Warm tributes have been paid to the former owner of the wreck of the Lusitiania, Greg Bemis who died at his home in America – just over a year after transferring ownership of the wreck to a local community group in West Cork.
Con Hayes, of the Old Head of Kinsale Museum Committee, said Mr Bemis, who would have been 92 next week, was a remarkable man. His generosity in transferring ownership of the wreck to the group would not be forgotten, he said.
He recalled how he first contacted Mr Bemis in 2011 and how they built up a relationship. This led to Mr Bemis coming to Ireland in May 2019 to formally transfer ownership of the wreck to the Old Head of Kinsale Museum.
“Greg has been ill for a number of years but he was quite determined to come to Ireland last year to formally hand over the ownership of wreck to us and that’s something for which we will be eternally grateful,” said Mr Hayes.
A venture capitalist, Mr Bemis acquired joint ownership of the wreck in 1968 and he later bought it outright for $1 (US dollar). But he had to fight a long legal battle to prove his ownership including going to court in the UK, the US and Ireland.
Mr Hayes said they were “ really bowled over” by Mr Bemis’s decision to transfer ownership though it “ wasn’t completely out of the blue”.
“He clearly realised he could not go on forever and his family weren’t interested in continuing directly as it was too difficult for them,” Mr Hayes said.
Torpedoed
The Lusitania went down on May 7th, 1915 with the loss of 1,201 lives. It had been torpedoed some 18kms off the Old Head of Kinsale by the German submarine, U20 while en route from New York to Liverpool.
Mr Hayes said Mr Bemis, who first dived on the wreck at the age of 76, was determined to find out what exactly caused the ship to sink so quickly.
“He devoted the last 50 years of his life trying to find out why exactly the Lusitania sank so quickly – she went down in 18 minutes and what caused the second explosion given the German submarine fired only one torpedoed,” he said.
Speaking at a ceremony at the Old Head of Kinsale on May 7th, 2019, Mr Bemis explained his decision to transfer ownership of the wreck, which lies in 93 metres of water.
“I’ve come to realize that at almost 91 years old there is only so much more I can do to further this project and I think because of the Lusitania’s part in history, it’s very important that it be done properly and we get all the artefacts we can from the wreck to put in the museum planned for here.”
He said he now felt it was time for him to step aside from his work to remember those who perished on board the ship. He was happy to leave that in the hands of locals who had done such a fine job in remembering the victims with the Lusitania Memorial Garden, he said.
