Lieutenant Commander R. Cudworth died September 1966

Discussion in 'Postwar' started by Mark Hone, May 3, 2014.

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  1. Mark Hone

    Mark Hone Senior Member

    Yesterday, at our school Founder' s Day lunch I got chatting to a very pleasant old boy who was at school at the end of the Second World War. In the course of our conversation he mentioned that one of his contemporaries had died in a training accident involving a submarine escape apparatus.He remembered that he was called Cudworth but could not recall exactly when he had died. I checked CWGC to no avail-no naval Cudworth of the right age. But on searching the roll of the Armed Forces Memorial, lo and behold I came across Lt Cdr Ralph Cudworth who died in September 1966 aged 39 while attached to HMS Dolphin, the home of submarine training at Gosport.
    Unfortunately I can find no other details about him. Would anyone have access to further information about the circumstances of this officer's death or whether he had a connection to Bury in Lancashire?
     
  2. CL1

    CL1 116th LAA and 92nd (Loyals) LAA,Royal Artillery

  3. Mark Hone

    Mark Hone Senior Member

    Thanks, I did see that information when I was searching on the 'net. I'm not sure whether the owner of the Naval History site will have any additional info which he has not included but I will try to find local press coverage etc.
    A search of Ancestry confirms that Ralph Cudworth was born in Bury, Lancashire in June 1927 so this looks very much like our man. He is the second old boy that I have identified on the Armed Forces Memorial, the other being 2nd Lt Mark 'Sam' Abbott of the Royal Logistical Corps who was killed in a road accident during a training exercise in Germany in 1992. We shall be paying tribute to both of them when I make my first visit to the National Memorial Arboretum with a group of pupils in June.
     
  4. Mark Hone

    Mark Hone Senior Member

    I have subsequently discovered that Lt Cdr Cudworth died during a training exercise in a 100 ft concrete tank in Portsmouth Harbour. Ironically, he was at the time one of the navy's leading experts in submarine escape techniques. Several of his relatives also attended our school, one as recently as 1986 and I am hoping to obtain a photo of him via our old pupil network prior to our visit to the AFM.
     
  5. Mark Hone

    Mark Hone Senior Member

    I have now received a photo of his uncle and other fascinating information from Ralph Cudworth's nephew (also an old boy of our school). We are hoping to meet Ralph's sister when we visit the National Memorial Arboretum in June.
     
  6. Nicola Mediterraneo

    Nicola Mediterraneo New Member

     
  7. Nicola Mediterraneo

    Nicola Mediterraneo New Member

    I was searching Google about my uncle Ralph Cudworth. My mother Brenda was born in Bury and is one of 8 children she was #5. We would be interested in any information you have on him. We were living in Canada when he died and my mother has mourned him. Interested in which family member you talked to. My email is mnc2run@hotmail.com
     
  8. CL1

    CL1 116th LAA and 92nd (Loyals) LAA,Royal Artillery

    Nicola
    welcome
    I have sent a message to Mark on your behalf
    also best remove the @ in your email address and replace with AT

    regards
    Clive
     

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