary from the London Times is an excellent reference point. Thanks Mark Longford