More about David Ramsay

David B Ramsay was born in Westhaven, Carnoustie and he was married to Mrs Martha Ramsay of Admiral Street, Carnoustie and, later, 4 Townhead, Auchterarder. He joined the Royal Naval Reserve at the Customs House in Dundee in 1894 and, before the outbreak of war, worked as an Able Seaman in several merchant ships and served as Harpooner in Dundee Whaler Morning. He was called up on 3 August 1914 and drafted to the Mercantile Fleet Auxiliary Intaba which was used as a Squadron Supply Vessel until April 1915 when she was converted to a Q Ship designed to lure U Boats to the surface and sink them by gunfire. David Ramsay left the Intaba in July 1915 for the Vic 1 and then HMS Brilliant, the Patrol Depot ship in the Shetlands. From there he moved to the Orkneys in October 1917 and was based in HMS Zaria in Longhope Sound on Hoy. HM Trawler Kingfisher was his next draft, joining her on 1 Jan 1918, and she may have been used as a seaplane carrier. In October he joined HM Yacht Iolaire and was drowned when she ran onto rocks at the entrance to Stornoway Harbour in the early hours of 1919. Davis Ramsay’s body was recovered and he is buried in Auchterarder Cemetery, Perthshire. He is commemorated on the Carnoustie War Memorial and the Iolaire Memorial in Stornoway.