John Masterton (1850-1925)
Guernsey Seaman
John Masterton, seaman and labourer, from Guernsey is the likely "Harbour Watchman" reported in the Guernsey Weekly Press in 1916. By then he would have been 66 years old. He never married. He was the younger brother of James Masterton, master mariner and the elder brother of Albert Masterton, a cook who was drowned at sea in 1891.
Genealogy
John Masterton was the third child born to Captain John Masterton, master mariner, and Mary Phillips, who had married in 1845 in Bridport, Dorset. John Masterton, the father, was the first Masterton in Guernsey and was the eldest son of a butcher in Montrose. John had moved to Guernsey with Mary and two children in 1849 or 1850. John Masterton, father and son, belong to the large group of Mastertons that flourished in the Forfar and Montrose area. Fuller details of his extended family can be found at this link.
Weekly Press, Guernsey
ANOTHER NARROW ESCAPE
LAD RESCUED FROM OLD HARBOUR
About 9.30 Tuesday afternoon a lad named Platt, a son of Mrs A Platt, of Rosemary Lane, fell into the Old Harbour from the steps at the north-west corner. Mr Henry Bond, of 10 New Street, who was in a store nearby, was called, and promptly dived in after the lad. He found the boy sinking in eight feet of water, some four yards from the steps, and brought him safely alongside. Mr J Lihou, of 4 Coupée Lane, assisted Mr Bond ashore, and in doing so overbalanced, and also fell into the water. Fortunately he is a good swimmer, and had no difficulty in getting ashore. The lad Platt, who was semi-conscious, was taken to his home by Mr John Masterton, Harbour Watchman.
Weekly Press
Guernsey
12th August 1916