John was born at Jack Place, Main Street, Inverkip on the 3rd June 1916. He was the son of John Blackwood Blaikie, a blacksmith and Elizabeth who were married in the former Gourock district in 1908.

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John, a former Inverkip Scout, was apparently deemed unfit for the Royal Navy because of a collapsed lung so joined the Merchant Navy. He served onboard the SS Gretavale which was built at Lithgows, Port Glasgow. The ship was attacked north east of Notre Dame Bay, Newfoundland. Thirty-eight men died and six survived.

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He is commemorated at the Tower Hill Memorial and on the Inverkip War Memorial, where the date is recorded as 3rd November although official records state 2nd November.