Hi Elaine,

For the sake of anyone new to your research, this is one of the previous threads about him on the Board:
www.isle-of-man.com/genealogy/messageboard/index.pl/md/read/id/558437

I looked up seamen's records many years ago at the London PRO (Class BT) which had logs of ships’ travel – names, places and dates. This sheet explains what is where in case you haven't seen it:
www.liverpoolmuseums.org.uk/maritime/archive/sheet/43

Includes:
From 1851 onwards masters of all UK ships had to surrender to the Board of Trade the wages and effects of any seamen who died during a voyage, and records are held at the National Archives as Registers of Wages and Effects of Deceased Seamen, 1852-1881 (BT 153) with name and ship indexes (BT 154). Also available are Monthly Lists of Deaths of Seamen, 1886-1889 (BT 156) and Registers of Seamen's Death Classified by Cause, 1882-1888 (BT 157).

Hopefully someone will answer you who has more recent experience with these records.

Sue