Virtual
War Memorial
Australia

Louis Nicholas Sampson

Louis Nicholas Sampson (known to friends and family as ‘SAM’) was born in St Peters, South Australia on 30th September 1907 to Olive Ellen and Nicholas Sampson. He was the eldest of what would eventually be three brothers; Frederick William (1909) and Wallace Gerald Thomas (1911).

All three brothers served with distinction in the Royal Australian Navy, all of them becoming Chief Petty Officers.

Louis’s parents separated in 1921, his mother taking him and Wallace with her and leaving Fred with his father.

Louis joined as a “Boy Sailor 2nd Class” on 3rd May 1922 on the HMAS Tingira, a sailing ship used to train boys in Rosebay, Sydney Harbour. Fred joined as a “Boy Sailor 2nd Class” in 1925 on the HMAS Tingira and Wallace joined in 1929 at Flinders Naval Depot.

Louis was attracted to a wide variety of sports. He was part of the HMAS Tingira swim team. He played Aussie Rules, tennis and rowed in whaler crews.

The breakdown of their parents' marriage had severed the connections between the brothers and Louis and Fred did not see each other from 1921 until 1925. When Fred joined the HMAS Tingira, the brothers were reunited. As Fred came down the gangplank, Louis was waiting for him at the bottom. The brothers embraced and despite some good natured ribbing from the other boys, they both cried and initially were unable to speak. The brothers remained close for the rest of their lives. (The retelling of this episode would still move Fred to tears over 75 years later). 

Louis’s first ship on leaving HMAS Tingira was HMAS Brisbane which he eventually served on twice (1923-1924 and 1935). He went on to serve on HMAS Adelaide (1926-1928), HMAS Canberra (1930-1932), HMAS Albatross (1938) and HMAS Sydney (1935-1936 and 1938-1941). 

In 1930 at a production of the Noel Coward play “Bittersweet” in Sydney, Louis met the lady who would become the love of his life. The next day he sent Mary Murphy a telegram reminding her of the title of a song in the play, “I’d Like to See You Again.” She obviously felt the same way, though initially the name Murphy, proved a hurdle to overcome with Louis’s mother. A stanch Methodist, she did not relish the idea of his relationship with, heaven forbid, a Catholic! Despite these misgivings, Louis and Mary were married on the 8th January 1935. Mary’s perseverance and warmth, and the birth of their first son, John, demolished any misgivings that Olive Sampson had.

In the same year that he was married, Louis went to England on HMAS Brisbane to commission HMAS Sydney into the RAN. The HMAS Brisbane was a coal burning ship and was very dirty from the soot that poured from its funnels. As the Brisbane sailed into Portsmouth Harbour, preparations for the Spithead Review were taking place, where the British fleet was to be reviewed by the King a couple days later. The HMAS Australia was part of the review and on board her was his brother Fred. The grimy Brisbane received a big cheer as she sailed down through the lines of gleaming ships and into her berth.  

The Australians took over the HMAS Sydney on the 27th September 1935.

On the 30 October 1935 Louis and Mary’s first child John was born and he was informed of the baby’s arrival by telegram. Unfortunately for Louis instead of returning home as was expected when the Sydney was commissioned she was ordered to join the 2nd British Cruiser Squadron along with HMAS Australia.

On the 11th March 1936 the Cruiser Squadron arrived in Alexandria. Louis and Fred were able to spend some time together and the first thing they did was ‘wet the babies head’, celebrating the birth of John. It took them several days to fully recover from their celebrations.

HMAS Sydney finally arrived home on the 11th August 1936 and father and son were at last introduced.

The family moved to the Mornington Peninsula in Victoria in September 1936 when he was posted to HMAS Cerberus. On the 21st July 1937 Louis and Mary’s second child, Frances Mary Sampson was born in Frankston.

On the 1st March 1938 the family moved back to Sydney as Louis was posted to HMAS Penguin. In April-July he was posted briefly to the seaplane tender, HMAS Albatross.

On the 2nd July 1938, he rejoined the HMAS Sydney taking up what would turn out to be the final posting of his life. On the 26th December 1938, their third child Helen Judith Sampson was born.

Louis remained with the HMAS Sydney through her famous service in the Mediterranean until her loss on the 19th November 1941. When the Sydney put into Geraldton on the weekend of 18th -19th October 1941, Louis drew a sketch in chalk of the ship, which he signed “SAM” and wrote, “Good Luck to the Air Boys from HMAS Sydney”. Fourteen officers from the ship signed the drawing and it was presented to the Sergeant’s Mess RAAF base at Geraldton.

It became one of the last relics from the Sydney and can now be found at the Australian War Memorial in Canberra.

His many letters were treasured by Mary until her death in 1994. His final letter written on the 8th November 1941 is filled with his longing for his family and his plans and dreams for all of them for the future. The following is an extract from that letter. 

"I’m very homesick Darling and trying to hurry the days along.

I’ve heaps of ideas and plans to keep my mind occupied and I lean on them a lot when time is tedious. I can fully understand your impatience Darling  for I’m just as excited and anxious as you are. I’m longing for a chance to collect your letters. They are always a tonic and help immensely…

I hope I can phone you before this reaches you. Slowly but surely the days are passing. How did our new roses come out Dear? What sort of a bloom has the 'Julien Potin'? I’m sure you know that I have all sorts of jobs mapped out but we are going to have a holiday Darling. I’m sure you need one.

Gosh I miss you and it seems years since I left you. We have a lot to make up for don’t we? And we will be good friends. I try to visualise your days and nights Darling and in doing so I feel lonely and miserable thinking of all that I am missing…"

Louis was killed in action, 11 days after this letter was written. 

The mystery surrounding the fate of the Sydney caused tremendous shock and ongoing pain for Mary and her family. All her life she longed for some news of the resting place and actual fate of her beloved ‘Sam’. Sadly, in her life time this never came, also neither of Louis’ brothers lived to see the ship found.

The finding of the HMAS Sydney in 2008 provided at last for John, Frances and Helen and their families answers to many questions that had haunted them for so long.

The publicity surrounding the finding of the HMAS Sydney produced an incredible, precious find for Louis’s family. In 1939 Clare Smith (nee Merrigan) who was 8 years old at the time, went with her family to Wallaroo so that her father, William Merrigan, a keen amateur photographer, could film the arrival of HMAS Sydney.

The family struck up a conversation with Louis after the ship had docked. Clare’s memory of that long ago event was that he was “very handsome.”

They invited him to accompany them to Victor Harbour where her father shot footage of Louis as he walked down the stairs at Granite Island.

With incredible generosity, Clare, when her father died, made sure the film found its way to Louis’s family. 

This short length of film surfacing miraculously after 70 years provided a deeply moving and tangible link to the father who had simply vanished all those years ago and brought ‘Sam’ back to his family in a way that no other experience could have provided and was all the more powerful for its complete surprise.