THE discovery of documents from Canada’s worst-ever maritime disaster has led to a remarkable link with a major Oswestry factory being discovered, much to its owner’s delight.

The RMS Empress of Ireland sunk off the coast of Canada in May 1914, killing 1,012 people – more than the Titanic two years previously – including Albert Mullins and his 10-year-old daughter Eileen.

Albert was the co-founder of Barnes & Mullins, a musical instrument distribution company which is now run from the outskirts of Oswestry, and had been on a two-year business trip.

It was already known that he spent time in Australia, it is believed they also visited China and Japan.

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He then crossed Canada from west to east before embarking on the fateful trip out of Quebec and into St Lawrence River, where the Empress was struck by a Norwegian ship in dense fog.

Diver Mark Reynolds, in 1986, found baggage in the wreck of the Empress and over the years, historian and curator of the museum dedicated to the wreck, David Saint-Pierre, has painstakingly researched and discovered that it belonged to Albert.

Barnes & Mullins, though founded in London, now runs from Morda, and Brian Cleary, owner and managing director of the company, says the confirmation of the baggage belonging to Albert is an ‘incredible discovery’.

Border Counties Advertizer: The paper samples that confirmed the luggage belonged to Albert Mullins. The paper samples that confirmed the luggage belonged to Albert Mullins. (Image: Guy D'Astous.)

He said: “I am delighted because a lot of our history was forgotten in our company.

“I was intrigued when I joined back in 1999 to rediscover who Barnes and Mullins themselves were, and there were rumours that Albert had lost his life on the Titanic but when you drill down to these things, there are half-truths.

“I tried to get some facts and that’s why it’s come to life now because we’re in touch with the right people.

“I’m delighted to see that we’ve seen the story come full circle.”

Items found from Mark’s dive in 1986 including small paper fragments of a notepad which could not originally be traced.

They were eventually bought by Guy D’Astous, a collector, and from there David was able to piece together the owner of the case because of documents noting the locations of music shops in Canada, in conjunction with historian Francis Lapointe.

Brian said the historian has made the company a part of the discovery, and that it has helped verify the find with a sample of Albert’s handwriting.

Border Counties Advertizer: Albert Mullins. Albert Mullins. (Image: Barnes & Mullins.)

He added: “I’d been in communication with David Saint-Pierre  who runs the museum dedicated to the Empress of Ireland, because in Canada, that is the biggest maritime disaster they’ve ever had to this day.

“Whereas, of course, here it’s known as the forgotten disaster because it happened two years after the Titanic, even though more people lost their lives on the Empress.

“Also, it was just before the outbreak of the First World War and it just didn’t get any traction in the UK.

“We knew Albert and his daughter lost their lives on the ship and recently, David contacted me because he knew that Albert was in the musical instrument business and they’d come across these artefacts.

Border Counties Advertizer: Wooden bowls belonging to Albert. Wooden bowls belonging to Albert. (Image: Guy D'Astous.)

“When they’d managed to bring the note pages found in the suitcase back to life, it mentioned nothing but music shops in Canada and David put two and two together.

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“He had also asked me for a sample of Albert’s handwriting and miracle upon miracles, we did and we sent him it him, and it was Albert.”

A special ceremony will be held in May to commemorate 110 years since the sinking in Rimouski, Quebec.

Albert was survived by his wife Kate, who recovered from the Empress and their son Dick, who had stayed in London with his aunt, who was also Barnes’s wife.