Master John Frazer Jefferson of Holywood, Co. Down died on 1st March 1941 as the tanker S.S. Cadillac came under attack from U-552 en route from Nova Scotia.
Master
Master John Frazer Jefferson served in the Merchant Navy during the Second World War. Born in 1897, he was the son of Jonathan Jefferson and Agnes Jefferson of Belfast, and the husband of Margaret A.V. Jefferson of 2 Walmer Terrace, Holywood, Co. Down. The couple had a son named Thomas Jefferson who served in the R.A.F. during the Second World War.
In civilian life, John served an apprenticeship with the Lord Line before serving with the Royal Fleet Auxiliary in The Great War. In the interwar years, he joined the Anglo-American Oil Company in 1920. He was also a member of T.V.P. McCammon Memorial Masonic Lodge No. 540.
Jefferson died on 1st March 1941 aged 44 years old while serving on S.S. Cadillac. The British merchant tanker came under attack in the north Atlantic. U-552, captained by Erich Topp fired a pair of torpedoes that ignited the 17,000-ton cargo of aviation fuel with disastrous and fatal consequences.
Ordinary Seaman McDonald has no known grave and his name is on Panel 22 of the Tower Hill Memorial, London, England. His name is also on the Holywood War Memorial, Holywood, Co. Down, and the congregational memorial of 1st Presbyterian Church, Holywood, Co. Down.
