Old Urney Cemetery
James Purdon: The young Tyrone sailor who fought against slaveryIn Old Urney Cemetery stands a stone that tells a story of heartbreak and service. It commemorates Esther Purdon, her seven children who died young – and her son James, who died far from home, aboard HMS Turquoise at Aden on 3 June 1885.
James served on the Royal Navy corvette HMS Turquoise, a sleek composite screw vessel launched in 1876. Turquoise had already seen action in the War of the Pacific, reporting the sinking of the Chilean corvette Esmeralda at the Battle of Iquique. By the time James was aboard, the ship was on a very different mission: anti-slavery patrols in the Indian Ocean.
Between 1884 and 1885, Turquoise captured five slave ships, freeing hundreds of men, women, and children. These missions were dangerous – crews faced armed resistance, deadly boarding actions, and tropical disease. The very year James died, Turquoise was fighting to end the East African slave trade, rescuing captives from dhows and escorting them to freedom.
James never saw his home again. The stone at Urney carries the simple words: “They are not dead but sleepeth.” It is a reminder that the fight against slavery cost lives – including that of a young sailor from a small parish in Tyrone.
The grave of James Purdon links a quiet rural cemetery to the global story of the abolition of slavery – and to a young man who gave his life in that fight.