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*Tracing Your Roots > South Asian > South Asian Perspective on UK Records
* Asiatic Seamen's Service Records  
 
The Indian, Pakistan and Bangladesh Seamen's Services Records ('Pouches') for the period 1913-72 are in the National Archives record series (PRO)BT 372. These documents may include:

  • Application forms (most with a photograph of the seaman)
  • Certificates
  • Identity cards
  • Cessation documents
  • Notifications of death
When seamen were discharged, some or all of their documents (including the index cards) were placed in the pouches, and these include discharges of seamen.

The pouches are arranged by discharge numbers with a prefix and do not survive for every seaman. The PRO catalogue (Procat) contains the:

  • Surname
  • Initials
  • Date of birth
  • Discharge
  • Number of each individual
Searches may be made through the National Archives's *online catalogue . The discharge numbers starts with prefix:

  • A = corresponds to India and Pakistan
  • C/O = corresponds to the Bangladesh citizens
  • I, Ind or India = for Indian nationality
  • K/O = India or Pakistan.
The National Archives record series (PRO)BT 382 also contains services records of Asiatic seamen for the period 1941-72. These are called CRS 10 docket books (The Fifth Register).

The CRS 10s give personal details of each seaman including:

  • Name
  • Age
  • Rank
  • Rating/grade
  • Qualifications
They provide details of:

  • Ships served on
  • The names of ships and their official numbers
  • The dates of engagement and discharge
  • Rank served.
The information about service was extracted from ships logs and crew agreements lodged by ship owners. The information contained in the register is used to verify entitlement to wartime service medals.

The Fifth Register was maintained in a number of parts or sub-series:

Part Three covers Asiatic seamen, mostly from the Indian sub-continent, from 1942 to 1965 under National Archives references (PRO) BT 382/3095 to (PRO)BT 382/3118.

Part Four covers Asiatic seamen, mostly from the Indian sub-continent, from 1966 to 1972 under National Archives references (PRO) BT 382/3119 to (PRO) BT 382/3137)

Part Five covers Indian, Chinese and foreign national seamen, (unnumbered series as service was only of brief duration - discharge books/seamen's numbers were not allocated) mainly from 1941 to 1972 under National Archives references (PRO) BT382/3200, (PRO) BT382/3201, (PRO) BT382/3230

To expand on this subject, please check the National Archives Records Information leaflet on *Merchant Shipping: Crew Lists and Agreements After 1861 and for the service records check the leaflet on *Merchant Seamen: Registers of Service 1913-72.

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Creators: Abi Husainy

 
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