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Chief Engine Room Artificer 2nd Class Charles Miller

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Artificer Charles Miller

Charles Frederick Caleb Miller was born on 12th December 1887 in Gillingham, Kent. His parents were Charles and Harriet Miller, and he had two younger siblings, Mabel and Harriet.

Tragically, Charles Jr’s mother died when he was only three years old; his father went on to marry again – to his widow’s younger sister, Jane – and the couple had two further children – Jane and Beatrice – who were Charles Jr’s half-sisters.

Charles Sr worked as a ship’s rigger in the Military Dockyard in Chatham, and naval life obviously caught his son’s eye. In 1903, having left school, he enlisted in the Royal Navy, started as a ‘boy artificer’, working in the engine and boiler rooms of ships.

His initial service was for twelve years, and he worked on a number of vessels, as well as being assigned to HMS Pembroke, the shore base in Chatham. He worked his way through the ranks to Engine Room Artificer 2nd Class by 1915.

In June of that year, Charles married Ellen Holden. the daughter of a dairyman from Chelsea. The couple went on to have a daughter, Joan, who was born in 1918. At the time of their wedding, Charles was based on HMS Lance, and his military service was to continue.

His period of service extended until the end of the war, Charles served on a number of other vessels, including HMS Surprise, Blenheim and Prince George and rose to Chief Engine Room Artificer 2nd Class.

It was while he was assigned to HMS Ganges in January 1920 that he became unwell, however. He had contracted bronchial pneumonia, and died of a combination of that and heart failure on 9th February 1920. He was 32 years old.

Charles Frederick Caleb Miller lies at rest in Woodlands Cemetery in his home town of Gillingham, Kent.

Charles Miller (from ancestry.co.uk)

6 thoughts on “Chief Engine Room Artificer 2nd Class Charles Miller”

  1. Charles Frederick Caleb Miller was one of 26 ex-pupils drawn exclusively from the Royal Hospital School in Greenwich, who became the second-ever Entry of Boy Artificers at Chatham.

    The Royal Navy Boy Artificer/ Artificer Apprentice Scheme, introduced by Admiral Jackie Fisher, ran from 1903 to 2010.

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      1. If you’re interested Charles CW Miller was in Royal Hospital School Company 2.96.

        When he joined the School these were measurements. I’ve put the average figures of his RN/ RHS classmates in brackets)

        Height 53.5 inches (55.5)
        Chest 24.5 inches (26.5)
        Weight 60 lbs (71.6)

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      3. If you like I can send you the magazine article I have written about the first two classes of Boy Artificers in 1903.

        I am a member, and also on the committee, of the Fisgard Association, which is the ‘old-boy’ association for former Royal Navy Artificer Apprentices. We have a termly magazine called the Fisgardian.

        https://thefisgardassociation.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=239&Itemid=499

        Please feel free to have a look around the website. In the ‘About Us’ tab there is a Timeline of Artificer Training, which may help your understanding of the Artificer Scheme.

        Second, under the ‘Nostalgia’ tab, there is a big selection of photographs, films, sports photos, magazines and documents, although not so many from before 1910.

        The article I wrote contains 21 names of the 26 ex-Royal Hospital School pupils who became the very first class of Boy Artificers in March 1903.

        Also 20 names of the 26 ex-RHS lads who became the second class of Boy Artificers in April 1903. This was Charles Miller’s class/ entry.

        Happy to send it, but I have no idea if attachments can be sent via this forum?

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