People on board

MARSHAM Rae, Lindsay

Lindsay Leon De Cram Marsham Rae was born in London in 1892 and baptised on the 17th October. His parent’s address on the baptismal certificate was 26 Upper Berkeley Street. His father, Charles Marsham Rae was a writer and dramatist – in the 1911 census he described himself as ‘Dramatic Author of Literature Generally’. His mother, Maude De Cram, probably Cram, was originally from Gosforth, Newcastle-on-Tyne. They married in 1883 when Charles was already established as an author, mainly of farces for the theatre. In 1887 he took St James Theatre in London for the production of a play that he had translated from German and in which his wife Maude made her stage debut. It was only moderately successful but he made a serious loss on the project and was declared a bankrupt.

In 1897 Maude, with her cousin, opened Maison de Cram, selling the “Smartest Parisian Millinery”, declaring themselves ‘Court Milliners’ and also providing costumes to the theatre. In the 1901 census she was living in Cambridge Street, one of their three shops, with her cousin and eight year old Lindsay, and while declaring herself married, there was no sign of Charles. In the 1911 census the latter was a Boarder in Knightsbridge, but Maude and Lindsay cannot be found.

Lindsay married Maude Heilbuth in London in 1912. He enlisted as a Private with the Yorkshire Dragoons Yeomanry, (Queen’s Own), later receiving a commission as 2nd Lieutenant. The limited military records available do not show when he enlisted or where he served. It is not known why both he and Maude were in Ireland in October 1918, but they travelled on RMS Leinster on the 10th October. After the torpedoes struck the ship both were in the water together but only Maude was rescued. Lindsay’s body was not recovered, but his name is remembered on the Hollybrook Memorial in Southampton and on the Yorkshire Dragoons Memorial in Doncaster.