O. M. Watts

Oswald Martin Watts
Born(1901-03-18)March 18, 1901
Streatham, London, United Kingdom
DiedNovember 1, 1985(1985-11-01) (aged 84)
NationalityBritish
Occupation(s)Master mariner, ships chandler, author, yacht designer
Known forCaptain O M Watts chandlery and brokerage

Oswald Martin Watts, FRAS, FIN[1] (18 March 1901 – 1 November 1985) was a master mariner and nautical author who founded the ship chandlers and yacht brokerage Captain O. M. Watts. He had a large showroom and mail order department at 49 Albemarle Street, London W1

Early life and family

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Oswald Watts was born in Streatham on 18 March 1901[2] to Alfred Ernest Watts, a chartered accountant, and his wife Lilian.[3]

Career

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Small plaque used by Capt. O. M. Watts Ltd on goods or designs supplied

Watts was a master mariner and nautical author who founded the ship chandlers and yacht brokerage Captain O. M. Watts.[4][5] During the Second World War and before Watts trained a large number of sailors to their then Yacht Master's (Coastal) certificate.[6] He was also a yacht designer.[7]

In 1965, the BBC weather forecasts for coastal waters were introduced as a result of strong representations on the part of Capt O M Watts, Vice Commodore City Livery Yacht Club, and an editor of ‘Reed’s Nautical Almanac’, together with support from other notable sailors including Senior Rear Commodore Capt W H Coombs, CBE RNR, one of the Younger Brethren of Trinity House.

Personal life and death

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Watts lived in Norbury, London, SW16 and died on 1 November 1985.[8][2] He was married and had a daughter.[citation needed]

Watts was commodore of the City Livery Yacht Club from 1966 to 1980.[9]

Selected publications

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  • Lockwood's Manuals. Ship Stability & Trim Made Easy Including The Construction And Use Of Tipping . Scale And Slip Table, Etc. Published 1 January 1926 by Crosby Lockwood & Son
  • The Sextant Simplified A Practical Explanation of the Use of the Sextant at Sea, Published 1 January 1973 by Thomas Reed Publications
  • Coastal & Ocean Seamanship, (Ed.) Thomas Reed Publications, 1971 ISBN 978-0901281265
  • Log Book for Yachts (Ed.) ISBN 978-0900335426
  • Practical Shipmasters' Business, Published 1 January 1927 by Imray
  • Hints to Up-to-date Navigators, published 1 January 1927 by Crosby Lockwood
  • Practical Cargo Stowage for Ships' Officers Captain H. H. Bridger and Captain O. M. Watts, Published by Imray, Laurie, Norie and Wilson Ltd, 123 Minories, London, 1930
  • Stanford's Coloured Chart of the English Channel from the Goodwins to Selsey Bill Watts, Captain O.M., Published by Edward Stanford, London (20-22 Maddox Street, Mayfair address)

As editor

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  • Reed's Nautical Almanac[10]

References

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  1. ^ Coastal & Ocean Seamanship. Thomas Reed Publications. 1971. p. frontispiece. ISBN 978-0901281265.
  2. ^ a b "FamilySearch: Sign In".
  3. ^ "FamilySearch: Sign In".
  4. ^ McKay, Sinclair (18 September 2014). Dunkirk: From Disaster to Deliverance - Testimonies of the Last Survivors. Aurum Press. ISBN 9781781313848 – via Google Books.
  5. ^ Bell, Bethany (12 August 2017). "'I've come to rescue you': My grandfather at Dunkirk". BBC News. Retrieved 2 October 2020.
  6. ^ Sharp, Nigel (15 October 2015). Troubled Waters: Leisure Boating and the Second World War. Amberley Publishing. ISBN 978-1445651606. Retrieved 2 October 2020.
  7. ^ "Yacht designs database". National Maritime Museum - Yacht designs database. National Maritime Museum. Retrieved 4 October 2020.
  8. ^ "1986". probatesearch.service.gov.uk. p. 8727. Retrieved 2 October 2020.
  9. ^ "About Us | CLYC". City Livery Yacht Club. Retrieved 4 October 2020.
  10. ^ "Captain William Harry Coombs 1893–1969" (PDF). navandgen.zurich.co.uk. p. 9. Retrieved 3 October 2020.
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