Mr Richard Cater Nosworthy 1 was born in March 1891 2 in Newton Abbot, Devon, England.
He was the son of George Henry Nosworthy (b. 1865), a tanner's labourer, and Lavinia Ann Rowe (b. 1866). His parents hailed from Devon and Cornwall respectively and had married in the latter months of 1889.
He had three siblings: George Henry (b. 1890), John Rowe (b. 1893) and Florence Annie (1898-1958, later Mrs Richard Henry Squires Lander), and a half-sibling belonging to his mother from a previous relationship, Albert (b. 1887).
Richard first appears on the 1891 census when he was just one month old, living at 7 Shapley's Court, Highweek, Newton Abbot, the place of his birth. The 1901 census shows the family living at Cottage Bradley (?), Newton Abbot and by the time of the 1911 census Richard was still living with his family, then at 21 Highweek Road, Newton Abbot and he was by then described as a farm labourer.
He booked passage on the Olympic but due to rail disruption his original journey to Southampton was halted at Exeter. He returned to Newton Abbot and transferred his passage to the Titanic which he boarded at Southampton as a third class passenger (ticket number 39886 which cost £7, 16s). Where he was travelling is not certain; one report (Totnes Times and Devon News, 20 April 1912) states that he was travelling to Buffalo, New York where he had an uncle.3 Another report (Western Morning News, 17 April 1912) suggests that he was headed for Canada where he had friends.
Nosworthy was lost in the sinking and his body, if recovered, was never identified.
Richard's parents later moved to 62 East Street (off Lemon Road) Newton Abbot and it was here that Richard's father died in 8 August 1936. Richard's mother then moved to 43 Highweek Road and she was to die there 8 February 1942. His sister Florence died in Newton Abbot in 1958.
Richard is remembered on the family gravestone in the graveyard at Highweek north of Newton Abbott, Devon.
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