Lewis Alfred Munn was the eldest son of Captain Alfred Henry Munn and Elizabeth Edwards. He received his education at the Thetford grammar school in Norfolk. He went to sea in 1867, became a master mariner in 1881, and continued his maritime life until 1894. For the last 20 years he was an officer, and later commander, in the Union Steamship Company of Southampton (later part of the Union-Castle Line).

In July 1895 Munn was appointed in the civil service of the Cape Colony as shipping master of East London harbour, and as official visitor to the lighthouses at Hood Point (to 1905) and East London Beacons (to 1899). He was employed as shipping master in the civil service only to 1901, but retained his post (as harbour master, or port captain) until his retirement in 1911. From the beginning of 1897 until the end of 1908 he was a regular meteorological observer for the Meteorological Commission of the Cape of Good Hope, in charge of the second order meteorological station East London West. A summary of his observations were published annually in the Commission's Report. During the Anglo-Boer War (1899-1902) Munn rendered valuable service in military transport operations at East London, for which he received the thanks of the Lords Commissioners of the British Admiralty. As a Freemason he was a member of the Buffalo Lodge. He was married to Harriet Thorne, with whom he had four daughters.

List of sources:

Cape of Good Hope. Civil service list, 1896, 1898, 1899, 1901-1903, 1905.

Cape of Good Hope. Report of the Meteorological Commission, 1897, 1899-1908.

FamilySearch: Captain Lewis Alfred Munn. https://www.familysearch.org/en/tree/person/about/G196-681 AND https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:33SQ-G5N7-RLP?view=index&personArk=/ark:/61903/1:1:WHMT-HPZM&action=view&cc=1779109&lang=en&groupId=M968-3WL

National Automated Archival Information Retrieval System (NAAIRS). http://www.national.archives.gov.za/naairs.htm Documents relating to Munn, Lewis Alfred / Munn, L.A.

South African who's who, 1908.

Compiled by: C. Plug

Last updated: 2025-05-24 11:41:48