John Treasure Jones

Capt. John Treasure Jones became a well-known media figure in the mid-1960s following his appointment as the last Master of the famous Cunard liner, RMS Queen Mary. He has been described as one of the 20th century’s most distinguished mariners, in war and in peacetime. His forebears were men of the sea, who had captained sailing ships, and he elected to follow in their tradition.

He was born on 18 August 1905, on a farm outside Haverfordwest, Pembrokeshire.

In 1917 he gained a scholarship to Haverfordwest Grammar School.

Early years at sea
In 1921, not yet 16, he signed on for a four years apprenticeship with JC Gould Steamship Co Ltd of Cardiff. He first joined the SS Grelgrant, a 4,785 ton tramp ship, and later transferred to SS Grelhead.

Having completed his apprenticeship, he attended Nautical School in Cardiff.

He then joined Hall Bros of Newcastle in 1926, serving first on the tramp ship SS Ambassador and then on SS Caduceus.

In August 1929 he joined The White Star Line as a Junior Officer first on SS Euripides out to Australia and then on SS Delphic. The Great Depression set in and shipping fell on bad days. In November 1930 the Company sent him to do twelve months Reserve training in the Royal Navy, after which he was laid-off.

In November 1932 he managed to obtain employment as an Assistant Superintendent Stevedore with Rea’s Ltd, working with the Leyland Line ships at the Canada and Huskisson Docks in Liverpool. The Leyland Line was sold to T&J Harrison Ltd and the job petered out.

In July 1934 he returned to sea with the Blue Funnel Line, in SS Machaon and then SS Rhexenor.

In 1937 he joined the Cunard White Star Line in the RMS Lancastria and by the time the war had started he was Senior Third Officer in the RMS Britannic.

He had joined the Royal Naval Reserve as a Probationary Midshipman in 1923. On completion of his apprenticeship in 1925, at age 20, he did six months training as a Midshipman in HMS Hood, followed by HMS Velox and HMS Ajax.

In August 1929, at 24, he was promoted to Lieutenant RNR.

From 1930-31 he served six months afloat in the Aircraft Carrier HMS Glorious and four months in the Destroyer HMS Viscount on the Mediterranean Station.

In August 1937 he was promoted to Lieutenant Commander RNR.

War service
From September 1939 he served as navigator of the Armed Merchant Cruiser AMC Laurentic (formerly SS Laurentic (1927) of the Cunard White Star Line). On 4 November 1940 she was torpedoed and sunk, 300 miles west of the Bloody Foreland in Ireland, with the loss of around 50 lives.

The following month he was appointed Commander of HMS Sunflower, a new Flower-class corvette, which was employed escorting Atlantic convoys. On 17 December 1942, while escorting convoy ON-153, HMS Firedrake the escort group commander's ship, was torpedoed by U-211 and sunk. HMS Sunflower picked up 27 survivors in 60 foot high waves and took over command of the convoy escort, for which the captain was mentioned in dispatches.

In 1943 he was promoted Commander RNR and commanded HMS Wellington, HMS Bayntun (K310) (one of the first Captain Class Frigates built in Boston, Mass. for the Admiralty) and then HMS Dart, in command of 49th Escort Group in the Mediterranean.

In June 1945 he was promoted Acting-Captain RNR as Divisional Sea Transport Officer of the Netherlands East Indies, based in Java, Batavia.

He was demobbed in March 1947 but remained in the Naval Reserve. He was promoted to captain RNR on 31 December 1949 and retired from the service in 1960.

Post-war service
He re-joined the Cunard Line in March 1947, serving in RMS Samaria, Scythia, Britannic, Georgic and Queen Elizabeth. In February 1954 he was appointed Staff Captain RMS Queen Mary, until he was given command of RMS Media in May 1957, followed by RMS Sylvania, then Saxonia, in 1959.

From December 1962 he was Master of Mauretania, until November 1965, when he delivered her to Ward's shipbreaking yard in Inverkeithing, Fife in Scotland.

He was briefly the Master of RMS Queen Elizabeth and then in command of RMS Queen Mary from December 1965 until she was handed over to the City of Long Beach, California on 11 December 1967 after being sold to the City earlier that year.

Treasure Jones retired in August 1968, aged 63, after a career of 47 years, of which he served almost 43½ continuous years at sea. He died on 12 May 1993, just three months short of his 88th birthday, at Chandlers Ford, outside Southampton.

Recognition
His decorations and medals were:
 * 1939-45 Star
 * Atlantic Star
 * Africa Star with Bar for North Africa 1942-43
 * 1939-45 War Medal with oak leaf for Mentioned in Despatches (twice)
 * Coronation Medal and
 * Reserve Decoration with Bar.

In 1968 the University of Wales conferred on him an Honorary Degree of Doctor of Law.

In 1978 was granted the Freedom of Haverfordwest, his home town,.

On the Final Voyage of Queen Mary in 1967 he was awarded:
 * Honorary Member of the Panama Canal Pilots Association
 * Honorary Pilot of the Port of Long Beach
 * First Honorary Port Ambassador of the Port of Long Beach