RN group with US award

[JBFloyd]

Being a collector of Anglo-American groups, I was most happy to have this one arrive in the mail this morning from the most recent Baldwin's sale.

It's to Captain H.F.J. Rowley, RN, who was Transport Officer and Senior Naval Officer at Inverness in World War I. He's one of 71 Royal Navy recipients of the US Navy Distinguished Service Medal in WWI. Since Inverness was the base for the US Navy's minesweeping operations in the NOrth Sea, his DSM almost certainly relates to that connection. I haven't unpacked his CBE yet, but it's represented on his miniature group.

[JBFloyd]

And Capt Rowley's miniature group.

[Guest Rick Research]

Of all That Seafaring Race, the Rowleys were innumerable upon Britannia's waves.

Howard Fiennes Julius Rowley was born 14 August 1868 and died 4 April 1948. Educated at Burney's Academy and Gosport, per the 1935 British edition of Who's Who "entered Britannia 1882," Lt 1892, Shadwell Prize 1898, Royal Yacht Osbourne 1900-02, retired 1902. Commander Retired 1908. Senior Naval Officer and Divisional Naval Transport Officer Inverness WW1, acting Captain, RN December 1914 "confirmed 1919 for services rendered." U.S. DSM, CBE 1919. Married 1900 Alice Udall of Melbourne Australia ("died circa 1950." They had only a single daughter, Geraldine, who died unmarried in 1930).

1935 address was Myms Cottage, Wimbourne Road, Kinson, Bournemouth and described as ""Late chief inspector of Royal Naval Lifeboat Institution."

He was the FOURTH SON of the Reverend Julius Henry Rowley, MA (1836-1915) who was Rector of South Ockenden, Essex (where he would have oft-times flipped through records of Yrs Truly's Tudor ancestors, in the Kevin Bacon game of how many times removed does Everything Lead To Ricky's Cousins), who was the

FOURTH SON

of Captain Richard Freeman Rowley, RN (1806-1854), who was the

FOURTH SON

of Rear Admiral of the White Sir John Rowley, 1st Baronet Rowley of Tendring (1734-1790), who was the

awwwww

SECOND son of Admiral of the Fleet Sir William Rowley, from whom descend the Baronets Rowley of Hill House

to whom your 4th 4th 4th (and here we have the stuff of epic legends, gypsy curses et cetera) was most directly related.

[JBFloyd]

Thanks, Rick. I was able to pull some of this out of a Debrett's when the group first appeared. Now I need to find him in the various sources on the North Sea Mine Barrage and see what his connection to the US Navy really was.