Frank Goree

Mr Frank Goree¹ was born in Bitterne, Southampton, Hampshire, England on 28 November 1871.

He was the son of George Edward Goree (1837-1912) and Clara Elizabeth Smith (1845-1897). His father was from Horsham, Sussex and his mother from Durnford, Wiltshire and they had married in Chertsey in late 1865.

Frank had eight known siblings: George Edward (b. 1863), Clara Agnes (b. 1864), Frederick Samuel (b. 1867), Ellen (b. 1869), Matilda Gertrude (b. 1874), William (b. 1877), Rose Emma (b. 1879) and Annie Augusta (b. 1882)

Frank first appears on the 1881 census when he and his family were living at 12 Dundee Road, South Stoneham, Hampshire and his father was described as a carpenter. The family are at 11 Mount Street on the 1891 census where a 19-year-old Frank seems to be unemployed. When Frank's mother Clara Elizabeth died in 1897 his father was remarried around 1900 to a woman named Eliza.

Frank was married in Southampton in late-1892 to Emily Jane Scammell (b. 1874 in Southampton) and they would go on to have eight children: Frank (b. January 21, 1896), twins Harold and William (b. 1898), George Albert (b. 1900), Lily Matilda (b. January 29, 1903), William Maurice (b. 1905), Ernest Frederick (b. 1907) and Margaret Emily (b. 1910).

Frank and his family faced tragedy after tragedy; he and his wife would lose both their twins Harold and William within months of each other in 1899. Their son George died in 1902 followed by their son William Maurice in 1909. They appeared on both the 1901 and 1911 censuses living at 5 Belvedere Terrace, Northam, Southampton and Frank was described as a marine fireman on both occasions.

When Goree signed on to the Titanic, on 6 April 1912, he gave his address as 5 Belvedere Terrace, Southampton and his age as 28. His previous ship had been the Olympic and as a greaser he could expect monthly wages of £6, 10s.

Frank Goree was lost in the disaster. His body was recovered by the Mackay-Bennett and buried at Fairview Cemetery, Halifax, Nova Scotia on 6 May 1912.

The following death notice appeared in the Southern Daily Echo on 22 May 1912:

Goree, Frank
Aged 42, Dearly Beloved Husband of Emily Goree, of 5 Belvidere Terrace, Northam. Deeply mourned by His Sorrowing Wife and Children.

Emily and her children received relief from the Titanic Relief Fund.
Hard on the heels of Frank's death came the death of his father and the death of his youngest child Margaret within weeks of the Titanic disaster:

In ever loving memory of Frank, the dearly loved husband of Emily Goree. Also dear little Maggie, the dearly beloved child of the above who died October 15, 1912. (Hampshire Independent 17 April 1915)

His widow Emily never remarried and remained in Southampton where she died on 22 January 1956.

Frank and Emily's eldest son Frank later served in the Royal Horse Artillery and became a licensed victualler in later years. He was married in 1920 to Elizabeth Bligh and had one son and one daughter, Basil and Rita. He died in 1969 in Winchester.

His son Ernest later went to sea and served as a steward aboard numerous ships and throughout WWII. He eventually settled in New York where he died in 1979.

His daughter Lily Matilda was married in 1924 to William Arthur Flight and they had one son and one daughter, John and Jane. Lily was widowed in 1943. She herself passed away in Southampton in 1972.

Frank is remembered on the Titanic memorial boards formerly at St. Augustine's Church, Southampton; now in the safekeeping of the Southampton Maritime Museum.