Benjamin Hoskins was born in Axminster, Devon, in the autumn of 1870. The oldest of six children, his parents were labour William Hoskins and his dressmaker wife, Elizabeth.
When he finished his schooling, Benjamin found work as a plumber and glazier. In 1893, he married Emma Sprackling: the couple set up home on Whitpot Lane, and would go on to have seven children. Benjamin turned his hand to house painting, and this would bring him in a wage until war broke out in 1914.
Full details of Benjamin’s military service have been lost to time. What can be confirmed is that he had enlisted by March 1915, and voluntarily stepped up to play his part. Private Hoskins joined the 3rd/4th Battalion of the Devonshire Regiment, and was billeted in Bournemouth, Dorset.
By September 1915, Benjamin had been admitted to the 2nd Southern General Hospital in Portsmouth, Hampshire. He was suffering from arterial sclerosis, which had been aggravated by his time in the army, and this had led to heart failure. Private Hoskins died on 24th September 1915: he was 45 years of age.
Benjamin Hoskins’ body was taken back to Devon for burial. He was laid to rest in Axminster Cemetery, not far from where his family still lived.
Benjamin and Emma’s oldest son, Reginald, also served during the First World War. He had found work as a shop assistant when he finished school, and joined the 5th (Service) Battalion of the Duke of Edinburgh’s Wiltshire Regiment when war broke out.
By August 1915, Private Hoskins’ unit was in Gallipoli, and it was here that he was killed in action. Reginald died on 30th November 1915: he was just 21 years of age. He was laid to rest in the Green Hill Cemetery in Turkey.
Father and son were both lost to the Great War within two months of each other: Emma had lost a husband and son in a matter of weeks.
Death and Service 