Category Archives: photography

Commonwealth War Graves, Corporal, Essex, Great War, history, illness, Pembrokeshire, photography, Royal Army Service Corps, Sergeant, story, war

Corporal Tom Morse

Leave a comment
Serjeant Tom Morse

Thomas Morse was born in St Nicholas, Pembrokeshire, in the summer of 1885. One of thirteen children, his parents were Thomas and Mary Morse. Thomas Sr was an agricultural labourer, but when he completed his schooling, his son found work as a mason and, by the time of the 1911 census, he was boarding with his older sister Maria and her family.

When war broke out, Thomas Jr – who was better known as Tom – stepped up to play his part. Full details about his service have been lost to time, but it is clear that he enlisted in the Royal Army Service Corps. It is unclear whether he spent any time overseas, but towards the end of the war, he found himself based in Essex in the Mechanical Transport Division.

In the autumn of 1918, Tom, who had risen to the rank of Acting Corporal, fell ill. He came down with pneumonia, and was admitted to Colchester Hospital. The condition would prove fatal, and he passed away on 26th October 1918: he was 33 years of age.

The body of Thomas “Tom” Morse was brought back to Pembrokeshire for burial. He was laid to rest in the Hermon Baptist Burial Ground in Fishguard.

Intriguingly, the Commonwealth War Graves Commission have Tom’s rank as Serjeant. What remains of his service papers, however, all suggest he was an Acting Corporal.

Equally intriguing are the details of Tom’s dependents. His entry on the Army Register of Soldiers’ Effects gives his father, Thomas Sr, as his beneficiary. His Dependents’ Pension Record, however, gives his mother, Mary, and Miss M Nicholas, who is listed as the guardian of his illegitimate child. There no further information on them.

Commonwealth War Graves, Glamorganshire, Great War, history, Pembrokeshire, photography, Private, story, Surrey, unknown, war, Welsh Guards

Private William Mathias

Leave a comment
FishguPrivate William Mathias

William George Mathias was born in the Pembrokeshire village of Littleston early in 1885. The oldest of five children, his parents were John and Sarah Mathias. John was a farm worker, but when he finished his schooling William found work as a rabbit trapper. This meant a move from home, and the 1901 census found him as a servant for the Evans family, in nearby Mathry.

Agricultural work was not employment that William wanted to dedicate his life to, and he soon found a new opportunity. He took a job as a police constable in Glamorganshire. There is little information about this part of his life, but the 1911 census recorded him as being one of 26 police officers boarding in the village of Gilfach Goch. Interestingly the census includes the annotation “The above are police quartered at the Ogmore Arms, Gilfach Goch, temporarily during the coal strike.”

The Miner’s Strike of 1910/11 resulted in the temporary closure of South Wales mines. Police were shipped in, but this only resulted in riots breaking out. In November 1910 disorder broke out in Tonypandy, Pontypridd and Gilfach Goch, amongst other locations. Nearly 80 police and more than 500 civilians were injured, although the exact number of miners wounded is unclear, as many refused to seek medical treatment for fear of being singled out.

As the strike moved into 1911, the army was called in, with four detachments of the Somerset Light Infantry being called into Penygraig, Llwynpia, Clydach Vale and Gilfach Goch. Stones were thrown by the rioters, and a number of William’s police colleagues were injured: thirteen of the Gilfach miners were arrested and prosecuted for their involvement in the unrest.

The decision to send troops in was contentious, and anger became directed at the then Home Secretary, Winston Churchill, for the decisions he took. Ultimately, the miners were defeated, their calls for better living conditions and higher wages went unanswered.

William continued in the police force until war broke out. His time in the army is lost to history, but it is clear that he enlisted in the Welsh Guards as a Private. Sent to Caterham, Surrey, for his training, his time serving King and Country was not to be a lengthy one. In May 1915 he was admitted to a military hospital, though the cause is not clear. He passed away on 20th May 1915: he was 30 years of age.

The body of William George Mathias was taken back to Pembrokeshire for burial. He was laid to rest in Fishguard’s Hernon Baptist Burial Ground.

Private William Mathias
(from findagrave.com)
Australia, Australian Infantry, Commonwealth War Graves, Devon, Great War, history, illness, photography, Private, story, war, Wiltshire

Private Edwin Beattie

Leave a comment
Private Edwin Beattie

Edwin Beattie was born on 14th March 1894, in the town of Coomera, Queensland, Australia. He was the youngest of three children to John and Mary Beattie.

There is little information available about Edwin’s early life, but when he completed his schooling, he took up farm work. When war broke out, he was keen to play his part, and enlisted in the Australian Imperial Force on 28th March 1916.

Private Beattie’s service records show that he was 5ft 9.5ins (1.65m) tall, and weighed 136lbs (61.7kg). A Methodist, he was recorded as having brown hair, blue eyes and a medium complexion. He also had a birthmark on the small of his back, and scars on both knees.

Edwin was assigned to the 44th Battalion of the Australian Infantry. His After training, his unit boarded the SS Seang Choon in Brisbane, and set off on the ten month voyage to Britain, arriving in Devonport, Devon, on the 9th December 1916.

During the voyage, Private Beattie had fallen ill, and, on disembarking, he was taken to the local hospital for treatment. By 23rd December, he was moved to the Military Hospital connected to the ANZAC camp in Codford, Wiltshire. His condition – pneumonia – worsened over the coming days, and Edwin would eventually succumb. As a new year began, he breathed his last, passing away on 1st January 1917, at the age of just 22 years of age.

Thousand of miles from home, Edwin Beattie was laid to rest in the newly extended graveyard of St Mary’s Church, Codford.

Private Edwin Beattie
(from findagrave.com)
Australia, Australian Infantry, Commonwealth War Graves, Devon, Great War, history, illness, Ireland, photography, Private, story, Tipperary, war, Wiltshire

Private Lawrence Kinane

Leave a comment
Private Lawrence Kinane

Lawrence Kinane was born in Tipperary, Ireland, in 1896. One of eight children, his parents were Daniel and Catherine Kinane. Daniel was a farmer and, when Catherine died when Lawrence was just 10 years old, he was left to raise the support the family on his own.

At this point, the family’s trail goes cold, and it later picked up in an unexpected way. Daniel and some of the children seem to have emigrated to the United States, and he died in Brooklyn in March 1914. Lawrence, meanwhile, seems to have gone further, seeking a new life in Australia. A cousin, Mary Mulcahey, was living with her husband in Warwick, Queensland, and, by the time war broke out, he had moved to Brisbane.

Lawrence was working as a labourer when, on 10th June 1916, he enlisted in the Australian Imperial Force. His service papers show that he was 5ft 11ins (1.8m) tall and weighed 147lbs (66.7kg). A Roman Catholic, he had dark brown hair, grey eyes and a medium complexion. Under Distinctive Marks, he was recorded as having a large patch of scars on his left side, about 7ins (18cm) above his buttock.

Private Kinane’s unit – the 49th Battalion of the Australian Infantry – set sail from Brisbane on the 19th September 1916. His ship – the SS Seang Choon – would take ten weeks to reach its destination – Devonport, Devon, and Lawrence finally arrived at the ANZAC base in Codford, Wiltshire in mid-December.

The lengthy sea voyage had taken its toll on a lot of the soldiers being transported, and Private Kinane was not to be immune. Within weeks of arriving, he came down with pneumonia, and was admitted to the No. 3 New Zealand General Hospital in nearby Sutton Veny on 31st December. Lawrence’s condition worsened, and he finally succumbed to it on 6th January 1917. He was just 20 years of age.

Thousands of miles from Australia, and with no family close by, the body of Lawrence Kinane was instead laid to rest in the graveyard of St Mary’s Church in Codford, not far from the base that had been his home for just a few short weeks.

Private Lawrence Kinane
(from findagrave.com)
Australia, Australian Infantry, Commonwealth War Graves, Devon, Driver, Great War, history, illness, photography, story, war, Wiltshire

Driver David McGregor

Leave a comment
Driver David McGregor

David Edward McGregor was born in Bega, New South Wales, Australia, in the summer of 1880. One of fourteen children, his parents were John and Isabella McGregor.

There is little information about David’s early life, but when he completed his schooling, he found work in a dairy, eventually becoming employed as a cheesemaker.

When war broke out, David stepped up to serve his King and Empire, enlisting in the Australian Imperial Force as a Driver on 7th July 1916. His service records show that he was 5ft 10.5ins (1.79m) tall and weighed in at 168lbs (76.2kg). A Presbyterian, he was noted as having black hair, brown eyes and a medium complexion.

Driver McGregor’s unit – the 15th Battalion of the Australian Infantry – set sail from Brisbane on the SS Boonah on 21st October 1916. Their journey would take ten weeks, arriving in Devonport, Devon, on 10th January 1917. From here David was marched in to the ANZAC camp at Codford, Wiltshire.

The lengthy sea voyage had taken its toll on a lot of the troops, and David was not to be immune. He came down with pneumonia and, after initially being treated in the camp hospital, he was admitted to the military hospital in Codford in a moribund condition. Driver Brooks’ move was to prove too little, too late, and he passed away on 23rd January 1917, just a day after being admitted. He was 36 years of age.

David Edward McGregor was laid to rest in the ANZAC extension to St Mary’s Churchyard in Codford, Wiltshire, not far from the base he had so briefly called home.

Australia, Australian Infantry, Commonwealth War Graves, Devon, Great War, history, illness, photography, Private, story, war, Wiltshire

Private Harold Brooks

Leave a comment
Private Harold Brooks

Harold Vincent Brooks was born in Ipswich, Queensland, Australia, in the spring of 1898. One of ten children, his parents were William and Mary Brooks.

Little information is available about Harold’s early life, but when he completed his schooling, he found work as a labourer. When war broke out, he was initially turned down for military service because of poor eyesight, but as the conflict rolled on, he tried to enlist again and was accepted into the Australian Imperial Force.

Private Brooks’ service records show that he was 5ft 4.5ins (1.63m) tall, and weighed 136lbs (61.7kg). A Roman Catholic, he had brown hair, hazel eyes and a medium complexion.

Assigned to the 47th Battalion of the Australian Infantry, Harold left his home country from Brisbane on the 27th October 1916. The ship his unit was sailing on – the Marathon – took just over ten weeks to reach Britain, eventually docking in Devonport, Devon. From there Private Brooks was marched to the ANZAC camp in Codford, Wiltshire.

Harold’s time in Britain was not to be a lengthy one. He contracted pneumonia, and was admitted to the nearby Sutton Veny Military Hospital on 24th January. Private Brooks’ condition worsened, and he passed away on 5th February 1917. He was just 19 years of age.

Thousands of miles from home, the body of Harold Vincent Brooks was buried in the newly extended St Mary’s Churchyard, Codford.

Australia, Australian Infantry, Commonwealth War Graves, Devon, Great War, history, illness, photography, Private, story, war, Wiltshire

Private Alfred Parkinson

Leave a comment
Private Alfred Parkinson

Alfred Henry Parkinson was born in Reedy Creek, South Australia, on 20th October 1880. One of nine children, his parents were William and Isabella Parkinson.

There is little concrete information about Alfred’s early life, but when he finished his schooling he found work in the mines. When war broke out, however, he stepped up to play his part, joining the Australian Imperial Force on 2nd November 1916.

Private Parkinson’s service records show that he was 5ft 9ins (1.65m) tall, and weighed in at 10st 4lbs (65.3kg). He was noted as having brown hair brown eyes and a fair complexion. After a month’s training, he left Australia on board the SS Berrima, bound for Europe.

Alfred’s unit – the 16th Battalion of the Australian Infantry – arrived in Devonport, Devon, on 16th February 1917. Within a matter of days he arrived at the ANZAC camp at Sutton Veny, Wiltshire.

Illness amongst the Australian troops was rife by the time they arrived in Britain, and Private Parkinson was not to be immune. He was admitted to the Military Hospital connected to the camp on 20th March, suffering from bronchial pneumonia. The condition worsened, and he died just six days later. Alfred was 36 years of age.

Thousands of miles from home, the body of Alfred Henry Parkinson was laid to rest in the newly extended graveyard of St Mary’s Church, Codford, not far form the base in which he had breathed his last.

Carpenter's Crewman, Commonwealth War Graves, Essex, Great War, history, Ireland, killed in action, Merchant Navy, Pembrokeshire, photography, story, Wales, war

Carpenter’s Mate George Land

Leave a comment
Carpenter’s Mate George Land

George William Land was born early in 1891, and was the only child to George and Caroline Land. George Sr was a greengrocer from Dagenham, Essex, and the family were living in Ilford when his son was born.

Caroline seems to have died a few months after George Jr’s birth, and, by the time of the 1901 census, he was in the care of her parents. His father was still running the shop, and was supported by George Jr’s aunt.

The 1911 census found George Jr employed as a greengrocer, and it seems likely that he was working alongside his father by this point. He was living with his maternal and uncle, who was also employed in the same line of work.

When war was declared, it seems that George Jr wated to play his part. Full details of his service have been lost to time, but it seems that he joined the Merchant Navy and, by the summer of 1918, he was working as a Carpenter’s Mate on board the SS Mesaba. She was a cargo liner, requisitioned by the Admiralty for transport duties.

On 31st August 1918, the Mesaba left Liverpool, Lancashire, for Philadelphia. The following day, she was torpedoed by the German submarine U-118, and foundered. She sunk off the coast of County Wexford, with the loss of 20 souls, Carpenter’s Mate Land included. George Jr was 27 years of age.

The body of George William Land was laid to rest in St David’s Parish Cemetery, Pembrokeshire. It is unclear whether his body had been brought to Wales with the seventy survivors who had been rescued, or whether it had washed ashore there some time after the sinking.

Berkshire, Commonwealth War Graves, Drummer, Great War, history, Lincolnshire, photography, Sherwood Foresters, story, unknown, war, Wiltshire

Drummer Malcolm Vacher

Leave a comment
Drummer Malcolm Vacher

Born at the start of 1902, Malcolm Edward James Vacher was the younger of two children to James and Alice Vacher. James was a domestic coachman and both he and Alice were born in Milton Abbas, Dorset. By the time Malcolm was born, the family had relocated to the village of Mortimer, Berkshire.

Alice died when her youngest was just five, and James moved the family to the village of Kelstern in Lincolnshire, possibly for work. Sadly, James passed away in 1916, leaving Malcolm and his older sister, Gladys, as orphans.

By this point war was raging across Europe, and it seems that Malcolm looked to the army as a new family. He enlisted in the Sherwood Foresters (Notts and Derby Regiment), although his service papers have been lost to time.

It is unclear how or where Drummer Vacher served. He survived the war, however, and by the autumn of 1919, found himself on furlough in Wiltshire. His death certificate records that died on 26th October, from a combination of appendicitis and heart failure. Just 17 years of age, his sister was by his side when he passed.

Malcolm Edward James Vacher was laid to rest in St John’s Churchyard, Warminster. The Grave Registration Form notes that the headstone was paid for by his uncle.

By this point, Gladys had lost her parents and her brother. Twenty-one years of age when her sibling died, she nonetheless found the resilience to carry on.

The 1921 census recorded Gladys living at 1 Corporation Street, Kidderminster. Boarding with Jane Smith, she was working as garage assistant for the motorcycle department of the Castle Motor Co Ltd on Vicar Street.

In the spring of 1925, Gladys married radio engineer and dealer George Whitford. By the time of the 1939 Register, the couple were living at 81 New Road, Kidderminster. Gladys was helping her husband with the business, and was recorded as being a radio dealer and travel agent.

Gladys Whitford, née Vacher, passed away in the spring of 1960. An obituary outlined the life she had forged for herself after losing her brother:

Mrs Gladys Mary Whitford, who has died at her home in New Road, Kidderminster, aged 63, had conducted one of the oldest travel agencies in the Midlands for 30 years. The firm, founded by her husband’s grandfather in 1856, arranged emigration for many families seeking a new life in the Commonwealth.

Mrs Whitford joined the Women’s Legion in 1916 and was one of the first motor-cycle despatch riders attached to the Royal Army Service Corps. She was a member of the Kidderminster Chamber of Commerce and of the committee of the Kidderminster Retail Traders’ Association. She is survived by her husband, Mr George Whitford, a radio and television dealer.

[Birmingham Daily Post – Tuesday 12 January 1960]

My thanks go to Peter Calver and the members of the Lost Cousins website for their help in filling in details of Gladys’ life after the loss of her family.

Able Seaman, Boy, Commonwealth War Graves, Devon, Great War, Hampshire, history, killed in action, Ordinary Seaman, photography, Royal Navy, story, war, Wiltshire

Able Seaman John Butler

Leave a comment
Able Seaman John Butler

John Stuart Butler was born on 8th May 1896 in Warminster, Wiltshire. The middle of three children, he was one of three boys to John and Harriet Butler. John Sr was a coachman, and the family lived at 3 St John’s Terrace on the eastern side of the town.

When John Jr – who was known as Jack to avoid any confusion with his father – finished his schooling, he found work as an office boy. He sought a life of adventure, however, and looked to the Royal Navy.

Jack enlisted on 3rd June 1912 and, being underage, he was given the rank of Boy 2nd Class. Initially sent to HMS Impregnable, the training base in Devonport, Devon, within three months he had been promoted to Boy 1st Class.

Over the next year-and-a-half, Jack served on three separate ships. After leaving Impregnable, he was assigned to armoured cruiser HMS Royal Arthur. From there he moved to the battlecruiser HMS New Zealand and the battleship HMS Dreadnought. In between assignments Boy Butler’s returned to what became his shore base, HMS Victory, the Royal Naval Dockyard in Portsmouth, Hampshire.

While assigned to Dreadnought, Jack came of age. He was formally enlisted in the Royal Navy, his service papers confirming that he was 5ft 6.5ins (1.69m) tall, with brown hair, grey-blue eyes and a fresh complexion. He was also noted as having a scar on his right side.

In May 1915, Jack was promoted again, this time to Able Seaman. His annual reviews noted his character was very good, but that his ability was satisfactory. He would remain on HMS Dreadnought for nearly three years, before being reassigned to HMS Mohawk, a destroyer that was attached to the Dover Patrol, protecting the English Channel against German incursions, in July 1916.

On the night of the 26th October 1916 a number of enemy torpedo boats carried out a raid into the Channel. When one of the German vessels sank HMS Flirt, Mohawk was one of six ships sent to retaliate. As she left Dover harbour, she was hit by a barrage of shells. Her steering jammed, but she remained floating. The German torpedo boats escaped, but four of the Mohawk’s crew – including Able Seaman Butler – were killed. He was just 20 years of age.

The body of John Stuart “Jack” Butler was taken back to Wiltshire for burial. He was laid to rest in the graveyard of St John’s Church, on the same road as where his grieving parents were still living.